With COVID keeping us indoors for yet another holiday, it’s no wonder we’re all feeling a little stir crazy – especially your little ones. Try to give your children something to look forward to this St. Patrick’s Day with some fun activities the whole family can enjoy. Though it may not seem like it, there are tons of shamrock and leprechaun themed games, crafts, and outdoor activities you can do with your children. They’ll love playing into the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day, and you’ll love seeing your kids have fun and doing something different. Take a look at some fun activities our Reno preschools have come up with to help make this St. Patty’s Day one to remember.
Games
Most of the St. Patrick’s Day games listed below are games that your children have already played, but there’s a twist to make them fun for the holiday.
First on the list is a good old-fashioned treasure hunt. For this game, you’ll need green construction paper, scissors, a marker, and a pot of treasure. You can use fake gold coins, gold chocolates, or any other treat your children enjoy as treasure. Start by cutting your green paper into the shape of a shamrock – make about 6-8. Once these have been cut, write short clues on the pieces of paper and place them throughout your home. (Be sure to make the clues line up with one another so that your children can find the treasure!) Now that everything is in place, send your kids on their leprechaun treasure hunt and watch as they work their way through your clues.
The next game you can do with your children is a St. Patty’s Day take on BINGO. To make your BINGO cards, start by creating a 5X5 grid on a sheet of paper for each child. Write “LUCKY” on the top in place of the word BINGO, and fill in the board with St. Patrick’s Day themed words, phrases, or doodles. Be sure to change up the order of the clues on each board. Write the clues on small sheets of paper, place them in a large bowl, and pick them out randomly until one of your children says “LUCKY”.
Our final St. Patrick’s day game is shamrock hopscotch. Instead of drawing squares on the ground, use a green piece of chalk to sketch eight staggered shamrocks on the ground. These will represent the traditional squares in hopscotch. And instead of tossing a stone or rock into the spaces, use a fake gold coin. This will amplify the St. Patrick’s Day theme and is an easy game for anyone to play.
Crafts
Holiday crafts are extremely popular and it’s super easy to customize them for your little ones. Whether your children like to do quick, simple crafts or create more in-depth art, they’ll love these fun craft ideas.
First up is a clover sun catcher. For this craft, you’ll need clear contact paper, clear glue, scissors, and colorful tissue paper. Start by cutting the contact paper into the shape of a clover, and cut the pieces of tissue paper into varying sizes and shapes. Then, have your children glue the pieces of tissue paper to the contact paper until they like the design. You can hang the sun catcher in a window using tape and a piece of string. Have them create as many as they like with this easy craft!
The next craft we have to share is a paper plate rainbow with clouds. For this craft, you’ll need a paper plate, scissors, paint markers, cotton balls, glue, glue, yarn or string, and gold construction paper (optional). To begin, cut your paper plate in half and then cut a half-moon shape out of the flat part of the plate to create a rainbow shape. Have your children use the paint markers to color in their rainbow. Then have them attach cotton balls to the plate either directly or using the string (to hang below the rainbow). You can also cut the gold paper into gold coins and attach them to the rainbow as well using string. Let your children add as much or as little detail as they’d like. You can also add glitter or stickers to make each piece more unique.
Lastly, we have the classic leprechaun trap. This is an extremely popular tradition that kids just absolutely love. There are many different ways you can create a leprechaun trap some of which are very simple while others are more detailed. For a more in-depth list of instructions, check out this blog from The Best Ideas for Kids to help get you started. This is a great way to get your little ones in the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day and provides fun for the whole family.
Treats
Some other fun St. Patty’s Day activities you can do with your children is to make themed treats with them. Some of the most popular include green root beer floats, chocolate-covered shamrock pretzels, and rainbow fudge. Learn more about how to make these treats below.
Root beer floats are a classic treat that most children enjoy. To make this a St. Patrick’s day delight, just add green food coloring to the vanilla ice cream! You can even blame it on the leprechauns and make a game out of it.
To make your shamrock pretzel treats you will need pretzels, white chocolate, and green food coloring. Start by melting the chocolate in intervals of 30 seconds until the mixture is a smooth consistency, then add the green food coloring. Place three pretzels on a sheet of waxed paper in the shape of a shamrock and lightly pour the chocolate over them. Let the chocolate become solid and enjoy!
Rainbow fudge is a magical treat that isn’t just delicious, but also beautiful. For a complete rainbow fudge recipe, check out this blog on The Spruce Eats website here.
Books
While most preschools in Reno have lessons centered around the St. Patrick’s holiday, they can always learn a little more about the history and culture surrounding this day. With all of the resources we have available to us these days with e-books and the internet, it’s easier than ever to teach your children about St. Patrick and all things Irish. Even if you’re just looking for a fun holiday-themed book to read to your children on St. Patrick’s day, take a look below at this list of books:
- Ten Lucky Leprechauns by Kathryn Heling
- Tim O’Toole & the Wee Folk: An Irish Tale by Gerald McDermott
- The Night Before St. Patrick’s Day by Natasha Wing
- That’s What Leprechauns Do by Eve Bunting
- Jamie O’Rourke and the Big Potato by Tomie dePaola
- How to Catch a Leprechaun by Adam Wallace
- Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day: History, Traditions, and Activities by John O’Brien Jr
- The Story of St. Patrick’s Day by Patricia A. Pingry
Little Bear & University Preschools in Reno, NV
While it’s important that your child gets the best preschool education possible, it’s also important for you to engage and interact with your little ones while they’re home as well. Hopefully, these fun St. Patrick’s Day activities provide your child with the opportunity to grow and learn from the comfort of your own home.
When it comes to your child’s education, there’s no better place than the Little Bear & University Preschools in Reno. The early childhood education programs offered at our Sparks and Reno preschools are designed to cultivate the overall growth and development of children through sound educational experiences. One of the benefits of attending our preschool is that your child will get the best of both worlds: work and play. Our fundamental belief that children learn best through meaningful play is reflected in our high-quality, child-centered programs.
Contact us today to learn more about our preschools in Reno, NV as well as our curriculum, or schedule a tour to visit us in person!