Creative Crafts for Easter

Easter/Passover is on its way and the perfect time to craft with the kids. Do you need some ideas? I'm posting a culmination of some articles I wrote the past couple years. They are easy and mostly use materials found in the home. Enjoy your holiday and spring!

Happy Parenting,
Tania

Hatching Baby Chicks

Spring is the season for renewal of life and we often hear about baby chicks hatching from eggs. I would suggest getting a book from the library on hatching baby chicks so the children can understand the process.

You will need:

• Egg halves (washed and dried)
• 2 yellow pom-poms (one larger than the other)
• Googly eyes
• Orange construction paper
• Safety scissors
• Heavy-duty glue

Directions:

1. Give each child one eggshell and two yellow pom-poms. Have them carefully glue their pom-poms inside the eggshell, one on top of the other. Make sure to have extra eggshells available as these are fragile and could crumble.
2. Finish this craft by gluing on two eyes and an orange beak cut from construction paper.
3. You can display these baby chicks inside an egg carton or staple a circular ring from heavy-duty paper to make an egg stand.

• Crafting With Matzoh for Passover
  For Passover, let the children use broken pieces of matzoh and invite them to glue these pieces onto construction paper. Lots of very creative pictures emerge from this activity. Have them tell you about their design.
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  What’s more fun than painting matzoh? Eating it! Melt white chocolate chips in a bowl (a microwave can be used). Separate the melted chocolate into several bowls. Add drops of food coloring to make a variety of edible paints. Using a clean paintbrush or cotton swabs, invite your child to paint designs and pictures on a square of matzoh. Note: you may have to keep reheating the chocolate to keep it liquid for painting. Chocolate hardens very quickly. Another variation is to use pre-made frosting in tubes that can be purchased in grocery stores. When finished, share the artwork and then enjoy the snack.
  
  
  
  
• The Hunts of the Season
  Celebrate Passover with a treasure hunt for the “Afikomen." The matzoh is placed in a holder and here is a simple one to make:
  You will need:
• Two sheets royal blue felt (9" x 12")
• Silver glitter glue, decorating decors
• Tacky glue
•  
• Simply glue the two sheets of felt together around the edges, leaving one side open for a piece of matzoh. You could also sew them together if you wish. Draw six-sided stars with glitter glue. You can also add decors like lace, sequins, or faux jewels with the tacky glue. Let dry completely and you are ready to place this work of art on the Seder table.
  To hunt for the Afikomen, hide this piece of matzoh in the holder somewhere in the home. Present a few clues to lead the kids from the dining area to where the Afikomen is hidden. Whoever finds the matzoh wins a prize. 
  
  For Easter, create this cute bunny basket for your youngster to collect his “finds of the hunt." Take a half-gallon milk carton and remove one panel using safety scissors or a craft knife (adult use only). Save this panel to make a handle. Cover all sides of this carton with construction paper using glue or tape. Cut a strip from the saved panel and staple it on both sides to make a handle. Create a cute bunny face by gluing on googly eyes, stapling on bunny ears made from heavy paper, and lastly whiskers. If you punch a hole in the center of the top ridge; pipe cleaners can be inserted equal distance and bent slightly for bunny whiskers.
• 
  
• Making homemade Easter crafts and Passover crafts for kids are milestones and memories that you and your children will never forget. Enjoy this creative time together and the fun holiday festivities to follow!
  Note: Use parental supervision and age appropriate art materials when making crafts with kids.

• 
  Some crafts were part of articles first published on Bright Hub Education by Tania K Cowling
• Photos courtesy of Tania Cowling, all rights reserved
  
  

December Holiday Garland Craft

Children love the holidays and these crafts are adaptable to suit three different holidays. Surprise your group with a fun holiday craft this month. These crafts can be multicultural by just changing the colors. Be it red & green for Christmas, blue & white for Hanukkah, or red, green & black for Kwanzaa—adapt these crafts for your holiday!

Multicultural Children Garlands:

These garlands can be strung along a wall or across a doorway.  Use brown grocery bags that you have stored from shopping.  Dress the children cutouts in the colors of your holiday.

