Storytime: Octopus
Storytime: Octopus
“O” is for octopus! Did you know an octopus can fit through a hole the size of it’s eye? Or that they can navigate through mazes, solve problems, and take apart almost anything from a crab to a lock? They are considered one of the smartest species in the ocean! So, have fun with your child learning about these brilliant invertebrates!
Join us Tuesdays, and Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m. or Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. in the Community Room.
Ages 2-5
Sing, Talk, Read, Write, Play
Tip
Be sure to read factual books with your children. Follow their interests, whether a particular animal, in how things work , in trains, or anything that piques their curiosity. The information in nonfiction books introduces new vocabulary words, and we learn right along with our children. Supporting their curiosity goes a long way in encouraging a love of learning. Many children who are less interested in stories are interested in particular topics, trains, dinosaurs… or OCTOPUSES!
Activity
Select five factual books from the library on a variety of topics and describe each book to your child in one sentence. Let your child pick one and then read it together. Then find a storybook based on the topic and expand the learning by pointing out things learned from the factual book.
Books Presented
I Am an Octopus by Trisha Speed Shaskan
I live in a den and hunt my prey with venom. Zoom with me across the sea. I am a common octopus, and I have lots of things to show you!
The Octopus Escapes by Maile Meloy
An octopus is taken from his undersea home to live in an aquarium, but he soon tires of captive life.
Octopus Alone by Divya Srinivasan
Octopus leaves her cave in a lively reef because she is shy and the seahorses there find her fascinating, but when she finds a quieter, more peaceful spot she misses her home and friends.
Octopants and the Missing Pirate Underpants by Suzy Senior
Puffer Fish wakes up one morning to find that his pirate underwear has been taken from the clothesline! So Octopants the octopus offers to help look for them. They check Lobster’s Laundry, look through Mermaid’s hair, and even stop by Mussel’s Fitness Club, but the underwear isn’t anywhere … Then Shark appears and wants to join the group. But what’s that on her head?
Songs, Rhymes, and Fingerplays
Bubble, bubble… POP!
One red octopus
Swimming in the water,
Swimming in the water,
Swimming in the water.
One red octopus
Swimming in the water,
Bubble, bubble, bubble, bubble…POP!
Slippery Fish
Slippery fish, slippery fish, sliding through the water,
Slippery fish, slippery fish, Gulp, Gulp, Gulp!
Oh, no! It’s been eaten by an …
Octopus, octopus, squiggling in the water
Octopus, octopus, Gulp, Gulp, Gulp!
Oh, no! It’s been eaten by a …
Tuna fish, tuna fish, flashing in the water,
Tuna fish, tuna fish, Gulp, Gulp, Gulp!
Oh, no! It’s been eaten by a …
Great white shark, great white shark, lurking in the water,
Great white shark, great white shark, Gulp, Gulp, Gulp!
Oh, no! It’s been eaten by a …
Humongous whale, humongous whale, spouting in the water,
Humongous whale, humongous whale,
Gulp! … Gulp! … Gulp! … BURP!
(Cover your mouth.) Excuse me!
Once I Saw an Octopus
Once I saw an octopus in the deep blue sea
I called, “Hey, Mr. Octopus, won’t you swim with me?”
Then out came his tentacles
So very long and straight…
1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8.
Credit: King County Library System
Crafts and Activities
O is for Octopus
Toilet Roll Octopus Craft
Make an octopus from a toilet paper roll and yarn. Or you can use a paper cup.
Additional Books
The Octopuppy by Martin McKenna
Edgar wanted a pet dog, but what he got instead was a rather brilliant octopus named Jarvis.
How to Put an Octopus to Bed by Sherri Duskey Rinker
When mommy octopus tells little Floyd that it is time for bed, he decides that his parents want help getting their baths and putting on their pajamas (not what Mommy-O meant)–soon all three are covered with water and bubbles, and his parents are so exhausted that they fall asleep before Floyd is in bed.
Gentle Giant Octopus by Karen Wallace
Describes the physical characteristics and behavior of a Giant Octopus and how she searches for a home at the bottom of the ocean, lays her eggs and protects them from predators until they can hatch.
Octopus Escapes Again! by Laurie Angus
Whether searching for its next meal or avoiding becoming a meal, an octopus is an underwater master through color camouflage, or by spewing a cloud of obscuring ink, or by sacrificing a limb, or squeezing its boneless body into or through unlikely spaces.
