Elf Craft for Kids: Create Santa's Elves with Kindergarten Students

Elf Craft for Kids: Create Santa's Elves with Kindergarten Students
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Combining Holiday Fun with Learning

This is a wonderful combination of a shape lesson and a craft. Learning about shapes will be reinforced when the students create their own Santa’s elf craft. It’s also a great way to incorporate music into lesson.

Create an Elf Using Shapes

Materials: *Note that the shape patterns for this craft are available for download right here at Bright Hub. Print them on cardstock for use.

  • One large circle per child for the elf’s head (in various skin tone colors)

  • One pink or blue large triangle per child for the elf’s hat.

  • One small rectangle per child for the elf’s neck (in various skin tone colors)

  • One pink or blue large square per child for the elf’s body.

  • Two small triangles per child for elf ears (in various skin tones)

  • Decorating materials (crayons, markers, buttons, yarn cut into small pieces for “hair”, and sequins)

  • Optional- small bell

  • Glue

Prior Knowledge:

Show the YouTube video clip, “We are Santa’s Elves,” by, Burl Ives to the students. Explain that an elf is Santa’s helper. Read a book that includes pictures of Santa’s elves, or read several and compare pictures of how the elves look. For this craft, the elves are modeled after the elves in the Rudolph story who wore pink and blue.

Teach:

Review the properties of shapes. As this is a craft lesson, it should reinforce what has been learned about the shapes, circle, square, triangle and rectangle. Review sides and points, curved lines, and types of triangles.

Procedure:

Show the students the shapes that they will need for this lesson. Show them a model of a completed elf that you have made. Tell the students that they will make an elf of their own.

Model to the students how to construct the elf and glue it together. For an older class, the students can draw and cut the shapes themselves for assembly. Younger students can do it to, but may need some assistance with proportions and gluing. After assembly, students decorate their elf to personalize it. Also, with young students each elf will look different based on the skin color they choose and the way they glue the elf together. Students use the art materials to decorate the elf in any way that they choose. If desired, give each student a small bell to glue at the tip of their elf’s hat.

Assess:

Individually ask the students to state the name of the shapes that were used to create an elf.

Extend:

These make an adorable display for a bulletin board. The elves kind of resemble Hermey, the Misfit elf in the story, Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer, who wanted to be a dentist. They can also be used as a display to promote a Christmas play or musical they are doing. The teacher can add a picture of each student with their musical costume on, next to each elf and title the bulletin board, “We are Santa’s Elves.”

Students really enjoy making these elf crafts. The finished project is adorable and sure to stop any passersby when displayed in the hallway.

References

This post is part of the series: Musicals for Elementary Teachers

In this series we will take a closer look at planning, managing, performing a musical for teachers without a musical background.

  1. Elementary School Musicals: Tips for Planning
  2. Choosing Songs For an Elementary School Christmas Musical
  3. Teaching Songs for an Elementary Christmas Musical
  4. Elementary School Musical: Create Posters to Announce Your Christmas Musical
  5. The Elementary Christmas Musical: Managing Practices
  6. Musical Play in the Box: A Review
  7. We Are Santa’s Elves! A Craft for Kindergarten