Faemom Crafts for Toddlers, Preschoolers and Kids

Archive for the ‘Easy Crafts’ Category

(It’s just nice to have an easy craft up your sleeve when you need something to entertain the kids.  This is easy, mess-free, and fun.  The boys loved it.  This is good with young toddlers on up.)

Things you need:

  • Green paper (or scrapbook paper that looks like grass)
  • Dinosaur stickers
  • Tree or rock stickers (optional)
  • Crayons (optional)

Give the child the green paper.  Have the child decorate it with dinosaur stickers, creating a whole dinosaur world. 

Adding stickers

Adding stickers

Working on a dino world

Working on a dino world

The child can draw more scenery or add stickers.

Finished projects

Finished projects

(Here’s another craft we did at Evan’s theme fourth birthday party.  I figured this was easier and less messy than giving the children fabric and fabric paint.  This is an easy craft that is great for a group of children as well as young toddlers.  I recommend foam stickers, but you can use regular stickers and markers.  This craft is not messy, is easy, and all the children enjoyed this craft.  We have already made a second set of flags because the boys enjoyed them so much.)

Things you need:

  • Foam sheet (either black or red)
  • Pirate foam stickers
  • Pirate stickers
  • Markers

Give the child the foam sheet. 

Foam sheet with a coin foam sticker

Foam sheet with a coin foam sticker

Let the child decorate the flag with the stickers and markers. 

Decorating the flag

Decorating the flag

This is a great time to talk about how pirate flags were to scare merchant ships so that the pirates could take over the ship without a fight.

Evan's Pirate Flag

Evan's Pirate Flag

 

Sean's Pirate Flag

Sean's Pirate Flag

(This was one of the simple crafts we did at Evan’s birthday party, which was pirate themed.   I chose buckets because I figured the kids could reuse them and not throw them away for a while.  This was easy and mess free, especially if parents write the name of the child.  The kids had a lot of fun, enjoying decorating the pails and playing with them.)

Things you need:

  • Plastic pail
  • Stickers
  • Foam stickers (optional)
  • Permanent marker

Have the child pick out stickers to decorate the pail. 

Evan's pail

Evan's pail

Have the child decorate the pail.  Write the child’s name on the pail.

Sean's pail

Sean's pailanother pail

Igloo

Posted on: July 13, 2009

(I’m sorry about not posting any crafts.  My camera broke last weekend, and I was too heartbroken to write.  Now I’m trying to pull off images from an online photo account of pictures from my mom’s camera.  We are experiencing technical issues.  I have a few crafts that I will post, and I will try to buy a new camera soon.)

(We were making egg carton animals when Evan started playing with his.  “Look, Mommy, an igloo!”  So if you ever need an igloo, here it is.)

Just paint it white!

Just paint it white!

(Another egg carton craft.  After making spiders, caterpillars, and bugs {I’ll get to those at another time}, I wanted to make something other than a bug for once.  So I came up with this turtle.  This is another easy craft where you can pick how you want to decorate the carton.  The boys loved making them and playing with them.  The first time I didn’t even want to throw out the turtles until an unfortunate smooshing accident.  Remember Styrofoam egg cartons cannot be colored or painted on, so use cardboard.)

Things you need:

  • Cardboard egg carton
  • Scissors
  • Crayons, markers, and/or paint
  • Pen
  • Green construction paper or green craft foam
  • Scissors
  • Glue
  • Optional: things to glue on to decorate the shell

Cut out a cup from the egg carton. 

Egg carton cup (again)

Egg carton cup (again)

Trace four feet, using a dime, on the green construction paper.  Make a “U” shade using the dime for the head, and make an obelisk shape for the tail. 

The body parts

The body parts

 Cut out the shapes.  Have the child draw eyes on the head.  Have the child decorate the shell. 

So I used the photo.  We made them on the same day.

So I used the photo. We made them on the same day.

Have the child glue on the feet on each corner of the cup. 

Adding the feet

Adding the feet

Then glue the head between two feet, and glue the tail on the opposite end of the head.

The turtle brothers

The turtle brothers

 

One of the first turtles

One of the first turtles

(Another favorite craft medium of mine is the egg carton.  You can make lots of things with it.  You can paint them, color them, glue them.  But you have to get the cardboard kind because you can’t do anything with the Styrofoam kind.  I like to let the boys’ imagination run wild sometimes, so I let them make any kind of “bug” they wanted.  We have painted our bugs in the past, but I let them use markers and then dive into my goody box of randomness.  Evan chose to use little tiles from a stepping stone kit.)

