Looking for fun things to do with the kids??? Each week we feature fun things to
do with the kids that are family friendly, fun and sometimes taste great too!
You can always submit your ideas too, just email jeni@kxkc.com
Sensory Discovery Bottle
*small plastic water bottle
*small sensory objects such as beads, pompoms, ribbons, and dice
Fill container half full of water. Let the little one choose their favorite objects & put into bottle. Finish filling the bottle with water. Place a drop of hot or super glue inside the lid before screwing on tightly. Remove any excess glue & let set before giving to your child to play with!
Apple Art Bowling
- 10 plastic water bottles
- Colorful paint
- White butcher paper
- apples
Set up 5-6 feet of butcher paper outside. Add a tiny bit of water to each bottle – just enough to fill the bottom. Set up the bottles on one end of the butcher paper in a bowling formation. Add stripes of paint on various parts of the butcher paper. Have your child try to knock down the “pins” by rolling the apples through the paint. Messy fun!!!
Washer Necklaces
Supplies:
*Washers from hardware store, ranging in size 1.5” to 2” diameter
*Nailpolish
*Yarn, baker’s twine or suede rope (about a yard for each necklace)
*Beads
*Sewing needles (the larger size tapestry needles work well)
Start by painting the washers with your favorite nail polish color. After the washers are dry, it’s time to string and bead them. This is where you can get really creative ~ endless possibilities!
Bottle Cap Zipper Pulls
Round Stickers
Painted Bottle Caps
Mod Podge Dimensional Magic
Key Rings
Hammer & Large Nails
Wood Board
Have the kiddos put a sticker on the inside of a bottle cap. Then hammer the bottle cap flat. Next, nail the bottle caps to the wood board (place the nail where you want the key ring to be – the purpose of this is to make the hole). Then cover each with modge podge while still on the board (this keeps the hole from clogging). Allow to dry completely. Attach key ring & add to your new backpack!
Notebook Tee
Grab a red & a blue Sharpie and make a notebook t-shirt to wear for back-to-school. You can even send along a marker to-go to have kids sign it! Perfect for kids starting a new school to help make new friends ~ could even start the day with your child’s name already written on the first line!
Back To School Candy Pencils
- Rolo Candy
- Hershey Chocolate Kisses
- Yellow scrapbook paper
- Pink scrapbook paper
- Black and Blue Marker
- Aluminum Foil
- Adhesive – we used tape, Glue Stick, Tape Runner
- Scissors
- Tags – string & paper
First make some tags – be creative as you want! Be sure to run a string or ribbon through each one. Set aside.
Now for the candy. Use a roll of Rolo candy, or you can tap together 7 individually wrapped Rolos.
- Cut a piece of yellow scrapbook paper – 3 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches…(if you are using individual wrapped Rolos, you’ll need to cut about 1/8 inch off the end to make it fit better
- Cut a piece of pink scrapbook paper – 3 1/2 x 1/2 inch
- Cut a piece of aluminum foil – 3 1/2 x 1 inch
Using adhesive, add the pink paper to the yellow
Foil Strip
- Fold the foil into thirds, making it about 3/8 inch wide {it doesn’t have to be exact}
- Tape it down onto the yellow paper
Then, with a marker, write your First Day of School greeting in the middle of the yellow paper. Then using a black marker, add the tip to the chocolate kiss, making it look like a pencil.
Next is the eraser…cut a 1 inch square from the pink scrapbook paper, attach with adhesive, then trim around the edges.
Then add the Chocolate Kiss in for the Pencil tip with a little adhesive, and tie your tag on!
Bubble Wand
Take a handful of colorful straws and rubberband them together. Dip one end in your bubble solution and blow from the other! Instant bubble wand that creates unique bubbles!
Glow Bubbles
Cut open glow sticks & pour them into bubble solution: Glow in the Dark Bubbles!
Star-Spangled Slime
You Will Need: Liquid starch, Clear school glue, Star confetti
Pour 2 bottles of glue into the bottom of a large bowl. Slowly add the liquid starch, a tiny bit at a time. Stir for a while after each bit that you add. (About 1/4 to 1/3 cup of liquid starch total). Stir together before adding more starch. Keep adding it, a little at a time, until the mixture begins to stick together and congregate in the center of the bowl. Continue stirring and adding starch until bits of the goop no longer sticks to your fingers when you touch it. Add the star confetti as you knead for a few minutes to get a smooth, uniform consistency. Then STRETCH!!!
