Kids Crafts

If you have kids, you probably already know there's nothing they love more than kids crafts. No matter the age of your children, there is a craft project that you can work on together. Crafts teach kids basic skills such as following directions, planning, math, seeing a project through from beginning to end and in the proper order, as well as the skills involved in the craft itself. Working together with kids on a craft project fosters communication, builds creativity (for you and your children) and provides lasting memories that you and your kids will cherish.

But if you’re new to crafting with kids, it can be a little daunting. Young children especially are skilled at producing chaos in the face of our most structured plans. Here are some tips to help you craft with your kids.

Plan Ahead for Making Kids Crafts

I know I just said kids are great at destroying plans, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make plans. If you have a particular craft in mind to work on, such as a gift for the grandparents for Christmas, you need to know exactly what you want to make and everything that is involved.

This means that if you are following another person’s project you need to read through all the instructions and gather all the materials together before you start working. Kids get frustrated easily and they won’t have a good time if you have to keep running around the house to find the glue, the glitter, the scissors, or whatever else you need for the project.

Cover up

Designate a working area in your home, if you don’t have a designated kids craft room or corner. Cover the table, countertop, or whatever other flat surface you have, with newspaper or butcher’s paper. Tape it to the underside of the table or use a large binder clip to hold the paper down.

If the project includes paint, make sure you and your child have on appropriate clothing. You might also want to keep a wet rag handy just in case.

Be Patient

Especially when teaching children a new technique, craft time can be a little frustrating. It’s not always easy to get how to do something on the first try. Your child may become frustrated and not want to try any more. That’s OK. You can always try again later, or simply accept that crochet or beading is not that child’s passion.

Also be patient in terms of the amount of time you allow for a project. Don’t schedule craft time for right before you’re going to have people over for dinner if you need to spread out a bunch of fabric. You can reasonably assume that a project will take longer than the instructions say. You don’t want to rush your little crafter, or he or she might start to think that crafting is stressful, high-pressure and not very fun at all.

Be Willing to Experiment

Just because you picked out what you think will be the perfect project for you and your child, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t let creativity take over. If your child wants to do something a little different or explore the project in a different way, let them.

Of course this doesn’t work as well for projects like knitting and cross stitch that require certain techniques, but if the project isn’t needed for a gift by all means let the child find his or her own way through it. They might just develop a really cool technique and teach you something about the craft you thought you knew so well.

Have Fun with Kids Crafts!

Crafting with your kids is a really special time for both of you. You get to pass on a new skill or share with them something that you love to do and they get to make things they enjoy and pass on the love of crafting to the next generation.

The best advice for crafting with kids is to try to remember how much fun you had as a kid raiding your mother’s craft area. You got messy and did things you probably weren’t supposed to do and had a whole lot of fun.

Bring that attitude of play to your craft time with your kids and you will all have a great time and make some wonderful things (as well as wonderful memories).

Visit LoveToKnow Kids for more kids activity and project ideas.