Lovely childcare

[October] Craft ideas for 1-year-olds: Halloween, mushrooms, and more

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.

October is a month when you can feel the essence of autumn, from the colorful leaves to the crystal-clear skies.

We want children to have plenty of experiences during this comfortable season, don’t we?

In this article, we’ll introduce October craft ideas recommended for one-year-olds.

Autumn offers a wealth of materials that can be expressed through crafts—from seasonal delicious foods like grapes and pears to sensory elements like bell crickets and the moon that you can see and hear.

From these, we’ve gathered many craft ideas perfect for October.

Be sure to let children experience lots of autumn through crafting!

Because the things children make are treated as works of art, we refer to them as “seisaku” (creations) in the text.

[October] Craft ideas for 1-year-olds: Halloween, mushrooms, and more (1–10)

Grapes and mushrooms

@chuwakosan.hoiku
Autumn-themed craft!#Nursery school IT and Nature Production
♪ Original Song – Chuwa Kogyo Co., Ltd. Nursery – Chuwa Kogyo Co., Ltd. Nursery

Grapes and mushrooms are classic autumn flavors, aren’t they? This time, we’ll show you how to make grapes and mushrooms.

Please prepare construction paper cut into grape and mushroom shapes in advance.

The children will use masking tape and round stickers to create their crafts! Have them stick round stickers on the grape template to represent the grape berries, and apply masking tape to the mushroom template.

Both activities involve finger movements, and by repeating the motions, children can gradually improve their fingertip control.

Sticker play is an activity that children can enjoy from around age one, so be sure to incorporate it into your activities.

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roasted sweet potato

@chuwakosan.hoiku
Autumn craft timeProduction #Nursery school IT and Nature A day at the nursery Autumn Crafts
Good music – neguse.

Hot, fluffy roasted sweet potatoes are a classic autumn treat as the weather turns chilly.

This way of making “roasted sweet potatoes” is very simple.

Cut yellow construction paper into the shape of a sweet potato and draw brown scorch marks on it.

Spread glue on the purple “skin” paper, then stick on the yellow “flesh” you just made.

When you stick it on, you’ll be tearing the purple paper to resemble the skin, so be mindful of where you apply the glue.

Add some fallen leaves, and it’s complete.

After making your fluffy roasted sweet potatoes, sing roasted sweet potato fingerplay and songs with the children to help them feel the flavors of the season up close.

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Chestnut made with cardboard stamps

@peta_peta_anyo
Chestnut Craft 🌰2Materials:- Cardboard- Paint- Construction paperHow to make:- Dip the cardboard in paint of your choice and stamp it.- Place the chestnuts you made from construction paper on top, and you’re done!!It was so easy that the instructions ended up short… hahaThis is a craft you can prep quickly in your spare time!I think it would be cute to freely draw or stick faces on the chestnuts, too (﹡ˆ ˆ﹡)♡Childcare Nursery teacher / Childcare worker Autumn Crafts Chestnut Production #Making Play #paint #PaintPlay Toddler Crafts Infant Craft Easy to make
♬ Children’s holiday outing song(1431262) – Kids Sound

The spiky burr of a chestnut protects the nut from insects and corresponds to the peel of other fruits.

Let’s use the corrugated edge of cardboard to stamp the spiky burr with paint.

Once the paint dries, glue the chestnut you made from construction paper in the center to finish.

Making the spikes with cardboard gives them a softer look.

It also provides a chance to discover a new way to use cardboard through the activity.

It’s also recommended to look at real chestnuts before starting.

Engaging with seasonal foods can boost children’s motivation to create and their interest in food.

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[October] Craft ideas for 1-year-olds: Halloween, mushrooms, and more (11–20)

Hedgehog stuck on with glue, pitter-patter

[Autumn Crafts for Toddlers♪] Perfect for fall! Spiky Hedgehog 🦔🍂 #preschoolcrafts #nurseryschoolteacher #teachingideas #traineenurseryteacher #teacherlife #constructionpaper #papercrafts #walldecor #Octobercrafts

Hedgehog stuck on with glue, pitter-patter

Introducing a hedgehog craft activity.

Hedgehogs are said to be cautious and laid-back, and they’re super cute, aren’t they? For this hedgehog craft, please prepare a hedgehog template and the quills in advance.

You’ll make the quills by cutting construction paper into vertical strips.

The children will use glue to attach the quill pieces onto the hedgehog template.

Finally, draw the hedgehog’s face with crayons to finish.

For the face, you could also use round stickers so kids can enjoy sticking them on—that might be a fun option!

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Bleeding-effect mushroom

Autumn has lots of delicious seasonal foods, doesn’t it? Among them, mushrooms are one of the most famous tastes of fall.

Here’s a craft idea for making mushrooms using a “bleeding art” technique.

For the mushroom caps that create the bleeding effect, use coffee filters.

Draw freely on the coffee filter with water-based markers in your favorite colors, then spray water over it to make the colors bleed.

If you use a mist bottle or spray bottle, the water will spread evenly.

Make the mushroom stems from colored construction paper, and once the filters are dry, glue them together to finish! You can display them as they are, or add facial expressions like eyes and a mouth to make them extra cute.

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A hedgehog made with masking tape

Let’s make a colorful and cute hedgehog using washi tape! First, cut out a hedgehog shape from construction paper.

Depending on the children’s ages, you can make it together with the teachers, or draw guide lines and have the children cut it themselves.

Once you’ve cut out the hedgehog shape, randomly stick washi tape of various colors and patterns where the hedgehog’s spines would be, and you’re done! You’ll have a very stylish hedgehog with spines in all kinds of patterns.

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Bagworm wreath

@buchiko_hoiku
🐶 @buchiko_hoiku ◂◂◂◂ Check out my other posts, too 🌼 Thank you so much for all the likes 🩷 Hi there! I’m Buchiko, a flower-paper lover 🐶 lol This time I’m bringing you another cute autumn wreath using tissue paper 🫶🏻 Have fun crumpling or tearing the tissue paper however you like ☺️🌼 Add fallen leaves and acorns to make it even cuter 💕 For the bagworm’s body, just stick on some stickers ♪ The face can be tricky with small stickers, so if they’re old enough to draw, crayons are recommended 🖍 Please give it a try 🌼 I’d love to hear if you made one 🌈 ⋱⋰ Thank you for reading to the end 🐶 I share easy-to-copy ideas, from intro to craft-making ♬︎ I’ll be over the moon if you like ♥, save 𖤘, and follow 𖤐—I might even cry with joy 😂 lol Comments are also very welcome 🤍🤍 ⋱⋰Nursery teacher / Childcare worker Kindergarten Teacher Autumn Crafts #Wall Creation Infant Craft Play that expands from picture books Wreath making
♬ familie – Last Chorus Ver. – Mrs. GREEN APPLE

Decorating with an autumn wreath gives you a sense of excitement, doesn’t it? For this wreath made with a paper plate, cut out the center of the plate and attach crumpled tissue paper around the edge.

After decorating the tissue paper with autumn nuts and fallen leaves, hang a little bagworm with a round sticker in the center to finish.

It’s also recommended to use real nuts and leaves you collected on a nature walk.

Expressing your own ideas and engaging with seasonal items can spark interest in seasonal plants and trees.

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