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Have fun with these wonderful workshop ideas provided by Caroline Allard.
Construction and building blocks:
Arts & crafts:
Drawing:
Role play:
Manipulation:
Pre-reading:
Pre-writing:
Motor skills:
Sensory bins:
TRANSITION ACTIVITIES
This is my spot
(Open game - This is my spot - St. Patrick's Day) Print two copies. Secure one copy of each illustration on the table using contact paper. Drop the other copy into a bag. Have children take turns picking an illustration to determine where they will sit at the table for the day. You may also use the illustrations to determine their naptime spots or their spot in the task train.
My shamrock path
(Open colourful shamrocks) Print, laminate, and set the shamrocks on the floor to form a path which leads to various areas within the daycare. The path may lead to frequently visited areas such as the bathroom, the cloakroom, etc.
ACTIVITIES FOR INFANTS
St. Patrick's Day mobile
(Open educa-decorate - St. Patrick's Day) Print and assemble the various pieces as a mobile. Hang from the ceiling within the daycare or over your changing table.
Green
Explore the color with the infants under your care. Simply place a large sheet of paper on their high chair tray and add a spoonful of blue paint and a spoonful of yellow paint. Let them mix the colors using their fingers.
Green...like grass
Purchase a piece of turf carpet. Deposit it in a corner of the daycare. Infants can explore the unique texture while exploring green once more!
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND MOTOR SKILLS
Gold pieces are falling from the sky
(Open gold pieces) Print and laminate several copies. Use your parachute to throw the gold pieces up into the air.
Lacing shamrock
(Open lacing - shamrock) Print, cut out, and laminate the shamrock. Punch holes around the contour. Children use string or a shoelace to lace the shape.
Leprechaun obstacle course
Children take turns wearing a silly hat. Create an obstacle course, depositing shamrocks throughout. Children must either avoid the shamrocks or capture them, depending on your instructions at the starting line. This activity may also be done outdoors.
Flying balloons
Blow up four or five balloons (green of course). They must never touch the floor! You may give children more difficult instructions such as not touching the balloons with their hands, or blowing on them, etc.
The leprechaun says
Give your group instructions like you do when you play "Simon says". However, you must say, "The leprechaun says," instead. You may give instructions related to St. Patrick's Day. For example, you may ask children to give a friend a piece of gold.
Shamrock hop
Trace, cut out, and glue shamrock shapes on the floor. Children must hop on the shamrocks. Ask them to hop on one foot, hop backwards, forward, sideways, etc.
OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
Where are the leprechauns hiding?
(Open Leprechaun figurines) Print. Hide hundreds of tiny leprechauns in the yard. Each time a child finds a leprechaun he must say, "I found a leprechaun!" Collect all the leprechauns.
Shamrock on snow
Use a long rope to make a giant shamrock shape on snow. Use spray bottles containing green water to fill the shape. If the snow has already melted, you can make your giant shamrock using green chalk.
Leprechaun tag
Select one child to be the leprechaun. Whenever he touches a child, the child must stand still, like a statue. Another child must give him a hug to free him. This game is packed with hugs!
COGNITIVE ACTIVITIES
Educ-shadows-St. Patrick's Day
(Open educ-shadows - St. Patrick's Day) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Children must draw a line to the shadow which corresponds to each illustration using a dry-erase marker.
Educ-differences-St. Patrick's Day
(Open educ-differences - St. Patrick's Day) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Children must find the number of differences indicated on the sheet and circle them with a dry-erase marker.
Educ-math-St. Patrick's Day
(Open educ-math - St. Patrick's Day) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Children must count the objects in each rectangle and circle the corresponding number.
Educ-same and different-St. Patrick's Day
(Open educ-same and different - St. Patrick's Day) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Children must circle the illustration which is different in each row.
Magnifying glass game-St. Patrick's Day
(Open magnifying glass game - St. Patrick's Day) Print and laminate the board game and the illustrations. Cut them out and store them in a box or in a plastic bag. Children pick an illustration and search for it on the board game, using a magnifying glass. Once they have found a match, they deposit the illustration in the correct square, on the board game.
Hunt and seek-St. Patrick's Day
(Open hunt and seek - St. Patrick's Day) Print. Children search for the items in the illustration.
MORAL AND SOCIAL ACTIVITIES
A leprechaun story
Have fun inventing an imaginary leprechaun story with your group. Include as many St. Patrick's Day items as possible. Write down the story. When the story is complete, invite children to draw the illustrations. Children love imaginary worlds!
EARLY SCIENCE/EXPLORATION/MANIPULATION
Colourful rainbows
Use (Crayola) markers to color on coffee filters. When children are done, use a spray bottle to make "rain" fall on the filters (like in Ireland). Observe the changes. The results are spectacular!
Globule wonders...
How do rainbows form?
For these two experiments you will need sunlight. Make sure you try them on a beautiful sunny day.
