Three holiday projects starting with nature!
1) SANTA ROCK PUZZLE
Materials
- Rocks
- Pencil
- Paint Pens
- Scissors
- Twine
- Glue gun/ glue sticks
- Sock
- Beads
- Acrylic paint
- Sticky tack
- Paint Brushes
We always find these items helpful too:
- Smock
- Craft tray
Directions
- Go out with an adult for a nature walk, collecting rocks. As you collect your rocks, lay them out to see if they work for creating Santa’s body.
- Don your smock. Paint your rocks. Allow them to dry overnight.
- We used paint pens to add details.
- You could also glue on details using beads, etc. Experiment with where you want to place your items by using sticky tack. We glued on a fuzzy sock for Santa’s hat. (Perfect for those single ones that everyone always seems to have!)
- Make your hat by tying off the end of your sock and trimming it.
- Allow to dry and play with your Santa!
- If you are using the puzzle in your classroom, we have a sign you can print out: santa
Pin this idea for later:
2) MEMORAH
Materials
- Rocks
- Sticks
- Acrylic paint
- Brushes
- Container
- Watercolour paint
- Water
We always find these items helpful too:
- Smock
- Craft tray
Directions
- Go on walk with an adult, collecting 9 rocks that you think look like flames and 9 sticks (with the one you will use for the centre shamash a bit taller. This candle lights the others.)
- Don your smock.
- Paint your flames with your acrylic paints. (You could use paint pens too.) You may have to do a few coats to get an even coat.
- We put the sticks in a watercolour wash bath. (Water enough to cover the sticks with a bit of paint). The longer you let them soak the more vibrant the colours. (Ours had the bark removed so it was pretty quick!) .
- We put them on a cooling rack with a paper towel underneath to dry.
- Once dry, enjoying lighting your play menorah for the 8 days of Hanukkah!
3) TURKEY
Directions
Find the full tutorial for this project, including tips here:
https://www.hellowonderful.co/post/PAINTED-ROCK-TURKEY-CRAFT-FOR-PLAY
(*This where we learned about rock puzzles- check out their giraffe and flamingo!)
4) Have you seen our ROCK CHRISTMAS TREE?
http://make-it-your-own.com/painted-rock-christmas-tree/
Purpose
- Getting out into nature to source materials.
- Playing and manipulating objects to create an image.
- Recognizing some of the symbols of various holidays.
Safety Notes
- We suggest that you wear a smock and use a craft tray to protect your clothing and surfaces.
- Use scissors with care and adult supervision.
- Cord, yarn etc. can be a strangulation hazard, therefore be sure to use with direct supervision and for its intended purpose.
- Beads can be a choking hazard, therefore be sure to keep them out of the reach of children ages 0-3 years of age or those that tend to put things into their mouths.
