Crafty Ideas March 2010

Springy Activity 

  Spring break is upon us, which means five fun-filled days of having the kids all to ourselves.  If you’re staying close to home during the break, you might want to have a few clever activities in your back pocket.  Here’s our list of ten fun things you can do with the kids at home!

Ten Springy Activities for Spring Break

Sprout Some Seeds
1. Sprout Some Seeds – fold 2 paper towels in half.  Moisten towels.  Place one on a lunch plate and sprinkle your seeds (such as snowpeas, beans, or squash) on top.  Place second moist towel on top of seeds, and move plate to a draft free location.  Keep towels damp by spraying with water when necessary.  Your seeds should sprout by the end of the week.  If you’ve chosen snowpeas, you can plant them directly in the ground once sprouted!
2.  Wash the windows – this may be work to us adults, but it’s child’s play to the kids!  Minimize the spills by giving them wet cloths and rewetting when necessary, instead of leaving them to their own devices with the water bucket!
Footprint Rainbow Craft 3.  Make rainbow footprints for a treasure hunt – trace footprints in all the colours of the rainbow.  Number them and take turns laying them out to lead to treasure!
4. Decorate a pot and plant something – a great way to play in the dirt without getting TOO dirty!  To decorate, consider markers, sidewalk chalk, stickers, sparkles, paints, etc.
 Count Some Coins 5. Roll some coins – kids love sorting, and the bigger ones can learn about coin value.  Plus, they’d be helping mommy and daddy with the finances!
 Thank You Card 6. Make and send a card – Grandma and Grandpa or that special relative or friend will be thrilled by an unexpected, handmade surprise in the mail!  Get the ball rolling with our selection of Card making Kits
 Orange Peel Bird Feeder 7. Make a bird feeder – we repurposed an orange peel into a feeder.  Simply scoop out half of an orange, let it dry slightly, poke some holes with a skewer, and fill with seed.  String the feeder up in your yard
  8. Build a fort – blankets and chairs and kids, oh my!
 Paint with a flower 9. Paint something unusual – water on tiles, diluted food colouring on bread, or WITH something unusual, such as spring flowers dabbed in paint, toy cars rolled through paint, or bubble wrap as a paint stamper
 10. Go on an ‘I Spy’ walk around the neighborhood – in search of new buds and spring flowers.  Take sketch books in case you feel inspired to draw what you see. 

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May 2009 Crafty Ideas

Signs of Spring

May is the time of year when the outdoors starts buzzing with activity.  Birds are chirping, bees are starting their collection ritual, and caterpillars are making big plans to become butterflies!  Get inspired by nature this month!     

Signs of Spring Collage: 

Go on a walk with your little one and collect some signs of spring, then turn them into a collage.  Some signs of spring to look for include puddles, rain clouds, spring flowers, blossoms, buds on trees, baby birds, caterpillars, and sprouts of new plants through the dirt.  

Supplies: camera, doodle pad and pencil, magazine clippings, found objects from nature (nothing moving or living!), construction paper, glue, crayons or pencil crayons

Directions:  On your nature walk, take photos of the signs of spring, or your child can draw what he or she sees as you walk.  Collect small items that might work in your collage.  At home, create a collage that includes your spring photos and drawings, magazine clippings of spring, and found objects.      

Did you try this craft?  Send us your comments and photos!

Coffee Filter Butterflies:

A simple craft that’s well worth being reminded about.  Our kitchen window is currently home to a few of these little critters!

Supplies: Paper coffee fliters (basket style), colouring supplies such as crayons, pencil crayons, markers, chenille stems (pipe cleaners).  Optional: decorating supplies such as glitter, pompoms, or paper scraps, glue

Directions: Spread the coffee filter out so it lays flat.  Colour the filter using crayons, markers, or pencil crayons.  Add decorations if desired.  When filter is dry, carefully ‘scrunch’ filter at centre, pinching top to bottom.  Filter should now look like two wings, with centre pinched in where a body will be.  To make body, fold chenille stem in half.  Twist the loop end together until half way up the length of folded stem.  Twist tie around centre of coffee filter, and shape top ends of chenille stem into antennae.

Did you try this craft?  Send us your comments and photos!

