My husband plays softball once a week. Last week when he played it was really hot, and I was not about to take the children to the double-header. Nor did I want to go outside to play in the backyard.
So we made paper plate snakes. Both children colored paper plates. I purposely chose crayons as the medium, because I knew it would take more time to cover the plate. For my 4 year old's sake, I drew the lines for the snake on the plate before giving it to her so that she could see the different parts of the snake.
Below shows M's colorful snake, fully coiled. E is standing on his snake.
She really enjoyed the snake!
M's cutting skills are probably a bit behind other 4 1/2 year olds. I did more than half of the cutting for her, but every time we cut, it helps! I don't want to frustrate her with curved lines and stiff paper (plates), so I assist.
E also enjoyed this activity, but not as much as M. However, she loved it when we did a similar preschool snake craft when she was almost 3. Maybe we should have added dark eyes and a tongue for his benefit.
It has been a while since I made a craft based on a book. (I do have a list, though not recently updated, if you are interested of book activities for preschoolers.) As the children were coloring (and I was cleaning up the ever-messy island) we discussed the story of God creating the world and Adam and Eve's sin and how the snake/serpent/Satan played a role. We also talked about the book Fur and Feathers (linked to review) where in a girl's dream, she creates new coverings (fur, feathers, scales...) for some animals, including a snake. Notice we didn't read the Bible story or Fur and Feathers...we know both stories pretty well, and I needed to multi-task. Some days are like that.
I still want to link up to a great resource called Story+Art=stART. Check it out for additional ideas.
6 comments:
How neat! What a cute idea!
R is very good at cutting, but she often gets tired of it so I take over for her.
We haven't done a stArt project in a while.
Bookworm1 doesn't have very good cutting skills either. Every so often I remember to pull out the scissors and invite him to cut and then I put them away and forget about them again. Need to pull them back out!
Cutting is one of those skills you really have to let them practice at. The snakes are great - did you hang them over a candle to watch them twirl in the rising air?
Cutting a spiral is kind of tricky. We adore the Fur and Feathers book by Halfmann. What would your kids make for a snake to wear?
What a fun, simple craft...I will have to try doing this with my 4 YO this week! :) I really like the suggestion from one of your other commenters to hang it over a candle and watch it spin.
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