St. Patrick's Day for Wee Folk

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St. Patrick's Day for Wee Folk

Candace Lindemann

March 13, 2011

Faith and Begorrah--it is almost St. Patrick's Day!
Literally one of our most "colorful" celebrations, this is a perfect holiday for our "little people".
Leprechauns
Toddlers and preschoolers are at an age where they are delighted by the miniature and the magical. The idea of leprechauns will fascinate your own wee folk.
These tiny leprechaun hats at Crafts by Amanda are as fun to watch as shrinky-dinks.
At Little Wonders' Days, a tiny green village is the perfect home for leprechauns.
Set a trap for a leprechaun, like Frugal Family Fun Blog, and see if he'll grant your wishes.

Rainbows, Shamrocks and Pots O' Gold
And many of the symbols of St. Patrick's Day work well with the start of spring in most of the Northern Hemisphere as green appears everywhere and rainbows arch across the sky after rain showers.

Shamrocks
Mathematics: Count the leaves on a clover. Older children can use clovers to skip count, add, and even multiply!
Cardboard rolls make great four leaf clovers over at No Time for Flashcards. (We made a similar craft and glued tissue paper behind them to make sun catchers.)
Those versatile cardboard rolls are also perfect for printmaking shamrocks as demonstrated at Pink and Green Mama.
Make clovers out of egg cartons with A Mommy's Adventures.
These glittery and translucent shamrock sun catchers at Hands On: As We Grow are fun and simple to make.
Rainbows
Identify all the colors of the rainbow. Find items around your house for each color and make your own rainbow.
Science: Make your own rainbow outside on a sunny day. Set a garden hose to a light spray with the sun behind the water. What makes a rainbow?
At Naturally Educational (my site), you can make a rainbow sun catcher out of tissue paper or dyed pasta, or make a rainbow windsock.
Make And Takes has a table favor with a rainbow and a pot of gold.
Recycle gift wrap and other paper scraps to make a rainbow, like this one at No Time for Flashcards.
Music and dance:
St. Patrick's Day is also a traditional day for parades in many cities of the United States. Music is a perfect entry into another culture for children of any age.

Show children pictures of bagpipes and harps. Ask older preschoolers them how they think these instruments might be played. Play traditional Irish bagpipe and harp music for children.
Play and sing traditional Irish songs on St. Patrick's Day. Here's a fun list from Music Sparks.
Take children to an Irish step dancing performance or show videos at home. Try a few of the steps yourself!
Combine rainbows and music to create a rainbow xylophone at Meet the Dubiens! Eventually older kids will learn about the intervals and frequencies that create both the spectrum of colors and the scale of notes.