fall

Simple Pumpkin Decoration for Toddlers

 

Simple Pumpkin Decoration:

If you are stuck with an afternoon and your child is excited to break open the craft supplies, try this simple and fun pumpkin project for most ages!  With very few supplies, you can have a lovely decoration before nap time!

 

Cut out construction paper in pumpkin shape.

 pumpkin craft

 

Glue squares of orange tissue paper on.  Younger kids might just like to randomly place them, older kids might like to put on layers to make it full of orange!  You can also use the end of a pencil to make tissue stand up and have a 3-D pumpkin (it will be heavier and might need to be hung with string)!

 pumpkin craft, momstown.ca

 

Cut out black shapes for face elements using black construction paper, foam or left over scraps!  Let your little artist hang this Halloween decoration on their bedroom door or around the house!

pumpkin craft, momstown.ca

 

Remember, it's a HAPPY Halloween - not a SCARY one!

Posted by momstown mama on 10/10/2012 - 12:58
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"Leaf Man" Inspired Craft for Kids

This paper bag leaf man puppet is an easy craft that preschoolers and even toddlers can make almost entirely on their own. It was inspired by a perfect fall day: a leaf hunt where we gathered a bag full of all sorts of different types of red, orange, yellow, brown, and burgundy leaves, followed by a cozy story time where we read "Leaf Man" by Lois Ehlert. After snacks, we were ready to create leaf men of our own.

 

 

Leaf Man is on many lists of the best fall books for preschoolers, and with good reason. It is one of those unique children's books that works on every level. The text tells a captivating story of journey that "Leaf Man" (a leaf) takes as he blows in the wind. As Leaf Man travels, kids learn to identify the sights and signs of fall, from fields of pumpkins to forests of red, yellow, and orange, to geese migrating south for winter. The words are simple but lyrical, with a regular refrain that "a Leaf Man's got to go where the wind blows" which kids quickly pick up on and are able to join in on as you read.

 

As engaging as the text of the book is, it is even more visually stunning. Each picture in the book is a collage made of various leaves. Maple, catalpa, ginko leaves and more are arranged to take the shape of different animals and objects. The pages are also die cut. adding additional textures and shapes to the story. This is the sort of book that both kids and adults pour over, discovering something new everytime they look at it. What is more, the book is educational. The book also includes a field guide to leaves. Pictures of a variety of different leaves are labelled with the names of the trees from which they originate, allowing kids to identify the types of leaves that they are able to find in their own neighbourhoods.

 

Head out on your own fall leaf hunt, use the book to identify the leaves you have found, and then make an easy "Leaf Man" puppet to take on an autumn adventure.

 

 

Here's what you need to do to make a Leaf Man puppet of your own:

 

  • a paper bag
  • leaves in various shapes and colours
  • glue
  • googlie eyes
  • tissue paper scraps or other embellishments

 

1. Glue a leaf on the bottom flap of the bag to form your puppet’s face. 

 

2. Glue on additional leaves to make your puppet’s arms, legs and any other features.

 

3. Add googlie eyes, and scraps of tissue paper to create any additional details such as buttons or a nose.  We used cut up foam alphabet stickers for our mouths, but rolled tissue paper or all sorts of other things could work too.

 

The neat part about this craft is that your leaf man is a bit of a science experiment too.  He will change in appearance as the leaves you have used dry out.  Here is our leaf man after a day:

 

 

Posted by momstown Teach on 10/08/2012 - 14:06
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Footprint Turkey Wreaths: An Easy Thanksgiving Craft and Keepsake for Kids

Thanksgiving is a great time to get the kids involved in crafts that are also keepsakes. After all, one of the things we are most thankful for is our friends and family. Hand and footprint crafts capture a moment in time, and remind us of how small we were, and how much we have grown. This footprint turkey wreath is an easy fall craft that your toddler or preschooler can make now, and that can serve as a decoration for years to come.

 

 

Here is what you need to make your own Thanksgiving Footprint Turkey Wreath:

  • a paper plate
  • brown construction paper
  • scraps of yellow and orange construction paper
  • squares or scraps of red, orange, yellow, and brown tissue paper
  • a black marker
  • scissors
  • glue

1. Cut the centre out of a paper plate (an adult's job).  Spread glue onto the paper plate, and cover with squares of tissue paper:

 

 

3. Trace your foot onto brown construction paper.  Cut out.  Use your marker to add two eyes, and glue on a orange beak.

4. Cut two long strips of yellow construciton paper, and accordian fold each one.  Glue to the bottom of the turkey's body to form its legs.

