30 Ocean Art for Kids That Are Easy and Fun to Make

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Need something colorful and creative for a rainy day or a beach theme? These ocean art for kids ideas are packed with hands-on ways to keep little ones engaged. From watercolor scenes to glue-and-go activities, simple ideas work great at home or in the classroom.

Want more beachy inspiration? Take a peek at our complete list of ocean crafts for kids and keep the undersea fun going all season long.

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Ocean Art For Kids

Dive into creativity with these fun and colorful ocean art projects perfect for kids! From playful sea creatures to vibrant underwater scenes, these crafts use simple materials and encourage imagination and fine motor skills.

Ideal for summer activities, ocean-themed lessons, or just a day of artistic fun at home or in the classroom.

Jellyfish Painting

Kids paint their colorful jellyfish and an underwater background using a simple printable template. The project is straightforward but leaves plenty of room for creativity as they decorate the jellyfish and ocean scene with any colors or patterns they like.

Little artists can unleash their imagination underwater, making this painting activity easy and exciting.

buggyandbuddy.com

Ocean Watercolor & Salt Painting

Combining watercolor paints with a sprinkle of salt lets young artists create magical patterns that mimic an underwater scene. Kids will be thrilled to see the salt crystals add a cool texture and bursts of color as their painting dries, almost like hidden ocean magic appearing on the page.

The whole activity mixes art with some science, resulting in a vibrant, textured seascape that feels like summertime creativity in full swing.

Related: Ocean Cutting Practice Pages

www.artycraftykids.com

Scrape Painted Shark Art

Using a simple scrape-painting technique to make an ocean backdrop, kids drag paint across the paper and create a swirly underwater effect. After the painted background dries, they add bold shark silhouettes (printed from a template) so it looks like sharks are swimming through the colorful ocean scene.

The process is satisfyingly hands-on and a little messy in a fun way, and the finished piece looks vibrant and imaginative with its striking shark shapes.

Also try: Shark Torn Paper Craft

Shark Painting

Young artists design a fearsome shark scene by painting a printable ocean background and a shark, then cutting them out and putting them all together. Combining painting with a bit of cutting and gluing makes this project extra engaging, and kids get a kick out of creating a shark that looks like it's swimming right off the page.

The mix of art skills and the excitement of a favorite ocean predator turns this activity into something little marine enthusiasts will be proud to display.

fun-a-day.com

Shell Painting Process Art

Kids can turn the seashells they've collected into mini works of art by painting them in bright colors and patterns. This activity keeps things simple while encouraging kids to explore color on a fun 3D canvas, transforming ordinary beach finds into colorful treasures.

Little ones love the feel of painting on a bumpy shell surface and the freedom to dream up any designs, making each painted shell their own.

buggyandbuddy.com

Clay Sea Turtle Sculptures

Budding sculptors can form their little sea turtle from clay, shaping a shell, flippers, and a tiny turtle head. The hands-on activity feels like playful clay time, while still creating a mini sea turtle sculpture kids can keep or display.

They'll love getting a bit messy and applying their knowledge about sea turtles as they develop, making this project both creative and educational in a down-to-earth way.

Related: Turtle Handprint Craft

Watercolor Seahorse

Little ones create a colorful seahorse by painting with watercolors and using a simple template to cut out the whimsical shape. The project cleverly blends a watercolor art activity with paper crafting, allowing kids to paint freely and assemble artwork.

With bright colors swirling like the ocean and a cute seahorse character they bring to life, children will be proud of this imaginative undersea creation.

inspirationlaboratories.com

Watercolor Ocean Art (Inspired by Here We Are)

Kids of all ages can explore watercolors to create a gorgeous ocean backdrop, even sprinkling salt on the wet paint to form unique patterns like waves or coral. Once the swirly watercolor background dries, little artists can get creative by adding ocean animal drawings or stickers to bring the scene to life.

Inspired by a beautiful picture book about our planet, this project emphasizes process and imagination, making each child's artwork unique.

taminglittlemonsters.com

Under the Sea Silhouette Art

Little ones can make an ocean masterpiece by painting a page in watery blues and greens while simple cut-out sea animal shapes act as masks on the paper. After finishing the painting, you lift away the paper sea creature cutouts to reveal white silhouette shapes of sharks, fish, or turtles swimming across the colorful ocean background.

The blend of free painting fun with a magical reveal makes it perfect for young kids, and they'll be excited to see their ocean scene come to life.

Handprint Fish

Kids turn the outline of their hand into a colorful paper fish with this sweet art. They trace a hand on brightly colored paper and cut it out – that handprint becomes the fish's body, and then a smiling mouth and googly eye are glued on to give it personality.