It’s All In The Details

The great outdoors has been the inspiration for many artists over the years, and proves to be quite complex when studied from up close.  Georgia O’Keeffe, an American artist born in 1887, made many large-scale paintings of natural forms at close range, as if seen through a magnifying lens.  On the next walk with the kids, find a new flower, a slow moving snail, or a bee who’s busy at work, and spend some time just watching, and talking about the little details that sometimes go unseen as we hurry by.

 

Kitchen with Kids – Rhubarb Strawberry Crisp

If you have your own rhubarb plant, the kids can help harvest a few stalks for this yummy treat.  Otherwise, find rhubarb at local farmers markets and produce stores. 

Filling:

  • 4 cups rhubarb, chopped
  • 2 cups strawberries, hulled and sliced
  • 2 tbsp cornstarch
  • ½ cup sugar

Topping:

  • 1/3 cup flour
  • 1 cup oats
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/3 cup soft butter

Mix filling in a greased 9×9 baking dish.  In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients for topping, cutting in the butter until crumbly.  Spread on top of filling.  Bake at 375 for 35 minutes.  Serve warm, with ice cream.

Simple Science- What do Plants Need to Grow?

Plant one bean in planting medium or soil.  Water, and keep it in a bright place (but not direct sunlight).  Plant another bean in exactly the same manner, but keep it in a cool dark location (Like a cold storage room or a closet).  Which one grows faster?  What do plants need to grow?

Five Minute Fun – Dipping Dandelions

Do double duty by ridding the garden of dandelions, and using them for art!  The fluffy yellow flowers might not be wanted in the yard, but they make great abstract art paint brushes.  Pick a few and set out the paints so your kids can get busy with these unique tools

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Craft Ideas by Craft Caravan – January 2009

Let it Snow…

The great outdoors may be covered in a blanket of snow, but it’s not likely that the kids will follow suit and curl up under a blanket at home.  They’re busy as ever, so pull out the craft supplies and start creating!
If you’re looking for snowy day activities, or if you’re still in Christmas clean-up mode, here are a couple craft ideas to fit the bill:   

Cotton Ball Snowman:

Supplies: Construction paper, cotton balls, glue, pencil, googly eyes, red yarn, wide ribbon, buttons, black paper

Directions:  Draw snowman shape on construction paper.  Make snowman hat out of black paper, and glue to top of snowman head.  Spread glue into each snowman circle, and cover circles with cotton balls.  Dab glue onto googly eyes and add to snowman.  Make snowman smile from red yarn, and glue on other accessories:  ribbon scarf, buttons on belly.  Let dry.

Wrapping Paper Name Plate:

Supplies: leftover Christmas wrap or other scraps of paper, cardboard, construction paper or other coloured paper, pencil, glue

Directions: cut cardboard into large rectangle – approximately 15 cm tall, and wide enough to fit child’s name in block letters.  Cover cardboard with construction paper or other coloured paper, making nameplate.  Write child’s name in block letters across nameplate.  Rip wrapping paper or other paper into small pieces.  Spread glue around the inside of first block letter.  “Scrunch” ripped papers onto block letter by placing onto the glue and then pushing paper towards itself.   Fill entire letter with scrunched paper.  Repeat with all letters of the child’s name.  Let dry and hang on bedroom door or other display area.

Fun Facts About Arts and Crafts – Snowy Scenes

 

Many pieces from the Canadian ‘Group of Seven’ artists depict snowy Canadian scenes.  The group of Seven held their first art exhibition in 1920.  Before this, many artists believed the Canadian landscape was either not paintable, or not worthy of being painted.

 

Kitchen with Kids – Microwave Rice Pudding

Soft and fluffy like a snow bank, but warm and creamy for a cozy winter treat!  The kids can help with stirring and measuring.  Serve this pudding warm or cold.

