Rock and Gem Day ideas for OSHC
15 DIY activities for Rock and Gem Day at before and after school care or vacation care. Pick and mix, or build a balanced day in one click.
Cotton Bud Dino Skeleton
Children arrange cotton buds on black card to build a dinosaur skeleton, learning how fossils show what animals looked like.
Dinosaur Day · Dinosaur & Unicorn Day · Rock and Gem Day +1Dinosaur Day Fossil Dig
A dinosaur-themed session where children dig for buried fossils in sand with brushes, then move on to dino crafts and games.
Rock and Gem Day · Science Day · Science Week +1Eggshell Crystal Geodes
Older children grow sparkling crystals inside cleaned eggshell halves using an educator-made solution, then watch them develop over a few days.
Wild West Day · Pioneer Day · Rock and Gem Day +2Gold Panning Tub
Children sift through a tub of sand and water with sieves to find painted 'gold nuggets', just like gold rush prospectors.
Kindness Day · Rock and Gem Day · Art Attack Day +2Kindness Rocks
Children paint kind messages and pictures on rocks to place around the school for others to find.
Rock and Gem Day · Raw Art Day · Art Through the Ages +2Natural Pigment Mural
Children grind soft rocks, clay and earth into natural pigments, mix them with water and paint a mural outdoors.
NAIDOC Week · Reconciliation Week · Rock and Gem Day +1Painted Pattern Stones
Children paint patterns on river stones using their own designs, after learning about First Nations art with local guidance.
Desert Day · Rock and Gem Day · Gardening Day +2Painted Rock Cacti
Children paint smooth rocks to look like cacti and arrange them in a pot as a desert garden.
Reconciliation Week · Rock and Gem Day · Silly Stories Day +2Painted Story Stones
Children paint their own simple pictures on smooth stones, then use them as prompts to make up and retell stories in small groups.
Father's Day · Rock and Gem Day · Pet Day +1Pet Rock Paperweights
Children paint smooth rocks into characters or patterns to give as desk buddies.
Dinosaur Day · Rock and Gem Day · Science Week +1Plaster Fossil Excavation
Children chip and brush toy bones out of plaster blocks like real palaeontologists, then piece their skeleton together.
Rock and Gem Day · Kindness Day · Art Attack Day +2Rock Painting
Children paint smooth rocks with patterns, faces or kind messages to keep, display or hide around the garden.
Rock and Gem Day · Outdoor Explorers · Nature Play Day +2Rock Scavenger Hunt
Children search the outdoor area for rocks that are smooth, rough, sparkly, striped or tiny, then sort and compare their finds.
Science Day · Rock and Gem Day · Science Week +1Salt Crystal Pipe Cleaners
Older children make pipe cleaner shapes and hang them in a strong salt solution to grow crystals overnight.
Dinosaur Day · Rock and Gem Day · Clay and Pottery Day +1Salt Dough Fossils
Children press toy dinosaurs, shells and leaves into salt dough to make fossil prints that dry hard to take home.