These are simple paper-doll instructions. Start by cutting a 5-by-4-inch strip from a grocery bag.  Next, fold the strip of paper, accordion-style, about four times.  On the top layer, draw a child shape. You can draw this freehand or trace around a child or gingerbread cookie cutter. The hands and feet you draw must extend out to the folded edges.  Cut through all layers of the paper, making sure not to cut where the arms touch the fold. Young children may need help with this task. The decorating is the fun.  Cut clothing from gift-wrap or construction paper.  Draw in shoes, hair, faces, and any extras with markers, puffy paints, or gel pens.  For texture you can glue on pom-poms, buttons, or pieces of fur.  Let your child’s imagination run wild.

Holiday Wreath:

Use your child's hands to make this holiday wreath. From a piece of cardboard, cut a 12-inch circle (a pizza box lid or carton works well).  Again cut another 3-inch circle in the center to complete the wreath. A craft knife is useful to make the cuts but only by an adult. Invite your child to paint the entire cardboard wreath with poster paint in the color of your holiday. After the paint dries, have the child make handprints on the wreath. Brush the child’s hand with a different color paint and press the hand down on the board. Continue to print handprints around the wreath in a circular fashion.

For another option, trace hands on complementary-colored stiff construction paper, cut out, decorate the hands if you wish, and glue them around the circle.

Make a bow from fabric, crepe paper, large ribbons or construction paper to decorate the bottom.  Make sure to write the date on the back of this memorable project.

Have fun with these two crafts.
Happy Parenting,
Tania  :)

Photo courtesy of Tania Cowling, all rights reserved

Note: if anyone wants to use any part of this post or any other one, please notify me for permission and make sure you provide a link back to this site.

Halloween is Coming! Who Wants to Be Cinderella?

How many little girls dream of becoming a princess and little boys who want to be a prince? The story of Cinderella, a young girl who unexpectedly becomes a maid to her stepmother and stepsisters after her father dies, finds her way to the gallant ball with a little help from her fairy Godmother.  But, at the stroke of midnight she must leave the ball and her prince. This is a tale that many of us remember as children. Today, this story comes alive with new movies to entertain us. The question remains: will the prince find the lady who fits the glass slipper?

This isn't a costume, but I’m sure your little artists will enjoy making this craft. This simple project will bring the story of Cinderella into your home.

Materials:

• Card stock paper (pink or your child’s favorite color)
• Gray construction paper (or white)
• Safety scissors
• Heavy-duty glue or low-temperature glue gun
• Silver enhancements (sequins, glitter, faux gems, foil)

Directions:

Step 1 – This cut and paste craft is not the messiest we have done before, but covering your table with newspaper is wise to prevent glue from marring your tabletop.

Step 2 – Invite your child to choose their favorite color for the background paper. Using a heavier construction paper or card stock will give substantial weight to hold the materials that the children will eventually glue on this page.

Step 3 -- Parents can draw the shape of a lady’s high heel shoe on gray or white paper. Challenge your child to carefully cut on the lines to make this shape. Then, glue the shoe to the background paper.

Step 4 – Now the fun begins, as your child will turn this paper shoe into a glass slipper. Think about all the baubles that will give the illusion of shiny glass. I took a trip to a craft store and purchased some clear faux gems and silver sequins. At home, I had silver glitter and ran to the kitchen for some heavy-duty aluminum foil. The foil can be cut into shiny circles or any other shape your child desires.

Step 5 – Begin to glue the shiny enhancements randomly on the shoe shape. Use glitter in between for sparkle.

Hang the Cinderella slipper craft in your child’s room to remind your princess/prince of this famous tale. This may be a good time to bring out the classic book or video and review the story together.

Photo courtesy of Tania Cowling, all rights reserved

Back to School on the Bus Craft

As the summer months come to a close school bells will begin to ring.  Some states begin classes in late August and others wait until after Labor Day in September. When you see the infamous bright yellow school bus on your roads you know that school is in session. Here is a fun school bus craft your child will enjoy making whether he/she rides this iconic form of transportation or not. Why not sing “The Wheels on the Bus” while you are crafting together? With a recycled egg carton and a few supplies that are readily available at home this 3-D bus can be constructed.  So, let’s get started.

