Did you also do a lot of crafts and painting together with children during Advent? In many families, but also in the kindergarten, the production of banner pictures, paintings, pendants and co. around the theme of Christmas was in full swing in the last weeks.
But even after this intense time, there are still numerous craft ideas waiting to be tried out by you that fit wonderfully into the cold season.
Because crafting is more than just a seasonal pastime!
Crafting is fun, lived community, deceleration and creativity! It has a positive influence on child development and playfully promotes numerous motor as well as cognitive skills.
Like cutting and gluing, for example. If a child cuts out different shapes and then glues them on, it trains fine motor skills as well as eye-hand coordination. In addition, concentration, endurance and imagination are required.
And crafting provides conversation!
Who of us does not know this? You sit together at the craft table and it starts: “Can you pass me the scissors, please?”, “What color did you choose?” or “I want to cut out a really big circle”.
Doing crafts together provides plenty of opportunities to ask questions, explain things, or tell stories. In this way, the child’s language development is also promoted along the way.
Interfere less, let them do more!
Nothing is more beautiful than being able to give free rein to your own imagination when crafting. That’s why it’s important that you give the child a framework in which he can express himself creatively and try things out. Provide the appropriate materials and prepare the workplace so that you have to intervene as little as possible. In addition, always select the craft ideas according to the respective age and developmental stage of the child, otherwise frustration can quickly arise.
You should also hold back on well-intentioned advice or improvements. When a child presents his or her completed work with shining eyes and full of pride, the honest recognition and appreciation by parents or educators contributes significantly to strengthening the child’s self-confidence.
From theory to practice: 3 winter craft ideas!
You’re really in a crafting mood now? Then we have three winter craft ideas for you here, which you can easily implement with children. In making our selection, we made sure that as wide an age range as possible could participate and that the children would be exposed to a variety of craft materials and methods.
Winterize windows
Our first craft idea for the upcoming winter months is to paint windows together. Whether winter landscape, ice skating rink or snowmen – there are no limits to creativity here. And the beauty is that all ages can be wonderfully included, especially in kindergarten. In addition, all that is needed for implementation are suitable colors such as finger paints, Window Color or window crayons.
Make snowmen
Our second wintry craft idea uses scissors and glue to bring lots of snowmen to life. You will also need craft cardboard and absorbent cotton.
This is how it works:
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Cut out 3 different sized circles from sturdy cardboard.
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Cover with white absorbent cotton.
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Cut out headgear, face and co. of the snowman from craft cardboard and glue on.
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Depending on the age, the 3 circles can either be threaded onto a string or glued together.
Beeswax candles roll
Light in the dark season brings our third craft idea. All you need are thin sheets of beeswax, wicks and scissors.
This is how it works:
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Slightly warm beeswax sheets that they are more malleable. (e.g. with a hair dryer)
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Cut the but to the desired length. This must always be longer than the plate, so that it looks out later!
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Place the wick on the outer edge and roll up as tightly as possible.
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For variations, for example, cut the wax plate diagonally and then roll up diagonally.
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For decorating, you can cut out shapes from the beeswax sheets using cookie cutters, for example, or simply cut them out. Then slightly warmed stick on the finished candles.
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If you like to add color, you can also melt leftover wax crayons and use them to decorate.
We hope you enjoy crafting together and look forward to seeing photos of your completed works in the comments!
