FREE Printables: Learning about Scotland

If you’re looking for something to occupy the children whilst you’re cooking your Burns Night supper, I’ve put together some Scottish themed colouring sheets which would be perfect for children to do. I’ve included a few facts and information which might help stimulate further discussion on the subject of Scotland.

The free to download sheets include pictures to colour in and a few facts about –

Scottish Thistles
Robert Burns
Bagpipes
Kilts and Tartan
The Saltire or Flag of Scotland

Click here to download your FREE colouring sheets.

It’s enough to keep the kids occupied for a while and a good place to start if you’re going to start exploring the history and traditions of Scotland with them.

If you are looking for more information about Scotland and its history, there are plenty of resources online. I like Scotland.org which has a really handy history timeline which takes you back right from the Palaeolithic era to the present day. National Geographic Kids also has a really good resource for children about Scotland, its history, wildlife and culture.

Burns Night itself is an evening of ceremonial celebration and commemoration of Robert Burns. The celebrations have a set order and include a number of traditionally Scottish elements. From reciting some of Robert Burns poetry, to the playing of bagpipes and the serving of haggis, Burns Night is a real celebration of all things Scottish.

You could have a lot of fun recreating a Burns Night celebration in your own home; complete with haggis, neeps and tatties, some bagpipe music from YouTube and everyone taking it in turns reciting some poetry.

You can also try your hand at making your own Scottish thistle with my simple popsicle stick craft, or you could try your hand at designing your own tartan using your own favourite colours.

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FREE Printables: Learning about Scotland

Kids Crafts: Make a Popsicle Stick Scottish Thistle

Celebrate Burns Night or St Andrews Day with this simple popsicle stick Scottish thistle craft for kids!

Kids Crafts: Make a Popsicle Stick Scottish Thistle

Every year on 25th January the good people of Scotland (and beyond) celebrate Burns Night. Burns Night is the annual celebration of the birth of the famous Scottish poet, Robert Burns who was born in 1759.

Burns Night celebrations typically involve the eating of haggis, neeps and tatties; drinking drams of whisky and lots of speeches and singing. It’s also a good opportunity to do some crafts with the children and talk to them about his poetry.

This is a super-simple craft which is really great to do with kids. They might need a bit of help with the cutting out, but the result is really effective.

How to make a Popsicle Stick Scottish Thistle

You will need:

Some green paper or card, card is better
Green popsicle sticks or straws
Purple tissue paper
A glue stick
Two pegs (optional)
A pencil
Scissors

Kids Crafts: Make a Popsicle Stick Scottish Thistle

How to make your Popsicle Stick Scottish Thistle:

Using a pencil, draw the outline of your thistle leaves and thistle head on your green card and carefully cut it out. I drew one of each, cut them out and drew around them again as templates for the other side. An adult might want to help with this part.

Take a strip of the purple tissue paper about 10cm long and cut a fringe about 2/3 of the way down the width of the paper at regular intervals. Using the glue stick, glue along the edge which hasn’t been cut and carefully wrap this around the top of the popsicle stick.

Using the glue, stick the green thistle head at the top of the stick so it covers the base of the tissue paper, stick the other head on the other side. Put a peg on the head to press the green card into place.

Glue the thistle leaves in place about halfway down the stick and hold those in place with another peg. Leave the glue to dry for 15 minutes or so, remove the pegs and your Scottish thistle is ready to be admired. You don’t need the pegs if you don’t have them. I just find they’re good at holding things in place while the glue sets.

It’s as simple as that. They look great, we’ve made a few and stuck them around our kitchen. They’re a simple craft which you can do for Burns Night, St Andrews Day or for just celebrating Scotland!

If you enjoyed this, you might also like these other blog posts:

Kids Crafts: Make a Popsicle Stick Scottish Thistle

Crafts: Make your own Scottish Thistle Brooch

Celebrate your Scottish heritage (or admiration for the highlands) with this lovely Scottish Thistle brooch. It’s pretty simple to make and it took me around an hour to sew together and finish off. The thistle is one of the most enduring emblems of Scotland and this brooch is the perfect thing to wear on Burns Night, Hogmanay or St Andrew’s Day.

Crafts: Make your own Scottish Thistle Brooch

I confess that the idea for this craft came when I was scrolling through Pinterest and I came across something similar. The version I spotted looked quite basic and something for children to make, you can see that version here. I took the original idea and turned it into a brooch an adult would want to wear on a jacket or coat. I’m really pleased with how my Scottish Thistle brooch has turned out and it is now on my winter coat ready for showing off later.

Make your own Scottish Thistle Brooch

You will need:
Green felt
Large green button
Green and purple embroidery thread
Brooch back or a safety pin

Instructions:
With a pen or pencil, sketch a thistle shape on your felt (take a look at the sketch below as a guide) making sure there’s enough space for the button with some room around it. Carefully cut out the thistle shape. Pin the thistle to the felt and use it as a stencil to cut out a second thistle shape. Pin them together. Crafts: Make your own Scottish Thistle Brooch

Crafts: Make your own Scottish Thistle Brooch

Using the green embroidery thread, stitch the two felt thistles together. I’ve sewn them so the stitching is a little feature around the edges of the felt. Once you’ve sewn the thistles together, take your purple embroidery thread and in long stitches sew the purple prickles on the top.

Crafts: Make your own Scottish Thistle Brooch

Take your green button and sew it in place with the purple embroidery thread. Finish off the detail on the thistle with some green stitches across the thistle leaves. To complete your brooch, sew on the brooch back or safety pin on the back of your thistle. I stitched my safety pin behind the button.

Your Scottish Thistle brooch is now complete and ready to wear with pride!

Crafts: Make your own Scottish Thistle Brooch