Inspired by Yertle the Turtle by Dr. Seuss, this goofy activity requires a steady hand and a good sense of balance. In the story, greedy Yertle makes a stack of turtles for a throne, but in the end he stacks too many and they all come toppling down. Celebrate this classic kids' tale by challenging your preschooler to follow Yertle's lead and create her own stack of walnut shell turtles.
What You Need:
- Walnut shells (at least 4 whole)
- Glue
- White fuzzy craft balls (medium)
- Wiggly eyes (small)
- Blue paint
What You Do:
- Before playing the stacking game, she should assemble her turtles. To do so, start by painting the walnut shells blue. Each half a walnut shell will be used to make one turtle.
- After the shells dry, have her take one of the half-shells and glue five white craft balls to it. The fuzzy balls will represent the the legs and head of the turtle, so be sure to place them accordingly. Let dry.
- Encourage her to add two wiggly eyes to the head of the turtle. Allow these to dry as well.
- She's finished her first turtle! Have her repeat until she has made at least eight turtles.
- Now she is ready to play the stacking game. Have her try to carefully stack the turtles on top of each other to balance them into one vertical stack. How many can she balance on top of each other? If it’s too easy, have her make some more turtles and keep stacking! If it’s too difficult, stack the turtles in a pyramid shape instead, or hollow out the shells a bit more so that they stack more easily.
Try adding a counting element to this game by having her count the turtles as she stacks them! She won’t even realize she’s practicing her math skills with this one.
By Melissa Blough
This activity was inspired by the book "Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories" by Dr. Seuss. Random House, Inc. New York. 1958.
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