  • 1 cup water
    •    ½ cup raw rice
    •    dash salt
    •    3 tbsp butter
    •    2/3 c sugar
    •    3 c milk
    •    2 large eggs
    •    1 tsp vanilla
    •    cinnamon to taste


In microwave safe bowl, mix rice with salt and water, and cook on high until tender.  Stir in butter, milk, and sugar.  Cover and microwave on high for 8-10 minutes, or until mixture boils.  Beat the eggs and whisk a couple of tablespoons of the hot mixture into eggs (to prevent eggs from curdling).  Add a little more of the mixture to eggs while whisking, and then add eggs back into pudding bowl.  Microwave uncovered for 1-2 minutes, or until pudding bubbles on the sides.  Add vanilla and cinnamon, if desired.  Cool before serving.

Simple Science- Melting Snow

There’s plenty of it outside, so use some snow for this simple science experiment.  Collect two bowls of snow.  Make sure that there’s roughly the same amount of snow in each bowl.  Leave one bowl standing, and stir the snow around in the second bowl.  Which bowl of snow melts first? Tip: instead of bowls, collect snow in jars.  Shake one jar while leaving the other standing.  Which jar of snow melts first?

Five Minute Fun – Paper Snowflakes

Scissors and paper are all you need to create beautiful snowflakes for your window!  Simply fold a piece of paper over several times, and then cut random shapes into the paper.  Open paper to reveal a unique wintry snowflake!  Tape your snowflakes to the window panes, or hang them using pieces of dental floss or thread. 

Made with Love for Valentine’s Day

Help your child create one-of-a kind unique Valentine’s Day Cards with our exclusive Valentine Card making kits .  Choose a class pack of 24 mini cards for your child to give to classmates, or standard size cards (packages of 8) to send to close friends and relatives.  A crafty way to make Valentine’s Day just a little more special!  Check our card selection here.

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Craft Ideas by Craft Caravan – November 2008

Falling Back…

Turn back time tonight, as today is the day most people change their clocks to ‘fall back’ for daylight savings time.  The shorter days, together with cooler weather are sure signs that winter is just around the corner.  Use the themes of time and winter for a couple of fun crafts with the kids:

It’s About Time for a Clock

Supplies:  Cardboard, old magazines and newspapers, aluminum foil, 2 buttons, string, scissors, glue, crayons, hole punch

Directions:  Make clock face- cut circle from cardboard and cover with aluminum foil.  Find newspaper or magazine clippings of the numbers 1 through 12.  Glue each number to the clock face. 

Cut a big hand and a small hand from cardboard.  Colour the hands with crayon, or cover with magazine clippings.  Punch a hole at the end of each hand, where they will be connected to the centre of the clock.  Make a hole in the centre of the clock using scissors (a job for the caregiver!) 

Assemble clock: feed string through hole of first button, then through clock face, then clock hands, then second button.  Loop back around through second hole of top button, then through hands and face, then through final button-hole, tying string together on underside of clock

Handprint Mitten Mobile

Supplies: construction paper, glue, scissors, hole punch, string or ribbon, pencil, decorating supplies such as pompoms, glitter glue, sparkles, stickers, etc

Directions:  trace your child’s hand on construction paper with fingers together and thumb out.  Instead of individual fingers, trace around all fingers like a mitten.  Make 4 or 5 tracings.  Cut out tracings, decorate, and punch a hole at the top or ‘wrist’ part of each mitten.  Cut various lengths of string for hanging mittens on mobile.  Tie one end of each string through each of the mittens, and tie the other end around the pencil.  Loop another string around the pencil, in centre, for hanging.

 

Kitchen With Kids –  Grilled Banana Nutella Sandwich

An easy, yummy, warm sandwich treat for cool days!

1 Banana
Nutella spread
2 pieces of bread
butter or margarine

Spread one piece of bread with Nutella.  The kids can cover the Nutella with banana slices.  Close sandwich and lightly butter outside.  Place in sandwich grill for about 5 minutes.  Let cool until warm, and serve.  

Getting Crafty for Christmas

If you’re sending out Christmas cards this year, check our website for Christmas and Season’s Greetings Card making kits .  You can also subscribe to the Kids Craft Club – a great gift idea for pint sized friends and relatives!

 

Come Get Crafty with Us!

Craft Caravan is sponsoring the ‘Creative Corner’ at Vancouver’s Baby & Family Fair this weekend.  Drop by for some colouring and crafts when you visit Canada place tomorrow!

