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My daughter made this fun craft at the library story time a few weeks ago. All the kids thought it was pretty fun and it’s a way to document their cute little hand size. Hope you and your kids have fun creating strawberries.
Materials
red & green construction paper
scissors
glue stick
black marker
Directions
Cut a strawberry shape out of the red paper.
Trace your child’s hand on the green paper and glue it to the top of your strawberry.
Let them color with the black marker, your example can have little seed dots but your child will probably make a neat design like my daughter did
Supplies
My daughters strawberry!
Grandma was very excited when we visited her after the library and she got to hang this on her fridge.
Happy Halloween Everyone! This is the time of year when everyone, including myself, looks forward to candy corn, fun size candy bars and seeing all the adorable trick or treaters costumes. What better way to spend the day of Halloween before getting all those goodies then doing a fun craft with the kids.
This is the time of year for candy corn so what better way to celebrate the holidays then with candy corn crafts. My 2 year old loved this craft she had so much fun, gluing and sticking the tissue. Hey even mom had fun, not embarrassed to say . Next year we will probably make a few and put them on our mantel with other festive decorations.
Materials
1 wooden cone, or even a toilet paper roll, empty of course
Elmer’s glue in bowl, with paintbrush
yellow, orange, white small squares of tissue
Directions
Have your little one dip their paintbrush in the glue and cover the cone. Apply the tissue in from bottom to top in yellow, orange, white pattern. Or whatever pattern your little one wants.
My almost 2 year old helped me with this craft but I basically put the thing together, so depending on your child’s age you will probably have to help assemble this adorable little spider hat. This craft is not only for Halloween time I just chose to make it around Halloween. Enjoy!
Spider Hat
Materials
Black Construction paper
2 strips that are 11″ x 3″ for headband
6-8 strips that are 1″ x 11″ for the legs
2 small circles for the eyes
White Construction Paper
2 circles for eyes
Glue stick
Tape
Scissors
Directions
Cut your black construction paper into strips. You will need 2 strips that are 11″ x 3″ to make the headband and 6-8 strips that are 1″ x 11″ for the legs.
Glue the small black circle onto the white circles to create the eyes.
Measure your child’s head to figure out how big to the headband part, tape together.
Glue or tape the eyes onto the headband.
Fold your legs accordion style and tape the ends on the inside of your headband.
Voila you now have a pretty cool spider hat and I suggest singing Itsy Bitsy Spider lyrics below!
Unfortunately my daughter would not keep the hat on for longer then 3 seconds so she thought it was fun to have her friends try it on. Hopefully your kid enjoys wearing it.
Itsy-Bitsy Spider
The itsy-bitsy spider
Climbed up the water spout
Down came the rain
And washed the spider out
Out came the sun
And dried up all the rain
And the itsy-bitsy spider
Climbed up the spout again
Homemade fruit roll-ups at home have never been simpler. Only a couple ingredients, a blender, an oven and a few hours of patience and you have a healthy snack for your little one, or in my case husband and little one. Some may say this is time consuming but you are creating a healthy alternative to store bought preservative packed fruit leather.
Some may think that fruit leather is a weird sounding name, but that is what it technically is called but if that’s the case call them fruit roll-ups. Either way you will enjoy snacking on these because they are yummy in your tummy, that is what my daughter says.
Homemade Strawberry Fruit Roll-ups (fruit leather)
This recipe for homemade fruit roll-ups is delicious and children love it. Make this healthy snack for your little one. FrenchToasty.com has lots of kid friendly snack food.
Ingredients
4 cups strawberries
1/4 lemon (peeled)
Optional
sugar to taste
Directions
Step 1
Preheat oven to it's lowest temperature. My lowest temperature was 170 degrees F.
Step 2
Throw your strawberries and lemon into a blender or a food processor and blend until smooth, you may need to add a little water. You want it thin but still sort of thick, if that makes sense. Mine only took 1-2 minutes but my blender pulverizes things.
Step 3
Once smooth taste to see if you want it sweeter, I did not add any sugar, I felt the strawberries were more then sweet enough.
