Reasons You’ll Love this Sea Turtle Art Project
At the beginning of the year or when working with young students, you might notice them hesitate to draw. Sometimes the directions are overwhelming, or they are struggling with the motor skills required. Choosing projects that utilize easy animals to draw is a great way to make your lesson accessible and fun for everyone! These projects can build confidence in students and allow you to build towards more complex projects down the road.
This ocean art project uses easy to draw sea turtles, and your students will have a blast! Here are a few reasons I love this sea turtle art project.
Why Turtles are Easy Animals To Draw
#1 Simple Shapes
The body of a sea turtle is drawn using the very basic shapes of ovals and circles. Ovals and circles are simple enough that elementary students are able to sketch them and create their own representations of the turtle’s body. These objects can also be found all around the room, so students who need extra assistance can trace around a lid or container.
#2 Symmetry
The sea turtle’s body structure is symmetrical, so by using this ocean art project, students will practice symmetry and balance. It’s also a great opportunity to talk about symmetry with students. Where is symmetry found in nature? What is it found in everyday life? How can you bring that into art?
#3 Distinct Features
Sea turtles have distinctive features, like their flippers and the pattern on their shells. With this ocean art project, you can practice observation skills by having students look at a photo of a turtle and notice these features. Then, they can replicate it in their drawings.
#4 Playful and Expressive
Not only are sea turtles easy animals to draw, but they are very expressive and playful. This gives students the change to bring their own artistic style and expression to their drawings. They can get creative with how they represent the turtle.
#5 Colorful Reflections
Lastly, this ocean art project is a chance to play with color! When drawing, students can use a variety of colors to represent the underwater world sea turtles inhabit. Different shades of aquatic hues like blues and greens allow students to capture the essence of the ocean. It’s also a great opportunity for an authentic lesson on blending and color mixing!
Ocean Art Project: Sea Turtles
Want to bring this sea turtle art project to your classroom? Help students build confidence with an easy animal to draw, and explore some more advanced skills like symmetry and blending.
This lesson is low-prep and cross-curricular. Students will practice key literacy skills, like writing and reflecting, while tapping into their creative side through art.
This resource includes a lesson and game sheet that scaffolds the steps to drawing a sea turtle. All of the examples are hand-drawn to take the pressure off of your students (because no art is perfect!). This ocean art project works well as a whole class project, can be left with a substitute, or used as an early finisher activity.
Plus, teachers love it! Stephanie B. said, “This art activity was so much fun. The students were encouraged to draw with natural shapes in mind. We used markers and I was very proud of how these turtles turned out. Great project!”
I’m Amanda, and I align standards and integrate content to help teachers meet the needs of the Whole Child in art class! I have yet to find a standard that I couldn’t teach through art, and I want to share it all with you.
Not sure where to start with bringing art and content together? This freebie guide is packed with 25 ideas to align your art lessons with math and ELA standards. Your students will be crafting art and practicing algebraic thinking. Win-win!
I want all students to feel successful in the art room, so I created a standards-based Daffodil Collage lesson to do just that! The lesson includes an artist study, student reflection, and more, so push your artists to their full potential.
Follow along on my Instagram page for more tips on teaching the Whole Child in the art room!
Connecting art and content together doesn’t have to be mind-boggling. I’ve made it simple with 25 math and ELA art lesson starters - for free! Plus, I included 15 worksheets for students to reflect on their art-making journey.