Simple, mess-free, and a great keepsake (who wouldn't love a fish made from a little hand?), this activity even sneaks in some scissor practice for little ones.

www.giftofcuriosity.com

Ocean Stamp Art

Using ocean-themed stamps (think fish, shells, and seaweed shapes), kids press bright colors onto paper to build their underwater scene. They can arrange stamped sea creatures and plants however they like, so every picture becomes a unique ocean oasis full of life.

The process is simple and satisfying for little hands, letting them play with colors and patterns as they imagine an undersea world.

Also try: Ocean Animal Printable Preschool Worksheets

www.mamashappyhive.com

Sensory Ocean Art Collage

Kids build an ocean scene on a paper plate using sensory materials – imagine sand, shiny foil fish, painted seashells, and strips of paper seaweed. They glue and layer these textured pieces to make a mini ocean world that's part art project and part sensory play.

Little ones love feeling the different materials (like gritty sand versus smooth foil) as they create, and the result is a unique ocean collage they'll be proud to show off.

playtolearnpreschool.us

Ocean Process Art Painting

Preschoolers create an ocean scene on paper by freely painting with cool shades of blue and green and blending the colors to mimic the sea. The open-ended activity uses only a few basic supplies, yet it transforms the classroom with wave-like swirls of color that feel like an underwater world as the paintings dry.

On a hot day, there's nothing better than bringing the ocean indoors through art, letting kids cool off creatively while they imagine ocean waves.

Related: Ocean Pattern Block Mats

www.paper-and-glue.com

Ocean Foil Painting

Kids paint directly onto aluminum foil to create a sparkly ocean scene that shimmers like real water in the sun. The foil surface gives this project a unique twist – paint glides smoothly, and bits of shiny silver peek through the blue and green colors like glints of sunlight on waves.

Simple to set up yet almost magical in execution, the activity appeals to kids of all ages, and they'll love painting on a different kind of canvas.

craftulate.com

Sponge Painted Ocean Art

Who needs paintbrushes when kids can use sponges to dab and smear paint into a lively ocean scene full of texture? The sponge painting technique creates soft, wavy patterns that mimic the movement of ocean water.

Using sponges instead of brushes is a refreshing change from ordinary painting, and kids will have a blast seeing how different dabs and swipes make all kinds of cool effects in their undersea art.

artsymomma.com

Puffy Paint Ocean Collage

In this playful collage, kids squeeze out blue puffy paint (a fun, foamy paint that dries puffy) onto paper to make the ocean water. They then stick on cute details like goldfish crackers "fish" and other little ocean decorations, creating a sensory art underwater scene.

Even little ones can tackle this project in just a few minutes, and they'll love the squishy paint texture and the silliness of using actual snack crackers as fish.

buggyandbuddy.com

Chalk & Tempera Ocean Scene

Kids experiment with two different art mediums by combining chalk and tempera paint to create a vibrant ocean scene. They might start by painting a swath of ocean blue, then use chalk pastels to draw bright fish, coral, or other details once the paint dries, creating a cool layered effect.

The chalk adds a soft, dreamy touch to the bold paint, and this mix-and-match approach is easy to adapt for all ages, making it a fun summer art project for any little ocean lover.

iheartcraftythings.com

Handprint & Footprint Baby Ocean Art

Even the tiniest artists can explore this project by using their hands and feet to make ocean-themed art. With a parent's help, baby hands and feet are painted and stamped onto paper as colorful prints, which are then transformed into adorable sea creatures with the addition of crinkled tissue paper "seaweed," googly eyes, and paper bubbles.

The whole experience is full of sensory discovery — babies feel squishy paint on their skin, hear the crunchy crinkle of tissue paper, and practice fine motor skills by sticking on fun ocean details, all while creating a one-of-a-kind keepsake.

kidsactivitiesblog.com

Great Wave Paper Sculpture

Kids roll and curl strips of blue paper to build a three-dimensional wave inspired by the famous Japanese artwork The Great Wave off Kanagawa. It is a hands-on project and an art history lesson, as kids learn about Hokusai's painting while making their bouncy paper wave sculpture (complete with a tiny paper boat riding the waves).

The curled paper waves even sway when you move the finished piece, which kids find super cool. They're proud that they created art while learning a bit of culture.

littlebinsforlittlehands.com

Salt & Watercolor Ocean STEAM Art

Using just watercolors, salt, and a dash of kitchen science, kids create a beautiful ocean painting with a magical textured effect. They brush on blue watercolor paint, sprinkle salt, watch the salt crystals absorb the water, and make swirly patterns that look like ocean currents or sparkly waves.

This STEAM project sneaks in a bit of science (absorption) while letting kids explore art, and the result is a vibrant ocean picture made with the simplest materials.

iheartcraftythings.com

Bottle Cap Fish

Saved bottle caps become the stars of this recycled art, turning into colorful little fish in an underwater scene. Each plastic cap forms a fish's body – kids glue on a paper triangle tail, stick a googly eye on for the eye, and draw fun details like scales and a smile to bring their fish to life.

