47+ Easy Fall Arts & Crafts for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Fall is such a magical time for crafting with little ones! There’s something so special about bringing all those gorgeous autumn colors and textures indoors to create with tiny hands. These crafts are perfect for toddlers and preschoolers because they’re simple, fun, and celebrate everything we love about the season – from colorful leaves to cute turkeys to cozy pumpkins.

1. Fall Slime

This gooey, stretchy slime comes in beautiful autumn colors like orange, red, and golden yellow. Kids absolutely love the squishy texture, and you can add glitter or small fall confetti to make it extra special. The warm colors make it feel so seasonal, and little hands can stretch it, poke it, and squish it for endless sensory play. It’s messy fun that captures all those rich fall hues in one delightfully gooey creation that kids will play with for hours.

2. Cork Painted Tree

Using wine corks as stamps creates the most adorable textured tree trunks and branches. The cork makes these wonderful organic, bumpy marks that look just like real tree bark. Kids can stamp brown paint for the trunk and then add colorful fall leaves with their fingers or small sponges. The finished trees have such a lovely, rustic look with all that natural texture from the cork, and each one turns out completely unique and charming.

3. Bean Mosaic

Dried beans in autumn colors create beautiful mosaic art that’s perfect for little fingers to arrange. Think kidney beans, black beans, and yellow split peas all mixed together to make pictures of pumpkins, leaves, or fall scenes. The different shapes and colors of the beans add such interesting texture and dimension. Kids love sorting through all the different beans and figuring out where each one should go to complete their masterpiece.

4. Leaf Turkey

Real autumn leaves become the gorgeous tail feathers for these adorable turkey crafts. The natural colors and shapes of the leaves make each turkey completely unique and beautiful. You can see all those amazing reds, oranges, and yellows fanned out like a real turkey’s plumage. Add a simple brown body and cute googly eyes, and you’ve got the sweetest little turkey that celebrates the best of fall’s natural beauty in such a creative way.

5. Leaf Snake

Long, colorful autumn leaves get arranged in a slithering snake pattern that’s both fun and educational. The natural curve of the leaves creates this wonderful flowing movement that really does look like a snake winding through the forest. Kids can arrange leaves from biggest to smallest or mix up all the different colors and shapes. The finished snake has such beautiful natural patterns and colors that make it look like it could actually be hiding in a pile of fall leaves.

6. Bear Craft

These cuddly paper bears have the sweetest faces and can be decorated with fall elements like tiny leaves or acorns. The brown paper gives them that perfect teddy bear color, and little ones love adding the facial features and maybe a cozy scarf. They look so friendly and huggable, like they’re ready to hibernate for the winter. The simple shapes make them easy for small hands to create, and each bear ends up with its own adorable personality.

7. Lion in autumn Hues

The lion’s face in all those gorgeous fall colors, making each lion look majestic and wild. The natural textures add such beautiful dimension, and every lion looks different depending on which material you use. It’s amazing how those simple things can transform a basic circle into such a proud, beautiful creature.

8. Handprint Trees

Little handprints become the branches of these sweet trees, with tiny fingerprints as colorful fall leaves. The brown handprint creates perfect tree branches, and then kids can add red, orange, and yellow fingerprint leaves all around. Each tree is completely personal and shows just how small those little hands are right now. The fingerprint leaves look like they’re falling or blowing in the wind, creating such a lovely, whimsical autumn scene.

9. Paper Bag Turkey

Brown paper bags transform into the most adorable three-dimensional turkeys that can actually hold treats or small toys. The bag becomes the turkey’s plump body, and you add colorful paper feathers that fan out beautifully. These turkeys have such personality with their wobbly heads and bright feathers, and they’re sturdy enough for kids to play with. The finished turkeys look so proud and festive, perfect for Thanksgiving decorating.

10. Hedgehog

These spiky little hedgehogs are made with paper strips or real leaves that create the most adorable textured backs. The spikes stick out in all directions, giving them that authentic hedgehog look that’s both cute and slightly wild. Their little pointed faces peek out from under all those spikes, making them look shy but friendly. The earth-tone colors make them perfect for fall, like they’re getting ready to curl up for a cozy winter nap.

