Luck o' the Irish

Green was the color of the week as we searched for leprechauns and tried to trick them into telling us where their gold was hidden. We listened to some Irish tunes, did some Irish step dancing and donned green hats to put us in the mood. It was an imaginary visit to the Emerald Isle.

Our sensory bins were filled with green shamrocks, gold coins, leprechauns and little black pots. We counted the coins and scooped the green shamrocks into the pots.

Jamie O'Rourke was tricked by a leprechaun in Jamie O’Rourke and the Big Potato by Tomie DePaola.

Since potatoes are so important in Ireland, we just had to have potatoes for snack! We made our own parmesan potato chips... They were sliced thin and we brushed on butter and sprinkled on Parmesan cheese. They were delicious!

We created Mr. Potato Head collages with all kinds of shapes- eyes, ears, noses, mouths, hats, shoes, etc.

We did the "Potato Hop" on a circle of potatoes. We rolled a die to see how many spaces we should hop. Each potato had a movement to do- squats, jumps, hops, marching, jumping jacks, toe touches, spinning, dancing, etc. 

Clever Tom and the Leprechaun: An Old Irish Tale by Linda Shute reminded us of how tricky those leprechauns are. 

We tried some leprechaun magic of our own. We made fizzing, exploding rainbows!

We decided to plant our own shamrocks. As soon as they grow and we transplant them, perhaps they will entice leprechauns and fairies into our yard so that we will have a better chance of finding their gold. We read that a four-leaf clover brings good luck, so we'll be on the lookout for those too!

Each day brought us closer to St. Patrick's Day, so we made some leprechaun ladders to give those tricky leprechauns something else to do besides get into mischief. We strung green beads, straws and shamrock shapes onto some lacing.

The Night Before St. Patrick’s Day by Natasha Wing, gave us some ideas on how to create a leprechaun trap.

We didn't get our traps made soon enough, though. What havoc was wreaked! When we arrived, there were messes everywhere.

We worked together to clean up the messes.

When we went to pour our cereal for breakfast, it wasn't Kix like we thought- it was Lucky Charms! And our milk...it was green!

We just HAD to catch a leprechaun. We knew they were close. Each of us had our own ideas on how to make a trap, so we made six! Six times the chance to catch a tricky leprechaun. We should be in good shape. We were ready! The gold will be ours before long!

After a green lunch with rainbow kabobs,

we settled in for quiet time...

Unfortunately, during quiet time, the leprechauns' shenanigans shined. They turned the water and soap green in the bathroom. Our shoes were all stuck together. The kitchen was an absolute mess. Green shamrocks were spread everywhere along with green, muddy footprints. The chairs and traps were tipped, but no leprechauns were in sight!

But, they left us a map to the pot of gold. 

We followed the clues through a rainbow of colors.

We found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!

Lucky for us- it was chocolate. YUM!