Archive for the ‘Snakes’ Category
Rattlesnake Craft
If you follow me on Twitter you may have seen my tweet on Sunday that we found a snake in our backyard. My husband was mowing and saw it. As soon as my son woke from nap, all three of us went searching, and found it again. I love finding wild life in my backyard ( well when it’s small and non venomous anyway), it makes learning about a specific animal so much more fun . We immediately went online to find the exact species, what it ate and how big it would get. Sadly after nap yesterday my son wasn’t as into making his own snake as I guessed he’d be ( or at all), although he liked the snake book we read . Oh well I can’t win them all!
- Gather your materials. You will need 2 toilet paper rolls, or a paper towel roll cut in two, some sticky back foam, some jingle bells, googly eyes ,glue, scissors , a knee high or leg of panty hose , and a pipe cleaner.
- Start by having your child cut the sticky back foam into shapes. We are using up scraps so they were already in smaller pieces, if you have large sheets you may want to make it easier for your child by cutting them into strips that are easier to handle.
- Put the rolls inside the panty hose, along with the jingle bells.
- Tie the end.
- Peel off the backing and add the shapes. You can even fit in a patterning lesson if you want !
- Add the tongue . I threaded the pipe cleaner through then twisted it into the right length with a v on the end.
- Add glue for the eyes.
- Add eyes. Let dry.
Books
The Snake Is Totally Tail
The Greedy Python
Snake (Watch it Grow)
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Snake Craft
- Gather your materials. You will need a paper grocery bag or large piece of paper, paint, a brush or roller, 2 googly eyes, some different color foam , a plate for paint, scissors and glue.
- Cut open the bag so it’s a one long piece and draw a snake. I taped it right to the table.
- Start by choosing your paint colors, I was itching for my son to pick something bright but he chose brown and orange- and I am so happy he did I think it looks great. Pour both colors into a plate.
- Start painting.
- While your child is painting ( or before you start if that works better for you) ask your child what shapes they want to put on the snake, or decide yourself if they are too young. Cut large pieces for little guys that are still mouthing things. We don’t want anyone to choke!
- Time to glue the pieces on! I put the glue on in dots all along the snake.
- Cover each glue dot with a shape. Older children should be doing a pattern !
- While they are adding the shapes, cut out a tongue from red foam.
- Add the eyes and tongue.
- Let dry and cut out!
” Hide and Snake” by Keith Baker is a fantastic book for a wide range of ages. The story follows a snake that hides in multi colored places. It is not too easy to find the snake , but easy enough that this won’t frustrate your child. With older children this book can open a dialog about camouflage and how snakes use it for protection and hunting. Younger children love books likes these because they can stay “busy” while you read the fun rhyming text.
“The Sea Serpent and Me” by Dashka Slater is a sweet dreamy book. A little girl finds a sea serpent in her bath tub and they become friends all the while knowing he belongs in the sea. She promises to take him back but they keep finding reasons to wait. When they do finally go and he returns to the sea you can’t help but get a little lump in your throat remembering all those times you have had to say goodbye even though you didn’t really want to. The illustrations by Catia Chien make the whole book feel like a dream.
Posted in Age 2-3 years, Age 3-5 years, Animal Activities, Crafts, Shape Activities, Snakes | 
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Letter Of The Week ! Ss !
- Gather your materials. You will need 2 pieces of construction paper, some paint, scissors, some black and white paper or foam, glue, and a red pipe cleaner.
- Draw a thick S on a piece of construction paper.
- Mix some paint colors together, you don’t need to do this step but I have been noticing since doing this my son has been naming colors more accurately. I ask him ” Which color should we use?” while holding 2 or 3 for him to choose from. It could be a coincidence but it takes an extra 30 seconds so I think it’s well worth the time!
- Paint your S, you aren’t going to cut it out until it’s all dry and this makes it less frustrating for little ones who are less able to stay within the S.
- While your child is painting cut out 2 black circles of paper or foam sheets, and then small white diamonds and glue together. Of course you can use googley eyes if you want to skip this step.
- Let the snake dry.
- Glue the eyes on.
- Add a tongue, I am using a pipe cleaner but red paper glued on would work great too.
- Glue the S onto another full piece of paper for strength, without it the S will be ripped in no time.
” The Greedy Python” by Eric Carle is a fun fable about a snake that is so greedy and keeps eating and eating that eventually he eats everything, even himself! Kids love this silly story!
An activity I enjoyed doing with a student who loved this was to play restaurant, she was the waitress and would take my order. I would order letters, shapes, and numbers and she would write them down on the board. Older children enjoy playing hang man on this toy too!
