Flauschi fits cardboard dividers into a box while Puschel holds a huge acorn ready for its compartment

The little Wusel story

A leaf, a cone and Puschel’s enormous acorn lay on the table. Flauschi“Let’s give everything its own compartment,” Flauschi suggested. Puschel held the card strips together until they made one large space and two small ones. Then they covered the box with blue and orange paper shapes. Puschel placed his acorn in the large compartment. It fit perfectly. Flauschi“What belongs in the last space?” Flauschi asked. Puschel grinned. Puschel“Our next discovery. A treasure box needs room for surprises!”

What you need

a clean small cardboard or shoebox
sturdy card strips for two dividers
scraps of coloured paper
child-friendly craft glue and sticky tape
a ruler and pencil
a few dry, safe finds such as leaves or pine cones

How it works

Place your treasures in the empty box and decide how big each compartment should be.
Measure the width of the box. An adult cuts two card strips to fit.
Stand the strips inside as dividers. Secure their ends to the base and sides with tape or glue.
Decorate the outside with coloured paper shapes and let everything dry.
Sort clean, dry finds into the compartments. Save the largest one for Puschel’s special acorn.

Adult help: Adults cut the card and check all natural finds. Never put unknown plants, berries or fungi in the box. Small finds may be swallowed; keep them away from children under three.