Discover The Leaf Thief activities for preschoolers! Fun fall crafts, songs, and a weekly planner to bring this autumn book to life.
Find Your Activity Plan Here
The Leaf Thief Activities
Fall is the perfect time to curl up with a cozy book and playful activities—and The Leaf Thief by Alice Hemming is a favorite for bringing the magic of autumn to life! This silly, heartwarming story of a squirrel trying to solve the mystery of his “stolen” leaves not only makes kids giggle, but also introduces them to the beauty of seasonal change.
Below, you’ll find fun, hands-on activities, songs, and weekly plans inspired by the book to keep your preschooler learning, exploring, and celebrating fall all week long.
We have included links to the books on Amazon. As an associate, we may earn from qualifying purchases.
The Leaf Thief by Alice Hemming
The Leaf Thief by Alice Hemming is a fun and lighthearted story about a squirrel who notices leaves disappearing from his tree and is convinced someone must be stealing them! With the help of his bird friend, he learns that the changing seasons—not a thief—are the reason the leaves are falling.
It’s a perfect book for helping children understand the seasons, especially autumn, while enjoying silly humor and bright, engaging illustrations.
You can listen to the Read Aloud of The Leaf Thief here on youtube.
Want to get next week’s activity plan to do with your preschooler straight to your inbox? Then don’t forget to sign up for our weekly newsletter. You’ll also receive a list of the books and themes for our online book club all the way through May so you can plan ahead.
Fall Songs for Preschoolers
Singing fall songs with preschoolers is a wonderful way to capture their attention, build excitement, and set the mood for storytime. Songs about leaves, squirrels, or autumn weather help children connect with the themes of the season while also building early language skills, rhythm, and memory. Plus, moving and singing together gets their wiggles out—making it easier for them to sit and enjoy the book!
Here’s a quick fall song to keep in your pocket for storytime…
“Leaves Are Falling” (to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star)
Leaves are falling all around,
Red and yellow on the ground.
Falling, falling from the trees,
Floating gently in the breeze.
Leaves are falling all around,
See them gently touch the ground.
Here’s a few more fall songs to enjoy with your child.
Autumn Leaves are Falling Down | The Learning Station
Let’s Have Fall Fun! | Jack Hartmann
Boom Chicka Boom Autumn | by The Learning Station
You may also enjoy watching this short fall video It’s Time for Autumn! from JoJo and Gran Gran. Plus you can take a few fall virtual field trips with kids with these fall nature videos for kids.
Fall Week Plan for Preschoolers
Each week we provide a simple plan of activities for you and your preschoolers to do together. Although we don’t have a strict schedule the one shown below works really well if you are planning a full week.
If not you can always carry out the activities on a single day or across a couple.
The Leaf Thief Weekly Planner
Dive into a week of fall-themed learning with The Leaf Thief Weekly Planner! Inspired by the charming story of a squirrel’s quest to find out who’s stealing the leaves, this planner offers a blend of sensory play, nature exploration, and hands-on activities. Each day brings a new adventure, from creating cinnamon-scented playdough with nature stamps to exploring leaf science experiments.
Children will engage in outdoor math games using chalk and leaves, enhance literacy skills with felt letter matching, and express creativity through tape resist art projects. Perfect for fostering curiosity and learning through play, this planner is designed to make the most of the autumn season.
The Leaf Thief Activity Plan for Preschoolers
Playful ideas to go along with the book The Leaf Thief that are all about autumn fun. From colorful leaves to squirrels and the changing seasons, you’ll find everything you need to explore this story and learn with your preschooler in this weekly plan.
Create a cozy fall sensory experience with this cinnamon-scented playdough recipe and autumn nature stamp activity. Perfect for preschoolers to explore textures, colors, and the beauty of autumn leaves, acorns, and pinecones.
Turn learning into autumn fun! This felt leaf alphabet activity helps young children match letters while exploring textures, colors, and seasonal themes.
You can also use this fall leaves alphabet printable for extra letter matching fun or even an alphabet leaf scavenger hunt
Chalk Numbers with Leaves: An Outdoor Fall Math Game for Kids
Get outdoors this fall and sneak in a little number fun with your child. Just takes two items… chalk and leaves to create this chalk number game for fall. Here’s how you can play this fall leaf number game with your preschooler.
Easy Fall Leaf Science Experiment: Exploring Colors & Chlorophyll with Kids
Kids can extract the colors from leaves with this easy fall leaf science experiment you can do at home or school with just a few materials.
You can also try this fall leaf STEM challenge too!
Need a simple painting activity? Try this Fall themed tape resist art activity!
You can also create this adorable tissue paper leaf suncatcher for your window.
Here's how to create a special fall leaf garland with your art!
Fall Books for Kids
Here are a few more children’s book suggestions for this week’s theme. Fall picture books are a wonderful way to celebrate the changing season with preschoolers. The bright colors, playful stories, and cozy themes spark excitement and curiosity about the world around them.
Reading fall books together helps children notice seasonal changes in nature—like leaves turning colors, squirrels gathering food, or cooler weather arriving—while also building vocabulary, early science skills, and a love of storytelling.
Most of all, reading these stories together gives you and your child a chance to slow down, cuddle up, and enjoy the magic of fall through books.
- Fletcher and the Falling Leaves by Julia Rawlinson
- We’re Going on a Leaf by Steve Metzger
- Pete the Cat Falling for Autumn by James Dean
- Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf by Lois Ehlert
- Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn by Kenard Pak
- Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert
You may also enjoy this list of the best fall books for kids!
Additional Fall Weekly Planners
After hosting the Virtual Book Club for many years, we’ve collected quite a few Fall Themes for Preschoolers and Toddlers. Here’s a few if you’re looking for additional fall activities to do this colorful season with your child.
The Leaf Thief is just the beginning of a whole season of learning fun! If you loved these activities, be sure to sign up for our newsletter to get free weekly planners all school year long—each one filled with book-inspired activities, songs, and playful learning ideas for your preschooler.
Join us and make story time the highlight of your preschool week!
Leave a Reply