 

Five Minute Fun – Hibernation Hideout (Cave)

A simple way to pass a few minutes, throw a blanket over a chair or table for an instant cave or tent.  Though not quite a ‘craft’, we just had to remind everyone about this age old game, as our kids get endless amounts of joy out of hiding in their makeshift cave!

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Craft Ideas by Craft Caravan – October 2008

Fall Festivities!

Halloween and Thanksgiving are two great occasions for the kids to get crafty.  For a real challenge, consider creating home made Halloween costumes using old boxes and scraps of fabric.  If you want to keep it simple, here are a few craft ideas to try with the kids:

Gourd Turkey Centerpiece:

Supplies: round gourd, leaves or feathers, flat craft spoon, red marker or construction paper, googly eyes, glue, scissors

  Directions:  Add googly eyes to round part of craft spoon, creating turkey head.  Make wattle by drawing tear-drop shape on red construction paper, or colouring paper teardrop with red marker.  Add wattle to head at the middle of the craft spoon.  Glue head to one side of gourd.  On opposite side of gourd, start layering feathers or leaves, to make turkey feathers.  Continue adding feathers or leaves to gourd, covering back side up to center of gourd.    

Tip:  If you don’t have any flat craft spoons, you can make a head shape by drawing a figure 8 on brown construction paper, with the top of the ‘8’ slightly more round than the bottom.   

Sparkly Spider Web:

Supplies: white, black, or grey yarn, silver sparkles (optional) waxed paper, flour, water, yogurt container or paper plate, scissors.

Directions:  In yogurt container or on paper plate, mix approximately 1 part flour with 2 parts water to create paper mache paste.  Add sparkles to paste and mix.  Cut yarn into 20cm lengths.   Dip yarn into paste so that all parts are covered in paste.  Pull yarn through thumb and index finger to remove excess paste.  Place yarn on piece of waxed paper.  Continue adding yarn to waxed paper in a criss-cross spider web pattern.  Let dry.  Carefully peel your spider web from waxed paper and hang in a window or at your front door for halloween.   

Alternate:  instead of mixing sparkles into paste, create spider web and then sprinkle with sparkles while still wet. 

 

 

 

Dressing Up – The Halloween Tradition

Halloween started out as an Irish tradition, and is now celebrated in a large portion of the western world, including Canada, United States, and New Zealand.  Dressing up in masks and costumes is a tradition that started way back when Halloween celebrations first began, as a means to ward off evil spirits. 

 

Kids in the Kitchen – Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Save the seeds from your pumpkin carving this year, to make a yummy snack with the kids.  They can help by cleaning and washing the seeds, and sprinkling them with seasoning salt.

Pumpkin seeds from jack o’lantern waste
Seasoning salt
Vegetable oil

Separate pumpkin seeds from other pumpkin scraps.  Place in colander and wash.  Spread on paper towel to dry.  Spread onto baking sheet and add a few drops of vegetable oil, mixing thoroughly.  Spread seeds out on baking sheet, and sprinkle with a pinch of seasoning salt.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10 – 20 minutes or until crisp, turning seeds once.

Kids Craft Club – Just in time for Christmas!

 

For those who like to plan ahead, now is the time to buy gift Craft Club subscriptions for Christmas.  It’s the perfect stocking stuffer or gift for pint sized friends and relatives.  Simply note ‘Christmas gift’ in the comments section of your order form, and you will be sent a gift card to place under the tree or in their stocking.  First craft delivery for Christmas subscribers will be the January Kids Craft Club project.  Subscribe today!

Christmas Card Making Kits

We’ve already had several inquiries about our Christmas Card Making kits , and they are now available on our website.  To get an early start on making cards with the kids, order yours today .

Five Minute Fun – Handprint Turkey

Trace your child’s hand on a piece of brown paper, having the thumb spread as far away from fingers as possible.  Cut out the tracing.  The thumb will be the head of the turkey, while the fingers will be the feathers.  Add eye and waddle to head, and add feathers or other decorations to feathers/fingers

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Craft Ideas by Craft Caravan – September 2008

Findings In the Fall!