5. Glue the turkey's body to the bottom of your wreath, and hang your wreath on the door.  Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

Posted by momstown Teach on 10/04/2012 - 14:16
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Teaching Seasons with a Simple Wall Tree

 

What better way to teach the changing of the seasons than with a wall tree!

 

For Fall: momstown got busy creating a large wall tree to hold all of our apples. It was a fun way to mark the season. All the neighbourhood kids got in on the action and spent a morning making apples and creating the tree.

 

Here's what you need to make it: 

Brown card stock or construction paper

scissors

blank wall

 

Here's what you need to do:

1. Create a tree using brown construction paper or card stock. You can tape sections together to create a larger than life creation!

 

tree craft

 

2.  Trace your handprint to create the green leaves.

 

tree craft, fall

 

3.  Tape the leaves and apples to the tree to complete your FALL display.

 

fall craft, tree,

 

This corner is in our basement playroom and we talked about making it a full four season tree. Taping up snowflakes in the winter and removing the leaves. Adding blossoms in the spring and loads of leaves in the summer.

Quite the discussion point and fantastic resource for learning seasons!

 

 

Posted by momstown mama on 10/03/2012 - 20:26
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Tissue Paper Apples

 

Fall is not only the perfect time to pick apples and cook with apples, it is a great time to create some apple crafts with the kids!

 

Tissue Paper Apples:

 

Here's what you need to make it:

- cardboard apple cutouts

- tissue paper squares (red, green, yellow)

- glue & scissors

 

Here's what you need to do:

This is a  simple apple project, perfect for a group of random aged kids. momstown had kids between age 2 and 10 creating a variety of apples all together.

 

1.  Trace and cut out apple shapes on old cardboard from cereal boxes or old cardboard boxes.

 fall craft, apples

 

2.  Dab glue or cover the apple in glue, then add your tissue paper (each age will attempt to try this in many different ways).  Some children scrunched up the tissues paper to make a definitive apple. Younger one slapped down the tissue paper flat to make a messier but fun version. Others used the end of a pencil to create a fuller, more 3D apple. Open to all creativity.

fall craft, apples

 

fall craft, apples

 

3. Fill in the apple (red or green) until you can't see the cardboard! 

 

fall craft, apples

 

4.  Use your apple to decorate a tree or use as a thank you gift for your teacher!

fall craft, apples

 

If you loved making this craft, we have so many other apple crafts and activities for preschoolers; including apple trees for any age!

 

Posted by momstown mama on 10/03/2012 - 19:47
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Book Review: Let It Fall

Fall is my favourite season. From breathtaking colours to harvest festivals, from apple picking to pumpkin patch visits, and from the delicious aromas of fall baking to the simple pleasure of just playing in a pile of leaves, it feels like every day is a new opportunity for magical experiences and sensory fun.

 

"Let It Fall" by Maryann Cocca-Leffler, manages to capture all the wonder of fall in a short, rhyming book that is perfect to read aloud with toddlers and preschoolers. The book follows the fall adventures of one family as they visit a fair, take a hike to see the colours on the trees, and notice animals preparing for winter. The adorable illustrations that accompany the book are full of things to spot and count, as well as images such as a boy with his face covered in pie that are sure to make your little one laugh.

The book touches on the aspects of fall that might be not so great as well: bare trees and freezing fingers as the season progresses. "Let It Fall" ends with the fun of anticipating the first snowflake, and everything special that winter brings. The story is a gentle reminder that while there may be things we are sorry to see go when one season ends, the new season can be filled with its own joys. In that sense, it is an allegory for all of the changes we experience in life, and a valuable lesson for kids to learn, and adults to be reminded of.

 

Our momstown chapters will be enjoying "Let It Fall" as part of our Scholastic Canada sponsored Tales for Tots program this October, and one lucky person at each event will get to take home their own copy of the book. Whether you bring the book along to enjoy with a cup of apple cider while you are out on for a walk in the woods, or cozy up with your kids to read it aloud on a windy, rainy day, it is sure to become a fall favourite in your house.

Posted by momstown Teach on 09/27/2012 - 12:21
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