Supplies needed to make a School Bus craft:

• Cardboard egg carton

• Yellow tempera paint

• Paintbrush

• Safety scissors

• Heavy-duty glue

• White card stock paper

• Markers or crayons

• 2 plastic bottle caps

Directions to follow:

Step 1 – Prepare your work surface with newspaper to avoid paint and glue to mark your table top. You may want to place a smock over your child’s clothes as well.

Step 2 – Cut the lid off your cardboard egg carton. You can also use a yellow Styrofoam egg carton if a cardboard one is not available.

Step 3 – Place the two pieces back-to-back – the top of the lid should be next to the bottom of the egg cups (the open cups should be facing out). Glue these two pieces together. This will give your bus stability to stand up on the table.

Step 4 – Invite the kids to paint the entire bus construction with yellow paint.  Set this aside to dry thoroughly.

Step 5 – While the bus is drying, cut out six circles from white card stock paper. Use a bottle cap or lid to trace around to make the circles the same size. Make sure the circles fit slightly inside each individual egg cup.

Step 6 – Encourage the children to draw facial features on each circle with colorful markers or crayons. Challenge them to draw pictures of their school friends that ride the bus with them.  One circle should be a portrait of your child. Another option is to use photocopies of school pictures you may have of your child’s friends.

Step 7 – Glue these circles into the six egg cups on the top row of the bus.

Step 8 – Place two plastic lid caps on the bottom of the bus as wheels. Glue these securely in place.

Step 9 – The small flap of the egg carton at the top of the bus is a place to write the name of your school, bus route number, or just school bus in general.

Place your finished school bus construction in your home or child’s room as a reminder of the upcoming school days ahead.

How are you and the kids getting ready for school? Tell us in the comment section below.

Photo courtesy of Tania Cowling, all rights reserved

Paper Plate Frog for Summer Crafting

During summer, kids are anxious to go outdoors to observe nature. Most children have seen a frog picture in books, but have they seen a real frog in its habitat? Your child will flip over this fun frog craft made with simple materials at home. It can even be manipulated like a puppet so the kiddos can make plenty of “ribbit” sounds with their frog project. Frogs are a perfect theme to get the youngsters thinking of the outdoors and participating in frog-acting games like leap frog and lily pad leapers. You’ll all have a hoppin’ good time!

Materials:

• Paper plate
• Green paint
• Paintbrush
• Construction paper
• Cotton balls or pom-poms
• Heavy-duty glue
• Wiggly eyes (optional)

Directions:

Step 1 – Prepare your work area for messy art. Your child will be painting and gluing with this craft, so spread newspapers on the table and floor. Wearing a smock or adult tee shirt will help protect your child’s clothing.

Step 2 – Invite your child to paint both sides of a paper plate (the paper kind, not a foam one) with green paint. Set this aside to dry.

Step 3 –In the meantime, draw and cut out four green legs from construction paper and a red forked tongue. Cutting on the lines of these shapes help to develop scissor skills in young children. The very youngest may need your help.

Step 4 – When the paper plate is dry, fold it in half. This makes the frog’s head/face and mouth.

Step 5 – Glue the four legs inside the folded area – one on each side and two at the bottom. Glue a red tongue inside the mouth.

Step 6 – On top of the folded plate is the frog’s head and face. Find two cotton balls or pom-poms and glue these as the frog’s eyeballs. You can then glue on round wiggly eyes in the middle of the balls or as a variation use a hole punch and make two small black circles from construction paper.

Step 7 – After all the parts are dry, the frog puppet is now ready to manipulate. Your child can use his hand to hold the frog puppet and move the mouth to open and close.

Think about using this frog puppet to enhance songs, rhymes, and just to imitate “froggie” sounds. As the saying goes, “It’s fun to be green if you know what I mean!”

