Lovely childcare

[For 4-Year-Olds] Recommended in November! Autumn-Themed Craft Activities

20 years of experience as a nursery teacher / kindergarten teacherhiyoko sensei
I’m Hiyoko-sensei, a former nursery school teacher from Hyogo Prefecture. Ever since I was five, my dream was to become a childcare worker, and before I knew it, 20 years had passed since I achieved that dream. Through singing and playing with the children, I kept working with the spirit of someone in their twenties, even as I increasingly felt my physical limits year by year (haha). From here on, I’d like to share helpful information carefully and thoughtfully, drawing on my on-site experience.

As the number of chilly days increases, November ushers in the height of autumn.

Many teachers may be thinking, “I want children to fully experience the charms of autumn!”

So this time, we’re introducing creative project ideas for 4-year-olds that are perfect for November.

Packed with ideas that incorporate a variety of autumn-themed motifs—natural materials like acorns and fallen leaves, delicious seasonal foods, and adorable creatures such as bagworms and squirrels—these projects help children feel the essence of autumn.

We also share project ideas related to Shichi-Go-San, so be sure to use them as a reference.

Because we’re introducing ideas that nurture children’s flexible imaginations through making things, we use the term “seisaku” (creative projects) in the main text.

[For 4-year-olds] Recommended for November! Autumn-themed craft activities (71–80)

Fallen leaves with spray paint

Leaves that gradually change from the lush greens of summer to reds and browns.

The leaves that change color eventually fall, tinting the paths with autumn hues.

Let’s make those fallen leaves using paint spray! Just dissolve paint in water and pour it into a spray bottle, and you’re ready to go.

Spray it onto paper towels to add color.

Once it dries, cut it into leaf shapes, add eyes and decorations with round stickers, and you’ll have bright, adorable autumn leaves! Let children make them in their favorite colors and enjoy the process, too!

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem

Making animals with fallen leaves

Making animals with fallen leaves is fun, too.

I’ll walk you through the basic steps.

First, prepare motifs like animal faces using construction paper.

Then hand them to the children together with fallen leaves and let them freely create the bodies.

For example, for a lion, they can arrange leaves around the face to represent the mane.

Don’t stop at lions—prepare various creatures and enjoy the lively activity together! Animals that pair well with fallen leaves include bagworms and hedgehogs.

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem

steaming hot roasted sweet potato

[Kindergarten/Nursery] October Warm and Cozy Roasted Sweet Potato Art/Crafts

steaming hot roasted sweet potato

As an autumn-themed craft, how about making a piping-hot baked sweet potato? Use handprint stamps to represent a bonfire, crumple newspaper to form the shape, then combine it with a painted “potato” to finish! Encourage kids to try the steps of stamping handprints and crumpling newspaper.

Four-year-olds will likely enjoy painting with colors, too.

You could also prepare a real sweet potato for the children to observe as they work.

Seasonal crafts like this can really enrich children’s hearts.

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem

[For 4-year-olds] Recommended in November! Autumn-Themed Craft Activities (81–90)

Three-dimensional mushrooms made by cutting

[Autumn Origami] Easy and Cute Mushroom Tutorial / Food Mushroom Decoration - Origami Mushroom

Three-dimensional mushrooms made by cutting

Enjoy a wide variety of variations! Here are ideas for making three-dimensional mushrooms by cutting and assembling paper.

You will need origami paper cut into quarter size, origami paper cut into eighth size, colored pens or round stickers, scissors, and glue or craft adhesive.

This is a project idea for three-year-olds to make using scissors! Let’s use origami paper to create 3D mushrooms.

If you draw faces or add decorations with colored pens and round stickers, you’ll have a one-of-a-kind mushroom! Be sure that a parent or teacher supervises when using scissors.

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem

Bagworm made with torn paper

[Making Bagworms] Autumn Craft: Tearing Paper Play for Children (Nursery School / Kindergarten)

Bagworm made with torn paper

Why not try a fall-themed project—bagworms—using torn-paper collage that kids love? You’ll need brown origami paper, a toilet paper roll, glue, and so on.

Teachers should prepare the bagworm eyes in advance.

Provide several shades of brown origami paper and let the children tear them freely.

Have them glue the torn pieces on until the toilet paper roll is completely covered.

Attach the eyes at the end, and it’s done.

Kids can enjoy the tactile feel of tearing paper, and it also helps with fine motor skill development.

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem

Sparkly-Eyed Owl

[Kindergarten/Daycare] October: Bright-Eyed Owls in the Dark – Art and Craft Activity

Sparkly-Eyed Owl

Here’s a craft idea for making “Bright-Eyed Owls” using aluminum cups.

Prepare by pre-cutting the owl’s small parts.

Have the children cut out an owl, a moon, and circles from construction paper.

Then cut each circle in half to make the wings.

Glue the aluminum cups onto the pre-cut owl to form the eyes, and attach all the pre-cut parts to complete the owl.

Prepare a background sheet and glue on the moon and the owl to create a nighttime scene.

When you shine a light on it, the eyes sparkle like those of a real owl you might see at night—it’s really fun!

Raise the rankinglower

Report a problem

In conclusion

We’ve introduced some November craft ideas we’d love 4-year-olds to make.

By incorporating acorns and fallen leaves you find outdoors with the children, they can feel even closer to the nature of autumn and deepen their curiosity and interest—highly recommended.

Try adapting the activities to match the children’s interests.

Let’s enjoy the artistic side of autumn together while experiencing all its charms!