Pot of Gold Telescope

I love rainbows! If you have seen my crafts before, then you might already know this:)
Today’s craft is all about finding the gold at the end of the rainbow. Everybody knows that there is a pot of gold at the end of every rainbow. Who puts that gold there? The leprechauns do! Leprechauns are cute little guys that collect gold. They are also mischievous little boogers too! They will filp your play room upside down in a flash if they get the chance! But, they always leave behind some of their gold to share with you because they are kind at heart. This pot of gold telescope helps you spot anything you might think of when you imagine rainbows (gold, leprechauns, four leaf clovers, or anything set out to find!). I can’t wait to show you how to make one….

Stella and Mitch help me sort the materials and colors. We talked about the colors of the rainbow and the sparkly gold at the end. Toddlers LOVE conversing about colors, they know all about them now! This activity lets them do the teaching. They can show you, tell you, and explain to you what they see. It really is surprising to hear how smart our toddlers are!

This craft is easy to make! Each telescope takes about 20 minutes and requires simple materials. You will need:

• Craft foam in the colors of the rainbow PLUS gold (they sell that kind…it’s totally amazing!)
• Hot glue
• Scissors
• Mason jar lid
• Clear cellophane

Obviously, you will not let your kiddos use your glue gun. However, this is a perfect time to sit together and discuss colors while you’re gluing. It allows your toddler to focus and concentrate on completing the task with you:

Start by hot gluing a piece of cellophane to the inside of a mason jar lid. The size of this circle piece will depend on the mason jar lid you’re using (the come in all different sizes and any size you have will work!).

Next, think of the colors of the rainbow and work backwards, starting with the gold at the of the rainbow.
My gold strip measured: 1.5″ x 9″
My purple strip measured: 1.5″ x 8.5″
My blue strip measured: 1.5″ x 8″

The only consistent thing about each strip of craft foam was the width of 1.5″ and the length decreased by about a half of an inch each time.
Again, the size of your rainbow pieces will all be determined by your lid!

Hot glue the strips together by overlapping the ends enough to make it easy to glue. Then, determine the length of your next color. Before you glue anything, just double check that it will insert securely to the color before it. Too small and you won’t be able to attach it to the previous color with the hot glue. Too big and you won’t be able to insert it into the previous color.

The neat thing about this craft is that it dries quickly! So, once you and your kids are done, you can immediately run outside and play!

Looking for some rainbow crafts and sweets? You might also like:

Lucky Fortune Cookies

Lucky Shamrock Wands

Rainbow Wrapped Marshmallows:

DIY Reusable Foam Chains for Kids