Exposing children to vegetables can significantly impact how willing they are to eat them. Certain activities can help children see vegetables in another light, which will eventually encourage them to love and consume these nutritious foods.
Whether you’re looking for activities to introduce vegetables to children or motivate them to stick to healthier eating habits, we’ve got you covered. This article lists ten fun, easy-to-do vegetable-themed crafts perfect for preschoolers!
Great Vegetable Crafts for Preschool
This activity encourages children to try out gardening and eat more vegetables. It’s perfect for spring when nature comes back to life.
Start by letting the children paint half of their paper plate in blue and then the other half brown. Teach the children to make holes along the paper plate rim painted in brown.
Using brown yarn, have them thread through the holes until they reach the end of the yarn. Secure the end of the yarn by sticking it to the back of the plate using tape. The brown section of the plate will serve as the dirt.
Download and print the veggie template, cut out the patterns, and instruct the children to trace them on corresponding colored papers. Let them glue the leaves to the vegetables and plant them in the “dirt.”
Supplies:
- Blue and brown paint
- Brown yarn
- Cardstock paper: green, orange, red, and beige
- Glue
- Hole punch
- Paintbrush
- Paper plate
- Plastic yarn needle
- Scissors
- Tape
- Veggie template
Visit nontoygifts.com to download the veggie template and learn other crafts.
This activity is easy to make and mostly requires strips of paper. Completing this activity helps children develop their cutting and tracing skills.
Have the children trace and cut out the shape of a bell pepper and its stem. You can print a template using thick paper for the children’s reference.
Instruct the children to cut out four 1” strips of paper and have them bend the edges upwards. Let them glue or tape the bent edges of the strips to the bell pepper, creating several letter Xs.
Show them how to glue the stem to the body of the bell pepper to complete the activity.
Supplies:
- Construction paper
- Glue or tape
- Pen
- Scissors
Other paper crafts preschoolers will love are listed on platein28.com, so make sure to check out their site.
Children will be pulling up carrots from the patch after completing this activity. They can keep this craft as a keepsake or use it as a card.
Guide the children in cutting a paper plate in half, line the pieces together, and staple them around the outside edge. This should form a pocket.
Paint the paper plate a brown color and let it dry. While waiting, show the children how to trace their handprint on orange-colored paper and then tell them to cut it out.
Using an orange marker, let the children draw carrot lines in their handprints. Have them rip pieces of green tissue paper and glue them to the tips of their fingers. Insert the handprint into the paper plate pocket, and every child now has carrots growing from the garden!
Supplies:
- Brown acrylic paint
- Glue
- Green tissue paper
- Orange cardstock
- Orange marker
- Paper plate
- Scissors
- Stapler
Learn more about this project on ourkidthings.com.
Besides being fun for preschoolers, this activity is cheap and easy to make. It also teaches children how to be resourceful, as they’ll be using celery as a stamp.
Cut the celery almost to the bottom and instruct the children to dip it into the paint, ensuring the whole top is covered. Let them firmly press the celery on the paper and lift it up after. The children should have a flower-like pattern on the paper.
Once the children are done stamping with the celery, have them paint the background. Encourage them to make leaves, stems, and grass using paint.
Supplies:
- Celery stalks
- Different colors of paint
- Paintbrush
- Paper
Craftymorning.com presents other fun crafts for preschoolers, so visit their site today.
Most children love to pop bubble wrap, so why not use the material to introduce veggies to them? This activity will do just that, plus encourage the little ones to be creative.
Print a broccoli template and trace it on a thick material, like an old cereal box. Cut out the vegetable and provide one template to each child.
Tell the children to paint their bubble wraps with the color they want for their broccoli. Have them press the template onto the bubble wrap with wet paint for a couple of minutes. Instruct them to lift the template carefully, and they’re done!
Supplies:
- Broccoli template
- Bubble wrap
- Paint
- Paintbrush
Check out other vegetables children can make from this project on intheplayroom.co.uk.
This activity helps children change the way they see salads. Through this activity, they can see how colorful salads can look when there are plenty of veggies added to it!
Have the class cut out small vegetable shapes using different colors of paper. They can use orange for the carrots, yellow for banana peppers, red for tomatoes, and white for mushrooms.
Instruct them to draw a big circle on white cardstock, as this will be the “plate.” Hand green paper to the children and have them rip it.
These will be the lettuce to their salads. Next, tell them to add dots of glue all over the lettuce and have them put the smaller vegetables. Let them squirt glue all over the top for the dressing.
Supplies:
- Construction papers (green, white, yellow, orange, red, etc.)
- 1 piece of white cardstock
- Glue
For other vegetable-themed activities, visit littlefamilyfun.com.
Because this activity only requires a few materials, you can introduce it during class or camp. You can also extend the learning by asking the class whether they like cauliflower.
Show children how to glue three jumbo sticks together. Have them bend two white fuzzy sticks to create a cloud-like shape and let them glue it to the front of the craft sticks. Tell them to glue white poms to fill the space inside the fuzzy sticks, and they’ll have the head of the cauliflower!
Supplies:
- 2 white fuzzy sticks
- 3 jumbo sticks
- Glue
- White poms
Visit craftprojectideas.com to learn other vegetables preschoolers can make using craft sticks.
Want to make gardening more exciting for the little ones? Help them make colorful stone garden markers with this activity.
Instruct the class to pick stones either outside the classroom or from their homes. Next, let them paint the stones in their preferred colors. Instruct them to add details so the rock resembles the appearance of vegetables. You can provide pictures of the vegetables for their reference.
Once the paint dries, apply a coat of varnish. Have the kids display their stones outside.
Supplies:
- Acrylic paints
- Big and medium-sized rocks
- Outdoor varnish
- Paintbrush
See how the rocks were painted on adventure-in-a-box.com to give your class some inspiration.
Since it uses basic supplies and is easy to make, this activity is perfect for preschoolers. They can play with their asparagus right after making it!
Instruct the class to cut square shapes from green construction paper, roll each to form long spears, and glue them closed. This will be the asparagus spears. Next, have them make asparagus spears by cutting zigzag lines from brown construction paper. Let the children add scales to the asparagus and tie everything together with a yarn!
Supplies:
- Construction paper (brown and green)
- Glue
- Scissors
- Yarn
Check out how fun and easy this craft is by visiting platein28.com.
Children who love Mr. Potato Head from Toy Story will surely love this activity. This will teach them to create their very own Mr. Potato Head!
Decide whether to use boiled or baked potatoes. Next, help kids cut the vegetables with a safety knife. Let the tykes make Mr. Potato Head’s ears by sticking mushrooms using toothpicks.
Proceed by teaching them how to stick black olives for the eyes, diced carrots for the nose, red bell pepper for the mustache, and cucumber for the mouth.
For the hair, ask the children to place some spinach or lettuce and then a broccoli flower for the hat. Once the look is complete, children can now munch on their artwork!
Supplies:
- A big mushroom
- A potato – baked or boiled with the skin intact
- Broccoli
- Diced carrot
- Diced cucumber
- Sautéed lettuce or spinach leaves
- Sliced red bell peppers
- Toothpicks
- Two black olives
Help children develop a liking for vegetables through art by trying out other crafts on momjunction.com.
Conclusion
The activities mentioned here evoke children’s interest by uniquely presenting vegetables. These will help children see how fun veggies are and encourage them to add some to their meals. Plus, these activities hone some of their most important skills.
Make it a habit to visit our site to learn other activities for different themes, ideal for preschoolers!
Related crafts and activities:
