Crafts for Kids

December has been a crazy, hectic month with my little man. Choir concerts, piano lessons, Sunday School pageants, oral book reports. And oh, I forgot that I volunteered to be the travelling art gallery presenter for all fourth grade classrooms. And oh, I forgot that I volunteered for the field trip to the art museum this week. And oh, I forgot that I volunteered to help with the holiday classroom party on Friday.

When I volunteered for all of these activities back in September, it felt like December was, gosh, months away! Well, ding dong! December is here!

Holiday parties are not too difficult. The school handles the snack, and the room moms provide the games, prizes, and crafts. I am on craft duty.

After spending too long on Pinterest (guilty!), I think I found a fun craft that will appeal to the girls and boys of a pre-adolescent fourth grade classroom.

First of all, it's a penguin. What girls do not like cute cuddly penguins?

Second, the Pittsburgh hockey team is the Penguins, and this is a big hockey town. What boy will not like a sporty mascot?

I found this amazing tutorial on how to make a pipe cleaner penguin on youtube. Thank you, MinivanMom, whoever you are! Aren't crafters just the most wonderful people? They are so generous with their cleverness. Bless you, crafty people!

Here's a link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PfbM83-D5I

And here's the finished product:

Awww! He's so cute! Unlike some crafts that are just stressful and un-fun, this one was fairly easy and fun to do. Considering that he's less than two inches tall, I think I'll give the kids the choice to either leave him alone or turn him into an ornament.

I've seen a few cute ideas that turn clear plastic cups into "snowglobes". This may work. Or I may just diecut some snowflakes onto cardstock, string with a ribbon, attach penguin and turn into an ornament. Any other ideas out there?

I've been working on a few more crafty projects this month, so stop back to the cafe for another crafty cup soon!

Blessings on your Christmas season, cafe friends!