11. Pumpkin Stamps

Real mini pumpkins or apple halves create the most perfect circular stamps for making pumpkin patches on paper. The natural shape gives you that authentic pumpkin outline, and kids can stamp orange paint to make whole fields of pumpkins. Each stamp is slightly different, just like real pumpkins, creating variety and interest. The stamped pumpkins have such a fresh, organic look that’s way more charming than any store-bought sticker could be.

12. Puffy Paint Pumpkin

Fluffy, textured paint creates pumpkins that you can actually feel and touch. The puffy paint gives them this wonderful raised, squishy texture that’s so satisfying for little fingers to explore. The orange paint puffs up as it dries, making the pumpkins look plump and three-dimensional. Kids love how different the texture feels from regular paint, and the finished pumpkins look good enough to pick from a real pumpkin patch.

13. Popsicle Stick Scarecrow

Wooden popsicle sticks come together to create the sweetest little scarecrows with straw hats and friendly faces. The natural wood color works perfectly for the scarecrow’s body, and you can add fabric scraps for clothes and real straw for hair. These little guys have such personality with their crooked smiles and patched clothes. They look like they’d be the friendliest scarecrows in any garden, more interested in making friends than scaring anyone away.

14. Coffee Filter Lantern

Coffee filters dyed in autumn colors and shaped into lanterns create soft, glowing decorations perfect for fall evenings. The coffee filters diffuse light beautifully, creating gentle, warm illumination that’s cozy and inviting. The dyed colors blend and flow in organic patterns that look like autumn leaves or sunset skies. When lit from within, these lanterns cast lovely colored light and shadows, transforming any space into a magical autumn wonderland.

15. Wreath

Paper leaves, twigs, and berries come together in a beautiful circular wreath that looks so festive and welcoming. The round shape is perfect for little hands to decorate, and kids can arrange all the fall elements however they like. Each wreath ends up completely unique, with different combinations of colors and textures. The finished wreaths look so cheerful and seasonal, like they’re inviting everyone to come in and enjoy the cozy autumn atmosphere.

16. Paper Bag Fall Leaf Gnome

These adorable little gnomes have pointy hats made from colorful fall leaves and the sweetest bearded faces. The paper bag becomes their cozy body, and the leaf hat gives each gnome its own unique personality. They look like they live in the forest and know all the woodland secrets. The natural colors and textures of the leaves make them blend perfectly with autumn decorations, like they might actually be hiding among the real fall foliage.

17. Hedgehog Paper

Paper strips curled and layered create hedgehogs with the most realistic-looking spiky backs. The curled paper gives them that authentic hedgehog texture, and each spike can be a different shade of brown or gray. Their little faces peek out so sweetly from under all those curly spikes, making them look both wild and cuddly. The finished hedgehogs have such wonderful dimension and movement, like they might actually curl up into a little ball.

18. Handprint Turkey

Those tiny handprints create the most precious turkeys with colorful feather fingers spread wide. Each finger becomes a different colored feather, creating beautiful rainbow tails that fan out majestically. The thumb becomes the turkey’s head and neck, complete with a little gobbler and bright eyes. These turkeys are so personal and sweet, capturing those little hands at this exact moment in time while creating something truly beautiful.

19. Leaf Owl

Real autumn leaves become the feathers and wings for these wise-looking owls with big, round eyes. The natural colors and shapes of the leaves create such realistic feather patterns, making each owl look like it could actually fly away. Their big eyes give them that classic owl expression, wise and slightly mysterious. The leaves add beautiful texture and authentic coloring that makes these owls look like they belong perched in a real autumn tree.

20. Fall Leaf Suncatcher

Colorful autumn leaves pressed between clear contact paper create gorgeous window decorations that glow when the light shines through. The translucent leaves show off all their beautiful veining and natural patterns, looking like stained glass windows. When hung in a sunny window, they cast lovely colored shadows and fill the room with warm, golden light. Each suncatcher is completely unique, depending on which leaves you choose and how they’re arranged.

