World Turtle Day / Turtle Nest Sand Dig
Turtle Nest Sand Dig
In a sand tub, children carefully uncover a buried nest of ping pong ball eggs, count them and learn how sand temperature decides whether hatchlings become males or females.
How to run it
- Bury a nest of ping pong balls in a deep sand tub or sandpit, marking some with a dot.
- Explain that sea turtles lay around 100 eggs in a nest dug on the beach.
- Have children dig gently with hands or spoons, as researchers do, without cracking eggs.
- Count and sort the eggs, then reveal that warmer sand produces more females.
- Rebury the nest for the next group.
You will need
- large sand tub or sandpit
- ping pong balls
- spoons or small scoops
- marker
Make it easier or harderYounger children can count to 20 with fewer eggs; older children can graph marked and unmarked eggs and calculate a percentage.
SafetyRemind children not to throw sand and wash hands afterwards.
My Time Our Place · Outcome 4Children use counting and careful handling to explore a real scientific process.
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