September is a great time of year to go outside and collect a few crafty items for fall and winter projects.  Take the kids on a walk to collect leaves, pinecones, and any other interesting objects of nature that can be dried or stored for future use.  Get a jump on the fall craft projects with these ideas:  

Fall Leaf Butterfly Picture:

Supplies:  Fall leaves – 2 small long & thin leaves, 1 big long & thin leaf, 4 big round or oval leaves, 1 small round leaf, construction paper, glue, googly eyes, glitter glue, or tiny leaves for decorating.

 Directions:  Dry the leaves by layering between newsprint and placing a heavy object on top.  Let dry for about a week, or until they’re dry but not brittle.  To assemble butterfly:  use 1 long thin leaf as the body, 1 small round leaf for face, 2 long thin leaves as antennae, 4 big round/oval leaves as top and bottom portions of wings.  Add googly eyes or dots of glitter glue to face, and decorate wings with glitter glue or smaller leaves.   

Tip:  Don’t stop at butterflies.  Depending on the leaves in your area, you may be able to find shapes to create elephants (large round ear shaped leaves), bunnies (thin long leaves), or any other creature that sparks your child’s interest.  Layering maple leaves in a fan shape, behind a long thin leaf, would make an excellent peacock!

Sparkly Pinecones:

Supplies: Pinecones, 2 paper plates, white glue, sparkles, string

Directions:  Thin white glue by mixing with equal part water.  Place glue in first paper plate, and sparkles in second paper plate.  Roll clean, dry pinecones in glue plate, then roll in sparkle plate.  Set aside to dry.  Tie string around the top to create pinecone ornament for fall decorations, or place in bowl for a sparkly display!

Note: if you prefer, use a re-sealable bag for sparkles.  Roll pinecone in glue, then place in sparkle bag.  Seal bag and shake, shake, shake! 

 

Inspired by Nature – Claude Monet

In a time when the most sought-after paintings were based on realism and academic style, Claude Monet chose to depict scenes from nature, in an impressionist manner.  He was inspired by his environment – poppies, haystacks, and of course, water lilies.

 

Kids in the Kitchen – Swedish Chocolate Cookies

This is a no-bake recipe that is perfect for little helping hands!

 

3 ¼ cups oats
1 ¼ cups sugar
6 tbsp cocoa
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup butter or margarine
Flaked coconut

Mix dry ingredients (except coconut) together.  Add butter and vanilla and mix until even consistency.  (you could even use your hands for this!)  With your hands, roll dough into 3 cm balls.  Roll balls in flaked coconut.  Chill for 1 hour before serving.

Five Minute Fun – Magnet Fishing Rod

Turn a stick into a fishing rod by adding a length of string at one end.  To give your fishing rod some weight and to turn it into a game, place a magnet at the end of the string: Using two pieces of self-adhesive magnet, sandwich the free end of the string between adhesive sides of magnets, sticking them together and adhering to string.  Find some household items that are magnetic, and some that aren’t, and put them into a ‘pond’ for your child to go fishing!

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Craft Ideas by Craft Caravan – August 2008

Go Play Outside!

The great outdoors is the perfect place to work on some wonderfully messy craft projects.  Clean up is made easy with a simple wash of the hose, so gather up the craft supplies and go play outside!  Try these crafts to get your outdoor artist’s studio started:

Home Made Sidewalk Chalk:

Supplies: Plaster of Paris, powdered tempura paint, stir stick, mixing container, water, waxed paper, paper coin rollers (quarter rollers).  Optional: painters tape or masking tape.

 Directions: Optionally tape over one end of the coin roller so that it has a ‘bottom’.  Place on a cookie sheet covered with waxed paper, covered side down.  Mix 1 cup of Plaster of Paris together with 2 tbsp paint.  Add roughly 1 cup of water, stirring while you add, for smooth consistency.  Carefully pour mixture into coin rollers.  Let the chalk sticks set – approximately 2 hours.  Peel back the coin roller paper to use.   

Note: We were able to use our chalk after only 15 minutes of waiting.  Keep the coin roller paper on for strength, peeling back as the chalk gets used.

Abstract Canvas Splash Art:

Supplies: art canvas, canvas board, or paper, liquid tempura paints, paint brushes or toothbrushes

Directions:  pour paint into plates, bowls or other containers.  Lay canvas or paper on the ground.  Dip paint brush into colour of your choice, and let it drip onto canvas.  Try swinging the paintbrush to make a bit splat!  Dip toothbrush into paint and run finger over bristles, splattering paint onto the canvas.  Repeat with different colours of paint, creating an abstract masterpiece.

