It’s Autumn in my neck of the woods, making it a great time to read children’s books about autumn and the changing colors of the leaves with the little ones in my care. I also had the kids practice their scissors skills while making autumn trees out of construction paper. I recommend reading children’s books […]
No-Sew Felt Hand Puppets
Always allow the children in your care to do as much of their craft projects that they can do safely by themselves. The 7-year-old in my care cut her own bunny and dog puppet templates and decorated them by herself. It’s fine that the puppet templates don’t match perfectly since she has pride in her […]
Flextangle
By Mini Mad Things I found this fun craft project to do with the kids in the Mini Mad Things web site. It’s super easy to purchase the craft for just one dollar and print. Head on over to the Mini Mad Things web site to see how to make this neat project. You Will […]
Cardboard Clothespin Clips
If you need a boredom buster, these do-it-yourself clips made from cardboard will keep boys and girls happily busy. I cut out shapes from cardboard found in the recycling bin at the home where I work and provided plenty of paint, markers, and glitter glue pens for the children to decorate the shapes to make […]
Origami Butterflies
A girl I babysit on the weekends loved making these origami butterflies I found for free on the itsalwaysautumn web site. I simply printed the two templates and allowed her to color them in with her favorite markers. The instructions on how to fold the butterflies is available on the itsalwaysautumn web site. You Will […]
Tulip® Tie-Dye Shirts
Kids love tie-dying shirts each summer. I used the Tulip® Block Party One-Step Tie-Dye® Kit with the kids to make these shirts. Stocked with 8 must-have shades of One-Step Dye (128 ounces) in a bright rainbow palette: 8 (16-oz.) XL dye bottles (yellow, orange, red, pink, purple, blue, turquoise, and green), plus gloves, rubber bands, […]
Animal Clothespin Puppets
Here’s a quick and easy project to make with the kids in your care. Simply print the animal templates onto heavyweight paper and cut them out. Attach the top and bottom of the heads to clothespins to make puppets that can open their mouths. You Will Need: Puppet TemplatesPrinterHeavyweight PaperScissorClothespinsHot Glue What to Do: 1. […]
Painting Sea Shells
I allow children in my care to collect a few shells every summer at the beach and take them home to paint them. If you can’t visit the beach you can buy shells online. Older children can also use pencils and Sharpie markers to help decorate sea shells. Kids can make pendants and hair clips […]
Kool-Aid Play Dough
The children in my care love making homemade play dough and this week we made this great scented Kool-Aid play dough from the Hoosier Homemade web site. Also be sure to try out making other homemade play dough recipes including: Jell-O play dough, frosting play dough, edible peanut butter play dough, cream of tartar play […]