Gather up some different occupational related hats—a construction hat, a sailor’s hat, a cowboy hat, et cetera. Point out each hat to the children and what kind of job the person wearing it does. You may also include fantasy hats like a princess hat, a crown, or a plastic knight’s helmet. Have your children pretend to act like whatever character wears that particular hat. Then make them change hats and have them act the new part. Continue until everyone has worn every hat.
Few arts and crafts projects are more fun that making your own silly hats. Make traditional captain’s hats from folded newspaper, or use paper plates with a hole cut out for the brim and a paper bowl glued on top for the crown. Roll up the bottom edge of a paper bag until it fits each child’s head. All of these can be painted in bright colors, or according to the theme of the day.
Read books like the Bernstein Bears' “Old Hat, New Hat,” Dr. Seuss’s “The Cat in the Hat” or "The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins," Jan Brett’s “The Hat" or <Twelve Hats for Lena” by Karen Katz. “Twelve Hats for Lena” is a book about both hats and the months of the year, while “The Hat” is about winter time and forest animals. Easily do a cross-over lesson encompassing both themes, while encouraging children to decorate their own hats in a way that reflects a month of the year or one of the animals in the story.
Incorporate hats into your holiday lessons. Make a Christmas tree hat by decorating large green cones of paper or cover baseball caps with red, white and blue decorations for Independence Day. Create pilgrim hats as a part of teaching the history of Thanksgiving: cut out a black sheet of construction paper in a hat shape, decorate with white paper band and yellow paper buckle, then use poster board to make a band to hold the hats on the front of children's heads.