Crafts and projects that focus on your preschool-aged child

Posted in crafts
by Lorain County Moms

By Catherine Newman and Jodi Butler, Disney FamilyFun magazine

Here are a bunch of homemade projects that help decorate your child’s room, create memories, and give them a creative way to keep busy.

Framed name

Add some whimsy to your child’s room with a personalized sign that makes the most of your craft supplies. First, trim a piece of poster board to fit a frame (we used a 10- by-20-inch shadow box). Next, use a pencil to lightly write your tot’s name on the poster board. Glue various craft materials over the letters or have your preschooler help. When the glue dries, frame the sign.

Letter-Perfect Wall Art: Lovely Letter

Here’s a clever way to showcase photos of your little one _ and help him learn the first letter of his name. To make the cutout, type your child’s first initial in a word-processing program, then blow it up to 600 points. Print the letter on an 8{- by 11-inch sheet of card stock and cut it out with a craft knife. Arrange your photos under the opening as shown, then tape them in place on the back of the card stock and frame it.

Tester’s tip: Paint rollers help young artists apply paint quickly and evenly.

Day-in-the-Life Video

We all try to preserve our children’s monumental firsts on film, but for former FamilyFun staffer Alix Kennedy the smaller moments of life with little ones are just as special. In fact, she still gets a bit teary-eyed recalling the day her husband, James, filmed a video of their son, Jack, as a baby. “It was just so unbelievably tender,” she says.

The couple picked a typical day to record, and James shot a few minutes of footage every hour or so, capturing all the little rituals: bringing Jack into bed in the morning, bathing him, playing with him. “What’s most memorable isn’t always the milestone or the big event. It’s the simple things, the utterly everyday stuff that changes so quickly that you forget it even happened,” she says.

Alix and James made their video when Jack was just 3 months old, but you can film your child at any age, or even make it an annual event. Just be sure to pick a day that involves regular routines, then go ahead and record it all. That weepy evening meltdown will bring a smile to your face one day.

Cardboard Coloring Pad

Inspired by an idea from our reader Elisabeth Wagner, of Elgin, Ill., this simple recycling project transforms an empty cereal box into a stroller-friendly art station.

To make one, cut the front and back covers off a large cereal box (we used an 18-ounce box) and tape the pieces together on three sides, as shown. Punch two holes at the top for threading ribbon, then punch corresponding holes in a stack of coloring pages or recycled office paper. Fill the pocket with some of the paper and tie the rest on the front. When your child needs a clean sheet, simply untie the ribbon and replace the decorated pages with new ones.

On our website:  For more of our favorite homemade mementos, go to FamilyFun.com and search for “preserving childhood memories.”

Download this: For a great selection of coloring pages, go to FamilyFun.com and click on “Printables.”

For more decorating ideas, go to FamilyFun.com and search for “nursery decor.”