Things you need:

  • Cardboard egg carton
  • Scissors
  • Markers, crayons, and/or paint
  • Googly eyes
  • glue
  • Any decoration you want to use (shells, buttons, marbles, noodles, etc)

Cut a cup from the egg carton. 

Egg carton cups

Egg carton cups

Have the child color the egg carton cup. 

Coloring the master piece

Coloring the master piece

With the opening down, have the child glue the eyes on the carton. 

It has eyes!

It has eyes!

Have the child glue on extra decorations.

Evan's is the right one, the "lady bug."  Sean's is the left, going for minimalism

Evan's is the right one, the "lady bug." Sean's is the left, going for minimalism

(After the sad misery of a failed project, I worked out a better frog.  It took me a few days, but I came up with a better idea.  The boys love these frogs just as much as the Ugliest Frogs in the World.  Maybe more because the Ugliest Frogs in the World have taken a vacation, trying to find out where everything went totally wrong.  This was an easy craft, and depending on the gluing skills, it could be relatively mess-free.)

Things you need:

  • 2 in green pompom
  • 2 small green pompoms
  • 2 googly eyes
  • Green craft foam
  • Glue (school or craft)
  • A pen
  • Scissors

Glue a googly eye on each of the small green pompoms.  Allow them to dry.

Who's looking at you, kid?

Who's looking at you, kid?

  Cut out a circle out of the green foam to make a lily pad.  I used the top of the juice can to make my circle.  Cut out a triangle out of the circle. 

The lily pads

The lily pads

Have the child glue the 2in green pompom.  Have the child glue the frog eyes to the top of the 2in pompom.

I can see!  I can see!

I can see! I can see!

 

Sitting like two frogs on a log

Sitting like two frogs on a log

(I always liked pompom animals.  They seem so much fun, so cute.  Evan likes carrying them around and naming them.  So I decided we needed to make lady bug ones.  This was an easy, simple craft that both boys enjoyed, which turned out to have no mess.)

Things you need:

  • Red 1 in pompom (or 2in)
  • Black mini pompoms
  • Black marker
  • Googly eyes
  • Glue

Have the child make black dots on the red pompom.  The child might have to swirl around the marker to make a good size dot. 

Making spots

Making spots

 Glue on the eyes. 

He can see!

He can see!

Then glue the mini pompoms on the top to make antennas. 

Now he is a true bug.

Now he is a true bug.

Evan decided he needed to decorate his bug more, so he added a mini red pompom for an earing.

The ladybugs

The ladybugs

(I always liked those cute little egg shell planters.  I once read that cutting grass was an easy way for children to learn how to cut.  So I combined the two projects.  Since I was going to let Evan cut the grass, I figured I better use plastic egg cups.  Luckily these ones even had holes.  The boys loved doing this because they got to color with markers and play with the dirt.  How awesome is that!)

Things you need:

  • Egg carton
  • Plastic Easter egg shells
  • Markers
  • Dirt
  • Grass seed
  • Spoon
  • Water

Take the plastic eggs and have the child draw faces on the eggs.  (I wanted to add googley eyes, but Evan nixed that idea.) 

Decorating eggs

Decorating eggs

Place the eggs in the egg carton, so that they cannot be tipped over. 

See, mine had a face.

See, mine had a face.

Have the child place some dirt in the eggs with the spoon. 

There's a reason I suggested a spoon

There's a reason I suggested a spoon

Have the child put in enough grass seed to cover the area. 

You might want to do this outside

You might want to do this outside

Have the child put on a slim covering of dirt.  (Um, we missed that step.  We had too much dirt to begin with.) 

Grow, baby, grow

Grow, baby, grow

 Let the child water the plants and take care of them.  (Unfortunately we only had three blades of grass grow.  We’re redoing this planting experiment.)

(I have read several places about taking those magnet business cards and doing something with them, like gluing pictures on them.  I decided on art work for the boys to do.  As my b0ys love coloring and stickering, they enjoyed doing this.)

Things you need:

  • Business magnets
  • Craft foam or construction paper
  • Markers, stickers, anything else you want to decorate with
  • Scissors
  • Black marker
  • Glue (craft or hot)

Trace the business magnets on the craft foam or construction paper with the black marker. 

Tracing the magnets

Tracing the magnets

 Have the child decorate the shape.  Cut the shape out. 

The artwork

The artwork

Glue to the magnet. 

The magnets

The magnets

(I have also heard of moms who make a scan of the child’s artwork and print it in business card size.  This would work for the magnets too.)


Nursery Rhymes

Many teachers have told me how important nursery rhymes are for child development. Jack be nimble. Jack be quick. Jack jump over A candlestick

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Want to have a laugh? Well, I think I'm funny. Faemom
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