[For 3-year-olds] Perfect for September! A Collection of Craft Ideas to Enjoy Autumn Nature
September makes craft time with children even more fun.
Here, we’ll introduce craft ideas for three-year-olds using seasonal themes like moon-viewing, mushrooms, and cosmos flowers.
Let’s enjoy autumn crafts together using stamp daubers, origami, and everyday materials.
Through activities that highlight each child’s individuality, their interest in autumn’s nature will grow.
You’ll find plenty of tips everyone can enjoy together, so please use them as a reference.
Because we emphasize ideas that harness children’s free imagination to create works, in the main text we use the term “seisaku” (制作, creation/production) rather than “seisaku” (製作, craft-making).
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[For 3-year-olds] Perfect for September! A collection of craft ideas (41–50) to enjoy autumn nature
Super huge! Tissue paper grapes
Here’s an idea that’s perfect when you want to make an impactful autumn wall display.
Stack several sheets of tissue paper and accordion fold them.
Once folded, tie the center with wire.
Gently pull apart the layers of tissue paper one by one from the inside; when all the layers are fluffed, shape it into a round form.
This makes one grape.
Make eight of these, then arrange them in four rows as 3, 2, 2, and 1.
Glue them onto the base, and add a stem made from construction paper and leaves made from tissue paper to finish.
When you display it on the wall, adding a vine is a nice touch too.
[Ages 3 and up] Hedgehog Snip-Snip Craft
Using everyday paper plates to make hedgehogs is a great craft for 3-year-olds who are starting to enjoy expressing themselves.
Get paper plates, scissors, construction paper, and glue ready.
Prepare the hedgehog bodies in advance, and have the children make cuts around the edge of the paper plate, snipping from the outside toward the inside.
It’s also a good idea to draw guide lines so they can cut along them.
By drawing the hedgehog’s face themselves, each child can create their own original hedgehog.
Giving the hedgehogs names and using them in play can make the activity even more fun.
Swirly Grapes
When it comes to the king of autumn flavors, grapes surely take the crown.
Let’s make a seasonal craft by rolling construction paper.
Prepare construction paper, scissors, and glue.
Cut the construction paper into a teardrop shape to create the base for the grapes.
Cut long, thin strips of construction paper and roll them tightly with your fingertips to form grape shapes.
Glue the rolled “grapes” onto the base in a three-dimensional way, making sure there are no gaps.
Finally, cut and roll green construction paper to make the stem and cluster top, then glue it on to finish.
Try making it while paying attention to finger dexterity, size, and overall balance.
Easy grapes—just put them in a plastic bag
Let’s make grapes by crumpling tissue paper—an activity kids can enjoy from around age one.
Prepare a clear plastic bag, tissue paper, and a pipe cleaner.
Shape the clear plastic bag into a triangle, then crumple the tissue paper into small balls to make grape berries.
Put the berries into the bag and twist the opening closed with the pipe cleaner.
Once your 3D grape cluster is done, add a leaf made from a handprint and create a wrinkled pattern on it to finish.
This is a craft that children around one year old, who love squeezing and crumpling, can enjoy.
Give it a try!
Grapes wreath
Using origami to make delicious-looking grapes is also perfect as a craft that stimulates fine motor development.
Prepare origami paper, glue, and scissors, and let’s get started.
Cut the origami into strips with scissors and glue the ends to make loops.
Make a total of 12 loops.
Glue the loops together to form a bunch of grapes.
If you use light green origami, you can make Shine Muscat grapes.
You can also make leaves and the stem, which might be fun for wall displays and other decorations.
Moon viewing with tampos
Let’s work on a Moon-Viewing (Otsukimi) craft using tampo stampers.
For the inside of the tampo, use absorbent cotton or a sponge.
Wrap the filling with a towel or gauze and secure it with a rubber band.
If you also wrap rubber bands around the handle, it will be easier for children to hold.
Next, cut brown construction paper into the shape of a sanpo (offering stand) and paste it onto navy or black construction paper.
Draw pampas grass around it with crayons, and now it’s time for the tampo! Use white paint to stamp on top of the sanpo to represent rice dumplings (dango).
Many children may not know what stacked dango look like, so showing a sample beforehand helps things go smoothly.
Once the dango are done, use yellow paint and the tampo to create a full moon.
Your uniquely expressive Moon-Viewing craft is complete!
Full moon rabbit made from a single sheet of origami
Perfect for moon-viewing events! Here’s an idea for a full-moon rabbit made from a single sheet of origami paper.
Autumn is the season for tsukimi (moon viewing), right? Some of you might prepare pampas grass and moon-viewing dumplings at school or at home and enjoy the beautiful moon.
This time, let’s make a full-moon rabbit that’s just right for such an event.
What you’ll need: yellow origami paper, scissors, glue, and a pen.
Some steps are a bit tricky, so it’s best to work together with a parent or teacher for safety and ease.
Be sure to give it a try on this occasion!