American Flag Preschool Craft

Have a wonderful Independence Day!  We have company coming in for the weekend, so we're looking forward to that visit.  In the meantime, we made a traditional (with about half the stars) American flag craft (and attempted a red, white, and blue mat...turned purple) to go with the book Stars and Stripes by Salina Yoon.  We just love this book for our children!  Enjoy making your own flag with your preschooler for the Fourth of July!

Gather Your Materials:

Flag

    7 strips of red paper (make sure when positioned on the paper, white stripes from the background will show)

     blue rectangle, cut to size

     foil star stickers (or white paint could be used to make thumb prints as a substitute)

     glue

     white paper, cut 1-2 inches smaller than

Background

     red paint

     blue paint

     paint brush

     white paper

Additional stickers optional

Background Mat:

If you want a colorful background mat, put dots of paint around the outside of your piece of paper.  Try alternating the red and blue.  Four dots of each color covered our paper!  If you have an older child, try to suggest not mixing the colors to make purple, but letting the red and blue stand boldly on the white background.  Set aside to dry.

Flag:

Begin by looking at a flag, or the flags in Stars and Stripes.  Begin at the bottom, and prepare a red strip with glue.  Continue adding stripes until about halfway up the flag.  Then I would suggest going to the top and add stripes from the top going down the flag.

When the stripes have been completed, add up to fifty foil star stickers to the blue rectangle.  (We used less than twenty-five stars.)  Glue blue rectangle in the upper left corner of the flag!

Once the mat has dried, use decorative stickers (or glue) to attach flag on the mat.  Hang in a prominent place and watch your child beam with pride!  Then go for a walk or drive and see how many American flags you can spot!