Fun with Oceans and Seas: A Big Activity Book for Kids about Our Wonderful Waters

by Emily Greenhalgh, Candela Ferrández (Illustrator)

Dive into fascinating facts and 100 fun activities featuring the world’s magnificent oceans and seas!

Discover the wonders of the world’s waters! Whether kids are fascinated by sharks, whales, glaciers, tides, icebergs, shipwrecks, or any other part of ocean and sea life, they’ll be thrilled by the awesome activities and wild facts in this entertaining and educational book.

In these colorful pages, children ages 6 to 10


Following in the steps of the bestselling books Fun with 50 States and Fun with National Parks, Fun with Oceans and Seas will provide your favorite kids with hours of entertainment and learning.

128 pages, Paperback

Published September 19, 2023

Reviews

[Olde American Spirit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, what a wonderful book for young ones that have ANY interest in the oceans and what is within. I wanted to "dive in" and do the fun activities myself as an adult! There are over 100 fun activities from word games, puzzles, and connect the dots, to drawing and color by numbers, just to name a few. What's even more wonderful is that among the activities and thorough facts are adorable, engaging illustrations as well.
Although I received a free copy from NetGalley, my review is my honest opinion and I am so impressed that I will certainly be purchasing a copy as well.

[JoyReaderGirl1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, Say Can You ‘Sea’ it’s Not an Ocean?

“Fun with Oceans and Seas—A Big Activity Book for Kids about Our Wonderful Waters (and Marvelous Marine Life)” by Emily Greenhalgh is a delightful learning experience for children who are interested in exploring the seven seas (and all of the many other large bodies of salt water oceans) around the globe.

Filled with colorful pictures, maps, puzzles, and word games, “Fun” also compares and contrasts seas with oceans; shows geographically where each are located; and gives examples of flora and fauna that live in the major ones.

Unlike early explorers thought, there are many more than seven seas—actually approximately 50 small seas around the world—readers learn in “Fun.”

This informative little book goes on to explain that a sea is typically defined as a ‘portion of ocean’ that is surrounded by land, with the exception of one—the wide Sargasso Sea in the Caribbean. Interestingly, the Sargasso Sea is determined my ocean currents rather than coastal areas.

Whereas many people use the terms ocean and seas interchangeably, the two are quite distinct. As we learn in “Fun,” five oceans cover over 70% of the Earth’s surface with salt water. Ranging from largest, these are the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean, the Arctic Ocean, and the Southern Ocean.

As an adult, I personally found this teaching primer fascinating, educational and extremely informative. My own knowledge of the subject of seas and oceans is much better after reading “Fun” because I never knew the differences in seas and oceans, and I definitely did not know before reading this book that the ocean waters surrounding Antarctica are known as the Southern Ocean. Fascinating!

JoyReaderGirl1 graciously thanks NetGalley, Author Emily Greenhalgh, and Publisher Zeitgeist, Z Kids, for this advanced reader’s copy (ARC) for review.

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Fun with Oceans and Seas" is a fantastic activity book for kids (and adults!) of all ages! Emily Greenhalgh has done a wonderful job at combining fun facts about the oceans and seas with a variety of kid-friendly activities, including: spot the difference, crack the code, crossword puzzles, matching games, connect the dots, and more! The book is broken up into sections with each section relating to one ocean or sea.
If you are looking for an educational text, this is not the book for you. This book is not intended to be a textbook of information. It is a fun way to interest kids in learning more about oceans and seas. There are short textual facts sections throughout the book, but the primary method of conveying information is through the games and activities--what kid doesn't love that?!
I love being able to use this book with the 3 year old as well as the 8 year old. There is something for each of them to learn within these pages, as well as activities that are suitable for each age! Even I enjoy the puzzles and crosswords found within! If you're looking for an educational gift for the holidays or a birthday, I highly recommend "Fun with Oceans and Seas"!

Thank you to Z kids, Emily Greenhalgh, and Netgalley for the advanced reader's copy (ARC)! All opinions are my own.

[Stacie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I previously shared Greenhalgh’s FUN WITH OUTER SPACE and this book follows the same format. From covering all five oceans to the twenty seas connected to the oceans, kids will learn about these major bodies of water. Then the book moves into learning about the mammals, birds, ocean life, and plants that are critical to the ocean’s ecosystem.