Until next week,

Happy Parenting,

Tania :)

Photo courtesy of Tania Cowling, all rights reserved 

Ice Cream Cone Craft for Summer

Summer is the perfect time to discuss all the dairy products you eat and enjoy. Your children may even want to say “thank you” to the cows for all the good dairy foods we eat, including ice cream. What child (and adults) doesn't love ice cream?  As part of this seasonal celebration make this simple cut and paste craft with your family. Build an ice cream cone along with the toppings for a cool and refreshing craft.

Materials:

• Heavy-duty paper or card stock
• Construction paper
• Safety scissors
• Pencil
• Brown marker
• Glue
• Candy sprinkles
• Sliced nuts

Directions:

Step 1 – Prepare your work surface for cutting and pasting with this project. Newspaper on the tabletop and on the floor will work well to catch drips and excess candy sprinkles. Clean up will be a breeze if you prepare ahead of time.

Step 2 – Draw a cone shape on light brown construction paper. It’s a triangle shape. If you don’t have the paper, try using a piece of a paper grocery bag. Set this aside.

Step 3 – Next, invite your child to choose the colors for the ice cream scoops. Talk about the different flavors of ice cream and the colors they possess. Draw semi-circle shapes and cut at least two scoops. You may want a triple decker-cone with three scoops.

Step 4 – With all the shapes drawn and cut out, start building your ice cream cone. Begin by gluing the cone shape at the bottom of your background sheet of heavy-duty construction paper or card stock.

Step 5 – Next, glue on each ice cream scoop, having the bottom the largest and each additional scoop just a tad smaller.

Step 6 – Take a brown marker and draw criss-cross lines across the triangle so it looks like a real waffle-type ice cream cone.

Step 7 – Now comes the fun part. – it’s time to glue on the candy sprinkles and sliced nuts. Let your child choose among what you have in the kitchen pantry to decorate their ice cream. Spread on glue and shake the sprinkles on top. Once it dries, you can shake off the excess in the garbage can or onto a sheet of newspaper that can be discarded.

Praise your child for his efforts on making this yummy ice cream cone craft for summer fun. Make this a teachable moment by discussing all the other dairy products you use in your home. And why not create an edible ice cream delight to enjoy with your child today? So cool and yummy!

Happy Parenting,

Tania :)

Photo courtesy of Tania Cowling, all rights reserved

Umbrella Art for Rainy Days

During spring rain showers occur frequently. We sure have had our share in Florida lately. As you discuss rainy weather with your youngsters, talk about what they wear while walking in the drizzling precipitation. While the kiddos answer raincoats and boots, talk about umbrellas as well. This cut, paste, and print craft design envisions a child hiding behind a big umbrella and all you can see is the child’s rain boots. After they finish cutting and gluing all the pieces, bring out some blue paint for some raindrop printing. What fun!

Materials:

• Card stock or construction paper
• Fancy paper, such as gift wrap or scrapbook paper
• Black construction paper
• Blue poster paint
• Paper plate
• School glue
• Safety scissors
• Black marker

Directions:

Step 1 – Cover your work surfaces with newspaper to prevent marring your furniture or messing your floor with glue and paint. You may want to dress your child in a paint smock to protect clothing.

Step 2 – Choose a fancy paper for the umbrella. Think about stripes, dots, or a cute design that can be found on gift wrap or scrapbook paper.

Step 3 – With a pencil or marker, draw a large umbrella (about 8-inches in diameter) onto the print paper. Invite your child to cut on the lines to create this shape. Very young children may need your help with this step.

Step 4 – Draw and cut out a pair of rain boots from black construction paper.

Step 5 – Take the umbrella and boots and have your child glue them onto a background page. It’s best to use a pastel color where the upcoming raindrops will show up nicely.

Step 6 – Mom may want to take a black marker and draw lines (to the points) making this umbrella look real on the page.

Step 7 – After the shapes have dried, it’s time to create raindrops.  Place a dollop of blue poster paint onto a small paper plate. Show your child how to dip his pointer finger into the paint and make a print on the paper plate for practice. After he gets the hang of this technique, have him make numerous raindrop prints randomly on the page around the umbrella.

Praise your youngster for her artwork and hang it in the house where all the family can see it. Talk about how an umbrella can protect a person from getting wet during rain showers. Crafting can be a time of bonding and there are many teachable moments while you work together.

