Sheer The Sheep To Make Yarn
Builds on: dramatic play, fine motor skills

What you'll need:

a square piece of clear contact paper
scissors
painters tape
permanent marker
1 bag of cotton balls
a low window
1 plastic knife


What to do:
Use the permanent marker to draw the outline of a sheep on the front of the contact paper. Tear 4 pieces of painters tape measuring the length of each side of the contact paper from the roll. Remove the protective paper from the adhesive side of the contact paper and place your drawing against the window, sticky side facing you. Use the pieces of tape to secure the sides of your picture to the window. Now grab your bag of cotton balls and knife and invite the kids over.

As they stick cotton balls on to the sheep you can explain that during the fall farmers let the sheeps wool grow as thick as it will go. Hand over the knife and tell them that in the spring the farmer shaves off all the wool to make thread with. Let the kids shave off the "wool". Let the kids repeat this as often as they want. When you see that either the sheep isn't sticky anymore or that the interest is waning take a cotton ball and explain that to make thread with the wool farmers pulls the wool apart to make it more fluffy and then use a machine to spin/twist the wool into yarn.  Pull the cotton balls apart as you speak and encourage your kids to do the same. Once it's nice and fluffy pinch the "wool" between your fingers and show the kids how to twist it into small pieces of "yarn".

Related Resources:

Follow the links to a yarn activity and youtube videos about wool pulling and spinning.

Farm Shapes Sewing
Wool Pulling and Spinning Video