21. Bean Mosaic Fall Craft

Different types of dried beans create textured mosaic pictures of pumpkins, trees, or autumn scenes. The variety of shapes, sizes, and colors in beans like kidney beans, black beans, and lentils adds such interesting dimension to the artwork. Kids love sorting through all the different beans and deciding which ones to use where. The finished mosaics have this wonderful rustic, harvest-time feeling with all those natural earth tones and organic shapes.

22. Wooden Spoon Craft

Wooden spoons decorated with fall colors and materials become adorable characters like scarecrows, turkeys, or woodland creatures. The spoon shape naturally creates a head and body, and kids can add fabric scraps, yarn, or paper details to bring their characters to life. Each spoon character has unique personality based on the decorating choices made, and they’re sturdy enough for pretend play. These crafts combine functional items with creativity, making something both beautiful and playful.

23. Scarecrow with Hat

These friendly scarecrows wear actual tiny hats and have the sweetest faces with rosy cheeks and kind eyes. The hat gives each scarecrow so much personality – maybe a floppy sun hat or a cozy knit cap. Their patched clothes and straw hair make them look like they’ve been standing guard in the garden all season long. These scarecrows look more like friendly helpers than anything scary, with welcoming smiles that make you want to stop and chat.

24. Leaf Printed Squirrel

Real leaves dipped in paint create the body and tail of these adorable squirrels in natural autumn colors. The leaf prints give the squirrels realistic fur texture and beautiful fall coloring that looks so authentic. Their bushy tails made from leaf prints have wonderful movement and dimension, like they’re actually swishing. Each squirrel ends up with unique markings and colors depending on which leaves you use, making them look like they each have their own personality.

25. 3D Butterfly in a Jar

Paper butterflies with layered wings create beautiful three-dimensional creatures that look like they’re floating inside mason jars. The multiple layers of tissue paper or coffee filters give the wings amazing depth and movement, like they’re actually fluttering. The jar creates this magical little world where the butterfly seems to be dancing in its own private space. The soft colors and delicate materials make these butterflies look almost real and completely enchanting.

26. Maple Leaf Globe

A clear glass or plastic globe filled with tiny maple leaves creates a magical autumn snow globe effect. When you shake it, the leaves swirl around like they’re falling from trees on a perfect fall day. The miniature leaves inside look so delicate and beautiful, capturing all those gorgeous autumn colors in one little world. It’s like having your own personal fall day that you can make happen anytime you want to see those leaves dance.

27. Mason Jar Scarecrow with Burlap

Mason jars dressed up with burlap faces and tiny hats become the most adorable mini scarecrows. The burlap gives them that authentic, rustic look with perfect scarecrow texture, and their little button eyes are so sweet. Each jar scarecrow has its own personality with different expressions and accessories. They’re just the right size to sit on windowsills or shelves, bringing that cozy farmhouse charm to any space with their friendly faces.

28. Fall Truck

Paper trucks loaded with tiny pumpkins, hay bales, and fall leaves look like they’re making deliveries straight from the pumpkin patch. The truck bed filled with all those autumn treasures creates such a festive, harvest-time scene. Each truck can carry different cargo – maybe colorful leaves one day and mini pumpkins the next. The finished trucks look so cheerful and busy, like they’re part of getting ready for the best fall festival ever.

29. Scarecrow Treat Holder

These functional scarecrows have pockets or bags where they can hold Halloween candy or small treats. They look so festive with their patches and friendly faces, but they’re also practical for trick-or-treating or classroom parties. The scarecrow design makes them feel more fall-themed than scary, perfect for younger kids who might be nervous about Halloween. Each one can be personalized with different colors and expressions, making them special keepsakes as well as treat holders.

30. Coffee Filter Fall Tree

Coffee filters dyed in autumn colors create beautiful, translucent trees that look like they’re glowing from within. The coffee filters absorb the dye in such interesting patterns, creating natural-looking variations in color that resemble real leaves. When displayed against windows or lights, these trees have an almost magical quality with their soft, glowing colors. Each tree turns out completely different depending on how the dye spreads, making every one a unique piece of art.

31. Paper Leaf Puppet Craft

Paper leaves attached to popsicle sticks become dancing puppets that flutter and move like real leaves in the wind. Kids can make them “fall” from trees, dance together, or create little leaf puppet shows. The simple stick puppet design is perfect for small hands to control, and the leaves move so gracefully when waved around. Each puppet has its own personality based on the leaf shape and colors chosen, making them perfect characters for imaginative play.

