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Rock Puzzles: Nature Faces and Bodies

Sep 17, 20138,098 views
Nature crafts
Nature Play Ideas : Rocks Puzzles Save
nature crafts ideas Save
invitation to solve a rock puzzle nature play Save
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toddlers nature play art Save
rock humans for nature play Save
toddler invitation for nature play Save

by TurkeyMom in Nature crafts

Ages3–6 yrs
Prep25 min
Activity30 min
Leveleasy
MessLow
Works for1:1 · Small group · Class

Draw eyes, ears, noses and mouths on rocks and hands and legs on driftwood. Kids then lay the pieces on a big leaf face and build a whole person. Rocks in different sizes let older kids practice proportions.

⚠️ Safety first

  • Small rocks are a choking hazard. With toddlers or kids who still mouth things, use only rocks too big to fit in the mouth, and supervise at all times.
  • An adult draws the features with permanent marker. If kids draw on the rocks too, supervise, because permanent marker stains skin and clothes.
  • Check driftwood for splinters, sharp edges and nails before setting it out.
  • Fig leaf sap can irritate skin, especially in sunlight. Wash hands after play, or use another large leaf.

Before the kids arrive

  • Collect smooth rocks, a few interesting pieces of driftwood and some large leaves.
  • Draw ears, eyes, a nose and a mouth on a few rocks with permanent marker.
  • Draw hands and legs on a few pieces of driftwood.
  • For older kids, draw 4 sets of facial features on rocks of different sizes to help them learn proportions.

Steps

  1. Set out the face rocks, driftwood and leaves in a basket on the table as an invitation to play.

  2. For older kids, set out all 4 sets of features in different sizes.

  3. Look at and feel all the pieces, then name each one: eyes, ears, nose, mouth.

  4. Lay a leaf down as the face and put the features on it in the right order.

  5. Finish the face. You solved the rock puzzle!

  6. Make more faces, matching small features to small leaves and big features to big leaves.

  7. Use the driftwood to build the rest of the body: arms, a body or skirt, and legs.

  8. Add rock shoes at the bottom of the legs.

  9. Take it apart and build new people with different facial features.

Tips

  • You don't even have to tweak the activity for different ages. Just lay out the same materials in different quantities, and you'll see each kid's different take on it.from the author
  • My almost 3-year-old didn't focus on the proportions of the facial features. Her goal was to get the features in the right order.from the author
  • Leave the setup out for a few days. Mine went on to build caves and houses, make patterns with the smaller rocks, and there was so much storytelling going on.from the author
  • The rocks ended up being a canvas for drawing, and the kids used them to write and doodle as well.from the author
  • Hunt for driftwood in interesting shapes. We were very thrilled to find a piece that so much resembled a skirt!from the author

Make it your own

  • Build caves and houses with the rocks.
  • Create patterns and designs with the smaller rocks.
  • Let older kids draw their own features and body parts on the rocks and driftwood.
  • Use the rocks as a canvas for writing and doodling.

The story behind it

By TurkeyMom · September 2013
rock person
Recently I found my kids totally adoring drawing on rocks and making figures. I found my 5 year old doing this one day and a light bulb went off.
1 / 10

Rock Puzzles: Nature Faces and Bodies: the original post

Nature play ideas with rocks A good hands on science, sensory and a fine motor activity for kids.Use rocks and driftwood with drawn on facial features and other human body parts to create a human body puzzle for kids. We used large leaves to serve as a face. With fall in the air, how can you not engage in some nature play and nature activities? Today we share an easy rock puzzle activity, especially designed for my toddler. However my 5 year old insisted that she be a part of the project so I advanced the same nature activity to her level. It is always a great idea to tweak any kids activity so that it works for multiple age groups. To be honest, you don’t even have to tweak. Just lay the same materials differing only in the quantities made available you will see the kids’ different take on the same activities. Materials

  • Rocks
  • Leaves
  • Drift wood ( in interesting shapes)
  • Wood Blocks
  • Permanent Markers

Since we often collect rocks I always have a big stash of them sitting in my backyard. My kids love to create patterns and designs with them. Recently I found them totally adoring drawing on them and making figures. I found my 5 year doing this one day and a light bulb went off.

rock person A couple of days later I set out this invitation for my toddler.

toddler invitation for nature play I drew ears, eyes, nose and mouth on a few rocks and set them out. I picked out a few cool looking driftwood and drew hands and legs on them. I gathered a few leaves from our fig tree and set them out in a basket on our outdoor table. ( FYI : the leaf was totally my 5 year old’s idea) My eager toddler came around and ” Hey mom, is this for me” While it was her sister who helped me with this invitation she was totally bummed that I did not make any special “invitation” for her. My preschooler’s invitation to play, create and solve. The same eyes, nose, ears and mouth except I did 4 sets on rocks of different sizes. Just to help her learn proportions. We have done an earlier proportions activity with Christmas tree.

invitation to solve a rock puzzle nature play

My toddler first checked out all the pieces by observing and feeling them. The she labelled each of them and started putting them together on the leaf face”

creating faces

Our solved nature play puzzle.

toddlers nature play art

We obviously did not stop with just one. My almost 3 year old proceeded to do solve all the 4 faces. She did not focus on the proportions of the facial features. Her intention was to get the features in the right order.

leaf faces

nature art

Creating the entire human body activity was initially created specifically for my toddler. Both the kids after creating the face used the driftwood I had set out to create the entire body. We were very thrilled to find a piece that so much resembled a skirt!

making faces from nature

Please pay attention to this picture. My 5 year old wants everyone to know that the “rock shoes” were her idea. To her credit, this entire nature play activity was her idea.

nature crafts ideas

Both my kids kept redoing different humans using the same driftwood but differing the facial features.

rock humans for nature play

It was a great exercise for my toddler. I think kids all ages would adore this rock puzzles activity. The rocks ended up being a canvas for drawing and they used them to write and doodle as well. I have since seen them create caves and houses with them. So much story telling was going on. I left the set up for a few days I even saw them create patterns and designs with the smaller rocks.

Yeah rocks rock!

Thanks for reading Check our propeller seeds bugs and beach dough recipe.

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