How to Use Leaves for Kids Crafts

Autumn is a magical time of year when the world changes color and numbers of leaves in a variety of shapes and shades fall to the Earth. Autumn is a great time to take advantage of nature changing to collect the leaves and use them in a variety of creative kid's crafts.

Things You'll Need

• Leaves
• Heavy books
• Craft paper
• Crayons
• Hole punch
• Ribbon
• Craft glue
• Wax paper
• Butter knife
• Iron
• Foam wreath
• Lightweight decorative items

Instructions

1. Take a walk outside and gather a variety of leaves, selecting them for their size, texture, shape and color. Only take as many leaves as you know you can use, as fallen leaves are great compost for the soil.

2. Wash the leaves gently under water and then lay them out to dry. Once dry, you can use them as they are or place them in a book to flatten, preserve and dry them for use in your arts and crafts projects.

3. Place one or more textured leaves under a piece of paper. Hold a crayon lengthwise on the paper and use long, light strokes to highlight the outline of the leaves. Use many crayon colors, overlap leaves and get creative with your unique leaf prints.

4. Teach kids a bit of botany while they enjoy making a crafty book. Make two or three hole punches along an edge of plain paper, covering it with colorful construction paper. Tie ribbon through the holes to make a book. Glue a different leaf on each piece of paper and have kids label the leaves and write a description below.

5. Use leaves to create any picture your imagination can think up. Glue small leaves to paper to create landscapes, animals or add texture and life to the scenes you have drawn.

6. Collect some colorful leaves and place them on a sheet of wax paper. Use a butter knife to make shavings from old crayons and sprinkle them onto the wax paper around the leaves. Place another sheet of wax paper on top and then iron gently to seal the leaves inside and melt the wax. Hang your artwork in a lighted window like stained glass.

7. Purchase a foam wreath and use straight pins to cover it with colorful leaves. You can add lightweight decorative items such as false fruits, colorful ornaments, bells, ribbon and more to make a festive fall wreath.