Spring Flowers Take & Make



We all know how the saying goes, “April showers, bring May flowers.” So, for this month’s early literacy Take & Make activity, we’re doing just that. Using the supplies provided in your Take & Make kit, or supplies you have at home, you can create this adorable 3D flower craft. Also, keep reading after the craft instructions for information on how you incorporate READ, WRITE, TALK, SING, & PLAY into this activity. 

Let’s get started!

First, let’s go over the supplies you will need. If you have picked up a kit from the library, this is already provided for you. You will need a blue and a green piece of construction paper for the background, yellow construction paper for the center of your flowers, and any 3 colors of paper for your flower petals. You will also need scissors, glue, and crayons or markers (optional).


 
If you’re doing this on your own from home, you will want to draw lines about half an inch apart. If you have a Take & Make kit, these lines are already drawn for you. These will be the guides for your child to cut along. It is important to let them do the cutting to help them learn this important skill that they will need in school. Your flower petal paper should look something like this:


 
Once you’re ready, cut the paper up into strips. You may also want to cut the paper in half, or your flower petals might turn out a little too big. Also, if you’re using different colors, then try to keep your colors separated. These do not have to be perfect.

Next, take your yellow paper and cut 3 yellow circles (these are also already cut out if you have a Take & Make kit). We found that about 1.5” in diameter, or a little larger than a bottle cap, was a good size for the center of the flowers that we will be making.

Now, we’re going to get a little messy. Take your glue stick and cover one side of a yellow circle completely with glue. Choose a color of your strips of paper and arrange them around the circle, like a sun. The more strips you put on your circle, the fuller the finished flower will look. Our finished flowers used about 15 strips per flower.


 
Once your strips are all glued down, add another layer of glue in the center of the circle and glued down ends. One at a time, fold the loose ends over top of the ends that are already glued down. 


 
When you’re done gluing all your pieces down, turn it over, and your flower should look like this.
 


You will repeat this step for the other 2 flowers.

Next, you are going to take the green paper from your Take & Make. If you’re doing this from home, cut your green construction paper in half “hot dog” style. 


 
Cut a zigzag line across one of the long edges of your green paper to make grass. 



Line the long straight edge of the green paper with the bottom (long side) of the blue paper and glue them together. Then, take your flowers and glue them around the paper.

Here’s how my picture turned out, but yours might turn out completely different. Use crayons or markers to add anything that reminds you of spring to your picture and make it your own. The most important part is that you have fun doing this activity!



Read • Write • Talk • Sing • Play

Read: While reading, occasionally point to words in the book. This shows the child that you are reading the words, not the pictures. You could even try pointing to a word and then point to its picture on the page. 

Reading is also a great way to bond with your child, while preparing them for school. Here are some suggested titles to go along with our theme:
• My Garden by Kevin Henkes
• Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert
• Splat the Cat: Oopsie Daisy by J. E. Bright and Rob Scotton
• Plant the Tiny Seed by Christie Matheson
• The Seedling That Didn't Want To Grow by Britta Teckentrup

Write: Help your child to cut out the strips of paper along the guided lines for the flower petals. Let them practice gluing the pieces down to the paper. 

It may be a little messy, but letting your child practice cutting and gluing will prepare them for skills they will need in school. It also builds strength in their writing hand.

Talk: Go outside with your child and talk about the flowers you see. Some ideas of things to discuss could be:

• Talk about the different sizes, shapes, and colors of the flowers.
• Have your child smell the flowers and ask them if they can describe how it smells. Does it smell good or bad?

Sing: Singing is a great way to help your child learn new words. Singing slows down words, making it a great way for kids to hear the different syllables of a word clearly. Singing with your child can be a fun way to bond with your child, too! (And it’s okay if you can’t sing very well—your child doesn’t care). Try singing this flower song with them:

Ten Little Flowers (tune: Ten Little Indians)
1 little, 2 little, 3 little flowers
4 little, 5 little, 6 little flowers
7 little, 8 little, 9 little flowers
10 little flowers in the spring

Give them rain and lots of sunshine 
(wiggle fingers down, circle arms over head)
Give them rain and lots of sunshine
Give them rain and lots of sunshine
So they’ll grow up big and tall
Credit to: Adventures of a Bookworm Blog

Play: Play is so important for kids—it helps to develop their creativity, imagination, and encourages them to learn and explore new things! Take advantage of the beautiful Spring weather and head outside to explore.

Also, if possible, parents/guardians, it’s a great idea to dance with your child. Doing this for just 15 minutes helps to develop your child’s ability to play while getting their wiggles out. And most importantly, have fun!

Happy Spring!