Spooky Spider
Did you know that there are 3,000 different types of spiders in North America? Spiders can be fun or spooky – some people find them creepy while others find them fascinating.
What do you think?
Some of our favorite spiders appear in children’s literature, including the teensy weensy spider, Charlotte in Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White, Aragog, Hagrid’s pet, in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling, and the wonderful Anansi in the tales from Africa and the Caribbean.
Make your own paper spider – will yours be silly or spooky? Mother spiders often carry their babies on their backs or bellies – see if you can paint 100 baby spiders on your spider!
What you need:
Paper plate (or paper circle)
String or yarn
Strips of paper for the legs (8 for each spider)
Two small circles for the eyes
Scrap paper
Crayons or markers
Glue stick
Tape
What you do:
• Poke a hole in the center of the paper plate.
• Cut a 12” piece of yarn or string and thread approx. one inch through the hole and tape it flat. This is the spider’s silk, and you can use it to make your spider dangle and dance.
• Fold the strips of paper in thirds – or make an accordion fold – and glue them to the outside edges of the plate.
• Glue the circles on the plate and then draw eyes, cut them out, and glue them to the circles. TIP: If you don’t have circles, trace something round and cut it out.
• Decorate the back of the spider (the top side) with markers or crayons, or with a collage of scrap paper – or use black or gray paint to put 100 baby spiders on your spider!
• Make more spiders in different sizes and colors, and then make up stories about them.
