A little fall tree craft. Great for pre-k, kindergarten and first grade!

Hey everyone!

Fall is here! 

Every year, in my classroom, we do this little craft - a fall tree, which the students and I really enjoy. Thought I'd share some details for anyone who wants to try it!

Materials:

1. Straws

2. Brown ecoline  watercolor ink.

3. Tissue paper : Orange, yellow, red.

4. Glue

5. Watercolor paper

6. Brown watercolor

7. Plastic cups (If you use watercolor you need them to dilute the paint)

8. Droppers (if you can find enough for everyone!)

How to:

A. Give your students tissue paper of all the three colors mentioned above. Ask them to start making little tissue paper “balls” but not too thick. Give them something to put them in. We used plastic plates. When they are done, store them nearby.

B. Hand out one watercolor paper and one straw to each child. You can use brown ecoline watercolor ink or just brown watercolor. Ecoline is ready to use but stains easily (protect tables&clothes!). Watercolor needs to be well diluted with water. Portions depend on how much paint you will use. You need a “watery” result!  Two to three children can share one ecoline little bottle or a plastic cup of watercolor.

C. Explain that first of all they need to “spill” drops of paint onto the paper (dip the end of the straw in the paint and let drops fall or use a dropper) , starting low, then in the middle (tree trunk) and finishing  higher (tree branches). Remind them not to put drops all over the paper.  After they are done, ask them to start blowing the paint drops with their straws! Lines will slowly appear. If everything goes as planned and with a little help, you will be seeing a tree trunk and branches on every paper. Give your masterpieces 5 minutes to dry.

   

D. Now the leaves. During fall, trees have some leaves, but they also drop a lot on the ground. Give the children the little tissue balls they made earlier to glue. They can paste “leaves” wherever they like. We put some on the branches and some on the ground. There it is! A fall tree!

 

That's it everyone! Hope you have fun with this in class or at home!

                                                                                  Dina - The Constant Kindergartener