Simple Arts & Crafts Activities To Do With Kids
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With the weather getting colder and the holidays coming up (hellllo, daycare/school closures), finding fun and engaging activities to do with your kids indoors is key. There is only so long you can hang out playing with the same toys before everyone starts to go stir crazy, no matter how many toys you have.
I am not naturally crafty, so when I bought a book on activities to do with my daughter as she was entering toddlerhood and flipped open to Sew your own finger puppets in just 42 simple steps!, I was like oh hell no. My sewing abilities peaked in my 7th grade Home Ec class and I have barely sewn a button on a shirt since. I do enjoy doing crafty little activities with my daughter, though, so I set out to find some things we could do that were engaging yet easy to execute.
Here are a few favorites, and I’ll keep adding to this blog as I discover more, so keep checking back! If you have any others to add, please feel free to share them in the comments below.
Crayon Molds
This is one of my all-time favorites, and it’s good for a wide range of ages. You know how kids, for whatever reason, enjoy peeling and breaking crayons? This started when my daughter was around 2-2.5, and I was like whyyyyyyyy. Instead of throwing out all of the pieces when they become unusable, you can now put that strange behavior to work and make a wonderful craft with them! Get a silicone crayon mold in whatever shape your child would enjoy (a few favorites around here are unicorns, hearts, cars, and the alphabet) and a big box of crayons and let them peel and break away. Decide if you want to make shapes of a single color or let them get creative by putting different colors together and seeing what happens. Then place the silicone molds onto a baking sheet and bake for 10 min at 350° F. Voila, fun shaped crayons!
Bathtub Painting
Painting in the bathtub is another favorite and a great way to kill a good chunk of time on a weekend. Strip your child down and put them into the bathtub with washable paint, paint brushes and a paint pad, or finger paints and finger paint paper, and let them go at it. Then clear away their art supplies and hang those masterpieces up to dry, fill the tub, and wash them and the tub clean. It’s a fun way to let your child get messy in a controlled environment and without worrying about paint your floor or walls. The only thing to be careful of is that some tubs can get slippery if the paint doesn’t all make it onto the paper, so just make sure your child stays sitting or support them if they need to stand up for any reason. (Also, don’t be alarmed if your bathtub looks like a Dexter kill scene.)
Laminated Bookmarks
Once your child is old enough to be read chapter books at night, you’re going to need some bookmarks! This pack of 24 color-your-own bookmarks is great, and your child will love both coloring them and sticking them in the book to hold your place each night. I like to use these fine washable markers with them – and yes, I now buy them in packs of 40, because my kids inevitably leave the tops off some and I hate to be without purple in a crucial coloring moment. Plus, once you get into coloring these bookmarks alongside your child, you will want more than just 8 colors to choose from (trust me, I speak from experience).
Now, simply coloring the bookmarks is fun and great – but if you want to take this craft to the next level, invest in a laminator (and a ton of laminating pouches). I am embarrassed to say that my laminator sat in the box for a good eight months before I worked up the courage to try it, and once I did – not only did I realize just how easy it was to use – but also how satisfying it was to immortalize artwork. Now the bookmarks that my daughter and I colored will last through more than the Magic Tree House series – and more importantly, will last through her little brother’s curiosity.
Rock Painting
I started doing this with my daughter when she was three, and it’s an activity that even her 10-year-old cousin enjoyed doing with her. Ok, even her 40something-year-old mother enjoyed doing with her. This rock painting kit is great because it comes with everything you need for a good intro into the wonderful world of painting rocks. At that age, my daughter’s rocks were mostly just swirls of color, and I attempted to copy a few of the designs featured. (I could never get the transfers to work well, so we stuck to just the paint.) Once you blow through those starter supplies, you can buy extra rocks and acrylic paint (or acrylic paint pens are fun too). And don’t forget the smocks and splat mat! Note that acrylic paint does stain, so you don’t want to wear anything you care too much about, even with a smock.
Once your rocks are dry, you can place them decoratively around your lawn/garden or on a windowsill if you live in an apartment. The rocks also make for a great treasure hunt inside the house – have your child stay in one room and hide them in another for them to find. This is an activity you can do over and over, since they never seem to grow tired of it!
Cookie Decorating
Cookie decorating isn’t just for THE holidays – it’s good for ANY holiday! You can buy cookie cutters for Valentine’s Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving/Fall, or favorite shapes for a random Sunday. Sometimes I even just pick up a cookie decorating kit from Trader Joe’s or Costco if I see one, but if I’m feeling extra motivated or am looking for a longer activity, this sugar cookie recipe is literally the best ever (quick, easy to roll, and no chilling required). Buy whatever sprinkles or decorating icing you like from the grocery store, and you have yourself a fun afternoon activity. Since we try to be a healthy-ish household, I will typically let my daughter pick one cookie to eat after we make them, and then I put the rest away out of sight. She forgets about them surprisingly quickly…which also means more for Mommy.
Wall or Floor Coloring
Give your child an alternative to coloring on the walls by taping up a giant piece of paper on the wall! You’ll want a jumbo paper roll so you don’t find yourself taping together a hundred 8x10 sheets, plus painter tape (I’m a sucker for the multi-colored packs). You can help to start your child off with a theme – e.g., draw the outlines of a garden or the ocean – and let them add to it. Or just give them a blank slate and see what happens. Just make it very clear to your child that the crayons/markers must stay INSIDE the tape. I would still make sure it’s all washable supplies and have a Magic Eraser on hand just in case.
It’s also fun to do this on the floor – same idea with the jumbo roll and painter’s tape. You can trace your child’s body and let them decorate it, trace footprints and handprints, or let them trace you if you’re feeling daring.
In addition to these ideas, Target and Amazon sell a bunch of ready-to-go craft kits, so you can pick out ones that look age-appropriate and interesting for your child. My daughter loves making jewelry, so I have purchased my fair share of beaded necklace kits. And she loves anything involving painting, so we’ve decorated a piggy bank and a bird house, among other things. Ours look absolutely nothing like the model, but who cares when you’re having fun and chewing up two hours on a weekend!