Reading Road Trip: At the Shore
The final stop on the reading road trip, but not for reading!
We’ve made it! We have reached the final stop on the Reading Road Trip, and we’re taking some time to relax and recuperate at the shore. Or maybe you’re ready for an adventure now that we’ve made it? If that’s the case, you’re also in the right place.
If you are just joining us, welcome! You can grab our map to see where we’ve been and start from the beginning if you wish. You can also find the weekly coloring pages and other printable resources here. And one more thing. We’re doing a giveaway NEXT WEEK to celebrate the end of our adventure, so if you want a chance to win a Road Trip prize pack, be sure to sign up by filling out this form.
This week we are vacationing at the shore. Though many of our book recommendations have to do with the ocean, the shore for you might be a riverbank, the shoreline of a lake, or a sandy ocean beach! When I think of the shore, my mind goes to the pebble beaches of Lake Superior!
Read: Any book featuring a body of water, a shoreline, or even water in any form. How you interpret the theme is up to you!
Featured Book: Water Sings Blue by Kate Coombs, illustrated by Meilo So. This book of ocean poems is as rhythmic as the ocean waves. Full of flowing rhymes, word play, and humor, the poems and illustrations will have you coming back to it again and again.
What kinds of bodies of water do you enjoy exploring (or splashing in)?
Have you ever explored a tide pool? If so, what kinds of creatures did you find there?
Recall a time when you went swimming at a beach (whether a small lake or the ocean). What did you enjoy about it? What did you not enjoy so much?
In Water Sings Blue, there are poems about many different sea creatures. How many of them have you seen in person, whether in the wild or at an aquarium? Which is your favorite?
When you go to the beach, which do you enjoy more: Relaxing in the sun or splashing in the waves?
Do: Create some “shore line” art using sandpaper!
Idea one: A Sandpaper Castle
You will need a sheet of blue construction paper, some fine sandpaper (ask your parents if they have some with their tools that you can use), a glue stick, and crayons for embellishing your art.
To create your castle, first tear a strip of sandpaper to the bottom of the paper to make the sandy beach. Tear more pieces to create the walls and towers of your castle. Tear carefully so that your strips are fairly straight, but they don’t have to be perfect! Arrange your castle on the paper and glue the strips in place. If you like, add details to the castle and sky using crayons.
Idea two: A Sunset on the Beach
You will need sheets of construction paper in blue, yellow, orange, pink (or red), and purple, some fine sandpaper, a glue stick, and scissors.
To create your sunset:
Tear a strip of sandpaper and glue it to the bottom of a sheet of BLUE construction paper to make the beach.
Make your sunset strips. The yellow strip should have a straight edge (for the horizon line) and the others should be torn. If they turn out jagged, that’s all the better!
Glue the yellow strip so that the straight edge is about in the middle of the paper. This makes your horizon!
Glue the rest of your strips onto the paper, overlapping them slightly to create the look of a colorful sunset! If you like, glue a torn strip of blue at top to show the blue sky showing through.
Flip your art over and use scissors to trim any strips that stick out past the edge. Now you have a beautiful work of sunset art! Where will you display it?
Other activity ideas to pair with shoreline books:
Build an actual sandcastle (even if it’s at the playground or in your back yard).
Visit a body of water, such as an ocean, lake, or a stream.
Visit an aquarium.
Beach “pretend play” with a wading pool or in the tub!
You can also download this week’s coloring page.
Our “At the Shore” Reading List
The Big Book of the Blue by Yuval Zommer. A big, fun book full of delightful pictures and fascinating facts about the big blue!
Hello Lighthouse by Sophie Blackall. Watch the life of the lighthouse keeper grow inside as the ocean swirls and swishes along with the seasons outside.
All The Places We Call Home by Patrice Gopo, Illustrated by Jenin Mohammed. At bedtime, a young girl listens as her Mama’s stories whisk them to lands across oceans and seas to all the places their family has called home.
Down Under the Pier by Nell Cross Beckerman, Illustrated by Rachell Sumpter. A day on the pier for young kids means carousel rides, a ferris wheel, and arcades, but when the money runs out, it’s time to slip down the stairs–under the pier. Underneath, they find slippery sand, gray waves to run through, and echoes to call back to you. What creatures will they find?
Above and Below: Sea and Shore by Harriet Evans and Hannah Bailey. This landscape picture book is a lift-the-flap adventure of land and sea animals. The flaps unveil profiles of animals that live in each place. This book is full of facts and lovely illustrations!
Sea Rex by Molly Idle. When a T-Rex goes to the beach and shares rules for the beach: apply sunscreen and stay near the lifeguard, plus fun tips like: jump in feet first and look for shells, then a day at the beach becomes fun with a Sea Rex instead!
One Summer Up North by John Owens. A beautiful wordless picture book about a family’s adventure canoeing and camping in Minnesota’s boundary waters.
Little Monsters of the Ocean: Metamorphosis Under the Waves by Heather L. Montgomery. Perfect for fans of nonfiction and ocean life, this fascinating book about metamorphosis is sure to delight with its information and detailed photographs. Perfect for independent readers.
Middle Grade books:
Song For a Whale by Lynne Kelly. A young, deaf girl, Iris, learns about a whale- Blue 55- that sings at a different frequency than other whales and thinks he’s all alone. Knowing exactly how he feels, Iris is determined to find the whale and help him–even if it means taking a journey of her own.
The Wanderer by Sharon Creech. A moving family drama that takes place during a voyage on the sea. The story is told in two perspectives through a series of journal entries.
On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness by Andrew Peterson. This fantasy-adventure story is full of action and humor and a colorful cast of characters that the whole family will love! It’s the first book in The Wingfeather Saga.