Books are far more than just a cute story for kids. You can explore them. Stretch them. Learn from them. There is so much possibility in books.
At Small Potatoes, we like to bring science, literature and art together to form one great big afternoon of learning.
Today we are diving into A House For Hermit Crab. If you have never read this book, it is a story of a hermit crab looking to decorate his shell, which he describes as, well, a little plain. He travels the ocean asking all the beautiful creatures of the sea to come and live on his shell.
This book has sat on our shelf since the beginning of Small Potatoes. It has been read and reread, and the pages flipped and poured over countless times. It was time to take this Eric Carle classic a little further.
Cue Sven and Gypsy Danger…our new Hermit Crabs.
These two little critters caused quite a stir when I brought them to the kitchen table…
After reading the story book together around the table, we began to get acquainted with our new crabs…
Some of the smalls were more reluctant than others…
Once we all had a chance to explore the little critters, we started making a proper habitat. We discussed what things the crabs might need in order to thrive in our house. I had done some “Google-ing” beforehand, and some chatting with the local pet store to ensure that we built a happy and healthy home for our two crabs…
We learned how to make the proper mix of saltwater, and the importance of deep sand for the crabs to burrow into. Sven and Gypsy Danger were quite happy with their new habitat, and the more reluctant smalls had a spectacular view without the worry of being touched by the crawly crabs! 
*We used a big jar that I purchased from Wal-Mart for $20, the water dish and crab hut, along with the food and salt for the water were purchased at our local pet store. 
Once the hermit crabs were settled into their home, we set about making it more beautiful for them, just like Hermit Crab had done in the story book… 
I set out watercolour paints and paper, and allowed the smalls to paint as they flipped through pages of the book for inspiration… 
Once the paintings were dry, the smalls cut their paintings into smaller bits to use to decorate the outside out or hermit crab habitat. 
The bits were cut, (providing great small-motor practice), and the decorating began… 
We used bits of scotch tape to attach the lovely watercolour bits to the jar. Oh, such a beautiful home they made for the hermit crabs… 
We keep our hermit crab habitat on our coffee table, along with the story book in the living room where the smalls are welcome to visit and watch their new hermit friends whenever they choose. 
Thanks for stopping by! ~Arlee, Small Potatoes
