Crafts to Do with Your Child

Obie Editorial Team

Some of my favorite times hanging out with my grandma when I was little involved crafts. My grandma was an avid crafter and she always tried to include us girls even though we didn’t end up making much more than a string of beads.

Now that it’s winter, you can’t always do your normal outdoor activities. That’s why it important for kids to have creative and fun things to do indoors. For a fun mommy-and-me playdate, think about taking out your favorite crafts and involving your children. All kids love to play with string, beads, paper, and crayons. While you’re quilting, crocheting, or knitting, give your child some of your tools and materials and let them play. If your children are old enough, try to teach them the basics of the craft. My grandma taught me how to crochet when I was eight years old, and by the time I was seven, my mom felt comfortable enough to allow me to use needles for small sewing projects.

For younger children, paper and crayons will be enough to focus their attention. Have them draw you pictures or find some fun cut-out projects you can do together. Right now, paper snowflakes and chains will be a popular project. If your child has never made a paper snowflake, maybe this is the year they finally learn.

Other fun crafting projects can include making homemade play dough, which can be done with only a few ingredients in your kitchen. Or, think about making homemade Christmas tree ornaments. You can do this a few different ways. You can buy clear plastic bulbs and then fill them with paint or glue and glitter, or you can make ornaments out of dough you bake hard in your oven.

You can roll out the dough and use Christmas cookie cutters to make fun shapes. Then simply bake the dough like cookies and when they’re cool, color them with paint, stickers, or even sharpies. Make easy dream catcher ornaments with Popsicle sticks and yarn. Simply glue the Popsicle sticks together in a cross shape and then wind yarn around the stick starting at the middle. Alternate between winding the yarn over and under the Popsicle sticks.

The holidays are the perfect time for crafting, and your children will love the things they create and will also enjoy the time they spend with you. Remember, you’re not only spending quality time with your children, you’re also teaching them valuable skills for later in life.