My kiddos love crafts. When we go camping every year with our family and I turn myself into a crafting camp counselor setting up special crafts for the kiddos each day, they talk for weeks about how much fun they were and that they wish they could do more crafts. When we get home however, and have my craft room full of supplies at their fingertips, a funny thing happens. “I don’t know what to do…” becomes an echoing chorus in my ears whenever I suggest they work on craft projects. And while I admit that sometimes just looking a pile of craft supplies and coming up with the a plan is not always easy, I wish they could handle it themselves from time to time. I am sure I am not the only parent who has experienced this phenomenon, or needed to “Just finish this last bit of work really quick, please?” So I came up with a plan.
What Is Available Already?
I took a look at several craft store websites and a popular website for purchasing crafting kits and found that most of the ones available were designed for classroom or parties with the total counts being way higher then what I needed for two kiddos. Now let me say here I could have definitely brought together some the supplies I already had and designed my own projects, but I wanted something quick and easy to get me started, coming up with my own crafts could come later. I did a little quick math and realized that if I shared my planned packs with my nieces and nephews, the amounts would be just right. Another option would be to find a set of projects with very different options, so I could make many kits out of the same set, but there would still be variety for my kiddos.
The Big Idea
Now at this point, you may be wondering how I was going to solve my problem with some standard crafting kits? The key was to pick kits that the kiddos could do themselves without much assistance but would be fun or surprising to them. So once I gathered the kits, I grabbed a stack of lunch bags and a marker and got to work. The first kit I was making was for September, so I picked some fun color scratch apples. Each kit had three apples, three strings, and a scratching stick. The outside gave no hint to what was inside, so there was an element of mystery when I directed the kiddos to the projects to pick one. Once they open the kit, I could give a few quick directions, and they could get to work on their own, and I could grab those ten minutes I needed to finish my emails! The kiddos also gain some independence from taking charge of the process themselves.
Making it Work for Your Kiddos
Now that we have our basic plan in place, lets talk about making it work for your particular situation. Maybe your kiddos are younger or older, or you need a high volume of options for your kiddos, because they really really love to craft, or maybe you are helping at a family event and want to keep a bunch of kiddos occupied. For younger ages, consider buying or printing off some mini coloring books with special coloring crayons they only get to use when working on these projects. You could vary the topic or characters for each bag and I have seen some really fun crayon options such as glitter or neon that could make the time spent on the project even more special. For older kiddos, maybe some more time consuming crafts like plastic cross stich kits or friendship bracelets with patterns could keep them occupied and happy. The good news if you have a large volume of kits you need to create is that you can scale this project up very easily by buying a larger volume of kits either all the same or different if variety is needed. I themed my kits to the month I was giving them out, but you could easily change the wording on your bags to give a hint as to the craft inside or a different theme you may be using.
A Boredom Buster in A Bag!
There is something very reassuring in having a box or bin full of these little boredom busters on hand when you need just a few minutes and they need a engaging project. I have heard from my siblings that their kiddos really enjoyed the kits I shared. My kiddos were very intrigued when these bags magically appeared in our “learning area” this fall. I am looking forward to keeping up with idea and seeing how it can develop as time passes. I will be sure to give you any updates or tips I come up with as time passes, and I look forward to hearing your stories below! I hope this helps your kiddos keep being crafty, and that you get to finish that last paragraph of your email.