Experiment 1:
A rainbow in the house
Hypotheses:
Allow children to submit their ideas. Their imaginative spirits will result in eccentric responses. Jot them down! Remember there are no wrong answers! We are aiming for observation not comprehension.
Material:
A large container filled with water
A mirror
Manipulations:
1. Place the container filled with water near a window with plenty of sunlight (If the sun's rays are not strong enough you can use a flashlight).
2. Turn the lights off.
3. Place the mirror in the water. Do not make waves!
4. Reflect the sunlight (or the light from the flashlight) onto a white wall or ceiling.
5. Observe the rainbow you created!
6. Can you name the colours you see?
Explanations:
The sun's white light is made up of coloured lights corresponding to the colours of a rainbow. These lights change direction and separate when they enter or exit water. This explains why you see seven colours on the wall or ceiling. The white light divided itself into seven rays of light: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo (dark blue), and purple.
Experiment 2:
A rainbow on droplets of water
Material: A hose
Manipulations:
1. Stand with your back to the sun. Hold the hose. Your caregiver must adjust it so the water sprays like a light rain.
2. Hold the hose upwards in front of you.
3. Observe the rainbow on the droplets of water!
Explanations:
The principle is the same as in the first experiment. The seven coloured lights which merge into the sun's white light separate when they penetrate the droplets of water and reflect towards your eyes.
CULINARY ACTIVITIES
Little pot of gold
Prepare a cake mix with your group and divide it to make individual cupcakes. Prepare homemade icing and add a few drops of yellow food coloring (to represent gold). Let children ice their cupcake. Add "Corn Pops" cereal on top to represent gold nuggets. You may also add a small rainbow using candy.
Green cooking
Add green food coloring to your recipes to add a St. Patrick's Day touch. You may also purchase green sugar which may be used to decorate cakes, cookies, etc. Add green food coloring to children's milk.
Leprechaun powder
Empty one or two boxes of lime Jell-O in a bowl (the powder is white when dry). Sprinkle this magical powder on apples, applesauce, vanilla pudding, etc. When the powder is moistened it turns green, like magic!
ARTS & CRAFTS
Shamrock prints
Cut a pepper in two horizontally (the shape will look like a shamrock). Dip the pepper in paint (green or other color) and make prints on a large sheet of paper.
Paper shamrock
(Open models - shamrocks) Print several copies. Provide children with green tissue paper and scraps of green construction paper (various shades). Have them tear the paper into tiny pieces using their fingers. Have them glue the tiny pieces inside a shamrock shape. Let dry and display.
Rice shamrock
(Open models - shamrocks) Print several copies on green paper. Ask children to apply glue to the shamrock shapes and add rice. You may also print the shamrocks on white paper and use green food coloring to dye the rice green.
Rainbow
Cut a paper plate in half. Ask children to glue cotton balls on their half-plate to make it look like a cloud. Next, attach colourful ribbon to the bottom to represent a rainbow. Hang from the ceiling.
St. Patrick's Day suncatcher
Cut a shamrock shape out of contact paper. Let children fill the shape with a variety of green craft materials (feathers, paper, cardboard, confetti, etc.) Add another piece of contact paper on top and hang in a window.
Cotton swab painting
(Open models - shamrocks) Print for each child. Deposit a small quantity of green paint in the center of each child's shamrock. Provide children with cotton swabs (Q-tips) and encourage them to use them to paint their shamrock. You may choose to add glitter to the paint for an added touch.
Leprechaun puppet
(Open puppets - Leprechaun) Print the various models on cardboard. Ask children to cut them out and decorate them with various St. Patrick's Day craft materials. Glue the puppet to a Popsicle stick.
Articulated leprechaun
(Open craft - articulated leprechaun) Print for each child. Have children cut out the pieces and color them. Assemble them by adding fasteners where indicated.
My miniature leprechaun
(Open craft - miniature leprechaun) Print, cut out, and color. Glue the pieces on an empty toilet paper roll. Hang from the ceiling.
My St. Patrick's Day hat
(Open craft - St. Patrick's Day hat) Print and cut out. Have children color and decorate their hat. Help them assemble their hat and parade around the daycare.
Shamrock mandalas
(Open mandalas - shamrocks) Print for each child. Invite children to color the mandalas to relax throughout the day.
Coloring pages-St. Patrick's Day
(Open coloring pages theme - St. Patrick's Day) Print for each child.
Creative coloring-St. Patrick's Day
(Open creative coloring - St. Patrick's Day) Print for each child.
SONGS & RHYMES
Pot of gold
by: Patricia Morrison
sung to: The farmer in the dell
The little leprechaun
The little leprechaun
He hides a pot of gold
The little leprechaun
Follow the rainbow
Follow the rainbow
To find the pot of gold
Follow the rainbow
Have nice day!
Educatall team
Our job is to make yours easier. Do not hesitate to suggest themes you would like to see us develop. Let us know of any printable documents or tools which could be useful. Send us your comments and suggestions!
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Themes & Activities
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St. Patrick's Day stationery
Word flashcards - St. Patrick's Day
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