If you like what you see, please subscribe to this blog. Are you looking for a specific craft? Product review? Parenting tips? Shoot me an email to: taniacowling@gmail.com and I will try to help you in future posts.

Until next time. Happy Parenting.
Tania

Photo courtesy of Tania Cowling, all rights reserved

Valentine Crafts for the Young

It's coming on February 14th. Time to get started on Valentine crafts. Here are a few to try.

I know your children make Valentines in school and daycare, but there is nothing like getting out the art supplies and creating memorable decorations and gifts with your little one at home. This is something I cherished with my children and now my grandkids. Kids are only young once, savor every moment.

CD Photo Magnet—


This is a project you and your child can make for gifts and recipients can truly enjoy.  Recycle old CD’s (or the ones you get in the mail). Glue a picture of your child on the front, in the center.  With a colorful paint pen, write, “Your Love Makes My Heart Sing” around the disk. Decorate with cute little hearts, drawn freehand or you can use stickers. Attach a small piece of adhesive magnetic tape to the backside of the disk. This tape is easily found in craft stores.  Just think; this project idea can be used for multiple holidays—just by changing colors and decorative designs.  It’s also a craft project that older children may enjoy making themselves!

Everybody Loves A T-Shirt!

How about one with meaning? You can use this technique on canvas bags, baseball caps, and hand towels too. Use your imagination and have fun!  With a fabric paint marker write, “Behind every hand is a heart that loves Dad” (or Grandma, or whomever the shirt is for).  Gently paint the hands of your child with fabric paint and press them on any area of the shirt.  Use a variety of colors and allow the shirt to dry.  Make sure to wash your child’s hands thoroughly.  For an added touch, date the shirt with a laundry marker or fabric paint marker.

Making Tie-Dyed Valentines—

A tie-dyed print doesn’t have to be messy.  Here is a way to get this same effect using simple art materials.  Flatten a white coffee filter and place it onto a sheet of cardboard or anything that will protect your table.  Invite your child to draw Valentine designs (actually scribbles will do) onto the filter with washable color markers covering a vast surface.  Fold the filter into quarters and dip it into cold water for just a second.  Your child will be amazed as he/she sees the colors blend.  Open the filter and lay it flat to dry.  When completely dry, show your child how to cut hearts from this unique paper.

Spend quality time bonding and making memorable crafts for this holiday. They are fun too!

Happy Parenting,

Tania  

Contact me for republication of any part of this blog post with a link back to Creative Preschool Time 

Fun Halloween Crafts for Kids

Get ready, as Halloween is coming on the 31st of October. What a wonderful family holiday; a perfect time for parents and children to spend time together carving pumpkins, designing costumes and planning trick-or-treat activities. Kids can lose themselves in fun without having to worry about normal, proper behavior. They can act out their fantasies, dreams and imaginations, it's OK because it's Halloween. Spend good days together making these fun Halloween crafts for children.

Make a Bat with Hands
Make use of a child's hands to make this fun Halloween bat. Trace each hand onto black poster board, heavy construction paper or fun foam. Then cut out a headpiece with pointed ears. Assemble the pieces with glue or tape. The handprints are the bat's wings. Decorate the head with googly eyes (or paper ones), a pompom nose, and a freaky mouth cut from white paper. Add a yarn or ribbon loop at the top to hang this bat decoration around the house.

Halloween Tic-Tac-Toe
Take the traditional tic-tac-toe game and give it a Halloween flair. Cut a large pumpkin from a sheet of orange poster board. Draw the game grid with a black marker. Cut game markers (in Halloween shapes) from construction paper. Another good tip is to use your computer and find clip art that would serve as markers, you need at least five markers of two different shapes. Preserve your game board and pieces covering them with clear plastic adhesive paper if you wish. Enjoy playing this game with the children and think about how this game can be made for other holidays too.

Photos courtesy of Tania Cowling, all rights reserved

Use the month of October to make crafts and decorate the home or classroom. Have fun bonding with your children and give them big hugs!