Each page spread offers two activities about the specific topic. Kids will crack a code to learn what is the smallest marine animal and then mimic each step to draw a killer whale. From word puzzles to spot-the-difference puzzles to dot-to-dots, unscrambling letters, word searches, matching games, crossword puzzles, coloring pages, and more kids will have fun while learning. An answer key is available if kids get stuck.

Kids who love the ocean or like having fun while learning will love this book. It is perfect for enhancing an ocean unit or for getting them excited about your next trip to the ocean.

[Theediscerning · Rating 4 out of 5]

What looks like being a decent little early nature book turned puzzle compendium. The tasks are simplicity – basic crosswords, join-the-dots, spot-the-differences, and so on – and the nature notes and details about the oceans and seas are more of an introduction to each page, as opposed to the full-on lesson. You certainly don't get that much text here – but the puzzles act as a decent second way of learning and/or revision aid. I say it "looks like" as my digital review file, downloaded six weeks after it came out, was hopeless, with the text in all the wrong places after a few pages before disappearing altogether. No negativity in the reviews suggest this is the case with sold versions, at least.

[Victoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a teacher and a mother of two, I am always on the hunt for fun and educational books. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was so cute and colorful. I would recommend getting the physical copy of this book for you and your littles ones to do together. The information in this book is perfect for kids and the pictures are bight and colorful which captured my little ones attentions. I will defensively be picking up a few copies of these for my classroom!

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have fun learning about oceanography and marine life while coloring, matching, decoding, and even dot-to-dot!
The illustrations by Candela Ferrández are delightful, imaginative, clear, and colorful.
Well suited for reading WITH someone of any age including ESL, and great for gifting to anyone, but especially to a school or teacher or your public library!
I requested and received a free temporary e-book on Adobe Digital Editions from Zeitgeist/Z Kids/ Penguin Random House via NetGalley. Thank you!

[Ali Mrioued | ladyalireadsalot · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorable illustrations? Check!
Chock full of ocean factoids? Check!
Puzzles and games to keep you entertained? Check!
Fun and easy to understand? Check!

This is such a fun mix of pictures, games, and facts! If you or your kids are super into Shark Week or aquariums, I think you'd love flipping through this book! Plus - it will definitely keep your kids entertained for ages as they work their way through crosswords, matching games, and cracking codes!

Definitely check this one out!

[Mrs Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lovely ACTIVITY book for younger children. I went through this with my 5 year old son and he enjoyed most of the activities. Some of his favorites were the dot-to-dots , matching and basic coloring pages. We still have a lot of skills to learn, so some was more complicated than what we are ready for. This is a great activity book. Will recommend.

Thank you for the copy in exchange for our honest review.

[Carly Hanlon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This “Fun With Oceans & Seas" book is the perfect book for any school age kid who is interested in learning more about the oceans and seas. It includes lots of activities to keep them learning while having fun including different puzzles, word games, coloring pages, and more included Perfect for gifting! Highly recommend these wonderful books!

Thanks @zeitgeistpublishing for the free book!

[Aeterna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of nice quizzes and cute pictures for children to work with. Information on oceans are conveyed nicely. I'm sure this will hep build children's love for nature and sciences. Thank you very much for sending me this e-ARC.

[Michelle Smith-Palmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great educational resource and activity book for young children 6-10 who are interested in oceans and the animals that live in these oceans. Teach facts, vocabulary, geography, etc. Activities include coloring, crosswords, word searches, etc.

[KR Baltes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderful activity book, my ocean loving 6 year old had a great time reading and playing. As an oceanographer myself I really appreciated how accurate and yet totally relatable the content was! Great illustration, great writing.

[Cee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another quality activity book from Zeitgeist & Emily Greenhalgh! This book has lots of fun information on oceans & ocean life. There are lots of word searches, connect the dots, fill in the blanks and more. I definitely recommend this great activity book!

[Sami · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book with my nephew. He really enjoyed all of the quizzes and all the illustrations. This book would be great for teachers. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

[Lisa Palombo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an adorable book! The colors are engaging, the content is perfect! Would make the perfect addition to any teachers lesson plans or any parent looking for a fun activity book. Our 5 year old loved learning about the oceans and animals within. He especially loved the word searches and mazes. The drawing pages were fun even for me as an adult. Highly recommend!