The age of video games and mobile phones might be prevalent nowadays, but the time of arts and crafts and other forms of physical activities for kids is still ongoing. Participating in such activities with children gives them exposure to creativity and fosters a sense of bonding between the child and parent.
This article lists fun and creative arts and crafts activities for your kids to spark their imagination and have a productive activity for them to engage in during their free time.
1. Nature Collage
Spending time at home all day does have its pros, but so does going outdoors and engaging with nature. Grab a bucket or tote bag, go for a nature walk, and collect items with your child. The collectables range from interesting leaves, twigs, flowers, and natural wonders. Anything that grabs your attention and can turn into a creative idea works.
Once you’re back home, assemble the collected items and get paper or cardboard or anything that can serve as a base along with glue. Arrange the collected pieces in your desired sequence and stick them to the base to create a wonderful nature collage. You can also make your kids use the leaves for leaf painting or press the remaining flowers for later use.
2. Playdough Creations
Who doesn’t love playing with the playdough? For kids and elders alike, making things out of this ball of happiness is a great way to relieve stress and have a fun activity. You can either buy the dough or make one at home. If you settle for the latter, it brings another layer of fun to the table. All you need to do is mix flour, salt, water, and your choice of food colouring to make the dough you can play with. You can also go for multiple batches to get different colours.
The possibilities are limitless once the dough is procured, premade, or handmade. Go wild with your imagination and encourage your child to explore anything that comes to their mind. If they are beginners, you can start with easy shapes and go on to more complex things like animals or action figures. Once done creating, you can dry the creations and showcase them on a shelf.
3. Appreciate Them
While you carry out these activities, it is important to encourage and appreciate them along the way. Even if what they make is mediocre, don’t outright discourage them with bad remarks. Instead, try a more positive and encouraging approach and appreciate them for the effort they have put in. It instils a sense of motivation in them, and your appreciation and acknowledgement would fuel them to do more and do better.
If you have more than one kid, you can also hold a small celebratory party at home or give them presents or tokens of appreciation in the form of a medal. It doesn’t just extend to arts and crafts. Even if there’s a sport or other skill they show improvement or good performance in, award them something, for instance, swimming or golf trophies, or any other form of appreciation depending on the occasion.
4. Recycled Art Projects
Making things out of recycled materials is a great way to teach your kids sustainability. Instead of directing the activity and prescribing set materials and methods, let them take the lead and challenge them to transform the materials into art pieces. The recyclable materials include cardboard tubes, bottle caps, cereal boxes, egg cartons, and more. While they’re at it, don’t hold yourself back. Gather materials to set an example for your kid and create your artwork. This activity not only endorses a sense of care for the environment but also pushes the children to be more resourceful and creative.
5. Painting!
If you think about it, painting tends to lie more towards the art side and less towards the DIY crafts side. But that depends only on the angle you look at. Painting can also be done after you’re done creating your crafts. Be it the action figure you made with the dough or a project produced through recycled materials, a coat of your favourite coloured paints can completely take it from drab to fab!
Alternatively, you can grab some canvases or sketchbooks, depending on your preference, and get your kids to paint whatever their hearts desire. One way to begin could be with handprints and footprints. You can add personal touches to your pieces by adding names, dates, or messages to go with them. Go the extra mile and get them framed to add to your gallery walls and give your living room a wow factor.
The Bottom Line
Spending time with your kids in activities like those mentioned above is a great way to strengthen your bond. It is also a change from the daily chores, school tasks, and excessive use of gadgets. But that’s not all. Arts and crafts activities are a good way to discover where your child’s potential may lie and also encourage creativity among them.
If you have more interesting ideas about the topic or pastime activities for children, drop them in the comments below. Happy parenting!
Tammie~