Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 3: How do you recognize a leprechaun?
• Part 2 of 3: How do you trap a leprechaun?
• Part 3 of 3: How do you play a leprechaun game?
• Necessities

Learning how to catch a leprechaun just before St. Patrick's Day is a fun activity for all the family. After learning more about Irish folklore, you can come up with a ruse to catch this Irish trickster with traps and games.

To step

Part 1 of 3: How do you recognize a leprechaun?

1. You have to understand that in most folk tales, a leprechaun plays the role of a shoe shiner. He makes shoes and he wears glitzy shoes with gold buckles.
   • A leprechaun is the fairies' shoe shiner. He supplies fairies with their beautiful shoes. Read more about this in Irish tales of fairies and leprechauns.
   • There is an Irish story that says you should never take shoes from a leprechaun because they are enchanted.
2. Compete in staring. A leprechaun is so fast that it can disappear in an instant. Plan staring competitions with your family and children and practice staring for as long as possible.
   • As a parent, you can get crafty with this trick: recreate a leprechaun and make it disappear quickly. To do this, place a small object in the reflection of a mirror and turn the mirror away as soon as the rest of the family enters the room.
3. Look for footprints. A leprechaun is only 6 inches long, so its footprints are a lot smaller than humans. 2 feet (0.6 m),
   • Look for small shoes and dip them in green tempera paint. Use this to make paint prints on surfaces that are easy to clean.
   • Another option is to make prints of bare feet with your hand. Make a fist and dip the outside in green tempera paint. Place the painted part of your hand on a surface of your choice.
   • Dip your index finger in the paint and make toes.
4. Find secluded spots around the garden. Leprechauns love rocky places, caves, potholes and other hidden places. They live there and make their shoes.

Part 2 of 3: How do you trap a leprechaun?

1. Take a children's shoe box and make a hole at the top.
2. Cover the hole with gold foil, green felt, or some other Irish decoration material. The goal is to lure the leprechaun to you.
   • Make the shoebox look like a leprechaun pub, bank, or restaurant to make the trap more effective.
   • For example, you can use gold glitter, clover-shaped stickers and pipe cleaner rainbows to make the fall even better.
3. Look for bait. Chocolate coated gold coins and custom gold jewelry are suitable as bait.
4. Place the decorated box where you think the leprechaun will find it. This can be indoors or outdoors.
   • Keep in mind that the leprechaun is aware of the places where he can be caught.
5. Cover the hole at the top of the shoebox with tissues the same color as the decorations on the box.
   • Use 1 or 2 layers of tissues, or enough to hold the bait in place.
6. "Place the bait on top of the tissues. Make sure the bait is not too heavy as it will sink through the tissues.
7. Set your trap just before dusk. The best time to spot a leprechaun is at sunrise and at sunset.
8. The next morning, check your fall. If the leprechaun was trapped but escaped, he may have left behind some large coins or chocolates.

Part 3 of 3: How do you play a leprechaun game?

1. Play "Catch the Leprechaun" with a group of children. Think of a playing field in which you play tag.
   • Give 3 to 5 children a gold coin and a gold ribbon. They are the leprechauns.
   • The other children are “de Klavertjes”.
   • Play tag. When a leprechaun is tagged, he or she must hand over the gold coin. The person with the most gold coins wins the game.
   • Play the game again. Choose new leprechauns now to give everyone a chance to win.
2. Take a leprechaun scavenger hunt. Use the method of making footprints with green tempera paint, as described above.
   • Have your kids follow the footprints to find clues.
   • Place a leprechaun item, such as a pipe, small hat, coin, rainbow, or shoe as a clue.
   • For each clue, place a riddle that the children must solve before they can continue with the game.
   • Make a golden pot filled with chocolate coins as a treasure and place it at the end of the scavenger hunt.
   • Leave a teasing note from the leprechaun: "Try to catch me again next year!"

Necessities

• Green tempera paint
• Gold coins
• Gold ribbon
• Shoebox
• Tissues
• Glue
• Glitter
• Green felt / folding paper
• Chocolate coins