Leaf Pounding

Nature Lesson Plans

Lesson plan developed by Ms. Erika Geelhoed, BA Ed

Activity:

Leaf Pounding

Age Group:

Preschool

* Lesson plan objective and assessment can be adapted to use this activity with school-age children.

Leaf Pounding

Objectives:

Children will experience art and nature while developing their fine and gross motor skills

CDA Competency Standard:

II.7.1a

Candidate’s facilitation promotes children’s physical development
b) Guides the development of children’s fine and gross motor skills

Materials:

Fresh leaves and flowers
White paper
Paper towels
Child size wooden mallet or small hammer
Rolling pin

Procedure:

Take children outside to gather leaves and flowers and other fresh natural materials. This may include stems, blades of grass, flower buds and more. It is preferred to choose items that have already fallen and do not have to be plucked from live plants.
Children should arrange their leaves and flowers on a white sheet of paper and cover it with a paper towel. Next, they will take the mallet and gently pound the leaves causing their colors to bleed onto the white paper. The colors will also bleed onto the paper towel, which is to be expected.
Encourage children to pound the leaves gently and then harder to see the difference in results. Eventually they will find that some plants take more pounding than others. Assist the children in varying their small muscles to get the desired effect.
Next, children can use the rolling pin to press the leaves into the paper. The results may be fainter than the pounding, but it will be similar. Encourage children to use big long motions, short small motions, more pressure, and less pressure when using the rolling pin.

Assessment:

Assess the fine and gross motor use that this activity provides.

Please provide appropriate supervision to the children in your care when completing all activities. You will need to decide what types of activities are safe for the children in your care. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when providing art and sensory experiences for children.

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