Leaves and Trees

Welcome to Blue Bird Day’s Weekly Lesson Plans. This week we’re working on the theme Leaves and Trees! Read below for more themed lesson plans and activities.

Table Time Activity: Leaf Sorting

Materials:

Leaf Color Sorting Worksheet

Skill Check

This activity focuses on tacting colors and fine motor skills.

Growing My Skills

1. Follow link to paper, print sheet.

2. Cut out leaves from bottom.

3. Review color of each leaf on top of paper.

4. Hand child one leaf at a time and sort by correct color and paste.

Relaxation Time Activity: Fall Leaves Sensory Bin with Water

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is to help your child explore and engage with new and familiar objects.

Growing My Skills

Gather materials.

Ask your child questions that will help them connect with the activity they are playing with; What does ___ feel like? What does ___ smell like? What does ___ sound like?

Also making comments or asking questions like; Where do we see leaves at?

Or comments like; we can swim in water or we can drink water will help you child make connections to these common objects while engaging with them in a new way!

Creative Time Activity: Painting Leaves Craft

Materials:

Butcher Paper.

Leaves.

Tape.

Paint.

Activity Instructions.

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is about exploring familiar objects together and creating art!

Growing My Skills

Gather materials.

Take your child outside and have them pick which leaves they like.

Have your child pick which color paint they like.

Tape or glue part of the leaf onto the paper.

After your child is done painting, take off the leaves to show them their artwork.

Movement Time Activity: Tree Pose

Materials:

Yoga mat.

Skill Check

The goal of this week is to practice your balance to stand tall like a tree!

Growing My Skills

Your child may need to hold your hand or onto a chair for practice.

You can give your child verbal or tactile cues to use their standing leg and belly to keep their balance.

You can up the challenge by changing arm positions: first holding onto something, then with hands together in front of their bodies, then with one arm up at a time in the air, and finally two arms reaching up in the air.

You can even have trees swaying in the wind by reach up and leaning to the right, and then leaning to the left.

Make sure you practice balancing on both legs!

Mealtime Activity: Tea Leaves

Materials:

3 or more variations of dried tea leaves found in the store or from home.

Optional: store bought cinnamon sticks, dehydrated orange peels, ginger.

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is to determine it’s possible to drink tea made from leaves on trees!

Growing My Skills

To do: wash hands.

Boil water, separate water into 3 different containers, preferably clear glasses.

Stir leaves into the water and watch the colors change!

Add honey, vanilla or cream for taste and identify the leaves coming from trees!

Optional: purchase dehydrated fruit or cinnamon sticks at the store, steep them in boiling water and watch the color change.

Source.