Ocean Shoebox Diorama | Seaside Crafts

How Can I Make a Shoebox Model of the Ocean?

Dive into the underwater world of coral reefs, tropical sea creatures, and blue seascapes with our Ocean Shoebox Diorama craft. Transform an ordinary shoebox into an underwater habitat for ocean-dwelling creatures like sea turtles, squid, clownfish, and clams. 

Click Download Now to access our detailed instructions, which take you through each stage of creating your own 3D model of the ocean using household items and craft materials. This craft provides children with the opportunity to develop crafting skills such as painting, cutting, gluing, shading, sculpting, and shaping as they work with both wet and dry materials. The aim of this craft is to construct a 3D model of the ocean so we have added three sheets of sea creatures templates which can be cut out and coloured in before adding them to the diorama. The templates include upper layer sea creatures which can be found closer to the surface of the water, like sea turtles; middle layer sea creatures, which swim around the coral reef, like clownfish and eels; bottom layer sea creatures which sit on the ocean floor, like clams and anenomes. 

Please note: the illustrations are not to scale as this is not an exact representation of an ocean habitat. 

You can find more seaside-themed activity ideas at the Twinkl Seaside Crafts Hub.

What Other Seaside Crafts Can I Make?

During the summer months, trips to the seaside are a must! Warm sandy beaches, cool salty water and melting ice creams are a staple of any summer holiday. If you enjoyed making this Ocean Diorama check out these other ocean crafts:

Create a beautifully colourful window display using our terrific Turtle Sun Catcher craft pack using squares of green tissue paper and our printable template.

Make your own Shark Porthole Sun Catcher craft! The bright blues from the square tissue paper stand out against the bold black silhouettes of the sharks.

Use sponges and our pack of eight printable sea creatures templates to create a bright, colourful piece of Ocean Creatures Silhouette Painting to display.

What Other Ocean Crafts Can I Make With Recycled Materials?

In this video, Twinkl Teacher Faye demonstrates how children can develop their fine motor skills by using threading to create a fantastic ocean craft. Furthermore, the Paper Plate Ocean Craft Instructions lets EYFS children develop additional fine motor skills such as cutting, painting and colouring.

Disclaimer: Some ingredients and/or materials used in this Ocean Shoebox Diorama | Seaside Crafts might cause allergic reactions or health problems. You should ensure that you are fully aware of the allergies and health conditions of those taking part. If you have any concerns about your own or somebody else’s health or wellbeing, always speak to a qualified health professional. Activities listed within the resource should always be supervised by an appropriate adult. Children should be supervised when using sharp items such as scissors or other tools. Please make sure you are aware that children may put craft items into their mouths, and that they should wash their hands afterwards. By using this resource, you acknowledge that it is the responsibility of supervising adults to ensure the safety of children in their care and that we will accept no liability as a result of the activity.