September: Autumn crafts! Ideas you can use in childcare
In September, when the season gradually shifts from the hot summer to autumn, there are many chances to feel the change of seasons through nature and living creatures.
This is a must-read for teachers at daycare centers and kindergartens who are thinking, “We want to incorporate crafts that let children feel autumn!”
Here are some recommended craft ideas for September.
We’ve gathered a wide range of ideas—from those that incorporate familiar autumn elements for children such as fallen leaves and acorns, to ones that use unique techniques that stimulate the five senses.
With a bit of adaptation, these activities can be enjoyed by children from infants to the oldest kindergarteners, so please make good use of them.
Since we emphasize project ideas that make the most of children’s free imagination, we use the term “制作 (seisaku: creation/production)” rather than “製作 (seisaku: craft/production)” in the text.
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[September] Fall crafts! Ideas you can use in childcare (111–120)
A Small Autumn Made with Torn-Paper Collage
Let’s try creating a little taste of autumn on a paper plate.
Like a torn-paper collage, glue small pieces of origami paper onto the plate.
Tear red, yellow, and orange origami into small pieces to evoke autumn colors and turning leaves.
To make it easy to stick the pieces on, first apply glue evenly and thoroughly over the entire surface of the paper plate.
Once the collage is complete, make autumn icons—acorns and chestnuts—out of origami to decorate on top.
Cute acorns on fallen leaves—your piece will feel like autumn has been tightly gathered and captured.
[September] Autumn crafts! Introducing ideas useful for childcare (121–130)
Torn-paper collage grapes
Let’s make grapes—the quintessential autumn fruit—using a torn-paper collage.
First, draw grapes on construction paper and prepare the surface so the torn origami pieces can be pasted on.
Together with the children, tear purple origami paper into various shapes and colors, then enjoy sticking the pieces onto the drawing or spreading glue and arranging them freely.
Tearing and pasting the paper stimulates the children’s senses and results in works that showcase each child’s unique sensibility.
Using two shades of origami paper is recommended, as it helps express light and dark.
Dragonfly silhouette uchiwa (hand fan)
This is a dragonfly fan made with monoprinting.
Monoprinting is very simple: apply paint to a dragonfly shape made from a milk carton, then press the paper you want to print onto it.
The key is to use fairly thick paint.
Once the image transfers, cut it to match the fan shape and glue it onto the fan to finish.
If you also create and print motifs like a sunset or pampas grass in the same way, you can express a charming autumn scene.
However, cutting milk cartons takes strength, so adults should prepare the parts.
For five-year-olds, you might draw guide lines and let them cut along them with assistance.
Mushrooms in bleeding watercolor
Let’s use wet-on-wet painting to make cute mushrooms for the autumn season.
We’ll start with the stem.
Apply glue all over a sheet of origami paper and attach it to a toilet paper roll.
Fold and glue the excess at the top and bottom inward.
Next, use a coffee filter to make the cap.
Draw patterns on the coffee filter with water-based markers, then mist it with water.
Once it’s dry, firmly glue the stem and cap together.
Your mushroom is complete! Be sure to spray enough water so the ink bleeds nicely.
Prepare several colors of water-based markers and let the children choose their favorites.
hungry squirrel
This is a squirrel-themed trinket box that’s perfect for holding acorns you found outside! On a sheet of colored construction paper folded in half, draw templates for the squirrel’s face, hands, and tail parts.
Have the children cut out the parts along the outlines.
Next, the teacher uses a craft knife to cut an opening in the center of a deep paper plate to serve as the mouth of the container, then places it upside down and tapes it to a flat paper plate to secure it.
Finally, avoiding the opening, attach the squirrel parts and the fallen leaves cut from construction paper.
Your adorable trinket box—clutched by a hungry little squirrel—is complete.
Swaying Tsukimi craft
Why not try making a cute, gently swaying decoration for the Moon Viewing festival? First, prepare a piece of construction paper cut into a circle to represent the moon, then paste on pictures with a moon-viewing theme made from origami or construction paper.
Rabbits, rice cakes—any design is fine! Next, get a paper plate folded in half, apply glue to about half of your finished picture, and stick it onto the plate.
In the unused space on the paper plate, decorate by pasting small pieces of origami or drawing designs, and you’re done! If you give the paper plate a little push, it will sway back and forth.
A 3D dragonfly in a cosmos flower field
Here, we’ll show you how to make a three-dimensional painting featuring dragonflies and cosmos flowers.
Since drawing each cosmos flower one by one is a lot of work, we’ll make a stamp using a plastic bottle.
After stamping with a few different colors, paint the centers with yellow paint.
Next, we’ll make the dragonflies.
Tie two ribbons onto a chopstick with simple overhand knots, then draw the head and eyes on round stickers—your dragonfly is complete.
Attach it wherever you like with glue.
By changing the ribbon colors, you can create dragonflies in a variety of colors.
