Getting involved with arts and crafts is a wonderful way to bond with your tots.  Children learn to use their time and imagination in a constructive manner and the fruits of their efforts bring great joy to one and all. This page will provide you with a few ideas to get started with some simple projects. So, get ready to spend some quality time with your children and enjoy watching their creativity take wings.

Where Do We Start?

Let us begin this fun experiment by doing some basic homework. With the all powerful Internet at your finger tips, it is extremely easy to get access to a host of ideas. You can browse through different sites and make note of the projects that seem easy and interesting to do. Once you make your selection, sit down with your children and discuss these ideas with them. Get them involved in the process and choose an activity that will hold their interest till the very end. You can also browse through arts and crafts magazines or any kind of similar reading material to get you started.

Once you have decided on what your project is going to be, the next step would be to get the materials required for your project. Make a list of all the things you will need and check with your children regarding their availability. For the materials which are not available at home, go out shopping with your children.  After this is done, you are all set to begin making your work of art.

The Fun Kids have With Arts and Crafts

When the guideline is laid out and the materials are ready, it is time to kick-start your arts and crafts project with your kids. Remember, you are there to only supervise the activity, not do it for them. Arts and crafts projects provide kids with the perfect opportunity to explore and learn. It is also a wonderful chance to showcase their talents. If children do this as a group activity, they learn to share their resources. They can use these projects to create gifts for special occasions or simply decorate their rooms with their own art work.

Some Interesting Ideas You Can Use

Here are a couple fun and easy projects for you and your kids to try out. Remember that these are only a few ideas and you can find many many more using various sources such as the Internet, magazines, arts and crafts books and so on.

Let us call our first project My Very Own Casper.

My Very Own Casper

To make your very own Casper or friendly ghost, you will need the following materials. They are all easily available and so, you can create your version of Casper within a matter of a few minutes!

Materials Needed

• a white balloon
• scissors
• two plastic grocery bags (white, same color as the balloon)
• tape
• a black marker

Steps to Make My Very Own Casper

Let us now begin creating our friendly little neighborhood ghost.

• The first step to create our Casper is to cut the handles of the grocery bags. It is best to use bags that do not have markings or logos on them. Plain white bags will give you the best results.
• Do not touch the seams at the bottom of the bags. Let them remain intact.
• Cut the remaining portion of the bags into even strips. Keep them aside.
• Blow the white balloon and keep it ready.
• Tape the bags around the middle of the balloon. Leave the tied end of the balloon exposed so that you can hang your Casper and let him fly freely.
• After taping the bags around the balloon, it is time to give him a face! Using your black marker, draw Casper’s eyes and mouth. Your children can use their creative ideas to give him any expression of their choice.
• Tie the balloon using a string. Your very own Casper is ready!

That was very simple, was it not? Let us now look at another easy project. When you complete this one, you will have a beautiful garland of flowers to gift someone on their birthday or anniversary. Now, we are going to make the Hawaiian flower lei. ‘Lei’ is the Hawaiian word for a garland or wreath of flowers. Let us first look at the materials required for this project.

The Hawaiian Flower Lei

Materials Required

• colorful construction paper / colored paper in 5 /6 colors
• a few drinking straws in different colors
• scissors
• yarn (about 2 feet long)
• Optional decorative items for the flowers (glitter, paint or markers)
• tape

Steps to Make The Hawaiian Flower Lei

• The first step to create your Hawaiian flower lei is to draw flowers on the construction paper. Use different colors of construction paper to make flowers with several vibrant colors. The flowers should be large and they should all have the same shape and size. On a normal A4 size of construction paper you should get five flowers on each sheet.
• Carefully cut your flowers after drawing them. Now, you can make your flowers look even more pretty and colorful by using glitter, markers or paint. Be as creative as you can and let your imagination run a riot of colors.
• After this, punch a hole in the middle of each flower.
• Next, let us get to work with the straws. Cut each straw into 2 inch pieces. Try to keep all the pieces of the same length. These straws will become links between your pretty flowers.
• Take your yarn and make a thick knot at one end. Start threading your flowers through the yarn. After you put one flower, thread a piece of drinking straw. Place another flower after this and continue alternating flowers with the straws. After you are done with threading all of them, use a small piece of adhesive tape to hold your lei together.

• Your Hawaiian flower lei is ready to be garlanded!

So, there you have it. Two fun and quick projects you can enjoy doing with your kids. Arts and crafts projects are not only productive but also a brilliant way to spend quality time with your children.

Tips and Warnings

• While children handle sharp objects like scissors or stapler pins be careful and always keep an eye on them to avoid accidents.
• In order to avoid making a mess of your floors / carpets, spread some newspaper sheets before you begin with your projects. You can discard the sheets after completing the project.
• Do not impede or obstruct your child’s creativity by interfering too much. It is their labor of love and so, be attentive and appreciative.