Our kids love the Spider Plastic Rings that are available every year during Halloween. We usually pick up a big bag and they play with them and we then put some in their treat bags for school.
This year I created a fun Spider Threading Activity for our preschooler using the spider rings.
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Supplies
- Piece of cardboard
- Scrapbook paper or construction paper
- Paper Straws
- Spider Plastic Rings
- Hole Punch
Related: 12 Fun-Filled Spider Activities (using plastic spiders)
Directions
1. Cut a circle from a piece of cardboard. I used a small mixing bowl to make a template.
2. Cut a circle the same size from cardstock or construction paper and glue to the cardboard circle.
3. Use a hole punch to make holes in cardboard.
4. Cut straws in half and place in the holes. You could add a little glue to hold them in place.
5. Give your child a bowl of spiders and let them stack.
This is how I constructed it, but it could be done many different ways. You could leave the paper off completely and/or add plastic straws. You could also replace the cardboard with play dough. I choose to construct it this way, so I could leave it out and the kids could play with it independently throughout the month.
Benefits of this Spider Threading Activity
- Kids use their pincer grip and strengthen fine motor skills needed to hold a pencil and write as they enter school as they thread the straws onto the straws.
- Kids work on hand-eye coordination as they guide the spider onto the straw.
- Kids develop early math skills of sorting and matching by color.
She also started counting the spiders midway through to make sure she had the same amount of spiders on each straw.
