y o u n g mariners 



Paper Plate Fun 



The blue crab is a small creature 

 with a big name — Callinectes 

 sapidus. Colli is Latin for beautiful, 

 and nectes means swimmer. Sapidus 

 means savory. 



A beautiful swimmer that tastes 

 good must be swift to survive. These 

 agile creatures sometimes travel miles 

 in their peculiar sideways strut. 



A crab has a tough outer shell 

 extending to a point on either side. 

 Perhaps this creature walks sideways 

 because its body points that way. 



Crabs are aggressive and feisty 

 animals. People who are in a bad 

 mood are often called crabby! 



These cute crustaceans are the 

 heroes in many fairy tales. They've 

 even landed a few roles in major 

 motion pictures. Maybe they aren't so 

 hard to get along with after all. 



Why don't you make a crab to be 

 your playmate? It's easy. All you 

 need is a paper plate or thick paper, 

 some colored markers or crayons and 

 a pair of scissors. 



Instructions: 



I • Have someone help you make an 

 enlarged photocopy of the crab 

 shown here on heavy paper. Or draw 

 your own, using our crab as a guide, 

 on a paper plate. 



2. Cut on all solid lines and fold on 

 the dotted lines. 



3. Tuck front point (A) into slit (B). 



4. Draw in eyes 



5. Flatten the crab slightly and bend 

 back the bottom half of the pincers. 



6. Bend back the legs in the middle 

 so the bottom of the legs jut out and 

 rest on the ground. 



Now that your crab is assembled, 

 practice walking it sideways. You 

 might want to give him or her a 

 name. How about Crusty or 

 Charlene? Pretend your crab is 

 looking for a tasty clam for its 

 dinner. Happy hunting! 



Carla B. Burgess 



1 8 MAY/JUNE 1992 