Note: You can position items such as leaves, paper shapes, or other objects on the canvas before painting, and remove after splashing, to create shapes on the canvas.

 

Fun Facts – the Great Jackson Pollock

Splash art is not only for kids!  Jackson Pollock painted for many years, and became an influential American artist because of his spontaneous paint dripping technique, leading the abstract expressionist movement.  Paint brushes, sticks, and basting syringes were among the tools he used to drip his paints! 

Fortunately Unfortunately

Summer time often means road trips, which can be a challenge with little ones in tow!  Add word games to your car time repertoire to make the time pass by.  You can play “I Spy” or counting games (we recently counted all the trailers passing us), or try a game of ‘Unfortunately Fortunately’.  Start the game with ‘Unfortunately (fill in the blank)’, and let your child finish with ‘Fortunately (fill in the blank)’.  For smaller kids, you can replace the ‘Unfortunatley fortunately with ‘Uh Oh’ and ‘That’s OK’.  Example:  

‘Unfortunately, we’re almost out of gas’
‘Fortunately, we’re going to a gas station!’ 

‘Uh Oh, I spilled on my sweater!’
‘That’s OK, we can wipe it up.’

Kids in the Kitchen – Frozen Banana Pops

These treats are a great summer time snack, and a snap to make with the kids!


4 bananas, cut in half cross wise
Yogurt (Flavour of your choice), or chocolate chips
Popsicle sticks, waxed paper, cookie sheet

Insert popsicle stick into flat end of banana.  Dip each banana into yogurt.  Place on cookie sheet covered with waxed paper.  Freeze for approximately 3 hours.  For chocolate banana pops – freeze plain bananas on sticks.  Melt chocolate chips and drizzle onto frozen bananas.  Chocolate will harden immediately.  To store, wrap each banana pop in foil. 

Five Minute Fun – Bubble Art

Turn your bubble blowing session into some great outdoor art!  Simply add different colours of food colouring to bubble solution in dishes or jars, mixing or shaking well.  In between blowing bubbles into the air, your kids can blow coloured bubbles down onto a piece of paper, creating their very own bubble art masterpiece! 

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Kids Craft Ideas July 2008

Oh Canada!

Whether at the cabin, the cottage, the camp, or even just the backyard, Canadians from coast to coast are celebrating Canada Day today!  Red and white clothing, face paints, and washable tattoos all make great fun for kids on Canada Day.  Looking for more great ways to celebrate Canada?  Try these Canada inspired crafts to make the celebration last the whole month long: 

Nunavut Provincial Flag Craft:

 

Nunavut is Canada’s youngest region, becoming it’s own territory in April, 1999.  Make this simple Inukshuk flag to celebrate Canada’s youngest territory!

Supplies: white paper, construction paper (red, yellow, blue), scissors, glue

Directions: Cut a yellow piece of construction paper that is exactly half the length of your white paper.  Glue into place, covering left half of the white paper.  Make inukshuk: cut red construction paper to the same height as white/yellow flag.  Then cut red paper into 3 small horizonal blocks, 1 longer horizontal block, and 1 small vertical block.  Round the edges of each block to create the appearance of rocks (see Nunavut flag photo).  Glue blocks to middle of flag to create inukshuk.  Cut blue star and place on white portion of flag 

Note: Extend this craft project by going outside and building an Inukshuk using stones, or by replicating the flag of your province!  You can view provincial flags at The Flag Shop

Canadian Moose Craft:

 

Supplies: craft paper, cardboard (such as from cereal box), or other ‘background’ paper, ice cream lid or paper plate, brown paint, googly eyes, black pompom, twigs from trees with a few branches to look like antlers 

Directions: pour brown paint into ice cream lid or paper plate.  Stamp foot into paint, then stamp onto background paper or cardboard with heal of foot closest to bottom of paper, to create moose head.  Decorate your moose head:  Place googly eyes at ball of footprint, and place nose at heal of footprint.  Make antlers by gluing twigs to top of footprint (at the toes).

