Stick Man Early Years Activities: Five EYFS Ideas plus a Help Stick Man Get Home Game
A windy little adventure for nursery
Few stories capture the EYFS imagination like Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s Stick Man. A small twig is mistaken for a fetching stick, then a sword, then a flag, then a boomerang, then a nest. He travels far from his Family Tree, with his Stick Lady Love and stick children waiting at home. Until at last, with help from a kind man in red, he finds his way back. It is a tale of hope, persistence, family and the joy of being known.
These five practitioner-designed activities cover every EYFS area. A twig hunt and stick-character making bench for Understanding the World and Physical Development, a family-tree collage for PSED and Expressive Arts, an autumn sensory tray for early exploration, a story sequencing and retelling station for Communication and Literacy, and a forest counting maths table. Paired with the brand-new Help Stick Man Get Home game, this is a full week of woodland-themed play for any setting, indoors or out.
Our Top 5 Stick Man Activities
Tap an icon to jump to each activity
🌳 Help Stick Man Get Home
Oh no! Stick Man is far from his Family Tree and stuck in a tricky spot. Look at the scene, then tap the right helper from the four cards to rescue him. Five rescues bring the whole stick family back together.
Keyboard play: tab to a helper card and press Enter or Space to choose it.
Twig Hunt and Stick Character Making
Best for: Understanding the World · Physical Development · Expressive Arts & Design · Communication & Language
What you need
- A large basket or trug for collected twigs
- An outdoor space with safe fallen sticks (or a pre-gathered indoor pile)
- Wool, string, or coloured pipe cleaners for tying limbs
- Self-adhesive googly eyes in a few sizes
- Small fabric scraps (felt, ribbon) for hats and scarves
- A few example stick characters made by the practitioner ahead of time
- A laminated picture of Stick Man as inspiration
How to set it up
- Read the opening pages of Stick Man together. Notice his arms, his legs, his smile.
- Head outside (or to the indoor twig pile) on a “twig safari” with the basket.
- Each child chooses one main twig (the body) and two smaller side twigs (arms or legs).
- Back at the table, model wrapping wool around the join to attach limbs.
- Add eyes, a fabric scarf, a name. Stand the family in a row for a story circle.
💬 Adult prompts
- “Which twig will be your Stick Man’s body? Why that one?”
- “Can you find a twig with a little curl, like an arm waving?”
- “Where will your Stick Man live? Will he have a Stick Lady Love?”
- “What is your stick character’s name? What does he like to do?”
- “Shall we line our stick family up from tallest to shortest?”
📚 EYFS links
- Understanding the World: exploring the natural world, tree parts, seasonal change.
- Physical Development: fine motor wrapping and tying, careful handling of small props.
- Expressive Arts & Design: open-ended sculptural making, character invention.
- Communication & Language: retelling, naming, describing.
- Mathematics: comparing length, sorting twigs by size.
✨ Extensions & differentiation
- Ages 1 to 2: stick rubbings on paper, no construction, focus on holding and dropping.
- Ages 3 to 4: ready-bundled twig kits, child adds eyes and scarf only.
- Ages 4 to 5: design a whole stick family with names and roles.
- Challenge: dictate a one-line adventure for your stick character to a grown-up.
Safety tip: brief children on “stick safety” before the hunt: low to the ground, no waving, point ends down. Choose twigs no longer than the child’s forearm to keep play gentle. Always check sticks for sharp ends and remove any with thorns or splinters before crafting.
My Family Tree Collage
Best for: PSED · Expressive Arts & Design · Communication & Language · Understanding the World
What you need
- A large piece of A3 brown card or beige sugar paper per child
- A pre-printed tree-trunk outline, or a brown paper trunk to glue down
- Real autumn leaves (pressed) or paper leaf shapes in red, gold, orange, green
- Small printed family photos sent in by parents (optional but lovely)
- Lolly sticks or small twigs to make stick figures of family members
- Glue sticks, PVA, child-safe scissors, and a few brown felt pens
- A “Who lives in your tree?” prompt card with simple drawings
How to set it up
- Re-read the page in Stick Man where his family lives in their tree. Pause and chat.
- Ask quietly: “Who lives in your family? Who do you love being with?”
