Today is a special day because it’s a seashell day! When the sun wakes up and shines over the water, Mommy says it’s time to find seashells. I hurry down the sandy path with a big smile on my face. The wind feels salty and fresh as we get closer to the beach. Seagulls fly around, saying hello!
With my pail and shovel, I step into the cool, wet sand. It feels squishy between my toes! A big wave comes in, and I say, “Go away, wave, so I can dig!” I dig and find shiny, spiky shells. I even find a lucky penny! My shell is tiny and shiny like a pearl, and Mommy finds a big, curly brown one.
Mommy tells me that some shells are homes for little sea animals. We put them back in the water to keep them safe. She shows me how to hold a shell to my ear. “What do you hear?” she asks. I listen closely and hear the ocean’s whisper!
I start counting my shells: one, two, three, four. Each one is special and different. I keep counting: five, six, seven, eight. My shells are curvy and fun! I find two more, making nine and ten. When we get home, we’ll count them again!
After a fun day, we head home with our treasures. I have so many shells! I make a pretend seashell store with them: one, two, three, four. My shells look amazing: five, six, seven, eight!
Did you know that seashells are like little houses for sea animals called mollusks? These animals have soft bodies and wear their shells like armor. Seashells are made of calcium, just like our bones!
The best time to find seashells is in the morning or evening when the tide is low. Some shells are tiny like grains of rice, while others can be as big as four feet! There are over one hundred thousand kinds of mollusks, and many live in the ocean.
Crabs sometimes move into empty shells and call them home. As they grow, they need bigger shells. Mini clams have a special tube called a siphon to help them breathe when they hide in the sand.
People have used seashells for art, jewelry, money, and even buttons for a long time. They are beautiful and useful!
If you love stories, ask your grown-ups to find more books for you. Reading is fun, and you can take books anywhere—on a car ride, a plane, or a train. Don’t wait! Dive into a book today and enjoy the adventure!
Seashell Sorting and Counting: Gather a collection of different seashells, either from a beach visit or from a craft store. Ask the children to sort the shells by size, color, or shape. Once sorted, have them count how many shells are in each group. Encourage them to describe the differences they see and talk about why they think shells come in so many varieties.
Create Your Own Seashell Art: Provide the children with paper, glue, and crayons or markers. Let them use the seashells to create a picture or pattern on the paper. They can draw a beach scene and use the shells as part of their artwork. This activity helps them think about how seashells can be used creatively and appreciate their beauty.
Seashell Listening Adventure: Give each child a seashell to hold up to their ear. Ask them to close their eyes and listen carefully. Afterward, have a discussion about what they heard. Did it sound like the ocean? Encourage them to imagine what it would be like to live in a seashell and what sounds they might hear every day.
Here’s a sanitized version of the provided YouTube transcript:
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It’s a seashell day when the sun peeks up over the bay. Mommy tells me it’s a seashell day. I rush down the path over the dunes. The salty breeze blows; we’ll be there soon. We reach the beach, and seagulls flock.
With pale and shovel in my hand, my toes squish in cool wet sand. A wave rolls in; it’s way too big. “Go away, wave, so I can dig!” Out from the muck come spiny, shiny shells. A penny for luck! My shell is tiny, a silvery pearl. Mommy’s is brown with a big curly curl.
“This shell is a home,” Mommy tells me. “Let’s put it back to live in the sea.” This shell has a secret; hold it up to your ear. Mommy says, “What do you hear?”
I hear the ocean. I count shells: one, two, three, four. Each one is different; I have many more. I count other shells: five, six, seven, eight. My shells are curvy, never straight. Two more shells, numbers nine and ten. When we get home, let’s count them again.
We are almost home; it’s been a fun day. So many shells! Oh, make a display: one, two, three, four—a pretend seashell store. Five, six, seven, eight—oh, my shells look really great!
From the sea, I brought the beach home with me. Mollusks are animals with soft bodies that wear their skeletons on the outside: seashells. Every empty seashell on the beach was once a part of an animal from the mollusk family. Seashells are mostly made of calcium, just like our bones.
The best time to find seashells on the beach is in the morning or evening at low tide. Scallops have dozens of eyes to help them see predators coming from any direction. Seashells can be as small as a grain of rice or as big as four feet across. There are more than one hundred thousand species of mollusks worldwide, and about half of all mollusks live in the ocean.
A seashore wraps around a mollusk’s body like a suit of armor. It protects the sea creature living inside from predators and strong ocean currents. Crabs crawl into empty seashells and call them home. As hermit crabs grow bigger, they have to find larger and larger shells. Mini clams breathe through a kind of snorkel, a body part called a siphon, when they bury themselves in sand.
Shells have been used throughout history for art, jewelry, money, tools, containers, and buttons.
If you don’t have books, then what are you waiting for? Kids have storybooks that are brought to life, and it’s fun! I like to read books about fantasy and love. I tell other kids to get books because they’re full of stories and laughter. I’ll read it on the go—in the car, on a plane, even on the train.
Don’t wait around; ask your grown-ups to download books now. You’ll be glad you did! Thanks for watching. For more stories, try the books app for free today.
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This version removes any unnecessary noise and maintains the essence of the original content.
