An autumn leaf is a wonder of nature for children and adults alike. To celebrate that wonder, why not have an autumn leaf unit study?!
There are some amazing resources available online. I’ll be linking to Montessori-inspired resources here and adding a link to my Autumn Leaf Unit Study board on Pinterest with links to resources of all types and for a wide range of ages. Some of the resources will be about leaves during any season but will obviously still be appropriate for a unit study on autumn leaves.
Montessori-Inspired Leaf Resources (with many updates in 2017)
My posts:
Free Montessori Botany Materials for a Gardening Unit (has links to many free Montessori leaf materials)
Where to Buy Montessori Materials (if you’re interested in purchasing traditional Montessori materials such as the Montessori botany cabinet – not essential for homeschools)
Raking Leaves (Photo from United Montessori Association)
Activity of the Week – Raking Leaves Indoors (Practical Life)
Classifying Leaves (Photo from Two Little Seeds)
Activity of the Week – Classifying Leaves
Free Leaf Printables and Montessori-Inspired Fall Leaf Activties (2015)
You’ll find Montessori-inspired leaf activities of all kinds (autumn or any season) in my ultimate guide to Montessori-inspired leaf resources and activities (2017).
Montessori-Inspired Autumn Leaf Posts and Materials
Tree Identification Cards (Image from Montessori Print Shop)
Montessori Print Shop has a number of leaf materials available for purchase.
Montessori for Everyone has a number of leaf materials available for purchase.
Parts of a Leaf (Photo from Every Star Is Different)
Every Star Is Different has parts of a leaf in a post about Montessori-inspired plant activities with free printables.
Leaf Shapes Study (Photo from The Pinay Homeschooler)
The Pinay Homeschool has a leaf shapes study.
Montessori from the Heart has a botany lesson on learning about leaves.
Imagine Our Life has an autumn leaves quiet book and homeschool unit.
Leaf Button Snake (Photo from Trillium Montessori)
Trillium Montessori has activities for learning about leaves plus parts of a leaf (subscriber freebie).
Leaf Identification and Sorting (Photo from Wildflower Ramblings)
Wildflower Ramblings has a post with leaf identification cards (free to subscribers)
Natural Beach Living has a roundup with lots of leaf activities.
The Natural Homeschool has a roundup of fall leaf activities.
Leaf Transferring (Photo from Discovery Days and Montessori Moments)
Discovery Days and Montessori Moments has Leaf Transferring.
Mama’s Happy Hive has a Montessori-inspired leaf unit.
Uno Zwei Tutu has an outdoor snake craft with fall leaves.
A Chromatography Experiment for Fall (Photo from Gift of Curiosity)
Gift of Curiosity has a chromatography experiment for fall.
Welcome to Mommyhood has leaf sorting.
Wings, Worms, and Wonder has leaf nature journals.
Button Tree (Photo from Olives and Pickles)
Olives and Pickles (photo) and Noor Janan Homeschool have autumn button trees.
Leaf Button Snake (Photo by Julie at The Adventures of Bear)
The Adventures of Bear has a leaf button snake (photo), fall sensory box, and sorting leaves activity.
Fall Sensory Bin (Photo from 1+1+1=1)
1+1+1=1 has a Fall Sensory Bin along with many fall printables that can be used to prepare Montessori-inspired activity trays.
Train Up a Child has Montessori-inspired Ll is for leaf activities.
Vibrant Wanderings has a post with activities for learning about leaves in the Montessori classroom.
My Confessions of a Montessori Mom Blog has 7 Fun Fall Montessori Leaf Activities and Autumn Blog Hop
Botany Cabinet Work (Photo from The Moveable Alphabet)
The Moveable Alphabet has Leaf Washing, “Skate Around the Rim of the Leaf’s Shape” (the photo), Fetching and Pairing With The Botany Cabinet, and Outdoor Botanical Exercises.
Jessie from The Education of Ours has a pin punching Botany Cabinet Extension at Mommy Moment.
My Montessori Journey has Signs of Fall (in the Classroom), The Giving Tree (for needed classroom supplies), Leaf Practical Life Activities, Leaf Stringing, October Poem, Leaf Number Sequencing, Leaf Number Sequencing Extension, Leaf Counting Activity, Fall Tree Dice Game, Leaf Spirals, Leaf Rubbings, Fall Tree Activity, Watercolor Leaves, and WAY Cute Fall Tree Craft.
“Please Touch” Table with Leaves and Seeds (Photo from Barefoot in Suburbia)
Barefoot in Suburbia has a number of autumn leaf activities, including leaf matching. (Photo from Montessori Monday.)
Leaf Color-Changing Activity (Photo from Homeschool Escapade)
Homeschool Escapade has a lesson about why leaves change color along with other Montessori-inspired leaf activities.
Autumn Leaf Pairing (Photo from Leptir)
Leptir has Autumn Leaves – Pairing using a free leaf matching printable from PreKinders as well as other autumn leaf activities in a post on Plants and Garden.
Lesson Plans to Pots and Pans has many autumn activities, including a number of autumn leaf activity trays.
