Bunny Ears Hat

What kid doesn’t like bunnies — especially when Easter is right around the corner? I found this project at beafunmum.com and the 7-year-old child I care for made these bunny ears hat out of a paper plate all by herself. If you want the hat to be a snug fit for a particular child’s head, […]

Peeps Chicken Coop

I always dye eggs for Easter with the children in my care but this year we made the Peep Chicken Coop as well. The children loved using the sugar cookie panels, Peeps chicks, premade icing, and assorted candies to make this holiday chicken coop. You don’t see all the sugar cookies in our coop because […]

Paper Bunny Purse

Children don’t have to celebrate Easter to love bunnies. This is a simple craft to make with little ones they can wear as a purse or hang in their bedroom or playroom as a decoration. I found this idea at mermablog web site. You Will Need: Two Paper PlatesSafety ScissorsMarkers and CrayonsStaplerHot Glue GunRibbon or […]

Spring Blossoms

It’s spring and the children I care for have enjoyed finding the new blossoms of yellow forsythia, pink cherry trees, and white apricot trees. Here are some easy art projects for the children to make their own spring blossoms with tissue paper and popcorn. Click the links to see how to make the projects. Forsythia […]

Perler Beads

As this photo shows, one of my Nanny Kids loves Perler Beads. She spends hours and hours making beautiful patterns. For children with great fine motor skills Perler Beads are the best boredom buster ever. The girl in my care used the Sunny Days Perler Beads Kit and Perler Beads Flower Madness to make these […]

Make Collages with “Perfect Square” by Michael Hall

Perfect Square is a square book about a square that undergoes many changes of shape and of color. The square starts out as a red, four cornered shape. However, in the pages it is cut into tiny pieces, ripped into strips, and painted a variety of colors. With each new challenge from the unseen force, […]

Playing Dress Up with “Collage Workshop for Kids” by Shannon Merenstein

Collage Workshop for Kids: Rip, snip, cut, and create with inspiration from The Eric Carle Museum by Shannon Merenstein is an excellent resource for caregivers and is a pleasure to share with children from toddlers to primary school-age children. Artist Shannon Merenstein wrote the book with the art educators from the Eric Carle Museum. Eric […]

“Fiona Flamingo” by Rachael Urrutia Chu and Craft

My favorite activity to do with children is help them make a craft or do a fun activity that corresponds to their favorite children’s books. My Nanny Kid loves “Fiona Flamingo” by Rachael Urrutia Chu and enjoyed made her own Fiona with paper plates and colorful tissue paper. There is also a “Fiona Flamingo Coloring […]

“Playing with Lanterns” and Make Paper Lanterns for Chinese New Year

The Lantern Festival is held on the 15th day of the Chinese New Year holiday. It marks the last day of traditional Chinese New Year celebrations. My six-year-old nanny kid and I made several simple and colorful paper lanterns to adorn her room in preparation for Chinese New Year. In snowy northern China, children celebrate […]

Sewing Paper Plate Snowflakes

My 8-year-old Nanny Kid constantly asks me to find her lacing projects to do. I found this lacing snowflake activity on the iheartcraftythings web site for beginner sewers. I love how creative Caroline from the web site was by finding this design on a paper plate at Target and thought to make into a sewing […]