Autumn is here! All the crispy and colourful leaves….. the fresh chilly air…. it’s colder and darker….smell of pumpkins. For me, Autumn is all about the colours, the change in the trees, the change in the air, pumpkins, fireworks (good old Guy Fawkes!), fires and cosy-ness!
Whilst getting cosy, and looking forward all the fun coming up, we have been having some fun with some arts and crafts lately, and we thought we’d share them with you. Art and crafts are an excellent way to entertain children, whilst teaching them at the same time!
LEAF FACES
These were fun to make and play with! They can be good for talking about emotions/feelings too. The best thing is, they are so easy to make and there is very little mess! All you need is: Leaves, Eye Stickers and a Marker. This is the type of craft kids can do alone, or you can do it with them and have a discussion at the same time.
LEAF STENCILS
This is a fun one….but it can get a little messy too……or very messy depending on your kids! Some of our kids like to try and contain the mess, and try very hard not to make a mess….the other 2 couldn’t care less and just want to get their creativity on and have fun! You will need: Leaves, Paper, Paints, Paint Pots, Paint Brushes, and Double Sided Tape (or just normal tape folded over). Stick the leaf to paper, and paint/splodge around the edges.
LEAF LETTERING
You can adapt this for any ability. As well as being a great craft for motor skills, and good for learning phonics/reading, it is also a good sensory activity. Feeling and listening to the crunch of the leaves as they tear them to the size they want, before sticking them in the letters – pretty fun!
FIREWORKS
This was fun! As they’re doing this one, you can get them to make the noises of fireworks! You will need: black card/paper, kitchen roll, sparkling paint (or add some glitter to some paint), scissors, and plate(s). You just need to snip a few lines (a couple of inches) down, around one end of the kitchen roll.
LEAF WREATH
This one is a little tricky. It’s fun and effective, but can get a little frustrating if the leaves aren’t playing ball. You will need : paper plate, scissors (to cut the middle of the plate out), leaves and PVA glue, or you could try double sided tape – but your typical stick glue just won’t cut it for this one!
AUTUMN HAND TREE
This is so fun, and you can adapt it to suit different age groups and abilities. So this one that is pictured – Freckled Face 2 drew around her hand and part of her forearm on brown paper. She then cut it out and stuck it on a white piece of paper and painted different coloured leaves with a cotton bud. Other ways of doing it is to use paint for the whole thing, you could use finger tips for the leaves, sponge shapes etc.
PAPER PLATE PUMPKINS
Super easy and super fun for the kiddies! You can make this as easy as you want, or you can step the educational side of it up a notch and include different shapes, shade and sizes of the paper for the to stick on. You can encourage them to do a pattern, think about possibly making one side look a little shaded, etc.
LEAVES AND STICKS BONFIRE
This is an oldie, but was very much enjoyed! Use twigs (and PVA glue) to build the base of the fire. Then leaves and, if you want to, paint splodges for the roaring fire! The picture on top is fireworks!
We hope you have liked these arts n crafts we have shared with you. We hope you have fun doing yours!
4 Freckled Faces 