Fall and spring: the two perfect times of year to look at a leaf. In the spring, you can explore new growth and talk about how leaves power the trees, providing abundant food. In the fall, you can explore the ways in which deciduous trees prepare for the quiet winter season. One of these ways is the glory of fall colors that is sneaking up on us right now. Those colors are the signs of the leaves’ slow winding down for the season.
What can you make with all of those glorious leaves?
Last year, we created leaf crowns. In our area, there are ridiculously large maple leaves. We found one extraordinarily large one and two smaller ones and sewed through the leaves with a piece of ribbon. We tied it at the back to make a crown.
You can also create leaf animals. Press the leaves for a few weeks or use them as is. Arrange them in different patterns and you’ll make a bat, a bird, a bee, and so many other different sorts of creatures. If you want to use them to make a fall placemat, press your creations before laminating them.
Of course, there are also leaf prints. Take a little bit of paint and paint it lightly over the back of a leaf. Choose a leaf that has strong-looking veins so they are easy to see. Press the leaf onto a piece of paper. To create fabric bags and autumn tablecloths, press different leaves across the span of a piece of fabric, then finish the fabric. The variation I’ll be using this fall is the rainbow leaf: dab bits of different colored paint into a large pan, then press the leaf gently into them. When you press down, you have a rainbow leaf print. Want other variations on the traditional leaf print?Mix light-colored paint with a bit of glitter glue and press it onto a black piece of card. For amazing glowing leaves, use glow in the dark paint.
Where will your leafy explorations lead you this fall?