As the trees paint the world in rich hues of gold, red, and orange, isn’t it time we add a little artistic autumn magic of our own? Ah, fall – the season of cozy sweaters, hot cocoa, and a palette of vibrant colors. Today, we’re going to dive into a bean mosaic fall craft activity that celebrates this beautiful season and lets your little one unleash their inner artist!
Ever dreamt of creating mosaic masterpieces without the fuss of tiny tiles? Let’s switch gears and think beans, seeds, and all things nature! Yep, we’re turning those ordinary pantry items into extraordinary art pieces. Picture this: Beautiful fall shapes adorned with an array of natural textures and colors. Intrigued? Let’s get crafting!
WILL YOU SET UP THIS BEAN MOSAIC FALL CRAFTS? PIN IT FOR LATER!
Materials
- Assorted beans (think red kidney, black beans, lentils)
- Various seeds (like sunflower or pumpkin seeds, chia seeds)
- Kernels of corn
- Colored rice (You can easily dye rice with some food coloring)
- Tops of acorns
- Cardboard
- Scissors
- Glue
- Paintbrush
- Bowls or containers to hold you seeds and beans
Step-by-step Instructions
- Shape It Up: Start by cutting your cardboard into fun fall shapes. Think pumpkins, swirling leaves, or even little acorns. These will be your canvas!
- Sticky Business: Using the paintbrush, generously spread glue all over one side of your cardboard shape. Here’s a tip: If your kiddo loves to be hands-on, let them use their fingers to spread the glue. It’s a sensory delight!
- Nature’s Canvas: Now, it’s time to decorate! Let your imagination run wild. Lay beans to outline the shapes, fill in with colored rice, use acorn tops as little hats for the acorns, or even create patterns with seeds and kernels. Remember, there’s no right or wrong – it’s all about having fun and being creative!
- Dry Time: Once you’ve covered your cardboard shape in nature’s best, let it dry thoroughly. This might be a great time for a snack break!
- Display Your Art: When it’s all dry, you can pin your creations on walls, attach a magnet to the back for fridge art, or even tie a string to hang them as autumn ornaments!
Crafty Tips and Learning Moments
- Color Sorting: Before starting, let your preschooler group the beans, seeds, and rice by color or type. This boosts their categorization skills and makes for easier crafting.
- Story Time: As you craft, weave a little story. Why is the pumpkin green? Maybe it’s a magical pumpkin that changes color when it’s cold!
- Texture Talk: Discuss the different textures. How does the corn kernel feel compared to the lentil or acorn top? It’s a tactile learning experience!
Skills Learned
- Fine Motor Skills: Picking up and placing each bean or seed helps hone those tiny hand movements.
- Creativity: From choosing materials to deciding their placement, it’s a canvas for imagination.
- Sensory Exploration: The various textures and colors offer a multi-sensory experience.
Autumn brings with it a tapestry of colors and textures, making it the perfect season to dive deep into nature-inspired crafts. Not only will your little one be engaged, but they’ll also cherish these handmade mosaic treasures. Can’t wait to see your autumnal masterpieces – be sure to share your bean-tastic creations with us! Until next time, keep those crafty hands busy and hearts warm!
Age Suitability
This activity is good for toddlers aged children 3 years old and up with adult assistance.
Mess Level
The mess level for this activity is medium.
Difficulty to Create
Easy.
Toddler and Preschooler Curriculums, Books & TV Show!
Play2Learn Toddler & Preschool Programs for Curious Toddlers
There is no limit to your toddler’s energy and curiosity. That energy and curiosity although a joy can be challenging at times. Their interest in just about everything around them is what makes them great learners. One and two year olds can soak up so much just from their senses!
But as a teacher or parent that thirst for learning can be exhausting. That is why I created this toddler and preschooler program. To help you get the most out of this time with your curious toddler without having to come up with creative ways to play and interact with them.
Play2Learn for Toddlers includes 20 Units for toddlers. Each 2-week toddler unit has 20 super easy to set up and engaging activities for toddlers 18 months to 3 years.
Play2Learn Preschool which includes 20 Units for preschoolers. Each 2-week preschoolers unit has 20 unique and easy to set up and engaging activities for preschoolers 3 years to 5 years. That’s over 800 learning activities for your toddler and preschooler at your fingertips! So many ideas you and your child will never be bored again!
These toddler and preschool lesson plans and activities will definitely keep you and your toddler and preschooler busy playing and learning!