Balloon Table Tennis
All you need is a balloon, 2 paper plates, and 2 popsicle sticks (preferably the big ones!)
Glue a popsicle stick to the back of each paper plate and let dry – these are your “paddles”. Blow up a balloon & let the kids enjoy hours of table tennis without breaking any of your valuables! Perfect rainy day fun 🙂
Water Pistol Target Range
Stack some paper cups into a pyramid shape. Then use water pistols to try to shoot them down! No water pistols handy? Spray bottles filled with water would work well too.
Cave of Stars
You will need sponges, scissors, & fishing line.
*Cut all sponges into fourths lengthwise.
*Stack 2 layers of 4 sponges – Mix it up, have fun with the colors!
*Tie fishing line around sponges as tightly as possible.
*Soak in water, then WATER BOOOOOMB!!!
Marble Race Track
Use a serrated knife to cut a pool noodle in half. Then use toothpicks to secure each half of the noodle side by side. Now it’s time to get your kids involved. Have them make a starting line & a finish line, along with any other accessories they would like, such as flags. Then add a box to the bottom of the track to catch all your marbles and you’re ready to race!
Patriotic Windsocks
What you need:
Embroidery hoops
Plastic tablecloths
Fishing line
Scissors
Cut the plastic tablecloths into strips. Fold each strip in half and place with a loop underneath the hoop. Thread the long ends through the loop and pull gently until tightened. You can alternate colors or let the kids create their own designs. Attach some fishing line to the top and hang! (Save it for the 4th of July!)
Plastic Cup Wind Chimes
What you’ll need:
- paper or plastic cup
- hole punch
- string
- cord or twine
- beads
- washers
- markers
- jewels, sequins or stickers
- Use the hole punch to punch holes around the bottom of the cup.
- Cut one 6-inch piece of string for every hole. Thread a string through each hole and tie the string to the cup.
- Thread some beads on to the string, then tie a metal washer to the end of the string.
- Decorate the sides of the cup with markers, jewels, sequins or stickers.
- Turn the cup upside down. Use scissors to cut an “X” in the bottom of the cup.
- Feed the cord through the “X” and tie a knot on the inside of the cup. Use the cord to hang the wind chime.
Toilet Roll Tulips
You will need:
- Toilet paper rolls (one per tulip)
- Card stock(green, yellow, orange, and red – or any other color blooms you’d like!)
- Scissors
- Stapler
- Glue
Take a toilet roll and cut the green cardstock the length and width of the roll. Staple to the toilet roll. Cut two slits at the top ends of the toilet roll, one on each side.
Cut out the leaves and flower of the tulip (leaves will be green, flower is of your color choice).
Slide the flower through the slits at the top of the roll.
Glue the leaves to the front of the toilet paper roll.
Voila! Perfect for Mothers Day!!!
Coffee Filter Butterfly
You’ll Need:
- Coffee Filters
- Watercolor paints
- colored pipe cleaners
Grab a single coffee filter and open it up, spreading it flat on your painting surface. Let the kids pick their favorite colors and go wild! Paint the whole surface of the filter, and be sure to have something underneath as the water colors will bleed through the filter. Let the filters dry. Once the filter is completely dry, gather it in the middle and pinch the back side. To make the body, take a pipe cleaner, fold it in half and slide it upwards, positioning it so that it is in the center of the coffee filter. The part of the pipe cleaner that is folded over should hold the butterfly together, while the two open ends of the pipe cleaner should be facing up, like antennas. Twist around a couple of times at the top to secure. You can then fan out the wings and bend or curl the ends of the antennas to add a finishing touch. Curl the ends of the pipe cleaner with a pencil or crayon. You can even decorate more if you wish, adding eyes, little pom poms, rhinestones, etc.
Magnetic Decor
Hot glue magnets to flower heads or other lightweight ‘pretties’ your child likes. Place thumbtacks on a reachable area of their bedroom wall. Let them decorate and redecorate over & over again without damaging the walls!
Minion Easter Eggs
Mis-match the halves of yellow and blue plastic easter eggs. Stick or glue googly eye(s) on & decorate with a black marker and/or ribbon! Cutest egg of 2014!
