To get ready for our Cross Curriculum Road Trip, we did an incredibly fun art project: we built landscapes using candy and snacks! It was a fantastic way to introduce science concepts using things around the house. You even get to snack along the way!
In addition to instructions, I also put together landscape flashcards and labels for your landforms. The packet is ready to print, use, and share right now!
What do I need for this project?
- Tasty Landforms & Landform Booklet Packet
- Cardboard
- White Frosting
- Food Coloring
- Shredded Coconut
- Graham Crackers
- Various Snacks
How does it work?
- Start with your base. It can be as big or small as you want. Go with what you have available. We used an Amazon box. I also recommend placing newspaper underneath to make cleanup easier.
- Sketch a general plan for where you want the different landforms. Have the little one pick where they want the lake, mountains, river, etc. It’s best to stick with the basics at this point (e.g. water vs. land).
- Divide the frosting and have your little one add food coloring.
- In a single layer cover the land area in brown frosting and water area in blue frosting.
- Decide where the high and low terrain will be. Build up the elevation with graham crackers. Use the brown frosting to glue the graham crackers together.
- Prep the rest of your materials. Dye your coconut green for grass/vegetation. Crumble graham crackers for sand. Set out the other ingredients as necessary. We used big and small Hershey Kisses, Swedish Fish, and Goldfish.
- Have your little one create more detailed landforms using the candy and snacks you have on hand. Don’t forget to use the flashcards from the printable to make sure you create the landforms you want. Punch a hole in the corner, and put them on a ring or string for easy access.
- Cut out and place the labels from the packet on your project.
- Explore your new landscape with your little one: talk about the geography, discuss beginning sounds, practice counting hills or fish.
- Flip through the flashcards with your art project or take them in the car to find the landforms around you!
What are we learning?
The art project and landform booklet are great as an introduction or refresher on geography. It’s never to early to start providing these concepts and labels for the world around us. But this way, the little one gets to make the landforms with their own hands — creating an even greater connection.
My little one’s favorite was using the flashcards. She loved looking through the cards to find the different landforms she just created. Later, when we were on our road trip she loved looking for the flashcard that matched what she was seeing outside.
I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS RESOURCE. FEEL FREE TO PRINT IT OUT AND SHARE WITH FRIENDS.
Happy Learning! - RS