Looking for something to do with your little leprechauns to celebrate St. Patrick’s day? Look no further!
Pot of Gold Hunt
Prep: Cut out arches for each color of the rainbow, and a pot to place at the end of the rainbow. On the back of each arch write a clue on where to find the next color. 
Hide each arch in a different spot. In the final spot, place the “pot of gold” with a fun prize like gold plastic beads, St. Patrick’s Day finds from the dollar store, or a themed sensory kit. Write a note from The Leprechaun leading everyone to the first clue.
Together: Read out the first clue and search the house for each piece of the rainbow. Place the arches in order to create a rainbow. See if you can all work together to find The Leprechaun’s pot of gold!
Paint a Shamrock
Prep: Cut a large shamrock out of brown craft paper, a paper grocery bag, or a cardboard box. Using painter’s tape create crisscrossed and diagonal lines across the shamrock. Mix different shades of green by adding blue, yellow, white to plain green. We love to use muffin tins to keep the paint separate to start (although who am I kidding they all end up a jumbled mess by the end).
Together: Paint your shamrock using a different shade of green in each shape, or let your kid have at it however they want! When your paint is completely dry, slowly peel off the tape.
**But Kara, didn’t you get paint all over your walls? Why yes, yes I did, and despite my overconfidence in my favorite washable paints, it did not all come off of the wall despite trying everything I possibly could. So maybe don’t be like me and put additional kraft paper behind your creations or a surface you don’t mind staining, mmkay?**
Watch Song of the Sea
This movie isn’t about St. Patrick, but it does take place in Ireland and has a lot of elements of Irish folklore (fairies, selkies, mythology). The animation and music are both beautiful. There may be some parts that could be a little scary for smaller children but my 5 and 3-year-old both loved it!
You can stream Song of the Sea on Netflix!
Read “How to Catch a Leprechaun” and leave a treat out for The Leprechaun before bed!
Ever since I was little, we always left a treat out for the leprechaun – usually some tea and a couple of cookies to go with it. I have no idea why we did this, but as a kid it was always so much fun to see if the leprechaun came to the house.
My mom would create footprints across the kitchen counters and fridge and that tricky leprechaun always turned our milk green! Again, why? I have no idea but as a kid, green milk was very exciting.
If you want to go all out for this you can also make your own leprechaun trap to try to catch your leprechaun!
I hope these ideas add a little mischief and luck to your St. Patrick’s day! Does your family have any St. Patrick’s Day traditions?