Easter Popsicle Stick Puzzles
Supplies Needed: paint, tape, a black sharpie, popsicle sticks, glue, and a pom pom.
Start by putting the Popsicle sticks side by side, put a piece of tape across, and number them with a marker. Draw an egg shape onto the other side of the popsicle sticks and make designs. (just in case the kids get stuck doing the puzzle)
Draw an egg shape onto the other side of the popsicle sticks and make designs.
Do the same with the bunny shape and paint it pink. Put a dab of glue on the middle popsicle stick and put a white pom pom on for the tail!
After they dry, it’s time to mix up the sticks and put it all back together!
Paper Plate Easter Baskets
Supplies Needed:
paper plate
ribbon
tissue paper, sequins, ans/or rhinestones
scissors
glue
paint brush
small dish
hole punch
stapler
Start by cutting your tissue paper into manageable pieces and pouring your glue into the dish. Cover the plate in glue spreading it thin. Decorate with tissue paper pieces, sequins, & such. Let dry, then cut plate in half. Staple the two sides together and punch a hole on either side adding ribbon for a handle. This basket isn’t big enough for eggs but is perfect for little ones to play with!
Easter chickies
Just two pom poms, googly eyes, pipe cleaner feet and beak, and a small feathery tail.
Handprint Flower Bouquet
Get out the finger-paint, we’re making spring flowers with our hands! Let the kids cover their palms with paint & press to the top 1/3 of the paper in their favorite colors ~ these are the blooms. Then they can make a fist & cover the bottom with green. Have them start at the bottom of the handprints & drag to the bottom of the page to make the stems. You’ll have a handprint flower bouquet from your favorite blooms!
Leprechaun Hat Treats
You will need:
Green sugar cookies
Green icing
Small, clear party cups
Green & brown M&Ms
Directions: Let the kids fill the party cups 3/4 full of green M&Ms & finish filling with brown M&Ms. Then make a circle of green icing on top of the sugar cookies. Turn upside down on top of cup o’ M&Ms. Carefully flip the whole thing over & there’s your Leprechaun Hat! Perfect treat for school parties!
Clouds
Gather the following items
- Cotton Batting
- Paper Lanterns
- Battery Powered LED lights
- Hot Glue Gun
Instructions
1. Pull at the cotton batting until it looks fluffy, light, and cloud-like.
2. Hot glue the batting to the outside of the paper lantern in various places, making sure it’s fluffed to your liking.
3. Place your LED lights inside each lantern.
4. If you’re using small, battery powered LED lights, you can affix them to the internal structure of the lantern and hang it wherever you like.
Mardi Gras Masks
Teacher Valentine Flowers
You will need:
Floral tape
Fabric flowers
Ball point pens
Hot glue gun
Hot glue the fabric flowers to the tops of a few ball point pens. Then let the kiddos wrap the pens with floral tape to make them look like stems. Put in a jar with pebbles and voila a bouquet that won’t wilt!
Conversation Heart Picture Frame
What You’ll Need:
- Unfinished wood frames
- Craft paint (Glitter paint for the girls!)
- Candy conversation hearts
- Tacky glue or glue gun
Start by painting the blank frame. Maybe let the kids paint their frames a solid color first and then top it with a glittery layer.
Brush a thin layer of tacky glue on to the face of the frame, and start gluing on the candy hearts. Make sure that the layer of glue isn’t too thick or else the candies run the risk of melting/dissolving in the glue if it takes too long to dry. Alternately, a low temperature glue gun also works really well to adhere the conversations hearts to the frames.
Allow to dry, add a photo, and ta da – you’re done!
Homemade Rubber Slime
You will need: liquid starch, glue (Elmer’s Glue-All is a good one), and food coloring
Pour some glue into a glass bowl and add food coloring. Mix well. Then add some liquid starch. Don’t use too much at first until you get a hang of the mixture. About 1 part glue to 1/2 – 3/4 parts starch. Start mixing – It will get hard to use a spoon or a stick so you’ll have to start using your hands. The mixture will start changing as the starch and glue mix together. Mix until it’s no longer sticky (doesn’t make your hands messy) and is the consistency you want. If it’s not quite right add a bit more glue or starch.
Long Distance Valentine Hug
You will need:
pink or red construction paper
a pretty ribbon
scissors
a hole punch
tape
this special note: A valentine hug to you…
Wrap these hands around you whenever I am not there, so you can have a hug from me anytime.
