Holidays tend to go hand-in-hand with special characters. There’s Santa Claus on Christmas, The Easter Bunny on Easter and, of course, Leprechauns on St. Patrick’s Day. Your children may have seen Santa and the Bunny, but have they seen a Leprechaun? Why not try to catch one this St. Patrick's Day? Show your second grader how to craft this brightly-colored leprechaun trap. You'll create a fun family memory and get him to practice patience.
Of course, it's very difficult to catch a real leprechaun! They're just too quick. But if you're clever enough, and give them a treat, they just might thank your kid with a gold coin or two.
What You Need:
- 40 regular popsicle sticks
- 10 colored popsicle sticks (You can always paint them or color them with markers)
- 3 wooden hearts and half a popsicle stick
- Green marker
- Glue
- Lucky Charms cereal
What You Do:
- The first thing to do is to build the walls of the box for the trap. Have your child start by gluing four popsicle sticks into a square shape. Then, continue adding sticks in a log cabin fashion until you’ve used up all 40 sticks.
- Now the trap needs a lid! Ask him to arrange the ten colored popsicle sticks on top of the walls in a rainbow pattern (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple) to make a cover. Since leprechauns are attracted to rainbows, this will help lure one into the trap!
- Another great way to attract a leprechaun is to place a shamrock on top of the box. Have him take the three wooden hearts and the half popsicle stick and color them green with markers or paint. When they are dry, glue them on, forming them into the shape of a shamrock.
- Next, he’ll need to set the trap. Find a spot where you think leprechauns will most likely come out to dance in the moonlight on St. Patrick’s Day. A bed of clover is ideal, or he can pick some clovers and set up the trap inside the house. Be sure to add a trail of Lucky Charms marshmallows as bait!
- After your child goes to bed, remove all of the Lucky Charms and replace them with chocolate gold coins. Remove the stick that is propping up the box and use the green paint and your pinky finger to leave tiny leprechaun footprints.
- When the sun rises on St. Patrick's Day, have your child check the trap and find the clues that prove Leprechauns do exist!
This is a great family project that everyone can get involved in. It’s so much fun, he'll want to keep his homemade leprechaun trap and use it year after year! It doubles as a cheerful St. Patrick's Day decoration, too.
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