Fall Leaf craft ideas please?

We spent yesterday collecting a bunch of beautiful leaves. Any ideas if a craft to use them with? My age group ranges from just turned 1 year old to 3:)

That's my age bracket. We collected leaves and also a few sticks. I glued the stick (very thin so it stays on) on construction paper, then drizzled glue all over the whole thing. Then the kids put leaves on it. It's meant to look like a tree branch. I had a bouquet of flowers my boyfriend bought that had died. Cut off all the flowers, drizzled glue again and the children glued on the dried flowers . Wrote on the papers "Our garden goes to sleep till Spring". One I did last year that the parents loved was to cut out trees from brown construction paper (just trunks and branches) and glued them on construction paper. Then cut out little leaves from yellow, orange, red, brown. Drizzled whole paper with glue (again) and the kids just scattered leaves all over the page. It turned out really well and was a nice one for the smaller children.

With kids this age, I find the drizzling glue method really good...they can all do it and love to see the finished result. Sometimes we top it up with a scattering of sparkles.....they love sparkles :)

Layer some between two pieces of contact paper and hang in the window as if the leaves are falling.

Old school version is to iron between two pieces of wax paper - use a warm iron and cover the bottom and top of your work - paper, wax paper, leaves, wax paper, paper before ironing. Again trim around to leave leaves sealed and hang in window.

Use a good craft glue that is thicker or a dab of podgy to glue the leaves to make them stay better on paper than regular kids glues.

Cut a large rake shape from paper and glue some of the leaves on the tines part as if the leaves are being raked into a pile.

I gave the children contact paper and just let them stick leaves, little sticks, seeds, keys onto it, then covered it with another sheet of contact paper. We made leaf people, one for the head, one for the body, arms, legs, then added googly eyes & pompom nose. We found some HUGE leaves at the park yesterday so today it's raining, so we're going to make leaf faces. I had the children collect little stones for eyes & nose and red berries for a smile, but we're using hot glue for the older children to do that today. We're also going to use up some crayons today with my iron and wax paper as playfelt described.

Draw a tree on a big piece of paper and have the children glue the leaves onto the branches. It can be a group project that you then hang somewhere in the daycare.

Place the leaf under paper and colour over top with crayons

This week our craft was a leaf wreath. Cut out a donut out of construction paper and let them glue leaves onto them.

Next week we are doing a tree. Trace their hands and a bit of their arm onto brown construction paper ( this is the tree trunk/branches) cut it out and glue onto a whole page of construction paper and they glue leaves around the hand to resemble a tree.

I think we might also do a turkey for thanksgiving and do the tail feathers with leaves.

This weekend I am going to make a leaf garland with my own two. I think we're just going to scotch tape them onto a string...well see how it goes! I love this time of year, all these leaves make us save on craft supply expenses!

Rubbings are my favorite! Also paint the leaves then push on paper like a stamp very messy but pretty!

http://todaysmama.com/2011/11/leaf-paper-turkey-craft/