Step 4
Line baking sheets with plastic wrap, this will shrink a bit in the oven so make sure to have a little extra around the edges.
Step 5
Pour your strawberry puree onto plastic wrap. It should be thin enough to pour but thick enough to stay where it's poured. Use a spatula to spread into a thin even layer.
Step 6
Bake for 6-12 hours, all oven times vary. I started mine in the evening, shut my oven off when I went to bed and then turned it back on in the morning. I would say total mine took close to 12 hours, but keep a close eye on yours to make sure it doesn't burn.
Step 7
You will know it's done when it's tacky to the touch. Let it cool and then cut into strips and enjoy your healthy homemade fruit leather.
Once they are cooked and cooled I like to peel them off the plastic wrap and lay it on parchment paper. Then I will cut them into 2″ strips and roll them like fruit by the foot. It’s a fun way to pack them in your kids lunch or toss them into a mason jar on the counter for easy accessibility.
My blender filled to the brim with as many strawberries as I could fit and a wedge of lemon.
Baking in oven, I can fit 4 cookie sheets in at a time, and I recommend fitting as many as you can fit, just swap them every 2 hours for even cooking.
My daughter patiently waiting for them to bake! Don’t mind the smudges all over the oven…living with an almost 2 year old
This is an easy craft to make with items you already have around your house. My daughter had a blast making this colorful butterfly and she loves flying it around the house. You can use paint or crayola paint dabbers, bingo dabbers or whatever you like.
Supplies coffee filters
paint dabbers or paint wood clothes pins
sticker letter for antenna or cut paper in the shape of an antenna and glue on
Directions
Flatten 1 coffee filter and paint. Let dry.
Add antennas and draw eyes on the short end of the pin.
Crumple in center and add clothes pin as the body.
Now have fun flying your little critter around the house.
My daughter loves play-dough so when she got her hands on this model magic she was in heaven. She had so much fun trying to roll the balls, I had to help them be more round but she had a blast trying. And then all on her own she stuck them together, smart little girl! By the time I showed her the eyes and antennas on the head she loved it and kept trying to saying caterpillar. This craft project was a complete success and so easy for large age group. The older the kid the more creative they can get, from each ball being a different color, or making it really long, the possibilities are only 1 imagination away. Enjoy this fun craft with your little one because they will have a blast.
Colorful Clay Caterpillar
Recommended age 15 months and up
Crayola model magic, in desired color for your caterpillar
1 toothpick, cut in half
1 leaf coloring page, see below for the one I used or print your own
Have your little one roll the model magic into a few balls, or you can help them to this if they are having trouble.
Attach all the ball together in a row to create the body of the caterpillar.
Make tiny white circles for the eyes and you could add an even tinier ball of color to make the pupils.
Have mom cut the toothpick in half and inset into the caterpillars head.
Attach two more tiny balls to the ends of the toothpick for antennas.
Put your caterpillar on your leaf and as it dries it will attach to the paper.
The leaf print out that I used, but feel free to use what ever you want to stick your caterpillar to.
As a mom of an almost 2 year old, I’m always trying to come up new crafts and activities to keep her busy and entertained. I’m sure most parents think the same thing. My daughter goes to school twice a week and I love that they give me great craft ideas. I enjoy sharing the really fun ones with you all.
In my daughters class the other day we made sharks and all the kids loved it. Some even got some great names! Keep in mind that they all had their own character…some were orange, some had miss matched colored parts but they were all so adorable. Depending on the age of your child you may need to help a bit. These are pictures of the one my daughter made but I did attach a picture of an example one, I would love to see your child’s’ creation.
Paper Cup Shark Craft
Recommended age 18 months and up
Materials
2 Styrofoam cups, we used 12oz size but any size would work
any color paint you want
paintbrush
blue and white construction paper for teeth and fins
scissors
tape
button or googly eyes
Directions
Paint outside of cups in desired color, allow to dry.
Tape both cups together, to form the body.
