Not a Flannel Friday (But It Could Be!): Oak Leaves

I know it’s still summery out, but just this week I had a chance to start working again on our library’s storytime resource packs, and I decided to drag out the Pumpkin-Fall-Halloween packs in the faint hope that if I started on them now, I could have them refreshed and reinventoried by the time the weather turned!

I am DEFINITELY adding flannelboards for “Fall Is Not Easy,” that Cate shared with us last month, but I also wanted a small prop to hand out to the kids. I loved these felt leaves that Anne pinned to the Flannel Friday Flannelboard Inspiration board on Pinterest, but I was not in a mood to cut and stitch!

So I dug out some paper grocery sacks from under my sink, cut them into flat panels, and had my girls crumple them and uncrumple them a few times while they watched Wipeout last night. Cheap labor FTW!

I cut the leaves two at a time, freehand, making small-medium-large nodes on each side plus a small node on top, but I also found this simple clip art shape you can use as a guide.

Once they were cut out, I outlined the leaves and drew veins with a brown marker.

Presto! A little flurry of oak leaves.

I was remembering a “Mr Oak Tree” song on Hummingbird Education, but when I looked at it again, it wasn’t just about the leaves, but about the squirrels and acorns too.

Mr Oak Tree, Mr Oak Tree
Leaves float down, to the ground.
Acorns dropping–plip, plop!
Squirrels a-scamp’ring–hip, hop!
All around, on the ground.

Next I thought of another song from Hummingbird Educational that I sing in the winter, “Dance Like Snowflakes.”

Dance like snowflakes, dance like snowflakes
In the air, in the air
Whirling twirling snowflakes,
Whirling twirling snowflakes,
Everywhere, everywhere.

I used that song as a model and wrote my own Oak Tree song. Sing it to “Are You Sleeping?”

Mrs Oak Tree, Mrs Oak Tree
Tall and brown, tall and brown
Here comes a little breeze
There go your little leaves
Swirling down, to the ground.

Hand each child a leaf or two. For the first two lines, stand up and hold your leaf high! When you sing, “Here comes a little breeze,” wave your arms (and leaves) back and forth. For the last two lines, turn in a circle, fluttering your leaf closer and closer to the floor until you’re sitting down.

Today’s Flannel Friday round up will be hosted by the magnificent Cate over at Storytiming!