Craft and Homemade Gift Ideas
for Every Crafting Style!
Quick Holiday Kid Crafts
by Jessica Eastman
Low mess, low fuss, sensory-friendly holiday kid crafts are great for a snowy afternoon or during an evening with grandparents.
Scope out Pinterest for a printable picture of Santa with a big beard. Glue
cotton balls onto his beard to make it fluffy and life-like and lay out to dry.
For sensory sensitive children, liquid glue may be a trigger.
Cut out a Christmas tree from construction paper and glue multi-colored
pom-poms onto it as “ornaments”. Don’t forget a star sticker at the top!
Have an adult helper cut out a rectangle from cardboard. Involve children in decorating the “bookmark” with Christmas wrapping paper, holiday stickers, bible verses, etc. and use the bookmark to mark the place in a favorite holiday story, or give as gifts.
Using the same method as above, cut out different sized circles and hole punch the top. After the child has decorated the cardboard, add a string and hang it on the tree for ornaments!
Make cards. Using holiday colored tempera paint (or other washable paint),
have children dip their hand into the paint and “stamp” a piece of
construction paper with it. On the inside, write, “Thanks for giving me a
hand! You’re great!” for a special therapist or teacher in your child’s life.
(Remember, not all children will be willing to dip their hand into paint. You
could try this method with a very large ink pad instead, or even trace the
child’s hand).
Make a holiday art wall. A few pieces of string, a couple of nails, and some clothespins make the perfect canvas for displaying holiday bits and pieces. Hang up holiday artwork, Christmas cards sent by friends and family, leaves changing color, tickets from going to the Nutcracker with Grandma, etc. Don’t forget to talk about the artifacts with your children often.
SNOWMAN TERRARIUM
by Lorraine Fonseca
Materials:
1 Mason Jar
1 pack of hot cocoa mix
1 pack of small marshmallows
1 pack of medium sized marshmallows
1 pack of large marshmallows
1 bag of chocolate chips
3-4 Toothpicks
Piece of white paper
Ribbon
Decorative piece (candy cane or small ornament)
Glue
Step 1: Stack two medium marshmallows on top of a large marshmallow and secure them by inserting a toothpick through the center of marshmallow tower. Insert two toothpicks in the middle marshmallow to create the arms. Cover the toothpicks with small marshmallows.
Step 2: Create a sugary glue for the chocolate chips by melting a large marshmallow in a saucepan over low heat. Decorate the snowman with the chocolate chips and your sugary glue.
Step 3: Pour the hot cocoa mix into the bottom of the mason jar. Very carefully, insert the snowman into the mason jar on top of the hot cocoa mix. Sprinkle a few extra small marshmallows into the jar.
Step 4: Decorate the outside to your heart's content. A label for the lid can be made using the lid as a stencil.
.
Now you have your terrarium!