Autumn Trees 1-10 (Photo from Dirigo Montessori School)
Dirigo Montessori School has autumn trees 1-10 and autumn leaf ordering and hanging on the line, autumn leaf pin pushing and leaf button stringing, and autumn leaf watercolor painting.
Montessori Spanish has a Leaf Study.
Work and Play, Day by Day has Leaf Works.
Our Montessori Story has a number of leaf activities in A Fall Poem and More Fun with Fall Leaves.
Montessori Muddle has a middle school science activity: Osmosis under the Microscope.
More Ideas for an Autumn Leaf Unit Study on Pinterest
On Pinterest, I have more resources for an autumn leaf unit study for a number of age levels. The resources aren’t all Montessori resources, but there are many wonderful ideas to choose from to fit into an autumn leaf unit.
Learn more about my eBook Montessori at Home or School: How to. Teach Grace and Courtesy! I’m also one of the coauthors of the book Learn with Play – 150+ Activities for Year-round Fun & Learning!
The Montessori at Home! eBook and Montessori at Home! eBook and Materials Bundle are AMAZING resources! You can learn more about them here. Buy them in the Living Montessori Now shop.
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Heidi says
September 29, 2011 at 12:38 pmEven before we started homeschooling, fall leaves were the first Montessori inspired activity we did at home with my then preschoolers who are now in 1st & 3rd grade! I’ve come a long way since then!
http://www.workandplaydaybyday.com/2008/10/leaf-works.html
Deb says
September 29, 2011 at 2:52 pmThanks so much for your comment and link, Heidi! I love that you combined collecting fall leaves with some great Montessori-inspired activities. I added your link to my post and the Key to Leaves link (wonderful resource) from your post to my Pinterest board!
Michelle says
September 29, 2011 at 3:49 pmWonderful fall activities as always! Sorry I have not been by and a while. My oldest started Kindergarten this year and my youngest pre-school. We just made the most of our summer as the school years are upon us and now I’m finding myself even more busy now that they are school. I love being an involved parent and with two at two different schools I’m always on the run!
Deb says
October 10, 2011 at 4:12 pmThanks so much for stopping by, Michelle! It sounds like you are definitely busy. But how wonderful that you’re such an involved parent! Have an awesome school year! 🙂
Lori says
September 29, 2011 at 4:54 pmGreat ideas! Raking leaves…why didn’t I ever think of that??? I bet my boys would LOVE it. They love sweeping and mopping so why not! 🙂
Deb says
October 10, 2011 at 4:14 pmThanks, Lori! Raking leaves is definitely a popular activity with preschoolers! Barefoot in Suburbia’s variation is really fun, too! 🙂
Lessa says
September 30, 2011 at 5:39 pmI will get the kids some rubber gloves and leave them to it this autumn! Peace at last (or not!)
Deb says
October 10, 2011 at 4:15 pmLOL, Lessa! Little ones definitely can help out, though! 🙂
Little Wonders' Days says
October 2, 2011 at 9:42 amI love your blog, Deb. You have the best theme units and it makes it simple to pull these activities together at home. Great resource!
Deb says
October 10, 2011 at 4:16 pmThanks so much for your kind comment! I’m so glad my unit study posts are helpful! 🙂
JDaniel4's Mom says
October 8, 2011 at 2:20 pmI just pinned this unit! I really love how it gives wonderful ways to learn about leaves.
Deb says
October 10, 2011 at 4:18 pmThanks so much! I’ve had lots of fun finding these resources. And I’ve added a lot to my Pinterest board already! 🙂
Jessie, The Education of Ours says
October 11, 2011 at 5:09 pmI love this post! Now I’m full of ideas for school this month 😉 You are fantastic, Deb!
Deb says
October 11, 2011 at 8:39 pmThanks so much for your sweet comment, Jessie! I always love your posts, too! 🙂
Crystal & Co says
October 12, 2011 at 7:36 amLove this! You really gather a lot of information for your readers.
This was one of the top clicked ideas shared last week. You’ve been featured.
http://www.crystalandcomp.com/2011/10/the-mommy-club-share-your-resources-and-solutions-13/
Deb says
October 20, 2011 at 5:35 pmThanks so much, Crystal! How exciting that my post was one of the top clicked ideas among so many awesome ideas! 🙂
Our Country Road says
October 18, 2011 at 10:39 amThis post makes me really want the leaf cabinet! Someday I hope :).
Deb says
October 20, 2011 at 6:01 pmThanks for your comment, Lisa! The leaf cabinet is a beautiful material, but it doesn’t tend to get used a lot in most Montessori schools. It’s nice that there are alternatives you can use for homeschools that work well, too. I love that you can do a lot with felt puzzles and with cards as in the post from Maybe Montessori: http://maybemontessori.blogspot.com/2010/06/botany-share.html
Carolyn Wilhelm says
September 19, 2014 at 5:56 pmPinned and shared on my blog! Thanks for these inspiring and easy to follow ideas for teachers. It is so nice how the activities are presented for the children. Thanks!