It’s that time of year again, the red and pink hearts of Valentine’s Day have given way to the green, gold & rainbows we associate with St. Patrick’s Day. Everyone is a little Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, and while your local parade might not be the most child-friendly experience there are plenty of things that you can do at home or in the classroom to get your young learners excited and involved in St. Patrick’s Day.
There are easy ways to incorporate math, matching and color recognition into many activities and this St. Patrick’s Day themed math game is no exception. All you need is some colored construction paper, fruit loops (colored beads would work too) and a set of dice. Have the children roll the dice add up the numbers then count out that many fruit loops of a certain color and repeat. If you’re not ready for adding yet just use one die, you can even use it as an early counting opportunity or even just as a color recognition activity.
There are also tons of great St. Patrick’s Day sciences to get excited about! This rainbow jar experiment not only looks beautiful but it’s also teaching children about density. You can jazz up the old standby of vinegar and baking soda by using rainbow colors and even conducting your experiment in little “pots of gold” to teach children about chemical reactions.
You can also turn your house, backyard, playground, or classroom into the map for your leprechaun exercise treasure hunt! They will be on the hunt for leprechaun treasure while they run, jump, and skip their way to becoming a true leprechaun just in time for St. Patrick’s Day!
Don’t we all wish we could catch a leprechaun? Let the children use their imaginations and devise the best leprechaun trap they can! They can be really simple, or much more elaborate like this “End of the Rainbow Motel”
For those children who are working on perfecting their fine motor skills, this Rainbow Shamrock Art Project is just the thing for their St. Patty’s Day celebrations.
No day is complete without a little story time and St. Patrick’s Day should be no exception. There are tons of St. Patrick’s Day themed books for children of all ages and reading levels. For our youngest readers St Patrick’s Day (Bright Baby Touch and Feel) might be a perfect fit, or if your children are obsessed with catching a leprechaun you can try reading How To Catch a Leprechaun before or after they build their leprechaun traps!Make a shamrock using glue and salt then let them “pint” it with a pipette and liquid watercolors!
If you’re still in need of more St. Patrick’s Day inspirations take a look at our Pinterest Board, there are sure to be some activities, foods or books you and your children can use to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day.