Mayo Beach, at low tide, is the perfect place for children. Here's a game I invented. You give each child a list of objects. The goal is to see who can find the most items on the list:
1.) The whitest feather
2.) The biggest clam shell
3.) The smallest oyster shell
4.) The shiniest mussel shell
5.) The prettiest stone
6.) A sand dollar
7.) The most colorful piece of plastic
8.) A broken balloon or a Lego
9.) The most interesting piece of driftwood.
10.) A discarded horseshoe crab shell.
This game is a great way to discuss both nature and plastic pollution, as well as which man-made objects should not be washing up on our beaches. It can be played at any season, even in inclement weather. When my kids were small, it was easy to find the final item, but today there are fewer horseshoe crabs around. If you played a game like this with your children or as children, what else was on your list?