- Trace both hand prints on construction paper
- Cut out the hand prints and make a hole
- Measure the arm span of your child and cut the ribbon in the same lengths
- Tie the hands onto the ends of the ribbon (you can enforce the paper with tape, that it will not rip) or glue them together.
- Have your kids handwrite the note on a piece of paper
- Cut out small hearts, make a hole and tie them with extra ribbon onto the string or simply glue them
Squirt Bottle Painting
You will need:
Condiment squirt bottles
Tempera paint
Easel paper
Large box
Valentine Door Hearts
Starting Feb 1st let them wake up to a new heart on their door to something you love about them!
Child Mailbox
Give your child their own mailbox outside their bedroom and leave them letters and tiny presents.
Color-Your-Own Gift Wrap
Gift wrap for kids. Especially useful at huge Christmas parties where they have to wait to open presents!
Popsicle Stick Snowflakes
You will need:
Popsicle sticks
Glue gun
Sparkly pipe cleaners (cut in half)
White paint
Glitter glue
Start by hot-gluing three sticks together to make a snowflake. Then, pop a small hole in the top of one. If you want, paint the snowflakes white. Now take your glitter glue and decorate them however suits your fancy…..Add the pipe cleaner and Voila!
Christmas Tree Cupcakes
- 2 16-ounce cans creamy white frosting or vanilla frosting
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 12 of your favorite cupcakes
- 12 rolled sugar ice cream cones
- Green and brown paste food colorings
- White and/or green edible glitter or sprinkles
- Small pearl candies or other small candie
1. In a large bowl mix Frosting and powdered sugar. Spread a layer of frosting on each Cupcake.
2. Place an ice cream cone upside down on each cupcake.** Tint remaining frosting forest green with green and brown food coloring. Place green frosting in a large pastry bag fitted with a small open star tip. Starting at the bottom of the cones, pipe short bursts of frosting onto the cones to cover completely.
3. Sprinkle edible glitter around rims of cupcakes. Decorate cones with candies
Turkey Napkin Rings
You’ll Need:
- fall-colored pipe cleaners including light brown
- brown and orange construction paper (red if you want to make a waddle)
- googly eyes
- glue stick or glue gun
- paper or cloth napkins
1. Cut brown paper width wise into 2″ strips. Cut as many strips as you need napkin rings. Set aside.
2. Bend pipe cleaners in half and then make two loops to make the feathers. Use ends to wrap everything together so the loops stay closed.
3. Repeat with rest of colors. Using the excess of one colored pipe cleaner, wrap all feathers up together.
4. Using a light brown pipe cleaner, make a circle by spinning the pipe cleaner around in a spiral. Tuck in the end of the pipe cleaner so that it stays together and is not visible.
5. Use glue stick or glue gun and adhere brown circle to the feathers.
6. Grab brown strips of paper and fold in half lengthwise.
7. Wrap around napkin and cut off any excess (ends of paper should overlap by about an inch).
8. Tuck one end of the paper into the other end to secure it.
9. Add a dab of glue on the seam of the tucked in paper and adhere turkey body to the napkin ring.
10. Add googly eyes, beak, and anything else you might want to include onto the face of the turkey!
Turkey Cupcakes
Help them make their favorite cupcakes & ice with chocolate icing. Then decorate with candy corn & candy eyes, using the candy corn as the turkey feathers & beak as shown above!
Pinecone Turkeys
Take the kids on a nature walk and find some pinecones. Grab some felt, feathers, googly eyes and you’re ready.
Cut your feathers in half. Use a small amount of hot glue to glue on the feathers, googly eyes, and beak! Fun craft with the kids and cute table favors for Thanksgiving!
String Cheese Ghosts
Take a black marker & draw eyes and a mouth on the back of string cheese wrappers for a perfect Halloween snack between school and Trick-or-Treating!
Spider Rings
- 1 black pipe cleaner
- 1 skinny orange pipe cleaner
- 1 medium black pom-pom
- 2 small orange googly eyes
- Craft glue
- Scissors
- Glue the googly eyes onto the black pom-pom and set aside to dry.
- Meanwhile, cut the skinny orange pipe cleaner in half. Cut each half into three equal pieces; you should have six pieces all together. Cut two of those pieces in half for a grand total of eight (4 long, 4 short).