Tania

Teaching Alphabet Letters to Preschool Children

Welcome to a new school year - whether you're a teacher or parent, these ongoing lesson posts will help you with ideas to foster early learning skills with your children.

When we think of preschool, it's as easy as ABC - well, there is more to learning the alphabet than just singing the ABC song. Here are some ideas to get you started.

When you allow young children to create alphabet letters using different art tools, materials, and techniques, they are more likely to recognize and learn how letters are formed. This article has three alphabet art ideas for your preschoolers. Let the children partake in these crafts where they will learn and become creative as well.

Make Collage Letters

Draw a box-type letter on a piece of cardboard or poster board. Invite the children to spread glue onto the letter and adhere any of the following materials to make a raised textured letter that they can feel. Think about using sand, seashells, crushed egg shells, paper scraps, dried beans or pasta, buttons, seeds, and even spices (so they can smell the letter). These are just a few ideas and I'm sure you can think of others. Sometimes it is best to coordinate the letter and the material used in the collage to make the letter sound. For example, when making a letter B, use buttons or with the letter S, use sand.

Create Letter Characters

Give each child a block letter and colored markers. Invite them to 'dress up' the letter by drawing in facial features, hair, and designs. You can even give the children scraps of fabric for them to dress up the alphabet letter with clothes. Challenge the children to give their letter a name, such as "Billy B" or "Tara" T.

Unique Fingerprints
Do the children know that they have unique fingerprints and that no one else has the same prints? Even though they are young, it's a piece of information well worth mentioning. For this alphabet art craft, have the children stamp thumbprints to create letters. Take a foam produce tray and place a few layers of paper towels inside. The towels act as a stamp pad when tempera paint is poured on top. Have each child put a thumb into the paint tray and stamp out a thumbprint in the shape of a letter. It's best if the teacher lightly draws the letter on paper for the children to follow. Another variation is to fill in a block letter with a number of fingerprints, maybe in different colors too.


Happy teaching and hug your little ones each day,
TANIA

Photo courtesy of Morguefile

Are You Visiting the Beach? Capture a Memory!

Summer is beach weather and the perfect place for fun in the sun, sand, and surf. Whether you live near the ocean, vacation there, or attending a home beach party, this craft is a way to hold onto memories. Your children will love to make this time capsule-type craft that will savor the memories of the beach. If you don’t have a beach nearby, fear not! These supplies can easily purchased at craft stores. It’s an easy project that can be saved and displayed in your child’s room as a great decoration and memory maker. 

Supplies Needed for this Beach Craft:

Medium sized plastic jar with lid

Photo of your child 

Tape

Sea shells

Beach sand

Netting or raffia

Heavy glue or low-temperature glue gun

Seaside favor or decor

How to Make a Beach Memory Jar:

1. Find a suitable jar for this craft. With young children it is best to use a plastic jar with a lid. I chose a mayonnaise jar. Wash and dry the jar thoroughly.
2. Look through your photos and find one of your child at the beach. If you are doing this craft at a beach party, the host/hostess can take photos when the children arrive in bathing suits and then download and make prints before craft time. 
3. Take the photo or photocopy and place it inside the jar. Tape it in place to the back curve wall of the jar with the picture showing through the front. 
4. Pour a couple inches of beach sand into the bottom of the jar. 
5. Add some sea shells and arrange them to your liking. You may want to include some sea coral or a star fish. Just make sure if you are using fresh beach finds that there are no living organisms inside your shells. These need to be returned to their natural habitat. 
6. When you are finished filling your container, screw on the lid tight. You may want to run a line of glue inside the lid before screwing it on. This will prevent spills of beach sand all over your floors.
7. Now, it’s time to decorate the lid. Glue on some extra shells; a low-temperature glue gun works best. Wrap the side of the lid with raffia or a netting-type ribbon.
8. As an extra enhancement I added a paper beach umbrella to the top or think about a plastic palm tree as another option. 
9. With a black permanent marker, mark the child’s name, date, and location to the top of the lid.

Memory jars are awesome projects for children of all ages and various events. Think about making a miniature time capsule for birthdays, visiting a theme park, or to add mementos for any vacation. 

