National Rock Collecting Day with kids

This is a day that is definitely something close to our hearts. We love to collect rocks wherever we go whether it’s the meteor crater in Arizona, the beaches of the Bay of Fundy or even in our back yards. We love rocks! We love the feel, texture, weight, and look about them. We even love to play with rocks. During a recent trip to Bar Harbor, we created a rock sculpture on a beach.

We have found no official information about the origins of this day but I think this is a fabulous day to observe. Collecting rocks is a fun and fabulous activity that everyone can enjoy. Of course the kids also picked up rocks from all over the country. It’s common for me to find such treasures in their pockets when the laundry is being done.

Today is a good day to take a hike or a walk somewhere and collect a few rocks. We always incorporate rocks into the crafts we make throughout the year. We have decoupage on rocks, painted owls, birds, spiders and ghosts on rocks. This year we want the kids to paint me some rock pumpkins. We have glued rocks onto paper to make frames and pictures. We have looked them up to find out which rocks we have found and what category we can put them in. We are armatures but we sure have a lot of fun when it comes to our rock collecting.

Here are a few crafty ideas we found that you can do with the rocks you collect today.

Alphabet Rocks

http://familycrafts.about.com/od/alphabetactivities/ss/Alphabet_Rocks_Craft.htm

Pet Rocks

http://crafts.kaboose.com/pet-rocks.html

Math Game (we are going to try this with Lauren)

http://familycrafts.about.com/od/stoneandrock/a/Math_Rocks.htm

This is a fun craft that takes a few days but will really be enjoyed by the kids, basically you make a faux rock with a hidden treasure inside of it.

http://familycrafts.about.com/cs/miscstpatricks/a/bltrstone.htm

Hemp Rock Necklace (this is a good one for boys)

http://familycrafts.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=familycrafts&cdn=parenting&tm=40&gps=52_2042_779_431&f=10&tt=14&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.makingfriends.com/rocknecklace.htm

Since Halloween will be here before you know it, here are the painted rocks we made for last Halloween: