Kid Craft Activity Idea #10: Sea Creature Book

My kids ages 3 and 4 love this simple ongoing project. I purchased a bound notebook for each of them at the Dollar Store. Each morning after they get dressed (which is a good incentive), we do a Google image search for a different sea creature. They get to pick which 2 pictures they like best and we print them out. They then cut out the picture and paste them into their notebooks and I write the name of the creature at the bottom of the page. They love to page through their books and show their friends. They have even showed Daddy their new pictures before he even got a chance to get out of the car!

Here are some creatures that we've found: angel fish, bass, blue whale, clam, crab, crawfish, discus fish, frog, frog fish, goldfish, great white shark, guppy, jellyfish, king crab, koi, lion fish, lobster, marlin, mussels, octopus, orcha, oyster, penguin, perch, pilot whale, pineapple fish, pipe fish, piranha, razor clam, red snapper, salmon, sand dollar, seal, sea lion, shrimp, stargazer fish, tadpole, tuna, walrus, whale, zebra shark, etc...

We also found some pictures to cut out of our magazines. One magazine where we found quite a few sea creatures was National Geographic Kids.

For more ideas of creative things you can do with your kids, visit my website, ChildCrafter.

Kid Craft Activity Idea #9: Paper Advent Wreath

PAPER ADVENT WREATH

I did this activity with my young kids at the beginning of Advent and on each Sunday of Advent, we added a paper candle to the wreath.

Materials:
White cardstock cut in a large circle
2 sheets green construction paper cut into 2 inch squares
1 sheet each pink, purple and yellow construction paper
Picture cut from a Christmas card
Red stickers (circles, squares or hearts)
Glue Stick
Tape


Glue the Christmas picture in the center of the white circle. Next, glue the green squares all around the picture, overlapping each other and covering all of the white cardstock. Then add the stickers and any other decorations you want (bows, glitter glue, etc). To make the candles, cut 3 small rectangles from the pink paper and 1 from the purple and glue on oval "flames" cut from the yellow construction paper. On the back of the wreath, tape another rectangle of any color construction paper, leaving the top of it open to form a little envelope. Here you can store the candles. Each Sunday, tape a candle to the wreath, leaving the pink one for the 3rd Sunday.

Kid Craft Activity Idea #8: Felt Autumn Leaves

I had a ton of felt scraps around that I wanted to use up, so I came up with this craft perfect for the fall season.

Materials:
6" square pieces of felt in shades of brown, yellow, orange, red, green
Leaf cutout or template
Glue
Glitter Glue
Scissors

Create a leaf template on a piece of cardstock from a picture or drawing. Place the cardstock leaf on the felt pieces and cut out the felt. Next, take the felt scraps and cut out shapes from them, squares, rectangles and triangles are the best. Then have the child dot their leaf with glue and place the multi-colored felt pieces on the dots. As a final step, draw in the leaf veins with glitter glue.

Be sure to check out my website for more craft ideas.

Kid Craft Activity Idea #7: Sharing Fish

This is a great activity when you have a group of children. I used this craft to go along with a lesson on sharing for Sunday School.

Materials:
-Craft Foam Sheets, different colors or Fish Shape Foam Bases
-Wiggly Eyes
-Roll of Magnet Tape
-Medium Size Heart Foam Stickers in different colors

Cut out a fish shape from sheets of colorful foam or use pre-cut ones. A good brand for foam sheets and stickers is Creative Hands. Then glue a wiggly eye on one side and stick a piece of magnet to the other side. Let each child choose a fish and then hand out the hearts, just one color per child. Then instruct them to swap stickers until they all have every color. Have them stick their hearts on the fish sideways to look like scales. Voila!

I highly recommend the Creative Hands brand. I do sell many of their foam craft kits, but not the individual foam sheets and stickers. The Cool Foam Art kits are my best sellers at www.childcrafter.com.

Kid Craft Activity Idea #6: Craft of the Month

A great idea for kids on your list this holiday is a Craft of the Month Subscription from ChildCrafter. Each month the child receives a creative and fun craft kit in the mail addressed right to them. Each subscription is tailor-made for the recipient, based on their gender, age and interests. Give your child, niece, nephew or grandchild a gift that will last for months! Why not celebrate Christmas all year long? Every time a craft kit arrives, they will think of you and your generous gift! Visit us at ChildCrafter where you can browse through our catalog of craft kits for kids and choose some for a craft of the month subscription!

Kid Craft Activity Idea #5: Soap Crayons

Here is a great activity that you can do with your kids that will lure them into the bathtub! Make these crayons and watch their art come to life in the tub!

Soap Crayons

Materials:
-Soap Flakes
-Food Coloring
-Water
-Plastic Ice Cube Trays

In a liquid measuring cup, pour in 1/8 cup of water. Add in soap flakes to reach the 1 cup mark. Mix until thick and add several drops of food coloring. Press soap mixture into ice cube trays. Do this again with other colors. Let the soap rest for at least 2 full days before removing and using.

Visit ChildCrafter.com for unique craft ideas for kids!

Creative Toddler Activities

I am the mother of two toddlers. Well, actually one is just entering preschoolerhood. Anyway, it's very interesting to see how they come up with creative things to do on their own. The other day, my oldest son received 2 games as early birthday gifts. Instead of patiently waiting for me to read the directions and have organized play, they took an ice cream scoop from one game and scooped out pretend ice cream in the nets from the other game. They had a hoot while they were running around with their pretend ice cream, taking turns to get the next scoop.

Who ever knew that a stack of boxes could be so much fun? I was in the process of getting rid of a bunch of old boxes from my craft kits business when my kids came along to investigate. They promptly took control of this new-found treasure and constructed a whole city including houses, school and garages to park their cars. When they tired of that game, they stacked the boxes up between two rooms of our house and declared it a beaver dam.

Cooking is a favorite of my older son's. He knows the Food Network stars by name. Today was a rare day when I baked a batch of zucchini bread and my little helper stepped right up to the plate. He put his stepstool next to me and dug right in. I filled the measuring cups and he dumped them into the bowl. He searched around and found many different sized spoons to stir the batter until I had to take over and complete our project. Cleaning up was another adventure.

Keep an eye out for simple everyday items that can turn into interesting toys. My Swiffer dry mop is a hit and hey, some dirt actually makes its way onto it!

Have fun with your little ones. If you have kids ages 4 and older, check out my website for creative craft kits for kids - childcrafter.com.