- Children glue their tree trunk and add a lush leaf canopy on top.
- Make a small stick figure for each family member, with a name or photo.
- Glue figures inside the canopy or beside the trunk. Share trees as a circle.
💬 Adult prompts
- “Who in your family will go in your tree first? Why that person?”
- “Is anyone in your family far away today? Shall we put them in too?”
- “What does your family like to do together?”
- “Can you find a leaf in your favourite colour for the top of your tree?”
- “How does Stick Man feel when he gets back home? How do you feel at home?”
📚 EYFS links
- PSED: sense of belonging, expressing feelings, building self-identity.
- Communication & Language: talking about people in their lives, listening to others.
- Expressive Arts & Design: mixed-media collage, layering of materials.
- Understanding the World: family structures, similarities and differences.
- Literacy: mark making the names of loved ones beside each figure.
✨ Extensions & differentiation
- Ages 1 to 2: press pre-cut leaves onto a sticky tree shape, focus on touch.
- Ages 3 to 4: add 2 to 3 family figures with a grown-up writing names.
- Ages 4 to 5: write or copy first names beside each figure independently.
- Challenge: include pets, friends, or “family who live in another country”.
Inclusive tip: every family looks different. Avoid framing the activity as “mum, dad, sibling”. Instead use language like “the people you love who live with you, and the people you love who live somewhere else”. Welcome all configurations: foster families, two mums, two dads, single carers, grandparents, friends.
Autumn Forest Sensory Tray
Best for: Understanding the World · Physical Development · Communication & Language · PSED
What you need
- A large shallow tuff tray or builder’s tray
- A base layer of clean dry oats, lentils, or shredded brown paper
- Real conkers, acorns, pine cones, and small smooth pebbles
- Pressed real leaves or fabric leaves in autumn colours
- A handful of bare twigs in different lengths
- Small wooden bowls, scoops, sieves and tongs
- One or two homemade Stick Man figures hidden under the leaves
- Small magnifying glasses for closer looking
How to set it up
- Layer the base, then scatter conkers, twigs, leaves and pebbles on top.
- Tuck two homemade Stick Men into hidden spots before children arrive.
- Invite small groups: “There are two Stick Men lost in the leaves. Can we find them?”
- Encourage scooping, sieving, sorting by colour or texture into the bowls.
- Once Stick Men are found, gently retell their adventure together.
💬 Adult prompts
- “What does this leaf feel like? Crunchy, smooth, or soft?”
- “Can you find something rough? Something shiny?”
- “How did Stick Man feel when he was lost? Lonely? A bit scared?”
- “How will we know when we have found him? What does he look like?”
- “Can you sort the leaves by colour into these bowls?”
📚 EYFS links
- Understanding the World: seasonal change, autumn natural materials.
- Physical Development: scooping, pouring, pincer grip with tongs.
- Communication & Language: sensory vocabulary (rough, smooth, crackly).
- PSED: emotion talk through Stick Man’s feelings of being lost and found.
- Mathematics: sorting by colour, size and shape.
✨ Extensions & differentiation
- Ages 1 to 2: larger conkers and smooth pebbles only, supervised carefully.
- Ages 3 to 4: add a sorting tray with labelled compartments.
- Ages 4 to 5: tally how many conkers, leaves and twigs in each bowl.
- Challenge: design a tiny “Family Tree” home for Stick Man inside the tray.
Safety tip: conkers, acorns and small pebbles are choking hazards for under threes. For your youngest children, swap small items for larger pine cones and wooden conker-sized blocks. Always supervise sensory play closely, and offer a hand-washing station nearby to round off the experience.
Story Sequencing and Puppet Retell
Best for: Literacy · Communication & Language · PSED · Expressive Arts & Design
What you need
- A copy of Stick Man by Julia Donaldson
- Five or six laminated picture cards showing key story moments
- A homemade Stick Man stick puppet (lolly stick plus googly eyes and limbs)
- A small basket of props: a tiny flag, a paper boat, a pretend nest
- A blue strip of fabric for the river, and a brown strip for the path
- A simple “first, next, then, last” sequencing strip on card
- A floor mat or storytelling rug
How to set it up
- Read Stick Man together with lots of pause and pointing.
