One shining morning during outdoor time, Kobe ran up to the educator proudly holding a huge red leaf he had found on the ground. His discovery opened up a conversation about the changing seasons. When asked why the leaf was red, he replied, “I don’t know,” giving us the perfect opportunity to talk about fall—how the weather gets cooler and how leaves begin to change colour. Soon, a group of children joined in, and together we played a game of “Who can find the coolest leaf?” Mia pointed excitedly at bright red trees, and we noticed leaves of every shade—yellow, orange, brown, and green.
Inspired by this discovery, the children helped create a giant fall tree for our classroom door. We painted their hands and used handprints to make colourful leaves in all the fall shades. On another wet morning, the children wandered the
playground shaking trees to make more leaves fall. Penelope giggled, “I feel raindrops and leaves on my face and it tickles,” while Everleigh buried her feet in the sandbox and shouted, “My feet are cool and comfy!”
As fall continued, the preschoolers and educators worked together to create another beautiful tree using loose parts and real leaves collected outside. The children eagerly gathered leaves of different colours, shapes, and sizes during a nature walk. Kobe and Serena showed great persistence as they searched for the perfect leaves. This hands-on activity encouraged the children to use their observation skills and explore sensory elements while building the tree by sticking leaves onto paper.
Their curiosity grew as they made their own playdough in fall colours—yellow, brown, green, and orange. Mia proudly created a “ball pizza,” Owen made a cookie topped with chocolate chips and sprinkles, and each child expressed their creativity through playful, messy exploration.
One bright morning, Eva was inspired by the leaves outdoors and gathered a collection with her friends to use for leaf printing. Brynleigh stamped her leaf and called it a “pancake,” while Cole proudly named his print a “monster truck.” Later, Kobe collected leaves of different colours and arranged them on a tray, presenting them to the educator as “brown, yellow, and red cookies.”
Their interest continued to grow, leading to a leaf hunt where they searched for leaves of different shapes, sizes, and textures. They used their collection to make colourful suncatchers and observed how sunlight shone through the leaves. Everleigh noticed, “The red leaves are softer than the green ones,” and Chloe added, “The green and yellow are crunchy.” Their observations showed a deepening awareness of colour, texture, and the sensory qualities of fall.
During a vibrant painting session, the children used fall colours to express their ideas. Chloe shared, “I am painting my family with red, orange, and yellow,” Cole said, “I am painting my doggy picture with red,” and Owen proudly announced, “I am painting sunshine with yellow!” Through these experiences, the children strengthened their cognitive skills, fine motor development, emotional expression, creativity, and problem-solving abilities.
