How to Catch a Leprechaun

The week before St Patrick’s Day, my son came home with a note from his teacher. After sleeping all winter, leprechauns wake up hungry the night before St Patrick’s Day. They will slip inside your home and raid your kitchen in search of sweet treats and yummy snacks.

In preparation for a possible school invasion, each student was asked to build a leprechaun trap. Bait could include gold jewelry, gold coins, or Lucky Charms cereal. As everyone knows, leprechauns hoard pots of gold and if caught, will reveal the treasure’s location to gain their freedom.

My boys immediately set out to build a trap. Not being a very crafty mom, I left them to it.

Since the trap was intended for school, the boys decided to build a second trap for home. The new trap looked like a modern bachelor pad, including several enticements like a drawing of a lady leprechaun, “just in case the leprechaun wants to get married.”

The students at The Campus at Columbus were also determined to catch one of the mischief makers. Here are just a few of their creative efforts. No self-respecting leprechaun can resist a giant rainbow.

Watch out, Mr. Leprechaun! Not all yellow-brick roads lead to Oz!

Leprechauns love to break rules. Warning signs are sure to lure them in.

My favorite — the Leprechaun Cage!

On St Patrick’s Day, we woke up to discover that our trap had failed. Worse, the leprechaun was incensed that we would try to catch him. He vandalized the kitchen, turning chairs upside-down, balancing bananas everywhere and leaving the toilet water bright green.

The students at The Campus at Columbus were also unlucky. The naughty trickster made a mess in the school restroom and left his footprints everywhere.