- Bend each of the longer pieces in a 90 degree angle, then bend the bottom of one end just a little to create a foot.
- For the smaller pieces, just bend the ends to create a foot.
- Glue the legs to the pom-pom and set aside.
- Wrap the black pipe cleaner around the finger you want to wear your ring on. Twist the two ends together. Glue the spider onto the twisted ends to hide them.
- Set aside to dry completely.
Q-Tip Skeletons
Materials:
- Q-tips (about 20-30)
- white glue
- white paper or skull from a coloring page
- ribbon(optional)
- scissors
- black construction paper
Directions
Prepare your Q-tip bones beforehand. Bend in half for arms and legs. Bend down the corners for the hips, cut off the ends for toes and fingers.
- Pipe glue down the middle of the black paper. Start with the spine and glue on your pieces one by one to build your skeleton.
- Find a skeleton head from a coloring page or cut out a simple one from white paper. Add black lines for teeth and eyes.
- You can even cut & paste a ribbon to make a boy or girl skeleton!
Spider Suckers
You will need:
Lollipops
Black pipe cleaners
Small googly eyes
Center the pipe cleaner around the lollipop stick making sure both sides are even and then twist them tight. Repeat 4 times to make 8 legs. Stick on the googly eyes. Then bend the ends of the pipe cleaners so they look like spider legs! Cute & inexpensive for school treats!
Jack-O-Lantern Tissue
Have the kids help you decorate for Halloween! All you need is some orange, green, and black tissue paper and a glue stick. Have the kids roll toilet paper in a sheet of the orange tissue paper and tuck the ends in the center. Help them cut eyes, nose, & mouth out of the black. Then use the glue stick to apply the face. You can twist a bit of the green tissue paper to make a stem to stick in the top! Cute way to dress up spare rolls of tissue for the Fall!
Paper Plate Spider Web
• Sturdy white paper plates
• Hole puncher
• White yarn
• Bobby pins
• Spider rings
What To Do:
• Punch holes around the plate like above
• Attach one end of yarn through first hole and tie off
• Attach bobby pin to other end and weave the yarn through the hole going across the plate back and forth, tie off end when all yarn is gone
• Cut ring apart in the middle and attach to the web
Leaf Puppets
- leaves
- wiggly eyes (self adhesive ones, otherwise you will need Elmer’s glue)
- craft sticks
- hot glue gun or Elmer’s glue
Pancake Bites
Use your favorite pancake mix and pour into muffin tins. Then let the kids add fruit, nuts, sausage, bacon, chocolate chips ~ whatever they choose. Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes. Awesome for school mornings!
Halloween Eyes
Laser Maze
Tape crepe paper to either side of a hallway. Tape them high, tape them low and all ways in between. You may have to do some adjusting as they actually navigate through it. You want it to have a level of difficultly but you also want it to be doable so they can feel successful at it!
Bathtub Fishing
Bathtub Fishing is fun for kids of all different ages! It’s so simple and surprisingly not very messy either. Add blue food coloring to the water as you filled up the bathtub. Then toss in your kid’s magnets to the water and gather some toys that match the theme and place those in as well. Tie some yarn and a magnet to any ‘stick’ shaped toy around the house and they’ll be ‘Gone Fishin’!
Back To School Owl
Great first day of school project. Look “Whooooo” is in our class! With their name on the front, to hang outside the classroom. Then use their paint covered hands to teach proper hand washing techniques.
Travel Crayons
Just wash out an empty spice or parmesan cheese container. Cover with paper of choice and let the kids decorate anyway they want! These work great on long trips in the car because they fit in a cup holder.
Masking Tape Racetrack
Help your kids turn a room into a racetrack for their hot wheels with masking tape! You can make passing lanes, dead ends, go up & over couches . . . let them use their imaginations to map it out with you. Then watch them play for hours ~ perfect for a rainy day!
Busy Sticks
1 package of colored craft sticks
1 package of velcro sticky backed dots
Directions:
2 kinds of velcro to make up one set. The rough side, and the soft fuzzy side. The rough side sticks into the fuzzy side.
On one side of your stick, put a “rough” sided dot one at each end of the stick, then flip the stick over and put the “fuzzy” sides on the other side at each end of the stick.
