Shark Week 2026 is upon us and is a highly anticipated event in our home! We have a couple of animal lovers that enjoy learning about all types of animals, habitats and conservation – especially our 6-year-old daughter who aspires to be a vet when she grows up. She has taken an interest in very specific animals and sharks are something that she has become fascinated with. As a mother, I try to support the passions and things my kids show interest in – even if I go a little overboard sometimes! And to be clear, I am terrified of sharks (like many people). The Jaws ride at Universal Studios was traumatic for 5-year-old me! BUT I love that my kids like them and I do respect their purpose and place on this planet and think it is important to continue learning about their history and behaviors.
Over the years I have put together fun activities to help my kids learn about sharks during Shark Week. Before we jump into the list of ways to celebrate while you watch, let’s have a brief lesson on the history of Shark Week.
According to Wikipedia, “Shark Week is an annual week-long programming block created and produced by Tom Golden at the Discovery Channel focusing on shark-themed programming. It originally premiered on July 17, 1988. The block is featured annually in the summer, and was originally devoted to conservation efforts and correcting misconceptions about sharks. Over time, it grew in popularity and became a hit on the Discovery Channel. Since 2010, it has been the longest-running cable television programming event in history.”
Here are a few fast facts about sharks:
- Sharks are ancient cartilaginous fish that have roamed the oceans for over 400 million years.
- There are over 400 shark species with more being discovered each year.
- Behind their active rows of teeth are multiple layers of replacement teeth. A shark can lose and replace thousands of teeth in its lifetime, going through up to 30,000 teeth.
Pretty cool, right? I love seeing how much Shark Week has grown in popularity over the years and how excited other families get for the educational component to this week! Now let’s dive in to the ways you can plan out a fun and educational Shark Week for your family..
1. Read Shark Themed Books
There are so many great children’s books about sharks! I have curated a list of over 100 books for kids that are both fun and educational for Shark Week story time and year-round enjoyment. These books range in age and reading level + include incredible illustrations. You can shop my list of shark books on Amazon or see if your local library has some of these available. A few that we own and love are:
- Shark Lady by Jess Keating
- Exploring Sharks by Jill McDonald
- Walter The Whale Shark: An His Teeny Tiny Teeth by Katrine Crow
- Smart About Sharks by Owen Davey
- If Sharks Disappeared by Lily Williams
- My Little Golden Book About Sharks by Bonnie Bader
Check out the list of 100+ Shark Books for Kids here!
2. Plan A Snactivity or Booktivity
To piggy back off of the previous activity, planning a snack or activity around a book is a fun way to bring it to life and is great for reading comprehension. Sometimes I will make a themed snack to eat and pair with an educational activity about things we are learning (snacktivity) or an activity paired with a book (booktivity). Sometimes I do all 3 – book, activity and snack all around a theme! How cute is the little shark fin bagel I paired with coloring sheets and a book?!
The adorable coloring sheet, printables and additional shark activities are from The Letter Vee.
3. Visit The Aquarium
We are lucky enough to live near one of the biggest and best aquariums in the world – The Georgia Aquarium. The shark exhibit there is my children’s favorite space in the aquarium and is a very neat experience. Additionally they are the only aquarium outside of Asia to house whale sharks which have been our favorite part of visiting time and time again. If you live near an aquarium (big or small) or can make a day trip to a neighboring city with one, it makes a great Shark Week “field trip” and is educational and entertaining for the whole family! Not to mention, Shark Week takes place in July each year and an indoor activity like visiting the aquarium is a good way to beat the heat.
Pictured above are my kids a couple years ago at The Georgia Aquarium.
4. Make Shark Themed Food or Treats
Pinterest is filled with adorable Shark Week treats from other creators to serve as inspiration for your themed snacks! From Jaws shaped pizza to FINtastic gummy shark desserts you can make fun treats for a shark movie night or watching a Discovery Channel Shark Week special!
Here is my Shark Week inspiration board on Pinterest.
5. Sensory Play
We love sensory play! It’s open-ended and keeps the kids busy for at least an hour at time. It’s also my favorite way to implement themed play options. A few years ago I put together this shark sensory play bin in a matter of minutes and my kids played with it non-stop. What kid doesn’t love water play, right?
I used rocks from our garden to mimic a shallow water habitat, used a paper tray, water and shark figurines/toys we already had in our animal bin. My kids loved identifying the different types of sharks they were playing with and it really doesn’t have to be expensive or hard to put together for your kids to have fun and learn.
I have several packs of shark toys link on my Shark Week Fun Finds list that work great for sensory play year after year.
6. Fun Photo Ops
One year I did monthly/seasonal themed photos with the kids. Emerson did chalk art photos and Beckham did cookie photos over his little baby butt – haha! Another year, Emerson did themed balloon and banner photos each month. Needless to say our July themes always revolved around Shark Week!
Some DIY photo op prop suggestions:
7. Have A Shark Movie Night
2004 DreamWorks Animation Studios LLC ©
We do weekly movie nights and themed dinners so doing a Shark Week movie night was a no-brainer! We recently watched Shark Tale which is very kid-friendly and it’s such a cute movie with a star-studded cast. There aren’t many shark specific options that are family-friendly, but here are a few options besides Shark Tale:
- The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl
- Shark Bait
- Soul Surfer
8. Make Shark Week Baskets
If you know me, I love a themed basket for any occasion! I understand this may be a little extra, but when I made these last summer, my kids were very into learning about sharks and I wanted to create a little Shark Week magic to inspire them.
I gifted them each a shark cookie that I found at Target, a bath/pool tool from The Dollar Tree, a shark book and shark stuffed animal that came in a two pack! Here are the links to other shark themed goodies to include in your shark celebrations: Shark Week Fun Finds
Wishing everyone a fun-filled Shark Week ahead!
