Columbus Day - Ship in a Bottle Craftivity

Columbus Day is Monday, October 8th and if you're looking for some themed activities to add to your lessons, we suggest checking out this cute ship in a bottle craftivity from Caitlin over at Kindergarten Smiles. While it won't take long if you have templates, it will still provide your students with a chance to showcase their creativity and provide a fun keepsake {complete with song!} to help them remember the day's special lesson.

Ship in a Bottle Craftivity

1. Provide your students with a piece of sky blue construction paper inviting them to draw and cut a bottle or jug shape. [NOTE: To get a symmetrical bottle, have them fold the paper in half lengthwise - or hot dog style - draw one side and then cut it out. When opened, their will look the same on both sides.]
2. Find a coloring page or clip art image of a Spanish expedition ship online - like this one over at Super Coloring - having your students color the hull of the boat, cut it from the paper, and attach it to their construction paper bottle cutout.
3. Next come the sails! Using graphic art tools and white card stock cut into squares, invite your students to design their own sails. Attach the finished sails to craft sticks and arrange on the ship.
4. As a finishing touch, you might consider having your students crumple pieces of blue art tissue paper and paste them around the hull of the boat to create "water".

When finished with the craft, teach your kiddos the fun Columbus Day song, Three Little Ships, then provide your students a copy to paste onto the back of their ship in a bottle. The best part, Caitlin provides the song printable for free over at her blog, so be sure to visit!