Each stick should now have a “rough” velcro side and a “fuzzy” velcro side.
Store them in a zippy bag & toss them in your purse and you are ready for the next long wait anywhere!
Tutus
You Will Need
1 Pre-made Crochet Headband (This will stretch to fit anywhere from about 12 months to around a size 8 in girls.)
1-3 rolls of 25 yard, 6″ tulle- the more you use, the fluffier and more full the tutu is.
Scissors
A hard cover book to stretch the headband over. It should stretch it, without it being stretched to it’s limits- it should be able to move easily.
- First, you want to decide on the length of the tutu. (It’s easiest to hold the tulle up to the child, from either the waist or the chest, and measure down from there.) Fold it in half before cutting it, to double the length. Cut your tulle to that length until you have a good stash. For dresses, or anything longer than about 8-10″ in length, you will require at least two rolls of tulle. (The longer the tulle, the more you will need.)
- Stretch your head band over the book and adjust it so it’s stretched evenly.
- Fold a length of tulle in half, and pinch the folded side. From there, push it through one of the holes from behind so the loop is poking out the top, visible side of the headband. Using your fingers, spread the loop open so there is a hole. Take the ends of the tulle length, and push them through the loop. Once they are through, carefully tug the length until it ‘ties’ into a tight knot on the headband. Smooth it down, and move on to the next loop. Continue until you have filled that row of holes.
- Once it’s filled out, lay it on a flat surface so that it forms a circle with all the tulle spread out nice and straight. You will want to give it a ‘trim’ to even the strands out. (this is the easiest way to do that.)
- Add a bow if you would like!
4th of July shirts
Lay white shirt flat and place a piece of cardboard inside shirt. Kids put left hand prints in blue fabric paint on the upper left of the shirt, and then paint the red stripes with a foam brush. Let dry & voila ~ ready to celebrate our independence!
Cool Whip Paint
Divide cool whip into small containers. (A muffin tin makes this easy.) Add 1 or 2 drops of food coloring to each container and stir until combined. Then turn your little Picasso loose! (outside is easier for clean-up) You can make them a little table by covering a box with Press & Seal, or just strip them down to their skivvies & use it as body paint!
Pool Noodle Building Blocks
Building and Creating with Pool Noodles- Frugal DIY blocks with endless creative possibilities! Just cut the noodles into round circle shapes with a knife and throw them into the tub with some bubbles. Just like a ball pit at bath time! Annnd, you can sneak in a little math:
- Have your child stack the same color and count them
- Sort the colors into piles and count to see which color pile has more noodles
- Create a bar graph that visually illustrates the difference in the numbers 1-10
- Practice patterning
Frisbee Toss Game
All you need is a shower curtain, some painters’ tape and Frisbees or bean bags. Lay the shower curtain out and tape off a grid like tic tac toe. Then toss the frisbees! The kids can predict where the frisbees will land, they can keep score, and I promise their creative minds will invent their own games! All the while improving their motor skills!
Squirt Gun Science
You will need a pan, baking soda, vinegar , food coloring, a large measuring cup or bowl , protective eye wear and squirt guns. Start by adding food coloring in random dots to your pan. Cover with baking soda. Fill your squirt guns with vinegar. Go outside! Make sure the protective eye wear is on . Ask your child to make a prediction about what will happen. Shoot & watch their amazement at the colored bubbles! They will have fun seeing all the colors emerge and even mix together!
Marble Race Track
Use a serrated knife to cut a pool noodle in half. Then use toothpicks to secure each half of the noodle side by side. Now it’s time to get your kids involved. Have them make a starting line & a finish line, along with any other accessories they would like, such as flags. Then add a box to the bottom of the track to catch all your marbles and you’re ready to race!
Windsocks
Empty container (frosting container used here)
Washi tape
Double-sided tape
Ribbon
Remove the label from your container. If it’s a printed container, you can easily cover with a scrap of fabric. Let the kiddos choose some colored or patterned washi tape & apply to outside of container. Run a strip of 2-sided tape to the inside lip of the container. The kids can then cut different lengths of ribbon and stick onto the 2-sided tape, going all the way around the container. Make a small hole in the top of the container and slip a piece of ribbon through & tie a knot in the end to keep it secure. Hang your windsock & watch it dance!
