Kids love crafting!
Kids and crafts go together like peanut butter and jelly.
You can’t have one without the other!
When children gather, a craft is always something they enjoy. They love to be creative and do things that allow them to use paints, paper, stickers, scissors and glue. Children have an incredible imagination and encouraging them to think about fun ways to make crafts is easy to do. Don’t forget the value of education in crafting too. Not only can you make it fun but you can make it a learning experience.
Whether you have responsibility for your grandchild daily, weekly, monthly, or just occasionally, there are many unusual craft ideas that are sure to please everyone.
Start by choosing a simple letter of the alphabet. Start with “A” and go through the alphabet with ongoing projects. If you’re at a loss for words for what you can do for each letter, don’t worry – children are very creative!
Once you’ve decided on the letter to start with, it’s easy from that point on. You’ll need the usual craft supplies such as glue, tape, pencils, markers and paper — and maybe some of these:
- Old magazines, newspapers, greeting cards, or photos for finding pictures and artwork.
- Dry pasta in different shapes.
- Tissue paper in a variety of colors
- Leaves, twigs, and other outdoor treasures.
- Small broken pieces of rocks and pebbles.
- Broken necklaces, earrings, and other jewelry they can pull apart.
- Paper plates in various sizes.
- Disposable cups.
- Anything else that spurs creativity.
Now think about the letter and create a craft around it. Your grandchild can create something each day that begins with the letter he or she chooses. For example, if the child chooses the letter “A”, the first craft can be an apple tree.
Give each child a piece of heavy white paper or cardboard. Using brown finger paint, have them lay their arm from wrist to elbow lightly in the paint and then place it on their paper to create the tree trunk. Next, using green paint, have them use their handprints to create the leaves of the tree just above the tree trunk. Give them a brush and some red paint and let them paint with their fingertips on the sheet and they’ve got an apple tree!
Yes, it can be a little messy, but the fun is worth it and it spurs creativity for grandchildren. It also keeps them entertained! An alternative would be to just paint the trunk and leaves but it’s not nearly the fun.
If it’s a holiday such as Easter, then choose the letter “E” and build a craft for the holidays such as a bunny or Easter basket.
Using letters is a good way to help them learn about sounds, shapes, and phonetics, while having fun. It’s also a way to teach them to make hand-made personalized cards for birthdays, holidays, Mother’s or Father’s Day, and just “nothing” days.
The possibilities are endless and the children will love creative activities. They won’t even know they’re learning either. It’s a simple way to keep a child busy, but it’s something that they will look forward to every time.
And they just might learn something in the process!
