Holiday Crafts For Kids
If you're wondering how you can occupy your children during the holiday season, especially when they're off from school, The Saturday Early Show has some terrific craft ideas that will excite any child.
Courtney Watkins, author of "Courtney's Creative Adventures," demonstrates a few of her best holiday ideas.
Holiday Cards and Thank You Notes
It's all about the design. This is a process in which you carve an image of your choice into a styrofoam board. Then, you roll paint over the image and press construction paper over the paint to create the image on your card. You are basically doing reverse thinking, because when the image that you carved is inked, it comes up backwards. So, if you wanted to use words, you'd have to carve them backwards so that they appear correct when you ink them.
Materials:
- Styrofoam (from art store or use restaurant container)
- Block Printing Ink
- Paint Brush
- Paper
- Brayer
Steps:
- Carve a design into the Styrofoam using the other end of a paintbrush. If you're writing words, they must be written backwards.
- Squirt ink onto foil-covered cookie tin. Roll brayer through ink to cover completely.
- Roll inked brayer over carved Styrofoam.
- Choose a sheet of paper and press it firmly down over design. Pat all areas.
- Lift. Ta-da!
Ornaments:
These ornaments make you think of color and pattern. And for little ones, they get to practice their cutting skills. This is transforming a 2-D object (paper) into a 3-D object. You can then hang the ornaments from your tree or around your house.
Materials:
- Plastic Cup
- Construction Paper
- Yarn
- Hole Punch
- Scissors
Steps:
- Using the cup, trace 9 circles onto paper and cut them all out.
- Fold 8 in half and cut a slit from fold to center of "taco" shape.
- Slip the 8 cut circles onto the 9th circle. Fan each piece into a "V."
- Punch hole. String yarn.
Jingle Bell Wind Chime
Making the wind chime helps with finding new uses for old objects. This is all about rooting through the junk drawer, experimenting with balance and sound, and creating utilitarian art. This is an activity involving design and balance.
Materials:
- 2 Sticks
- String or thread or yarn
- Jingle Bells
- Other decorative items like beads, buttons, trimmings, etc.
Steps:
- Lash the two sticks together to form an "X."
- String decorative items and hang them from the center and from the four "arms." This is a game of balance.
Wishing Boxes:
The wishing boxes help promote positive thinking and goal setting. They're also a great way to create something fabulous out of something ordinary, i.e. transforming a checkbook box or band-aid box into a wishing box.
Materials:
- Small boxes (gift, check book, snack)
- Paint & Brushes
- Collage material (colored, printed paper, doo-dads, found objects)
Steps:
- Transform an ordinary box into a wishing box by using a heap of imagination and art materials. Paint a mermaid or a design or collage with paper. Make it your own.
- When it's dry, think of a wish. Write it down on a small piece of paper and fold or roll it up tightly. Place wish in box.
Note:You may wish to put a small mirror or piece of foil in the box as this will "magnify" your wish.
Make more wishes for friends, family, the world and yourself as you think of them.