Christmas Crafts for Kids
Christmas time is best done when you remove all the money, shiny things and expensive toys. Kids play more with the box than they do the toy and it is so true. We are The Muddy Puddle Teacher and we are a new approach to outdoor learning that uses only natural and upcycled materials to enhance children’s understanding and learning of the world. To find out more splash this way www.themuddypuddleteacher.co.uk
Try some of these Christmas Crafts for Kids to make Christmas with your children super special this year.
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Christmas Dinner Lollypops
This is a very simple and easy task to subtly encourage the children to think about wildlife over Christmas. Empty several bags of porridge oats onto the floor and then unwrap several blocks of lard, giving each child a little amount of the lard. The children then need to dip it into porridge oats until all the lard is covered. Then go find a stick and mould the lard on the end of the stick and plant it into your fields, raised beds or even out of your settings grounds. The fun is going back each day to see if it has gone. Muddy arts and crafts is the best way!
Mini Christmas Tree World
Ask each child to find a stick. All walk around your space threading leaves onto it so the stick is full with leaves. Give each child a blob of clay to put at the top and bottom of their tree. The bottom bit of clay will help the child stand it up, the top bit of clay is for adding a star. You could use a small rock, pine cone or pompom 🙂 These look very effective planted in an unused raised bed or field. Once you have created your mini Christmas Tree world, hand out some clay and ask the children to make some characters such as Santa Claus and Rudolf and play away.
Stick Stars
Clay is a wonderful sensory experience for all children and adults too. Let them experiment with the textures and add water before they make something or have it left out your outdoor continuous provision. For some groups, they may need to make what they want out of the clay first. To make a sticky star hand each child a golf ball amount of clay. Show the children how to flatten the clay so it is about a centimetre thick. Then using sticks make a star shape. The children may need to use plenty of fine motor skills here, breaking up sticks and making them fit. Once completed, add a hole in the top and decorate the inside of the star with lots of bits of leaves by tearing them up making a mosaic effect. Then take it indoors and it will take about a full day to dry. Then hang them on your tree or let the kiddies take them home 🙂
A Leaf Wreath
Willow is the desired choice for bending into shapes. It needs to be soaked the night before and often comes in long lengths you have to cut up. It is a very effective choice of material for making the circle shape a wreath needs. Twist string round and round the willow so the children can thread leaves into this, to make the leaf wreath. However, if you do not have this experiment with other sticks and ivy branches. Do this with the children and start the process of getting the kids to practice making their own knots. With plenty of string on, this makes it possible for the children to thread natural materials through it such as leaves, ivy. If you use Holly let an adult do it or use gloves. A simpler version again is cardboard circles, glue and stick the leaves to the cardboard.
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Natural Decorations
If you have a tree in your setting why not make it a natural one this year. Pine cones are perfect, lots of sticky-out bits to tie the string on. You can paint them, wedge pom poms in, hook leaves on, put clay faces on. The possibilities are endless. A simple leaf is also a very versatile tree decoration. Hand out some gold, silver or felt tip pens and let them make lovely patterns or funny faces, hole punch and tie your string on. Choose evergreen leaves and the leaf will dry out but stay green. Log slices are perfect although may be of a cost unless you are handy with that saw! Use hand drills to make a hole. Use glue to add decoration or be super simple and use felt-tip pens – that can be just as effective. Tinsel is vast becoming a very harmful product of Christmas so why not inspire the children with some natural tinsel. Tie a long piece of string outside get the children to find leaves, hole punch them then thread them onto a long piece of string. Tie each end and ta-da.
Giant Snowy Sculptures
Any space will accommodate this marvellous activity that involves lots of teamwork which is just the kind of feelings you want at Christmas time, belonging and camaraderie. Ask the children what giant Christmassy sculpture they would like to make, have a vote or ask the children to write their decision on a slip of paper and put it in a muddy puddle and jump, asking one child to pull a name out. Maye a stocking is a chosen item. Ask the children to gather up sticks and make the outline, then fill the lovely picture you have made with leaves, acorns, conkers, snow, mud and other seasonal goodies.
If nature is your thing and you want to focus more on this incredible area try visiting some wildlife charities such as The Wildlife Trust.
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