Click here for more information: Play2Learn
Designed for toddlers 18 months and up.
Book: Exciting Sensory Bins for Curious Kids
Did you know I wrote a book of sensory bins? Click here for more information Exciting Sensory Bin for Curious Kids. Or grab your copy at Amazon.
Boring afternoons are made exciting with awesome animal-based bins, like Salty Shark Bay or Yarn Farm. Pretend play bins like Birthday Cake Sensory Play or Bubble Tea Party encourage creativity and imagination. And your kids will have so much fun they won’t even know they’re getting smarter with STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) activities like Sink or Float Soup, Magnetic Letter Hunt or Ice Cream Scoop and Count.
Designed for toddlers 18 months and up.
Book: Super STEAM Activity Book for Kids
Learning all about science, technology, engineering, art, and math sets kids up for scholastic success―and it can be so much fun! Watch kids enjoy building STEAM skills as they color friendly fish, help water find its way to tree roots, solve math problems with mazes, and more.
Find out more and grab your copy here.
Designed for preschoolers 3 years old and up.
Book: Big Book of Riddles for Kids
Riddle me this: What’s an exciting way to practice critical thinking while having a blast? The Big Riddle Book for Kids, of course! From hilarious puns to tough brain teasers, kids can build problem-solving skills with hundreds of riddles tha. t show them how to think outside the box.
- 350 riddles for kids—Have hours of fun with riddles, puns and jokes, and math and logic puzzles that’ll get their wheels turning!
- Level up their skills—Riddles get trickier as kids progress through the book, challenging them as they get better at solving puzzles!
- Double-check their work—Kids can check their answers in the back of the book with a handy answer key.
Help children expand their minds while having fun with this puzzle book for kids!
Designed for kids ages 6 years old and up.
TV Show: Curious Crafting
I’m so excited to share my crafting TV show Curious Crafting which launched in July 2022 on TVOkids and TVOkids YouTube! Season 2 aired in August 2023! My show was also nominated in 2023 for Best Live Action Preschool Series by the Youth Media Alliance Awards of Excellence.
Curious Crafting Season 1 is also now airing in Australia on ABC! Watch it here!
Set in the ultimate crafting space, Curious Crafting is a short form pre-school age series about the joy of making crafts. I lead a rotating cast of adorable little preschoolers (including my own) making magic out of common household objects.
In each episode we transform recycled items into magical crafts like a milk carton school bus, paper bag puppet or cotton pad turtle. The crafters learn and laugh their way through each activity while demonstrating what their young imaginations can create.
Curious Crafting shares the adventure and joy of making art with takeaway lessons for creating crafts at home.
This show designed for toddlers and preschoolers 2.5 years old and up.
The Best Sensory Play Kits for Kids
Play is at the core of learning during the early years and it can take many forms. One of the most important of these is sensory play because it engages all of a child’s senses (taste, touch, smell, sight and hearing) and has a enoumous positive impact on brain development.
Our Sensory Play Kits are some fun and easy ways to keep your child engaged while at the same time using sensory play to nurture their mind!
Shop our ready made play kits here.
Designed for preschoolers 3 years old and up.
Fall Bean Mosaic Crafts
Materials
- Assorted beans (think red kidney, black beans, lentils)
- Various seeds (like sunflower or pumpkin seeds, chia seeds)
- Kernels of corn
- Colored rice (You can easily dye rice with some food coloring)
- Tops of acorns
- Cardboard
- Scissors
- Glue
- Paint brush
- Bowls or containers to hold you seeds and beans
Instructions
- Start by cutting your cardboard into fun fall shapes. Think pumpkins, swirling leaves, or even little acorns. These will be your canvas.
- Using the paintbrush, generously spread glue all over one side of your cardboard shape. Here's a tip: If your kiddo loves to be hands-on, let them use their fingers to spread the glue. It's a sensory delight!
- Now, it's time to decorate! Let your imagination run wild. Lay beans to outline the shapes, fill in with colored rice, use acorn tops as little hats for the acorns, or even create patterns with seeds and kernels. Remember, there’s no right or wrong – it's all about having fun and being creative!
- Once you've covered your cardboard shape in nature's best, let it dry thoroughly. This might be a great time for a snack break!
- When it’s all dry, you can pin your creations on walls, attach a magnet to the back for fridge art, or even tie a string to hang them as autumn ornaments!
WILL YOU SET UP THIS BEAN MOSAIC FALL CRAFTS? PIN IT FOR LATER!
