Materials
small rope
empty toilet paper tubes
small paper plates
glue
small piece of tissue paper
paint and brushes
Instructions
* St. Patrick's Day is March 17th.
1. Teach the children the following rhyme:
Jack be nimble,
Jack be quick,
Jack jump over the candlestick.
2. Have the children take turns jumping over a rope. Substitute the child's
name each time ("Mary be quick").
3. Give each child an empty toilet paper tube to paint.
4. When the paper tubes are dry, show the children how to put glue around
one end of the tube and glue it in the middle of a small painted paper
plate. At the opposite end, let them glue a piece of tissue paper for the
flame.
5. When the "candlesticks" are dry, encourage the children to practice their
jumping as they say the rhyme in class.
6. Adapt this rhyme for St. Patrick's Day by substituting "leprechaun" for
Jack ("Leprechaun be nimble..."). Paint the candlesticks green.
Note: Some children may need to work on jumping over smaller objects
at first; the paper tube will not hurt them if it is kicked or jumped on.
More to do At the beginning of the year, this can be a fun way to practice each child's
name.
Language: This is good for language practice. Change words, for example,
"Jack ran by the red chair" or "Jack crawled through the blue tunnel."
