Fall Activity Ideas for Preschoolers
- By supernovamommy
- 5 October, 2012
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Fall Activity Ideas for Preschoolers
By Angela Pounders
When I think fall, I think apples, pumpkins, colorful leaves, Halloween, Thanksgiving and treats!! It’s easy to get wrapped up in the busy schedule that creeps in this time of year. I hope that you will take time to sit down with your children and have some fun! These crafts are easy and the treats are a great way to get children in the kitchen.
*It’s always good to have an example of a completed project for youngsters, especially preschoolers, to see how the finished product could look. I say “could” because arts and crafts should be more about the process at this age and not having a child’s finished product looking just like the example.
Q-tip Skeleton
What is Halloween without bones? This one takes some prep if your child is younger, but the results are to die for. Ha-ha! I used to talk about skeletons around Halloween time with my preschool class because I didn’t want them to see bones as something scary, but interesting. My daughter (2 ½ at the time) loved it last year, but needed some guidance. Her older niece enjoyed the project, too! To extend the learning, view some old x-rays or better yet, get a real bone from the butcher for the children to investigate!
Supplies: Black construction paper or card stock/Q-Tips/Glue/Scissors/White paint and brush (crayon or colored pencil will work too)
What to do:
1. On your black paper, paint or draw on your skeleton’s face near the top of the page. (We cut a face out of white paper.)
2. Cut your Q-Tips in various sizes. (For younger children, an adult should do the prep ahead of time.)
3. Using the picture above as a guide, use them to create a skeleton on your black paper. Glue all of your Q-Tips in place and you’re finished!
Indian Corn Treats
I started the tradition of making nametags for everyone at our Thanksgiving table when I was a child. Even though we all had our “spots” we sat in each year, it was fun to come up with something different every year. This recipe from www.busybeekidscrafts.com would be great to do as a family during the downtime before your guests arrive or when dinner is ready. These treats would be fun to make and attach a little name card to for the table or even to fill a bowl for an edible centerpiece!
With this particular recipe, your children can do everything from spreading the icing (fine motor skills) to counting the candies (math) to helping you wrap them up.
Photo credit: Angela Pounders
Supplies: Rectangular Graham Crackers/Chocolate icing/
Reece’s Pieces (pack/4 corn)/Yellow muffin liners (one for each corn)/Glue or double stick tape
What to do:
1. Break graham crackers into rectangular pieces.
2. Spread chocolate icing on the graham cracker.
3. Press your Reese’s Pieces into the icing, covering the entire graham cracker.
Photo credit: Angela Pounders
4. Let the icing and Reese’s Pieces “set” before you place them into the muffin cups. If the icing and candy haven’t hardened into place they may shuffle around a bit if they are handled roughly.
Photo credit: Angela Pounders
5. Flatten your muffin cup then fold it in half by folding the bottom up to the top.
6. Place your “corn” in the center of the folded muffin cup (folded side down) and fold over one side and then the other side. Secure with a dab of glue or tape to hold the muffin cup together.
Turkey/Native American Face
What is the story of Thanksgiving without Pilgrims, Native Americans and turkey? This is a two-fer craft with the feathers doubling as the turkey’s tail and décor for the Native America’s headband. Put the finished project on a stick and your child has two masks.
This project is great for developing or strengthening fine motor skills and recognizing colors. Make sure to read the story of Thanksgiving to your child. One that I like for the younger crowd is My First Thanksgiving by Tomie dePaola.
Turkey Side Craft
Supplies: Templates for the circle (a large can works), turkey body (shaped like a peanut), feather and headband (thin rectangle)/brown construction paper or paper grocery bag/variety of colors of construction paper/colorful feathers/markers or crayons/wiggly eyes for older children
What to do:
1. Trace or have your child trace the circle template on brown paper and the feathers (5-6 works well) and headband template on a color of his choice.
2. Cut or have your child cut out all of the pieces.
3. Glue the paper feathers onto one side of the circle.
4. Place the turkey body so it overlaps the feathers some.
5. Draw a face on the turkey. (You could use cut outs for this part and/or wiggly eyes.)
6. Turn over your circle and add the Native American’s headband.
7. Draw a face for the Native American.
8. For a fun touch, add a couple of real feathers.
Native American Side