32. Raking Leaf Craft

This craft shows a tiny rake with a pile of colorful paper leaves, capturing that classic fall activity in miniature form. The little rake looks so realistic, and the pile of leaves is bursting with all those beautiful autumn colors. It’s like having a tiny fall cleanup scene that celebrates one of the season’s most satisfying chores. The finished craft brings back memories of jumping in leaf piles and the satisfying sound of raking leaves on crisp autumn days.

33. Aluminum Foil Leaf

Aluminum foil pressed over real leaves creates beautiful metallic leaf prints that catch the light in amazing ways. The foil picks up every tiny detail of the leaf’s surface – all the veins and texture – creating incredibly detailed impressions. These metallic leaves shimmer and shine, looking like precious metal artwork. They’re so different from regular leaf crafts, with that beautiful reflective quality that makes them seem almost magical, like they’re made of silver or gold.

34. Paper Plate Fall Painting

Paper plates become canvases for beautiful fall paintings with swirls of orange, red, and yellow that blend together like autumn sunsets. The circular shape creates interesting compositions, and kids can experiment with mixing colors to see how they flow together. The finished plates look like abstract autumn scenes, with colors that remind you of fall leaves, pumpkins, and harvest moons. Each one is completely unique, capturing the warm, cozy feeling of the season in flowing, organic shapes.

35. Leaf Triceratops

Autumn leaves arranged and layered create prehistoric dinosaurs with spiky backs and long tails. The natural shapes of different leaves work perfectly for dinosaur bodies, legs, and those distinctive three horns. Each triceratops has unique coloring based on the leaves used, making them look like they lived in an ancient autumn forest. The combination of familiar fall leaves with exciting dinosaurs creates something both educational and magical that sparks imagination about prehistoric worlds.

36. Paper Plate Owl in Fall Leaves

Paper plates transformed into wise owls surrounded by a border of colorful autumn leaves look so majestic and seasonal. The owl’s big round eyes and feathered details stand out beautifully against the ring of fall foliage. The leaves frame the owl’s face perfectly, making it look like it’s perched in the middle of a beautiful autumn tree. Each owl has its own expression and personality, surrounded by the gorgeous colors and textures of real fall leaves.

37. Paper Plate Jack-o-Lantern Basket

Orange paper plates folded and decorated become functional baskets shaped like smiling jack-o-lanterns. These baskets are perfect for trick-or-treating or holding Halloween treats, and they’re much more personal than store-bought versions. The jack-o-lantern faces can be silly, spooky, or sweet, depending on what the child prefers. The basket shape makes them practical as well as decorative, and kids love having something they made themselves to use for Halloween festivities.

38. Cupcake Liner Pumpkin

Fluted cupcake liners layered and arranged create dimensional pumpkins with realistic ribbed surfaces. The natural curves of the cupcake liners mimic real pumpkin ridges perfectly, and orange liners give them that authentic pumpkin color. Multiple liners layered together add wonderful depth and texture, making the pumpkins look plump and three-dimensional. These pumpkins have such a cheerful, festive look that’s perfect for fall decorating, and each one has slightly different proportions and character.

39. Turkey Mask

Colorful feathers radiating from a turkey face create masks that kids can actually wear for Thanksgiving plays or just fun dress-up. The feathers fan out dramatically behind the child’s head, creating that classic turkey silhouette. Each mask is completely wearable and comfortable, with eye holes positioned perfectly for little faces. The bright feathers and friendly turkey expression make these masks fun rather than scary, perfect for celebrating Thanksgiving with joy and creativity.

40. Sponge Stamp Pumpkin Patch

Cut sponges in pumpkin shapes create the perfect stamps for making entire pumpkin patches on paper. The sponge texture adds interesting variation to each stamped pumpkin, making them look more organic and realistic. Kids can create whole scenes with multiple pumpkins in different sizes and shades of orange. The stamped pumpkins have a lovely, soft texture that’s different from brush painting, and creating a whole patch gives a wonderful sense of abundance and harvest celebration.

