St. Patrick’s Day is just around the corner, and it’s time to embrace the spirit of the Irish and spread some festive cheer!
While this holiday is traditionally associated with green beer and lively parades, it’s important not to overlook the joy it can bring to the littlest members of our families.
Toddlers, with their boundless energy and curiosity, are the perfect candidates for a day filled with St. Patrick’s Day activities.
In this blog post, we have compiled a list of Amazing St. Patricks Day Activities for Toddlers.
From arts and crafts to sensory experiences and tasty treats, these activities will ignite their imaginations, encourage their creativity, and provide memorable moments of laughter and fun.
Shamrock Stamp Art:
Get your toddler’s creative juices flowing with this simple and fun art activity. Cut out a few shamrock shapes from a green foam sheet or use a shamrock-shaped cookie cutter as a stencil. Dip the shamrock into washable green paint and let your little one stamp it onto the paper. Encourage them to create their own patterns and designs using the shamrock stamp. This activity not only develops fine motor skills but also introduces the iconic symbol of St. Patrick’s Day, the shamrock, to your toddler.
Sensory Rainbow Rice Bin:
Create a colorful sensory experience for your toddler with a rainbow rice bin. Dye uncooked rice in vibrant colors using food coloring or washable paint. Place the colored rice in a shallow container or a sensory bin and add small toys or scooping tools. Let your little one explore the different textures, colors, and sounds by running their hands through the rice or using tools to scoop and pour it. This sensory activity stimulates tactile senses, enhances hand-eye coordination, and provides a captivating way to learn about the colors of the rainbow, a symbol associated with St. Patrick’s Day.
Related: 25 4th July Activities for Preschool Kids
Leprechaun Hat Toss Game:
Transform St. Patrick’s Day into an interactive and entertaining experience for your toddler with a leprechaun hat toss game. Cut out leprechaun hat shapes from green construction paper and secure them to the ground using tape. Give your toddler lightweight bean bags or softballs and have them stand a few feet away from the hats. Encourage them to toss the bean bags into the hats, aiming for as many successful throws as possible. This activity promotes hand-eye coordination, and gross motor skills, and provides a playful way to engage in friendly competition.
Rainbow Fruit Skewers:
Combine healthy eating and St. Patrick’s Day festivities with rainbow fruit skewers. Gather an assortment of colorful fruits such as strawberries, oranges, pineapple, kiwi, blueberries, and grapes. Cut the fruits into bite-sized pieces and help your toddler thread them onto skewers, creating a beautiful rainbow pattern. As they assemble the skewers, discuss the different colors and tastes of each fruit. This activity encourages fine motor skills, introduces healthy eating habits, and adds a touch of rainbow magic to your toddler’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration.
Related: 20 Easy Open Ended Preschool Art Activities
Treasure Hunt for Gold Coins:
Embark on a treasure hunt adventure with your little leprechaun by hiding gold coin-shaped chocolates or plastic gold coins around your home or outdoor space. Create simple clues or riddles to guide your toddler to each hiding spot. Encourage them to follow the clues and search for the hidden treasure. This activity promotes problem-solving skills, boosts cognitive development, and adds an exciting element of discovery to St. Patrick’s Day. Your toddler will feel like a true adventurer as they search for the elusive pot of gold.
Rainbow Handprint Craft:
Unleash your toddler’s creativity with a rainbow handprint craft. Paint their palm with different colors of the rainbow using washable paints. Help them press their hand onto a piece of paper, creating a colorful handprint. Allow the paint to dry and then help your toddler draw an arc over each handprint to complete the rainbow. This activity not only encourages self-expression but also introduces the concept of colors and shapes.
St. Patrick’s Day Dance Party:
Put on some lively Irish music and have a St. Patrick’s Day dance party with your little one. Encourage them to move and groove to the rhythm of the music. Teach them simple dance steps like jumping, spinning, and clapping their hands. You can also incorporate props like green scarves or ribbon wands to enhance the dancing experience. This activity promotes gross motor skills, and coordination, and allows your toddler to release their energy while having a blast.
Lucky Charm Bracelets:
Engage your toddler in a jewelry-making adventure by creating lucky charm bracelets. Provide them with green pipe cleaners and an assortment of small beads in different colors. Help your little one thread the beads onto the pipe cleaner, creating their own personalized charm bracelet. Talk about the different shapes and colors of the beads as they assemble their bracelet. This activity enhances fine motor skills, and hand-eye coordination, and introduces the concept of personalization and adornment.
Build a Leprechaun Trap:
Spark your toddler’s imagination by building a leprechaun trap together. Gather materials such as shoeboxes, construction paper, pipe cleaners, and craft supplies. Help your little one decorate the shoebox to resemble a trap, complete with green and gold accents. Encourage them to come up with creative ideas to entice the leprechaun into the trap. This activity stimulates imaginative play, and problem-solving skills, and allows your toddler to engage in the whimsical world of leprechauns.