Note: Mom and Dad can join in on the fun to create a moose family!  Their extra big footprints will make large moose heads, while the kids can be the smaller moose

 

Fun Facts About The Canada Flag

 

The Maple Leaf Flag is a work of art that has achieved international recognition.  The flag itself is young; it was adopted as the official flag of Canada in February, 1965.  Use these guidelines to recreate the flag with construction paper or fabric:  The length of the flag should be twice the height, and the white portion of the flag is exactly double the length of each red portion.  The central maple leaf has 3 major points that each break into 3 smaller points.  The number of points on the flag has no symbolic significance – this is simply the best configuration to look good while blowing in the wind!  

 

Sing it Loud!

‘O Canada’ became Canada’s national anthem on July 1, 1980.  The official lyrics are known to most adults, but can sometimes be tricky for kids.  Try singing this song with your little ones – their word changes often produce very uniquely entertaining renditions of the song!

Kids in the Kitchen – Strawberry Popsicles

Nothing says ‘summer is here’ as well as the beginning of strawberry season!  Try these yummy frozen treats with your kids for a refreshing summer time snack:

1 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
2 cups plain yogurt
Popsicle holder, ice cube tray, or paper cups and popsicle sticks

Mix yogurt and strawberries.  Alternately, blend yogurt and strawberries for smooth consistency.  Spoon into ice cube tray, popsicle holder, or paper cups.  Freeze for 20 minutes.  Add sticks (if using paper cups or ice cube tray), and freeze until firm.

Five Minute Fun – Summer Time Streamers

Turn a simple stick or rubber bracelet into summer time fun by securing lengths of ribbon or crepe streamers.  Kids can wear the bracelets or twirl the stick to add some dazzle to their outdoor running games!

Our Newest Additions – Invitation Kit, Scrapbook Kit

Craft Caravan is excited to introduce our latest Card Kit additions.  Our ‘About Me’ scrapbook kit is perfect for kids to work on over the summer, or try the Invitation Kit for your next big bash!  

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Kids Craft Ideas for June 2008

Dress It Up

Kids love to play dress up, and will eagerly role-play at any opportunity.  With Father’s Day just around the corner, turn their desire to dress up (or dress others up!) into these fun gifts for dad:

‘Just Like Dad’ Photo Craft:

Do a photo shoot with your child recreating his or her dad’s favourite activities.  Print the photo and give it to dad in a hand-made frame!

Supplies:  Plain photo frame, or construction paper with sturdy cardboard, dad’s favourite sporting or hobby equipment for creating the ‘scene’, decorating supplies (paints, crayons, glitter glue, old buttons, etc), glue, scissors, camera

Directions:  Choose dad’s favourite activity and recreate it with your child – examples:  child wearing dad’s business suit or shoes, child swinging dad’s golf clubs, child pretending to barbecue, etc.  Take photos of your child posing in their dad’s gear.  Decorate a plain wood frame using paints and other supplies, or make a frame out of construction paper with a sturdy cardboard backing.  Write the words “a chip off the old block” or “like Father like Son/Daughter” somewhere on the frame.  Insert photo and wrap it up for dad! 

‘Dad’s Favourites’ Collage:

Supplies: Old magazines or sports pages, photos of dad, construction paper, scissors, glue 

Directions:  Using old magazines or newspapers, find pictures of things dad does or likes.  Try to find some pictures of people in action.  Glue your clippings to construction paper to create a collage.  Using photos of dad, replace the heads in the pictures with dad’s head, so it looks like he’s in action.  Write “Dad’s Favourite Things” or “Super Star Dad” on your collage.

Directions

Knitting At Sea

 

Although it seems that most handmade sweaters have been knit by Grandma, and not Grandpa, most historians agree that the art of knitting originated with men.  Historians suggest that knitting was derived from the need to knit fishing nets, which was done by sailors at sea.

Sentence Starters for Father’s Day:

Find a wallet sized photo of your child, and add a thoughtful sentence on the back, so dad can take a glance when he’s on the go.  Choose one of these sentence starters to help your child express their thoughts about dad:

“I love you because….”

“You are the best Dad because…..”

“I love it when we…..”