Happy Crafting With the Kids,

Tania 

Photo courtesy of Tania Cowling, all rights reserved

March Winds Are Perfect for Kites

“March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb” is the common phrase for this month’s unpredictable weather. Discuss weather changes with your children by charting lion days (blustery, windy) and lamb days (spring-like) on a March calendar. Ask your child what he would like to do on a windy day? Have you tried flying a kite when the March wind blows? Here’s a fun craft to make that signifies the windy weather and a kite-flying theme. There are several art techniques with this project that are sure to keep your child amused.

Materials:

• Clear adhesive paper
• Colorful tissue paper
• Safety scissors
• Tape
• Black marker
• Stapler
• Ribbon
• Construction paper in several colors

Directions:

Step 1 – Cut a large square of clear self-adhesive paper and tape the clear plastic side down onto a table. Peel off the protective paper so the sticky side is facing up.

Step 2 – Gather some tissue paper in several colors, preferably spring-like hues. Cut the tissue paper into small squares or other geometric shapes.

Step 3 – Instruct the child to take the squares (or shapes) and place them onto the sticky paper. Let them cover half of the sticky paper with these shapes.

Step 4 – Carefully fold over the one side of the adhesive paper and press it down firmly.  Rub over the folded plastic to release any air bubbles. Now, the colorful tissue paper is inside the plastic sheet.

Step 5 – Draw a kite shape (diamond) in the middle of this large square and invite the child to cut this plastic kite out. You can draw a vertical and horizontal line on the front side of the diamond to look like a real kite.

Step 6 – Next, cut a piece of ribbon, about a foot long and fishtail the end. Staple this to the bottom point of the diamond shape. This is the kite’s tail.

Step 7 – To help the kite tail do its job small ribbon rungs can be cut from construction paper (bow-tie shape) and stapled to the main ribbon tail.  A kite’s tail helps to steer the kite in the proper direction using a combination of weight and air resistance to steer or trail this flying object.

Step 8 – Display your child’s artistic kite in his/her bedroom – on the wall or hanging from the ceiling.

On your next blustery day, why not take the kids outdoors and attempt to fly a real kite? It’s a fun sport and will give you and your kids plenty of exercise chasing this soaring toy.

Photo courtesy of Tania Cowling, all rights reserved 

Cabin Fever Learning: Math With Cereal

Anyone snowed in? Cabin fever? Here are fun ways to brush up on math skills using dry cereal at home.

One of the reasons that Americans have taken to breakfast cereals is that they are quick and easy. Besides, cereals have been specifically designed so kids will like them: creative shapes, colors, flavors and the box is entertaining while they eat.

Cereal can be used in mathematical learning, but think of the creative process this manipulative material offers to develop the senses and ingenious art activities as well. Try a few projects below and don’t forget to provide a clean bowl of cereal for munching!

Tactile Cards

On pieces of cardboard, draw a large number. Have the children glue O-shaped cereal inside, the same amount as the number value. After it’s dry, they can run their fingers along the shape of this number and begin counting skills, along with your help. Start with numbers one to five and increase numerals according to age and skill level.

Egg Carton Math Game

Write the numerals 1-12 inside the sections of an egg carton with a black marker. Give each child a cup of cereal and have him place pieces of cereal to correspond with the number in each section. Count the pieces together in each egg cup. As children play this game, they are learning to recognize symbols for each number. Another way to teach number recognition is to look for number symbols every time you sit together to read a book or look at magazines. Point to numerals and say the number name out loud.

Making Patterns

Make a pattern model using bamboo skewers. Thread on mini-marshmallows and O-shaped cereal. Use colorful cereal and sort by color or number of O’s between each marshmallow. Encourage the children to copy your model, and then make up patterns of their own. NOTE: Adult supervision is advised when using pointed sticks with young children. A variation to this activity is to glue cereal pieces on paper, creating specific patterns.

Geometric Cereal Shapes

You will need construction paper, scissors, glue and cereal for this project. Instruct children to cut out squares, triangles, circles and rectangles from the paper. Younger children may need adult help. Glue pieces of cereal to fill each shape.