Green Snack Creations:
Get your toddler involved in the kitchen by creating green-themed snacks for St. Patrick’s Day. Prepare simple and healthy snacks like green smoothies, cucumber sandwiches, or green fruit skewers. Let your little one assist in washing fruits and vegetables, mixing ingredients, and assembling the snacks. Discuss the different shades of green and the benefits of eating fruits and vegetables. This activity promotes fine motor skills, introduces healthy eating habits, and allows your toddler to take pride in their culinary creations.
Storytime with Irish Tales:
Immerse your toddler in the rich folklore of Ireland by having a special storytime session with Irish tales. Gather a collection of age-appropriate books that feature Irish myths, legends, or stories about St. Patrick’s Day. Sit with your little one and read aloud, using expressive voices and engaging gestures. Encourage them to ask questions and discuss the characters and events in the stories. This activity promotes language development, listening skills, and cultural appreciation.
Rainbow Playdough:
Bring the colors of the rainbow to life with homemade rainbow playdough. Prepare batches of playdough using different colors of the rainbow, such as red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. Provide your toddler with cookie cutters, rolling pins, and other playdough tools. Watch as they explore the different textures, shapes, and colors, creating their own imaginative playdough creations. This activity enhances sensory development, and fine motor skills, and offers endless opportunities for open-ended play.
St. Patrick’s Day Memory Game:
Challenge your toddler’s memory skills with a St. Patrick’s Day-themed memory game. Create pairs of cards featuring images related to St. Patrick’s Day, such as shamrocks, leprechaun hats, or pots of gold. Turn all the cards face down and take turns flipping them over to find matching pairs. Encourage your little one to remember the location of the cards to improve their memory recall. This activity boosts cognitive development, and concentration, and provides an entertaining way to celebrate the holiday.
Green Finger Painting:
Unleash your toddler’s creativity and sensory exploration with green finger painting. Use washable green paint and provide them with a large sheet of paper or a canvas. Let them freely explore the paint using their fingers, hands, and even their feet. Encourage them to create swirls, and handprints, or mix the colors together. This messy yet exciting activity promotes self-expression, and sensory development, and allows your toddler to embrace their inner artist.
St. Patrick’s Day Parade:
Organize a mini St. Patrick’s Day parade for your toddler and their stuffed animal friends. Decorate wagons, strollers, or toy cars with green streamers, balloons, and banners. Dress up your toddler in green attire and encourage them to lead the parade, waving a mini Irish flag or a homemade banner. Play some lively Irish music in the background and march around your backyard or living room. This activity promotes gross motor skills, and imaginative play, and brings a festive spirit to St. Patrick’s Day celebrations.
Leprechaun Dress-Up:
Let your toddler unleash their inner leprechaun by engaging in a fun dress-up activity. Provide them with a variety of green clothing items, such as hats, vests, scarves, and oversized belts. Help them dress up as a mischievous leprechaun, complete with a shamrock sticker or face paint. Encourage imaginative play by pretending to search for pots of gold or engaging in a leprechaun dance. This activity sparks creativity, and role-playing skills, and adds a touch of whimsy to St. Patrick’s Day.
Shamrock Hunt:
Create a thrilling treasure hunt by hiding cut-out shamrocks throughout your home or backyard. Use green construction paper to cut out a set of shamrock shapes and hide them in various places. Provide your toddler with a basket or bag and help them search for the hidden shamrocks. Encourage them to count the shamrocks they find or match them to a corresponding number card. This activity promotes problem-solving, and number recognition, and adds an element of excitement to St. Patrick’s Day.
Rainbow Balloon Volleyball:
Transform a simple balloon into a rainbow-themed volleyball game. Blow up a large balloon and draw colorful stripes to resemble a rainbow. Clear some space and have your toddler stand on one side while you stand on the other. Encourage them to hit the balloon back and forth using their hands or lightweight paddles. Count how many times they can keep the balloon in the air or challenge them to reach a certain number. This activity enhances gross motor skills, and hand-eye coordination, and offers active play for St. Patrick’s Day.
Green Sensory Bin:
Create a sensory experience centered around the color green with a green-themed sensory bin. Fill a shallow container with green materials such as green rice, green pasta, green felt, or green sensory balls. Add small toys or objects like plastic shamrocks, toy frogs, or green blocks. Encourage your toddler to explore the textures, sort objects by color, or engage in imaginative play with the materials. This activity stimulates sensory development, and cognitive skills, and provides a calming and engaging playtime.
Irish Jig Dance Tutorial:
Introduce your toddler to the lively Irish jig dance by following a simple dance tutorial together. Look for kid-friendly Irish dance tutorials on platforms like YouTube and join your little one in learning the basic steps. Practice together and have fun as you attempt to master the traditional dance moves. This activity promotes coordination, rhythm, and cultural appreciation. You can even have a mini Irish dance performance at home, complete with applause and cheers.
