Autumn is just around the corner. Already we can see the first signs of autumn like leaves fall from trees, which will gradually cover the earth in gold, yellow and orange and the fresh, crisp, earthy air that adds the fragrance of homeliness that I love.
On the flip side, the weather becoming colder, and wetter can dampen our spirits, making us miss the warmth and excitement that the summer brought. Sometimes we can forget that autumn is just as great as summer is in its unique way, and it also accompanies plenty of fun, messy and creative activities for your kids to enjoy.
Here are 8 exciting art and crafts activities to remind your child why autumn is awesome!
1. Pumpkin scented play-dough
Here’s an idea. You can make a lightly sweet, scented pumpkin play dough with your kids with love! While playing with playdough children can develop small muscles in their fingers and hands to improve their motor skills. To find the original recipe, source of the photo, and a ton of other wonderful crafts ideas please check out; https://www.happinessishomemade.net/easy-fall-kids-crafts-anyone-can-make/
What you’ll need:
1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
1 cup water
2 tbsp. oil
2 tbsp. cream of tartar
2 tbsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Red and yellow food colouring
Here’s the recipe:
1. Mix the flour, salt and cream of tartar and pumpkin spice in a medium-sized saucepan.
2. Gently stir in the oil, water, and vanilla extract
3. Add few drops of food colouring to turn your dough mixture orange
4. Heat the mixture in the oven over medium heat while stirring until the dough turns a stiff playdough consistency.
5. Remember, allow 15 minutes for the play dough to cool before playing as it is very hot!
Finally, roll up your sleeves and get stuck in with the pumpkin playdough, (just remember not to eat it).
2. Craft an autumn tree out of tissue paper
This artsy activity will involve lots of fun things children like to do, such as cutting, glueing, and scrunching! It can be hard to keep kids engaged for longer than 5 minutes, but this activity involves your child concentrating on each step of their creative process. Allowing kids to practice being independent and resilient is critical for their cognitive development, and this activity gives them the chance to practice both things. To Find the original recipe, and source of the photo used please click here; https://iheartcraftythings.com/tissue-paper-fall-tree-craft.html
What you’ll need?
• Red, yellow, and orange and brown tissue paper
• Paper plate
• Carboard
• Glue stick
• school glue
• Child Scissors
• Gold paint or yellow acrylic paint
How to make it?
1. Cut a medium-sized circle shape from carboard for the main part of your tree and cut a long rectangle shape for the tree trunk
2. Stick the circle shape on top of the rectangle shape, making sure that most of the rectangle is visible to form the shape of your tree.
3. Cut small square shapes out of orange, yellow, brown, and red tissue paper, scrunch them and then glue them all over the circle for their leaves.
4. Paint your paper plate gold or yellow with acrylic paint
5. Display your vibrant craft by sticking it onto your small paper plate.
3. Make a Hedgehog out of natural resources like clay or pinecones
During autumn, you can spot hedgehogs working hard to collect lots of food and resources for the upcoming winter months, so that’s why it’s easier to spot them now. Their cone-shaped faces, short legs and porcupine-like spikes make them simply adorable. You can make collect little sticks in the park and then make your y own little hedgehog following these steps, which also help toddlers practice their developing motor skills. To find this original recipe, and source of photo please check out; https://www.happinessishomemade.net/easy-fall-kids-crafts-anyone-can-make/
What you’ll need:
Child scissors
Clay tools
1 packet of air-drying clay
Small Sticks or toothpicks with sharp edges cut)
How to make it?
1. Take a ball of the air-drying clay.
2. Knead until it is easy to form.
3. Shape into an oval.
4. Point the nose of the clay hedgehog.
5. Using the end of a clay tool, poke in the eyes and draw a mouth.
6. Poke the little sticks around the body.
4. Make an Autumn Leaf Suncatcher
Why not celebrate the wonder of leaves changing colour by making a suncatcher and decorating your home windows with them! To read the original recipe, get a free template download, and find the source of the photo used please check out; https://www.thebestideasforkids.com/leaf-suncatcher/
All you'll need for this craft project is
- Multi-Coloured Tissue Paper (Ideally yellow, orange, red, and green)
- Scissors
- Clear Contact Paper
- Glue Sticks
- Black Construction Paper
5. Make a scarecrow puppet out of a paper plate, yarn, and buttons
Scarecrows are an interesting and cool symbol of fall. They protect ripening crops from birds, so these man-made creations ensure we have a great autumn harvest. They are also fun to recreate with toddlers and pre-schoolers. To find the original recipe, and source of the photo, please check out; https://www.findingzest.com/scarecrow-paper-plate-craft-for-thanksgiving/
Additionally, if you'd like a recipe on how to convert a toilet paper roll into a scarecrow please check out this article;
What you’ll need:
One Ice-cream stick for the body
Paper plate for the face
Yellow yarn for the hair
Wiggly eyes
Cardboard hat cut-out
2 Buttons for the eyes
One Black felt-tip pen
Crayons
How to make it?
1. Cut a simple hat shape from cardboard.
2. Cut as much yellow yarn and stick it around the top of the paper plate to make the hair, and then stick buttons for the eyes.
3. Draw the mouth of the puppet with a black felt-tip.
4. Attach the ice cream cone to the back of your paper plate. You can also colour the cheeks with pink crayons and the nose with orange crayons.
6. Make an owl out of a pinecone, acorn caps and maple tree seeds
Did you know owls hoot loudest in autumn? That’s right. Tawny owls, which live in Britain, make more noise during October and November as the young birds reach maturity and look for new homes, which lead to many territorial fights. This amazing craft decoration can also be kept out into Christmas - simply add a little hat and scarf! To find the source of the photo used, and the original recipe please click here; https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.easypeasyandfun.com%2Fpinecone-winter-owls-craft%2F&psig=AOvVaw2mgqJ61_pPBP5BKphc4sUR&ust=1632760885561000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAwQjhxqFwoTCJjBiNSKnfMCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAJ
Anyhow, following these simple steps to can your very own owls out of pinecones.
What you’ll need:
Pinecones
Acorn Caps
Maple tree seeds
Bark
Craft glue
Acrylic paint
Craft items - feathers, googly eyes, permanent markers, tissue paper etc.
How to make it?
1. After gathering supplies on a relaxing nature walk, glue the acorn caps to the front of the pinecone.
2. Glue a piece of bark to each side of the pinecone to create wings for your owl.
Use a pumpkin seed or a tiny pinecone for the owl’s beak.
4. Glue maple tree seeds above each of the owl’s eyes to make your owl look like the Great Horned Owl.
7. Design and make a custom Watercolour Autumn Leaf Wreath
This amazing craft idea is a perfect Autumn Craft to do which will help brighten and decorate your home! To read the original recipe, and find the source of the photo used, please check out; https://www.happinessishomemade.net/kids-craft-watercolor-fall-leaf-wreath/
All you need
- Poster Board (To make the Wreath shape) or a paper plate
- Watercolour paper
- Watercolour paints in autumn colours
- Glue
That's it! Happy Crafting
8. Go On A Nature Walk
And our final Autumn Celebration activity would be.... to go view and appreciate Autumn outside on a lovely nature walk! If you're passionate about the outdoors and love the beauty of Autumn, why not take your children on an exploration nature walk! If you're worried that your children will also get bored halfway through, then feel free to give our guide on Nature Walks with children a read! Our guide is written with your child's interests in mind, providing a list of fun activities and games to do which also promote healthy learning, exploring, and discovery. To read more about this, please click the button below;
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