Birdseed Cakes
Birdseed cakes can be made using shortening and a muffin tray! Heat 1 or more cups of shortening on the stove. When the mixture is more of a liquid consistency, mix in as much birdseed as possible. The seeds should be tightly packed. Usually one full cup should do the trick. Stir the seeds well so they are evenly distributed. Pour the mixture into your muffin tray. Use a straw to make a hole, be sure not to make the hole close to the top or the cake will break. Put your muffin tin in the refrigerator or outdoors until the shortening is rock hard. Tie a ribbon or twine through the hole and you have created a birdseed cake! Hang your cake up on your patio area outdoors, and watch the birds fly in for some grub.
Abstract Art Sculpture
Cut a long piece of thin-gauge wire, and bend it into a hoop shape, then laid it on top of a sheet of clear contact paper with the sticky side facing up. Let your little one sprinke bits of bright tissue paper scraps on top — so colorful & fun! When the entire circle is covered, trim about a 2 inch border around the wire, and make slits every 3 inches or so to wrap the contact paper around the wire to secure. Then arrange your sculpture any way you like!! This is a fun hands-on way for kids to learn about form and balance. And they look pretty cool with a flashlight shining through! You can re-shape your sculpture to make different works of art over and over!
Bumble Bee & Ladybug Bird Feeders
- Scissors
- Wire cutter
- Painter’s tape
- Drill
- Pliers
- Awl
- Small wood saw
- 1 3/8″ dowel
- 1 fiberglass screen
- 1 16-gauge soft brass wire
- 1 package flat washers
- 2 2.5-quart container lids
- 2 1-gallon paint cans
- black spray paint
- yellow spray paint
- red spray paint
- Amazing GOOP 1-ounce contact adhesive and sealant
Remove the handles from the paint cans using pliers.
Drill two small holes in the sides of each can — one near the top and one near the bottom. (You will eventually insert the wires needed to hang the feeders into these holes.)
Spray-paint the cans, lids, and dowel black. Set aside to dry.
Cut four pieces of wire and twist them to form circles — these will serve as the wings. Then cut four pieces of screen to the same size as the wire circles.
Lightly glue the screens to the wire circles. Set aside to dry.
Apply painter’s tape to the bumblebee can where you would like black stripes. Likewise, apply circles of tape to the ladybug can where you’d like black spots. Then apply yellow spray paint to the bee can and red spray paint to the ladybug can. When the paint has dried, remove the painter’s tape.
Cut large holes in the center of the plastic lids.
Glue steel washers just above the large holes in the plastic lids. (These will be the eyes.) Let dry.
Cut the dowel in half. Use an awl to help create holes in which the dowel halves will be placed. Poke these halves into the lids below the large holes created earlier.
Insert the ends of the wings into the holes created when you removed the paint can handles. Then cut additional pieces of wire and insert them into the holes you drilled. (These will be used to hang the feeders.) Finally, put the lids on top of the cans and hang!
Giraffe Craft
- 1 3/8″ dowel rod
- 1 fiberglass screen
- 1 16-gauge soft brass wire
- 1 package flat washers
- 2 2.5-quart container lids
- 2 1-gallon paint cans
- black spray paint
- yellow spray paint
- red spray paint
- Amazing GOOPcontact adhesive and sealant
- Scissors
- Wire cutter
- Painter’s tape
- Drill
- Pliers
- Awl
- Small wood saw
You’ll need:
- paper towel role
- yellow and orange construction paper
- black crayon
- scissors
- glue
- tape
Wrap the paper towel role with a piece of yellow construction paper. Help the little ones cut a head & ear out of construction paper as shown above. Use a black crayon to draw the nose, smile and eye on the giraffe head and lines on the ear. Tape the ear on the inside of the tube so that it sticks out. Tape the head on the body towards the top of the tube under the ear. Cut out spots from orange construction paper (no giraffe spots are the same, so make them all different sizes). Attach the spots to the body with glue all over the giraffe and enjoy!
Fingerpaint Rainbow
Spring showers not only bring flowers, but often rainbows too! Let the kids make their own rainbows with fingerpaint ~ AND you’ll have a keepsake of their little thumbprints!
Flower Straws
You will need:
Tissue paper in spring colors
Drinking straws
Scissors (regular ones work fine, decorative scissors are great, too)
Hole punch
Double sided tape
Cut spring colored petals out of tissue