Study the 4 Seasons

This post may contain affiliate links. Please refer to our disclosure policy.

What season are you in right now? Spring, summer, fall, or winter? No matter what season you are in, anytime of year is an excellent time to read poetry about the seasons to your child using books, poetry and art. Overall, the changing of the seasons is an excellent way to introduce the passing of time to your preschooler and encourage the observation of the world around them. And what better way to teach this subject then by using art and poetry. Here, you’ll find book suggestions, specific poetry about the seasons, and a free printable to include art in your study.

In addition, the tree printable and painting activity is a part of a week of lessons centered around leaves. Check out more leaf themed art activities and books suggestions at Ll is for Leaves.

Structuring the preschool art activity with poetry about the seasons for homeschool.

Read books in addition to poetry.

Before jumping into the art and poetry, you can read books about the four seasons. For younger children books such as Old Bear by Kevin Henkes or Tree: Seasons Come, Seasons Go by Patricia Hegarty are excellent choices. For the older child they can benefit from Four Seasons Make A Year by Anne Rockwell or The Reasons for Seasons by Gail Gibbons.

In short, the age of your child will determine how much discussion can accompany the painting and poetry reading. If your child is younger, simply reading the poetry about the seasons introduces them to beautiful language. An older child will benefit from discussing what they remember about that time of year and the imagery in each poem.

Prepare the materials and poetry about the seasons.

The free printable of the four trees is at the bottom of the page. I recommend printing it off on blue paper. I enjoy hanging this art activity on our fridge so I print it on this pastel blue cardstock to make it a little nicer. Also, the paint is tempera so that you do not need to worry about staining. Lastly, no paint brushes are needed because your child will be using their fingers.

Pro tip: the painting and poems are great to do in tandem together. Because of this, have the pages marked in the poetry books ahead of time or reference this page.

Set up the paints.

The paint colors needed are white, pink, green, and fall colors. Such as, red, orange, and yellow. Place just a little bit of paint for each color on individual small plates. This is because, I have found it is easier to bring individual paint colors to the table to avoid any disagreement on the correct versus preferred color for individual seasons.

Set up the paint station with the white paint, a paper towel (for cleaning messy fingers), and then the printable. You are now ready to begin, so bring your child to the table.

Poetry about the seasons for preschoolers.

You will need to demonstrate the pressing and lifting of the finger to your child. You do not want them to smear or rub the paint. It is okay if they do but you are aiming for individual leaves, blossoms, and snowflakes. I begin the printable with winter because when your child does try to smear it is not really an issue because it flows well with a swirling snow effect.

WINTER – When The Earth Rests.

Poem:

Winter-Time by Robert Louis Stevenson from A Child’s Garden of Verses

Late lies the wintry sun a-bed, 
A frosty, fiery sleepy-head;
Blinks but an hour or two; and then,
A blood-red orange, sets again.

Before the stars have left the skies,
At morning in the dark I rise;
And shivering in my nakedness,
By the cold candle, bathe and dress.

Close by the jolly fire I sit
To warm my frozen bones a bit;
Or with a reindeer-sled, explore
The colder countries round the door.

When to go out, my nurse doth wrap
Me in my comforter and cap;
The cold wind burns my face, and blows
Its frosty pepper up my nose.

Black are my steps on silver sod;
Thick blows my frosty breath abroad;
And tree and house, and hill and lake,
Are frosted like a wedding-cake.

Painting

In winter, deciduous trees do not have leaves. Because of this the winter tree will remain bare of leaves but instead your child will paint in snowflakes all around it. Demonstrate to your child dipping their finger in the paint and then pressing and lifting straight back up. Encourage your child to make individual snowflakes and not to smear. But as with swirling snow it is not a problem if they do. Overall, be sure to correct it so that the other seasons are not affected.

Once they have completed the snow falling, wipe their fingers clean. Then, switch plates for the pink paint.

SPRING – When The Earth Awakes.

Poem

Spring by William Blake from Songs of Innocence and of Experience

Sound the flute!
Now it’s mute!
Birds delight,
Day and night,
Nightingale,
In the dale,
Lark in sky, –
Merrily,
Merrily, merrily to welcome in the year.

Little boy,
Full of joy;
Little girl,
Sweet and small;
Cock does crow,
So do you;
Merry voice,
Infant noise;
Merrily, merrily to welcome in the year.

Little lamb,
Here I am;
Come and lick
My white neck;
Let me pull 
Your soft wool;
Let me kiss
Your soft face;
Merrily, merrily we welcome in the year.

Painting

In spring the trees bud out and blossoms adorn their canopy. On the spring tree your child will use pink paint to make blossoms. Once again your child will create individual stamps by pressing down and pulling straight back up. However, this time instruct them to stay on the tree’s limbs, or the canopy, where the blossoms would grow.

Then, clean your child’s fingers and swap plates for the green paint.

SUMMER – When the earth showcases her beauty in shades of green.

Poem

Summer Sun by Robert Louis Stevenson from A Child’s Garden of Verses

Great is the sun, and wide he goes
Through empty heaven without repose;
And in the blue and glowing days
More thick than rain he showers his rays.

Though closer still the blinds we pull
To keep the shady parlour cool,
Yet he will find a chink or two
To slip his golden fingers through.

The dusty attic spider-clad
He, through the keyhole, maketh glad;
And through the broken edge of tiles,
Into the laddered hayloft smiles.

Meantime his golden face around
He bares to all the garden ground
And sheds a warm and glittering look
Among the ivy’s inmost nook.

Above the hills, along the blue,
Round the bright air with footing true,
To please the child, to paint the rose,
The gardener of the World, he goes.

Painting

The summer tree is going to be lush with green foliage. Encourage your child to be generous with the green paint on the canopy of the tree. Still pressing down and lifting straight up.

Give them plenty of time here. Then, clean their fingers and swap paints. Lastly, bring out all the autumn colors of red, yellow, and orange. 

FALL – When The Earth Adorns Herself In Warm Hues.

Poem

Autumn by Emily Dickinson from The Illustrated Treasury of Poetry for Children Edited by David Ross

The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry’s cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.
The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I’ll put a trinket on.

Painting

In autumn the leaves turn an array of hues of red, yellow, and orange. Then fall to the ground. Have your child create the colorful canopy on the fall tree and on the ground beneath the tree. Also, they can make a few leaves that are fluttering to the ground.

Once your child is done, be sure to explain to them that the seasons are cyclical. After autumn comes winter and then it all occurs again. Lastly, ask your child about their beautiful trees and what happens to the leaves as the seasons change. Now grab your free printable for this art activity below!

Go beyond poetry about the seasons with more art and poetry lessons.

Overall, painting and poetry about the seasons come together in this creative art activity to create a beautiful and memorable way to learn about the changing of the seasons. Hang your child’s painting on the fridge and occasionally ask them about the different seasons. Questions you can ask include firstly, what season they were born in. As well as, when family members were born. Also, refer to their artwork as the seasons change. By using their artwork we validate their work more than the original “ooh” and “ahh.”

If you enjoyed this activity there are many more art activities on the blog as well as in Letter of the Week. Your child will experience science, nature, art music, math, social studies, baking, games, and so much more with this free homeschool preschool curriculum. Learn more at the button below.

Recent posts on the homeschool blog.