They can also add some paper seaweed, bubbles, or even a few bottle cap "flowers" to complete the scene, ending up with a charming ocean picture that doubles as a lesson in reusing materials.

rainydaymum.co.uk

Ocean Animal Canvas (Mixed Ages)

A group of siblings or friends of different ages can team up to create this impressive ocean animal canvas inspired by storybook illustrations. Little ones might handle painting the broad blue ocean background (with big brush strokes or sponge painting), while older kids add details like fish, turtles, or whales by drawing or painting them on, or even gluing on cut-out shapes.

The beauty of this project is that it lets toddlers, preschoolers, and big kids all contribute at their level, and the finished canvas is a unique keepsake you can hang up to celebrate their teamwork and creativity.

www.pinkstripeysocks.com

Squirt Gun Ocean Art

Equipped with squirt guns filled with watery paint, kids get to blast a canvas or large sheet of paper and create an ocean-inspired masterpiece. The paint sprays and drips in unpredictable ways, forming cool splashes and wave-like patterns across the paper as little artists gleefully squeeze the trigger.

This project is outdoor process art at its best – a bit messy, super exciting, and a perfect way for kids to mix summer water play with creative painting.

www.projectswithkids.com

Chalk Pastel Jellyfish Art

Kids use bright chalk pastels to draw big, glowing jellyfish on dark paper, making the colors pop brilliantly as if the jellyfish glow underwater. With a bit of smudging and blending, they create soft, flowing tentacles and a rounded jellyfish bell that looks almost see-through and magical.

Working with chalk pastels gives this project a fun, hands-on twist — little fingers get to blend the colors and get a bit dusty, and the finished artwork stands out against the black background.

Also try: Tissue Paper Jellyfish Craft

www.naturalbeachliving.com

Ocean Process Art

Kids use everyday items (like cotton swabs) as paintbrushes to explore color and texture for a simple ocean art activity aimed at preschoolers. This process art project encourages little ones to dab and dot paint freely, perhaps making an undersea scene with bubbly dot patterns or sea creatures made of colorful fingerprints.

It's incredibly easy to set up and doubles as fine motor practice, letting young children explore art time without pressure to create a "perfect" picture.

littlebinsforlittlehands.com

Pollock-Inspired Fish Art

Kids can unleash their inner Jackson Pollock by flicking and dripping paint to decorate a fish in this action-packed art project. Using a simple fish template, little artists splatter on a rainbow of colors in a wild, free-form way, and the result is a one-of-a-kind fish covered in vibrant speckles and streaks.

This activity is a fun introduction to mixed-media art and famous painting styles — not to mention a blast to make — and shows kids that art can be just as much about the process (and a little mess) as the final product.

playtolearnpreschool.us

Ocean Process Art

Kids will love swirling blue and white paint to mimic waves and sprinkling glitter for a bit of ocean sparkle. There's no right or wrong way to create, making it perfect for open-ended fun and exploration.

Once dry, paper fish cutouts turn the painted background into a complete underwater scene that's both personal and display-worthy.

www.coffeecupsandcrayons.com

Potato Print Octopus

In this clever ocean-themed art, a simple potato half becomes the body of a cute octopus. Kids dip a flat-cut potato into paint and stamp it onto paper to make a perfectly round octopus head, then add their flair by drawing or stamping on eight wiggly legs.

This project is adorable for preschoolers—they get a kick out of using a real potato as a stamp, resulting in a bright, smiling octopus friend they created.

Related: Paper Cup Octopus Craft

rainydaymum.co.uk

Ocean Animal Clay Sculptures

After enjoying a favorite ocean storybook, kids bring the tale to life by sculpting their creatures out of clay. They roll and shape the clay into cute fish, turtles, starfish — whatever animals they love from lovetory — and can press in patterns or use simple cutters to form the details.

Once the creations dry, a little paint makes them pop with color, resulting in a mini coral reef of handmade ocean animals that ties story time together with a creative, tactile art experience.

thepinterestedparent.com

Black Glue Seashell Art

Using a superb "black glue" technique, kids outline pretty seashell designs in black before filling them in with dreamy watercolors. The raised black glue lines act like the lead in stained glass art, making the painted sections pop and also helping to keep the colors in place.

Painting within those bold outlines is fun and relaxing for children, and they end up with vibrant, ocean-inspired shell artwork that looks impressive enough to display.

More Fun Kid’s Ideas

70+ Fun Summer Crafts For Kids
15 Reef-freshing Children’s Books About The Ocean
13 Ocean Kids Art, Crafts & Activities They’ll Love

Sam

Sam is the crafter and founder of Simple Everyday Mom. She has been featured in Oprah Mag, Good Housekeeping, The Spruce Crafts, Country Living, The Bump and more. Read more.

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