Five Minute Fun – King for a Day

Every little prince or princess will delight in spending a few minutes to make a crown for dad.  Draw a crown shape on construction paper or cardboard (eg. From a cereal box).  Cut out the crown and decorate it using crayons, glitter glue, papers, or any available decorating accessories.   Cut a long construction paper or cardboard strip and secure to either side of the crown, creating a headband for crowning the king.

Tell Your Friends….

This month, everyone in our Kids Craft Club received  ‘Refer a Friend’ cards.  So, if you’re in the club and want an extra month of crafts, be sure to pass the card on to a friend!  Or, if you want to join our craft club, find a friend who’s already in the club, and help them get a free month when you sign up!

Crafts for Breakfast!?!

Craft Caravan has been invited to join Breakfast Television’s ‘Live Eye’ Segment on Wednesday, June 4th.  If you’re in the Vancouver area, tune in (Citytv, Ch13)  between 7 am and 10 am to get some crafty tips about making birthday parties a little more green.  You’ll also hear tips from other great local businesses.  It’s all part of celebrating the ‘Green Baby Shower’, which will be hosted by Belly & Beyond (4118 Main St) on June 8th, from 10am – 12pm. 

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Kids Craft Ideas for May 2008

Gotta Hand It To You

Many mommies get a little sentimental around Mother’s Day, reminiscing about when they first entered into motherhood.  Start tracking how big the kids have grown year after year, by making handprint tracings.  They’re fun to look back on, and they also make great craft projects – check out our suggestions below.  And just in case Mother Nature is planning another blast of cold weather, these handprint activities will make it feel like spring inside, regardless of what’s happening outside!

 

Mr. Sun Handprint Craft:

Supplies:  Yellow and orange construction paper, marker, pencil, or crayon, glue, large circle template (a lunch plate would work well for this)

Directions:  Using lunch plate or other circle template, trace circle onto yellow construction paper.  Make sun rays: on orange construction paper, trace child’s hands (fingers spread), and cut out tracings.  You will need at least 4 handprint cutouts.  Repeat, using yellow construction paper.  Glue handprint sun rays around yellow circle, alternating yellow and orange rays.  Use marker or crayon to add a face to your handprint sunshine.

Simple Shapes Handprint Bird:

Help your child identify shapes and practice cutting as you make this little bird! 

Supplies:  Construction paper for bird (blue, red, brown, or yellow) and beak/feet (orange or yellow), googly eye, toothpicks, large circle template, small circle template, feathers, paper for background.

Directions:  Use a circle template (such as lunch plate) to make bird body, and use a smaller template (such as drinking glass) to make head.  Cut triangle for beak, and two small triangles for feet.  Make the wing:  trace child’s hand (fingers closed), so that the tips of the fingers become the tips of the wing.  Assemble bird, gluing onto background paper.  Use toothpicks for legs, adding triangle feet.  Add googly eyes and decorate with feathers  

Tip:  paper from an old brown paper bag would work great for the bird’s body

All Sewn Up

The art of hand sewing dates back over 20 000 years.  The first sewing needles were made of animal bones or horns, while threads were made of animal sinew.  Iron needles were invented in the 14th century, and the 15th century brought the first eyed needles. 

Thoughts for Mother’s Day

“I’d like to be the ideal mother, but I’m too busy raising my kids.”– Unknown

The mother of three notoriously unruly youngsters was asked whether or not she’d have children if she had it to do over again. “Yes,” she replied. “But not the same ones.”– David Finkelstein

A teacher gave her class of second graders a lesson on the magnet and what it does. The next day in a written test, she included this question: “My full name has six letters. The first one is M. I pick up things. What am I?” When the test papers were turned in, the teacher was astonished to find that almost 50 percent of the students answered the question with the word Mother– Unknown

Five Minute Fun – Silk Flower Pencil Topper

Drawing is more fun with a super fancy pencil!  Choose a silk flower that has a stem, and then attach it to a pencil or pen by wrapping tape (masking, scotch, even floral tape) around both pencil and stem.  Tip:  don’t wrap all the way down the pencil, as you will want to sharpen it eventually!

We’re Growing….

Our Kids Craft Club is growing quickly!  Check our website to see what members have to say, or  take a look at our new press page .

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