Use this template from the site below or draw your own, I drew my own. But if you use the template extend the fins a bit so when they are stuck into the cup they will stay put.
Tape the teeth to the face.
Mom cut a whole in the top and in the back to stick the fins in.
Tape two buttons on for eyes.
Give him a name, and have a fantastic under water adventure!
My daughter loves to paint, so anytime it’s put in front of her she has a blast getting everything. Her favorite is mommy’s hand, but hey who am I to stand in the way of a toddler creating a masterpiece…well that is unless the masterpiece is my couch or hardwood floors or you get the point, I love art work on paper! I’m always trying to come up with new exciting things to keep my daughter occupied because coloring on a blank piece of paper gets old quick. And with Fathers Day only being a few days away I knew something needed to be created, what father doesn’t love a handmade gift from their special little one. We colored a greeting card but that just wasn’t enough. What about a new tie? Every man needs a beautiful paper tie that is a variety of colors. You only need a few supplies and a wonderful imagination and you are ready to create.
Supplies
1 printed paper necktie or you could always draw one on a blank piece of paper
paint in desired colors, crayons or markers would work great also
paint brush or sponge
24″ string of yarn
hole puncher
Directions
Have your little one paint the tie in what ever way they want.
Once paint is dried, mom cut out the tie, or if your little one is old enough to use scissors.
Punch a hole on each side of the knot on the tie and string your ribbon through the holes and tie into knots to secure.
Present to daddy on fathers day or anytime you want him to know how special he is.
Closeup of the holes and how the yarn is secured
I hope everyone enjoys this fun project. I’d love to see pictures of your creations and I will post a few of the best and most creative ones on here.
It’s flag day today, so what better way to celebrate the day then to make a flag. In my daughters class today we made flags and she had a great time doing it. It’s a great way for kids to get creative and do it how they want. Let your little one explore all the possibilities, maybe tissue on both side, who knows. Have fun!
Supplies – Makes 2 flags
1 piece of 8″x11″ paper cut in half
2 12″ wooden dowels or wooden sticks
a couple sheets of tissue in different colors cut into 1″ squares
glue stick
Directions
Cut the piece of paper in half and put 2 holes in each piece on the shorter side, one an inch from the top and the other one inch from the bottom.
Rub the glue stick on the piece of paper and have your little one stick tissue all over the paper.
When they are done with that, run the rod through the holes, and voila you have a little flag that is super fun to wave around.
Email in your child’s creations, and I will post a few of those pictures.
I have introduced my daughter to play-dough a few times, and every time it has gone straight to her mouth. But to my surprise last week she actually played with it, pounded it, cut with cookie cutters and made fun shapes. So I knew that meant we were going home and making some. It was so easy and she really enjoyed helping me pour the ingredients into the pan.
This recipe seems to be fail proof, stays together great and isn’t too dry. This recipe will last for 6 months in an airtight container. The two secret ingredients that give it it’s great texture are cream of tarter, helps the dough stay together and next is the salt, not too much because that is what drys it out. So here you go, get to making, your kids will enjoy hours of entertainment and you will enjoy hours of a very happy little one.
1 C flour
1 C water
1/4 C salt
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp cream of tarter
food coloring, a few drops to reach desired color, kool-aid pack works also
sparkles, optional
pan and wooden spoon
And of course little helpers!
cookie cutters, rolling pins, plastic scissors etc… your toddler will think up all kinds of things to do.
Directions
Pour all ingredients into pan and stir until everything is mixed.
Once the mixture is almost clump free, heat over medium heat and keep stirring for a few minutes. It will start to clump.
Don’t stop stirring, keep going until it forms one big clump.
Remove from heat and knead by hand.
Once cooled it’s ready to be played with. Store in airtight containers when not being used to prolong the life.
This is a great idea for a stocking stuffer or little party favors. I’m definitely doing this at my daughters next birthday.
Once you make homemade play-dough you will never buy store bought again because you will realize how easy it is and you will save lots of money.
Don’t forget all the fun you can have with cookie cutters!
Print recipe
