Welcome to another Wacky Workshops project – a terrific turtle and her hatchling.

One of the Goddesses was watching a television show about turtles the other day when she said; “turtles don’t have eggs.”

I explained how turtles come to the shore to dig a big hole in the sand and lay their eggs and how the little hatchlings break through the egg shells, climb out of the hole and run towards the ocean.

“Shall we make a turtle and her baby so we can make it run to the water?” I asked.

Before I knew it I was searching for materials to make Trisha the Turtle and her baby Ted.

I’m sharing this story because I wanted to illustrate that this, like many of my crafts, was not planned and I had to think outside the box to find things we could turn into Trisha the Turtle.

If you read How to Make a Starlight Express Desk Caddy you’ll know that this often results in a better craft than the original idea.

I had no specific plan or materials for Trisha. The only thing I was sure of was that I had a plastic egg, left over from Easter, which would be perfect for the hatchling.

Then I rummaged around my craft room to see what else would work. That’s the beauty of working without a material kit or a template, you have to think creatively.

I realise, as an art teacher, I may have more supplies than the average grandmother so, for each thing I found to make the turtle, I’ll offer you an alternative.

The main thing is to start creating and this project is a perfect learning opportunity for the little ones as you can re-enact the turtle’s journey.

TERRIFIC TURTLE AND HER HATCHLING

MATERIALS

FOR THE SHELL – I found an old, round, takeaway container. You could also use a small terracotta pot or a terracotta saucer, a paper bowl or an old crockery bowl.

FOR THE HEAD – I used a large foam ball. You could also use a tennis ball or scrunch newspaper into a ball and cover with plain paper.

FOR THE EYES – I used small foam balls. You could also use googly eyes, small wooden balls, buttons, or pom poms.

FOR THE NOSE – I used a small pom pom. You could use a wooden or plastic bead.

FOR THE HATCHLING EGG – I recycled a plastic egg left over from Easter. You could also use a real shell – hard boil an egg, cut the whole thing in half, gently remove the egg with a spoon and wash the shell. Or you could get really ambitious and make a paper mache egg using my instructions in How to Make Glamgorgious Easter Eggs.

FOR THE HATCHLING – I used pom poms and foam sheets. You could use wool by winding it into small balls – one for the body and a smaller one for the head or make your own pom poms. If you don’t have foam sheets, use some paper or felt.

METHOD

• Decorate the turtle’s body. If you are using terracotta then the best option is to use paint or markers. These don’t adhere well to plastic so I covered the plastic container with green paper. The Goddess helped me decorate with green glitter.
• Decorate the head. If you’re using a tennis ball you only need to add the facial features. When using the scrunched up paper, cover it with the green paper or material and add the facial features. If you’re using a foam ball, paint it green.
• Attach the head to the body.
• Cut out four U shapes and glue to the bottom of the body for the feet.

FOR THE HATCHLING

• Prepare your egg if you don’t have a plastic one.
• Glue the small pom pom (if using) to the larger pom pom.
• Cut out four tiny U shapes and glue to the bottom of the large pom pom for the feet.
• Add facial features. You can draw these on or glue on googly eyes and other embellishments.
• Now all that’s left to do is re-enact the turtle’s journey.

You could use blue paper or material to represent the ocean and yellow paper or material for the sand, though it’s extra fun if you have real sand.

Follow me on Pinterest for more fun crafting with kids ideas.

Happy crafting and have a gleeful week, Tamuria.