Children learn by doing, so as they play, mathematical skills can be mastered. Think creatively by using cereal and foods to make this experience fun.

This article was originally published by this author in regional print magazines.

Photos by Tania K Cowling, all rights reserved

Puppet Play: Fun with Recycled Items and a Few Baubles

Get out the recycle box and begin to craft puppets with your child. Paper bag puppets can be made and enjoyed by kids—from preschool and up. You decide how much time and artistic effort you want to put into your sack puppet project. They can be quickie puppet play stand-ins or works of art. You can draw facial features with crayons and markers and decorate them with a few “found” objects like fabric scraps, buttons, faux jewels, pipe cleaners, yarn, any variety of miscellany you can gather.  Place your hand inside to manipulate your newly created character.

Think about using old nylon stockings to make adorable puppets young children love. Stretch a leg from panty hose over a bent wire hanger. You can bend the hanger into a diamond or even a circle shape and tape the hook for safety. Knot the stocking leg at the bottom. This is a great puppet for the little ones as they can see through the nylon like a mask and pretend they are the puppet—good vision and a no fear factor. You can go to town decorating this puppet mask with all kinds of materials glued on. Puff and glitter markers work well on the nylon. You can make almost any character you want.

Turn your family snapshots into lifelike puppets. Invite your child to choose several family photographs (use the photo or make a color copy). Cut out the face or figure. Tape this photo figure to a craft stick.  Encourage your youngster to create a scene with a few toys and have these family puppets interact. Use a puppet yourself to ask your child’s puppet questions and to suggest different themes, such as going shopping or taking a family trip. While you are having fun together, this activity helps your child develop language and social skills.

Stick puppets are exactly as their name implies—puppets build and manipulated on a stick. These are among some of the quickest to make. For sticks, use dowels, yardsticks, tongue depressors, wooden spoons, and Popsicle sticks. The very simplest stick puppet is a head shape cut from construction paper and features added with paint or markers. Tape a stick to the back and your puppet is complete.  Make several with “faces of emotion” and your child can talk about his feelings through puppet play.  To act out stories, draw the characters, find ones in coloring books, or cut them from an old storybook.  Attach these to sticks and you now have all the characters to act out your favorite tale.

Photo by Tania Cowling, all rights reserved

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Recycle and Make New Crayons

Are you wondering what to do with all those broken and worn-out crayons from past school years? Create a new crayon from all those old ones as a fun weekend craft. This is a great recycling lesson and art project all in one. Crayon cookies provide a rainbow effect in this new art medium. The kids can make swirls and designs with one swoop across the paper. This is a great activity to do on a rainy day or when it’s just too hot to play outdoors. Here are the simple instructions.

Materials You Need:

Old crayons

Muffin tin

Aluminum foil

Oven

White paper

Instructions to Make Crayon Muffins:

Step 1 - Invite the children to remove all the paper wrappings from each crayon. It’s best to use all the brightly colored crayons you have.

Step 2 - Line several cups of a muffin tin with squares of aluminum foil. Make sure the foil covers the entire muffin cup and overlaps along the top edge. The foil makes it mess-proof to the muffin tray and easy to take out after the melting process.

Step 3 - Have the kids break the crayons into pieces between one-half inch to an inch.

Step 4 - Fill the muffin cup half-way with an assortment of crayon pieces in a variety of colors. Continue with this process according to how many crayon cookies you want to make.

Step 5 - Place the baking tin in a preheated 300-degree oven. Bake the crayons for about five to seven minutes. Ovens vary so watch the melting process carefully. Melt them just enough to blend the colors but not to a total liquid where the colors turn into a muddy mess.

Step 6 - Carefully remove the muffin tin from the oven and set it to cool for at least 30 minutes. Personally, once the liquid started to solidify, I transferred the tin to the refrigerator to finish the task.

Step 7 - When the crayon muffins are completely cool and solid, the children can carefully peel off the aluminum foil. Note that the cookies are more colorful on the foil side.

Step 8 - Now, bring out the paper and challenge the kids to make designs and rainbows with their new art medium.