41. Paper Pumpkin Pie

Construction paper layered to look like a slice of pumpkin pie captures that classic Thanksgiving dessert in craft form. The orange “filling” and brown “crust” layers create a realistic pie slice that looks good enough to eat. A little paper whipped cream on top makes it even more authentic and delicious-looking. These paper pie slices are perfect for pretend play kitchens or Thanksgiving table decorations, bringing that warm, homey feeling of holiday baking to craft time.

42. Paper Strip Pumpkin

Strips of orange paper woven or layered together create dimensional pumpkins with interesting texture and movement. The strips can be curled, twisted, or layered to create different effects, and each pumpkin ends up with unique personality based on how the strips are arranged. The layered paper gives wonderful depth and shadows, making the pumpkins look full and round. These pumpkins have such beautiful dimension and can be made in any size for different decorating needs.

43. Pumpkin Pie Leaf

Real autumn leaves shaped and colored to look like pumpkin pie slices create a clever combination of natural materials and familiar foods. The leaves are painted or colored to have that rich orange pumpkin pie filling color, with darker edges to represent crust. It’s such a creative way to use leaves, transforming them into something completely unexpected. These leaf “pie slices” are both natural and whimsical, perfect for fall decorating with a sense of humor.

44. Bat Leaf

Dark autumn leaves cut and shaped into bat silhouettes create spooky decorations that are perfect for Halloween. The natural texture and color of darker leaves work perfectly for bat wings, giving them realistic variation and movement. These leaf bats look like they could actually be hanging upside down in a cave or flying through the night sky. The combination of natural materials with Halloween themes makes them both seasonal and slightly mysterious.

45. Leaf Fox

Orange and red autumn leaves arranged to create clever foxes with bushy tails and pointed ears. The natural colors of fall leaves are perfect for fox fur, and the different leaf shapes work beautifully for different body parts. Each fox has unique markings and coloring based on the specific leaves used, making them look like individual woodland creatures. The finished foxes look so lifelike and clever, like they might actually be hiding in a pile of real autumn leaves.

46. Pumpkin Suncatcher

Orange tissue paper or cellophane creates translucent pumpkins that glow beautifully when hung in windows. The light shining through the orange material creates such a warm, cozy glow that fills the room with autumn colors. These suncatchers look especially magical during the golden hour when the sunlight is naturally warm and orange. Each pumpkin catches and reflects light differently, creating lovely patterns and shadows that change throughout the day as the sun moves.

47. Free Tree Template

A simple tree outline becomes the foundation for countless creative fall projects, ready to be decorated with leaves, fingerprints, or any autumn materials. The basic tree shape gives structure while leaving lots of room for personal creativity and individual expression. Kids can fill the branches with colorful leaves, handprint leaves, or even small autumn stickers. Each tree ends up completely different and personal, making this template endlessly versatile for fall crafting.

48. Leaf Painting

Using real autumn leaves as paintbrushes creates the most beautiful, organic paintings with natural textures and patterns. The leaves leave interesting marks and textures that are impossible to create with regular brushes, adding authentic natural elements to the artwork. Different leaf shapes create different brush strokes, and kids love experimenting with how each leaf paints differently. The finished paintings have such beautiful, flowing organic quality that captures the essence of nature itself.

49. Paper Plate Crayon Jack-o-Lantern

Paper plates decorated with crayon shavings melted to create colorful, textured jack-o-lantern faces. The melted crayon creates beautiful color blending and interesting waxy textures that make each jack-o-lantern unique and vibrant. The heat process is exciting for kids to watch, and the finished faces have rich, saturated colors that really glow. These jack-o-lanterns are much more artistic than regular carved pumpkins, with beautiful abstract color patterns within the familiar pumpkin shape.

50. Candy Wrapper Tree

Colorful candy wrappers twisted and attached to bare branches create whimsical trees that shimmer and rustle in the breeze. The metallic and bright colors of the wrappers catch light beautifully, making the trees sparkle like they’re covered in jewels. Each wrapper moves independently, creating lovely motion and sound when air moves through the tree. These trees are both festive and environmentally conscious, giving new life to materials that would otherwise be thrown away.