This time of year is perfect for teaching my children the sacrifice that our forefathers made in coming to America. A fun visual to use when telling the story of the Mayflower journey is a Mayflower ship made by using hickory nutshells and a few other items easy to find.
It’s very simple to do! And I love teaching my kids to appreciate nature even more by making fun nature crafts with them.
Nature Crafts: How To Make A Hickory Mayflower Ship
- My daughter found hickory shells in our driveway. We broke the pieces apart and made little boats out of them.
- Next, we filled the small shell with modeling clay. You could also use play dough, chewed gum, or whatever sticky thing you can find around the house. 🙂
- Cut a rectangle out of white paper, making sure that the bottom of the rectangle is wider than the top.
- Push a toothpick through the bottom and top of the paper to make a sail.
- Place the toothpick in the clay to complete your ship!
As far as sailing these miniature ships, let’s just say that my girls and I are thankful that the real Mayflower ship did a better job of safely bringing the pilgrims to America’s shore. 😉 Perhaps a different nutshell would sail better, but they are fun to sail across the table too.
Aside from these not being the best floaters for us, they are a fun craft to do for this time of year and give me the perfect opportunity to teach history to my girls!
Have you made a Mayflower craft? I would love to hear new ideas!
