We had a great time with our September activitiy for the Online Kids Book Club! 

The author of the month is Lois Ehlert and (after reading quite a few options :), we decided to read "Boo To You".

The story is a cute little rhyming tale about two mice who are having a harvest party -- but there's an uninvited guest (the cat) that they want to scare away!

The first thing we noticed (and LOVED) about this book was the depth and texture in the illustrations.  The author uses a variety of items to create the pictures, including different types of paper, items from nature and photos of harvest items.

The author's illustrators inspired us to

Create a Multi-Textured Pumpkin Patch Collage

First, we collected a number of materials from around the house and yard:

• Scraps of material (cloth, felt, ribbon, denim)
• Natural items from the yard (acorns, sticks, leaves, pinecones)
• A sturdy piece of cardboard to use for our background
• Buttons
• Scissors, glue and some paint

We decided to create a picture of a pumpkin patch at night.  My daughter had the wonderful idea of using denim material for the night sky. 

We used some brown cloth (an old baby sock) for the tree trunk and then glued natural items on our 'tree'. 

Our jack-o-lanterns were made from cloth, bark and button eyes - we also painted in a few pumpkins too.

Kids will really enjoy using a variety of items and textures to create a beautiful picture. 

Another option (if you have pumpkins in season) is to decorate a pumpkin with natural items like the two mice in the story!

So which book will you choose to read this month? 

Here are a number of activity ideas for many of Lois Ehlert's stories hosted by our wonderful co-bloggers:

Happy Fall!  ~ Jacquie