A Fun Activity to Accompany Sydney and the Sea Monster

Hi, everyone! This week, I really liked the book Sydney and the Sea Monster by David Elliot. It is a book from New Zealand written in English. The story is about a penguin, Sydney, who is a not-so-great inventor and seems to get in to trouble from being too curious. As someone who has disassembled more things than reassembled (most recently an engine that I promised I could put back together), I can relate.

Luckily, Sydney's ingenuity helps him in the end. Spoiler alert: Sydney makes a large mask for his whale friend to scare away hunters.

I thought it would be fun to make a scary mask as an activity for k-2 kids. Here's how:

You will need construction paper, markers or crayons, and scissors.


Next, draw the outline of your mask. If there are young children, an adult may want to prepare a template for them to trace.


Now, decorate your mask with markers. I chose to make my mask slightly furry with antenna and a pink nose. If you have more supplies, you can use glitter or yarn.


Once it is decorated, it is time to cut it out. An adult may need to help with cutting the eyes.


Now it is time to use the mask:
A mask so scary that only a mummy could love it!

Follow-up activity: Find other books in the ICDL that focus on masks. Why do the other stories use masks? How do the stories with masks make readers feel?