I would like to start doing arts and crafts (especially Christmas ones right now) with my son who just turned two last month. He is so young, so I am not sure what he can do and what is too old for him. Does anyone have any ideas?
Thanks!
my friend just got a book on activities from 0 months up. she said I can borrow it. I'll let you know the title when i get it...I should be in the library and amazon has used books for cheap lots of times.
T.,
Hi! I am so glad to hear that you are looking for ways to get your boys into art! I have a few ideas but you may have to modify them depending on your own childrens abilities and yes even the baby can get involved!
Paper plate Santa's have always been a big project with my toddler classes. You just take a paper plate and some cotton balls and wiggly eyes and put them together to look like santa. The kids love getting their hands "dirty" with glue.
Another thing that we do with our infant and toddler classes is handprint reigndeer and wreaths. For the reigndeer you can use your childs foot for the head and his hands to make the antlers and your two year old can decorate it how he sees fit. For the wreaths you trace your childs hand as many times as you want and just glue them to a paper plate with the middle cut out, add a bow and it makes a great keepsake for extended family. Tracing hands many times can be difficult if you have a wiggly child, but to cure this I use a copy machine and copy the childs hands making a template of their hand (that way they dont have to sit still for long).
Just one more idea for you for now, pudding finger paints. I use chocolate pudding and newspaper and just let them have at it. Most of them love the feel of the "paint" and it wont hurt them if they eat it.
Something else you can do is google search preschool activities. It can help you find helpful and inspirational web sites.
Have fun!
hello T.,
there are tons of websites for kids crafts, however it depends on what he likes and what he can do. Also what amount of mess and stress that you would like to deal with. lol. AC moore and Micheals also has liite x mas craft projects for a round $1 a set, most come in a little bag and have eveything you need for that project. Hope this helped. If you are intrested you can e mail me back and I can send you some of my fav craft websites.
ABOUT ME:
I am a happily married (6 yrs)mother of 3 ( Alexandria 4 yrs, Gabriella 3 yrs old, and Tristin 10 months. I am a stay at home home who watches two other boys, both 10 months old, I work at the studio some weeknights, but mostly weekends (taking pics) and in my "free time" I am still working on my non profit organization for young children.
Well some one already gave you 3 of my ideas that I love to do with my two kido and those where pudding painting, feet and hand reigndeer, and hand print wreaths! The other one I thought of is taking a dark piece of paper and letting your 2 yr old color with a white color cryron or use a light piece of paper and do the same thing but you could than use water color paints and his art work will show up!Remember to stay positive and to have fun and your 9 month old can help too! Strip them down and let them get dirty and laugh, I am sure you will join the fun too! Than for clean up it is bath time! Have fun! Always K. W.
My son also just turned two, and right now he LOVES to color. Try making "snakes". Have your son color on both sides of a paper plate and then cut the paper plate in a spiral. Punch a hole in one end and hang it up. Its fun and its easy, and they love to see their art work displayed around the house. For Christmas you could always add bells and Christmas stickers and things and hang it next to Santa's cookies on Christmas Eve.
I am new to this site as well as the area but arts and crafts are my thing. Especially crafts to do with kids. I have a 4 and 2 year old and we have done our share of crafts. Some of my favorite crafts involve preserving my children's handprints so I enjoy doing small stepping stones with their handprint and then the kids can add embellishments such as stones and crystals into the cement before it dries. You can also paint their hands, make a handprint on paper and frame it in an unfinished wood frame and allow your son to paint the frame or decorate it with macaroni. Another fun and simple craft for Christmas is to buy foam frames, or door hangers from the craft store as well as decorative Christmas foams that stick on the frame. You can help him peel off the backs and let him decorate the frame and then put a picture of him in the frame. You can also get foam letters and put your kids names on it. Hopefully some of these ideas help and you find an enjoyable craft to do with your kids...
My friend did this with both my kids years ago and to this day I save the handprints. You have your child put a handprint on white fabric or muslin. Then once it is dry you put the fabric in an embroidry hoop and trim the excess. Hot glue some pretty lace or for boys you can put some cars or tractors around the outside. Write the date on the fabric with permanent marker. These make great gifts for family members. Also you can follow up every 2-3 years and then you have the steps.
There is a WONDERFUL webpage that I use for the children I watch (also 2yrs old). It is http://www.first-school.ws/ It has a TON of awsome activities on there for fun and learning. You can make letter books, and holiday crafts.... pretty much anything you could want is there.
Have fun!
also- I made a hand wreath with my daughter, and my mom did it at her school where she works with kids 18months-three years. You just get a big piece of paper and put green hand prints in a circle (fingers out) then you have him put three red dots (finger prints) at the end of each hand. I put a picture of my daughter in the middle.
Here is an Idea I did with my daughter. If you get some paint ( like tempra paint) you can take your son's foot (bare footed) and make a raindeer on felt. You dip his foot in the paint and then on the felt and do the same for his hands. He can glue a pom pom on for the nose and wiggle eyes. his hands are the antlers. We had alot of fun doing this and it is an idea that you can do together and also have a wonderful memory of the size if his hands and foot when he was just 2.
How about have your child make a hand print from paint or ink on a piece of paper. When it dries cover it with contact paper trim it down and you have a coaster. You can have them make several to give to relatives!
I found this site that would be great for your son. Just click on this link that I have provided click on the crafts by age. Hope that this helps.
D.