- Lay the picture cards in a muddle on the floor. “Oh dear, the story has fallen apart!”
- Children take turns to pick up a card and place it on the strip in order.
- Give the Stick Man puppet to a willing child to walk along the cards as you retell.
- End with all the children chanting the famous “I’m Stick Man! I’m Stick Man!” line.
💬 Adult prompts
- “What happened first in the story? What happened right after that?”
- “Who picked Stick Man up next? Was it a dog or a swan?”
- “How did Stick Man feel when he was used as a flag?”
- “Who do you think will help him get home in the end?”
- “Can you make Stick Man hop along the cards while you retell?”
📚 EYFS links
- Literacy: story structure, sequencing, beginning to middle to end.
- Communication & Language: retelling in order, story vocabulary.
- PSED: empathising with Stick Man’s emotions and resilience.
- Expressive Arts & Design: using puppets and props to bring story alive.
- Mathematics: ordinal language (first, second, third).
✨ Extensions & differentiation
- Ages 1 to 2: share the book and puppet only, no sequencing yet.
- Ages 3 to 4: sequence three cards (start, middle, end).
- Ages 4 to 5: sequence all six cards and retell with a partner.
- Challenge: invent a “new chapter” where Stick Man has another adventure.
Engagement tip: some children will know the story beat by beat from home, others will be hearing it for the first time. Pair confident retellers with newer listeners as a low-pressure paired chat, with the cards as a shared visual support. Refrains and chants are gold for memory and joy.
Forest Counting and Sorting Maths
Best for: Mathematics · Fine Motor · Communication & Language · Understanding the World
What you need
- A bowl of small twigs (about pencil length)
- A bowl of conkers, a bowl of pine cones, a bowl of acorns
- Numeral cards 0 to 10 and ten-frame mats
- Five small wooden bowls or basket-weave dishes
- A balance scale and weighing pan
- Wooden tweezers and tongs
- A laminated “How many in the Family Tree?” prompt card
How to set it up
- Lay all the bowls in a line. “Look, the forest floor is tipped out!”
- Roll a dice and invite a child to count that many conkers into a bowl.
- Play “more or fewer”: children compare two piles and explain how they know.
- Try a balance: “How many twigs to balance one conker?”
- Finish with “Family Tree”: fill a tree outline with leaves matching a numeral card.
💬 Adult prompts
- “How many twigs are in your bowl? Let’s count together.”
- “Who has more conkers? How do you know?”
- “What if I take away two acorns? How many will be left?”
- “Can you make a pattern with twig, conker, twig, conker?”
- “How heavy is one pine cone? Heavier or lighter than three twigs?”
📚 EYFS links
- Mathematics (Number): subitising, one-to-one counting, numeral recognition.
- Mathematics (Numerical Patterns): adding, taking away, comparing.
- Mathematics (Shape, Space & Measure): weight, balance, length of twigs.
- Physical Development: tweezers, tongs, careful pincer transfer.
- Communication & Language: mathematical vocabulary (more, fewer, equal).
✨ Extensions & differentiation
- Ages 1 to 2: post conkers into a bowl with a slot, focus on filling.
- Ages 3 to 4: match each numeral card to the correct pile.
- Ages 4 to 5: simple addition with twigs (“3 twigs and 2 more makes…”).
- Challenge: tally chart on a clipboard recording the day’s forest finds.
Resource tip: conkers and acorns are seasonal but a small weekly forage with families in autumn fills a tin that lasts all year. Wash, dry thoroughly, then store in airtight containers with a little salt to deter weevils. Lolly sticks make a brilliant year-round substitute when natural twigs are not available.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers for running Stick Man activities in early years
What age range are these Stick Man activities suitable for?
How do Stick Man activities link to the EYFS framework?
What if some children do not have the book at home?
How do we keep twig play safe in the setting?
How can we involve families in the Stick Man topic?
Can these activities work indoors when the weather is wet?
What other Julia Donaldson books pair well with Stick Man?
If your children love Stick Man, the following Julia Donaldson titles share the same warm rhythm and rhyme. Each pairs nicely with one or two of the activities above.
- Stick Man by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler
- Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler
- The Snail and the Whale by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler
- Superworm by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler