Making Felted Acorns

Felting/making felted acorns is one of my favorite fall crafts.  This is a great multi-sensory experience for little hands.  You will need a collection of clean acorn caps, felt, tubs for warm soapy water and hot glue guns for the adult helpers. 

Felting outside!

First, students select a thumb size amount of loose felt.  I like to use 2 or 3 different colors.  While dry, kids roll the felt into a loose ball.  Then they dip the felt into the warm water, squeeze out the water  and roll the felt into a tight ball.  They keep dipping, squeezing and rolling until the felt makes a tight dense ball.  Then the kids choose an acorn cap (previously collected and the teacher hot glues the cap onto the felt.  If desired the acorn can be glued to a magnet or a piece of yarn to create a necklace.

Proud of our creations.

I like to keep a collection for counting and other sensory activities.

 

October Quilt

The September quilt alternates an autumn reflection art project with the gray squirrel project.To make the autumn reflection you need white construction paper, paint and brushes.
First help the students fold their paper in half. They will use the fold several times to make this project. Next each student paints a blue line along the top of the fold, then folds the paper to print the blue line on the other half. This is the lake. Next the each student paints 3 trees with branches on top the the lake and then folds the paper in half again. Last each student paints the colorful leaves on the tree tops, then folds the paper. When the paper is opened the picture is completed! This is a great introduction to symmetry.
Complete directions for the gray squirrel project and the corresponding song can be found under "reading ideas". I used cardboard tubes for painted gray for the bodies of these squirrels.

Going Batty!

This is a fun and easy way to make bats! This activity falls under science, parts of a mammals body. (Did you know that bats are the only mammals that fly?) And of course direction following.
You will need: cardboard tubes, black paint, paint brushes, black or brown tissue paper cut into rectangles, white crayons.
First paint the tubes black. When the paint is dry, cut triangle shaped slits in both sides of the tube.Slide the tissue paper into the slits. Add ears, eyes, faces and claws with a white crayon. Wiggle eyes are a fun option.

Bat Books

Bats by Lily Wood (non-fiction informational text)

Stellaluna by Janell Cannon (fiction)

There was and Old Lady who Swallowed a Bat! By Lucille Colandro, Illustrated by Jared Lee (Rhyming silly story)

Monster Art

This is a fun and easy project for anytime of year but works nicely into Halloween. I like to think of this as multimedia art sculpture with an element of following directions. Plan 2 sessions for this project.

What you need: cardboard (toilet paper) tubes. I pre glued 2 together. wiggle eyes (optional), construction paper, glue, scissors and tempra paint.



Each child receives a set of cardboard tubes. The child then paints the tubes with his/her choice of paint.

The 2nd day the child adds, eyes, facial features, hair and limbs if desired.


There is no set outcome of how the monster should look so children can feel successful regardless of scissor and glue skill levels and it provides low stress practice using these tools.