St. Patrick’s Day is a fun, colorful time for kids. Everyone is decked out in green, glittering shamrocks are everywhere, and is there anything more exciting than a magical rainbow that might lead you to a pot of gold? This month’s craft brings a bit of fortune and festivity into the classroom by letting kids become the luckiest creature of the day: a leprechaun!
You’ll need a few things to get started.
construction paper (green, black, yellow, and orange)
templates for tracing (optional)
a ruler (optional)
a pen or pencil for tracing
scissors
glue
a stapler
Step 1: Trace or Draw
First things first: use a pen or pencil to draw a leprechaun’s hat on a piece of green construction paper. Draw a rectangular buckle on the yellow construction paper, and don’t forget to draw a smaller rectangle inside of it! This can be a great time to review shapes. After all, doesn’t a leprechaun’s hat look a little like a square in the middle, with a long, narrow rectangle overlapping it on the bottom?
Using their own faces as a size guide, students should also draw a beard on the orange construction paper. Make sure to add a bit extra at the top, since it will eventually loop up to connect to the hat. This is where a ruler might come in handy to practice some measuring skills!
For our youngest craftsmen, you may want to use a traceable model on cardstock or have the shapes pre-cut. You can also streamline the process by using a pre-made, one-size-fits-all template for the beards.
Step 2: Cut
Now we need to cut out the hat, buckle, and beard. It’s the perfect time for younger students to practice their scissor skills, including maneuvering along the “curly” beard and perfecting the technique of folding paper to make an inside cut for the hat buckle.
Students should also cut a thin strip of black construction paper and a wider, long strip of green construction paper.
Step 3: Assemble and Fit to Size
Kids can handle the first part of assembly. After you’ve turned all the paper over so the tracing sides are facing the back, glue the strip of black construction paper to the front of the hat right above the brim. Trim for a perfect fit as needed. Then glue the buckle over the middle of the black strip.
Once the hat itself is put together, line up the beard and use glue or staples to connect it to the back of the hat. It should leave a perfect window to frame the face!
An adult needs to help with the last part of assembly. Using a stapler for extra strength, staple the leprechaun mask to the center of the long strip of green construction paper. The staples should line up near the black strap. Then wrap the strip around each child’s head so that it sits above the ears and tighten until it is appropriately sized. Finally, staple the strip closed.
Voila! Now you can have a classroom filled with lucky little leprechauns ready to learn in style!
For more St. Patrick’s Day ideas and themed practice worksheets, check out the STW collection by clicking here.
