Material: Construction Paper

Paper Fish

Prepare Ahead: 
– Trace a triangle shape from the edge of the paper plate towards the middle part of the plate.
– On the construction paper, draw 2 ovals and one triangle.

If the child you work with has higher skills and can trace the shapes, let him complete this step independently.

Ask the child to first cut out all the shapes from the construction paper and the triangle on the paper plate. the triangle on the paper plate will be the mouth.

Once the shapes are cut out, ask the child to use the triangle as the tail and glue it on the back of the paper plate, on the opposite side of the mouth. Then, use the ovals as the fins and glue one oval at the top and one at the bottom.

Instruct the child to glue the pom-pom as the eye (wiggle eyes or buttons can also be used).

Use the crayons/markers/stickers to decorate the fish.

You can also provide the child with some blue and green construction paper to create an ocean scene

Fall Trees

Hand Flower

On a piece of construction paper, either draw a picture of a tree trunk and branches or have the child draw one for you.

Then give them a paper plate with 3 small dots of different colors of paint.

Ask them to dip one finger at a time into the paint and “dot” onto the trees to make the leaves.

For a fall tree, dot some paint at the bottom as well or along the sides as if the leaves are falling.

Punch It

For this activity, you might want to use a one hole or a shaped hole puncher.

Have the child punch random holes on stiff paper/index cards using the hole puncher.

Promote the child to alternate squeezing the lever with their thumb and first finger, then thumb and middle finger, and so on. This will help in developing the small muscles of their hands in addition to thumb opposition.

Matching Mittens

On colorful construction paper or paper with different designs (e.g. scrapbooking paper), draw 8-10 pairs of mittens. You can also let the child trace the shape a few times.

Cut, or allow the child to cut the pairs.

If using blank color construction paper (i.e. with no design), draw different designs on each pair (a pair with straight lines, a pair with circles, a pair with wiggly lines, etc.). You can also write letters or numbers on the different pairs.

Once the mittens are ready, place them on the table and mix them.

Provide the child with clothespins.

Ask the child to find matching mittens and clip them together using the clothespins

Addition Turtle

Draw 2-inch squiggly squares on the back of the paper plate.

Write sums that would equal either 10 or 5 in the boxes. Alternate the sums to create a pattern.

Gently color over the squares using green and yellow. Be sure to assign 5 the color yellow and 10 the color green or, vice versa.

Using a green construction paper, cut out the turtle’s head shape, 4 legs, and a tail.

Glue the turtles, head, legs, and tail onto the opposite side of the plate and glue on the eyes.