Many parents today are looking for family activities that minimize screen time and maximize creativity, collaboration and skills development. And, of course, it doesn’t hurt for those activities to actually be fun!
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Family crafting and building activities sit at the ideal intersection point of all these things, which is why so many families have begun incorporating them into their lives. Lots of kids love the accomplishment of having made something, whether that’s a kindergartner finger painting or a teenager learning to use woodworking hand tools.
Eager to jump into the fun of making something as a family? Read up on these 10 cool projects that will stimulate creativity and enhance family time for kids and adults alike.
- Bird Feeder
Attract some cool feathered friends to your yard by putting together a family bird feeder! Tons of crafting sites offer plans for bird feeders, and you and your kids don’t have to be woodshop experts to make them. Instead, most use simple hand tools, and many also allow you to recycle materials such as plastic bottles that you almost certainly have lying around your house already. Add some birdseed and you’re in business — the bird business!
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- Air Dry Clay Crafts
Lots of kids (and families) love making clay crafts, but many don’t have access to a kiln or know how to use one. Instead, you can use air dry clay to create your own awesome pottery creations at home! Air dry clay is incredibly easy to work with and you can make all kinds of stuff with it, including small pots and bowls. To decorate clay creations, pick up some tools like rubber stamps and an ink pad, as well as embossing tools for drawing patterns.
- Terrarium Jars
Maybe you like your nature a little (or a lot) more contained. In that case, terrarium jars might be the perfect project for your family. The process is relatively simple. All you need to do is fill a suitably sized jar with plants, along with substrates that will allow them to grow. Spritz them with a little water as required and you’ve got a micro-sized green space in your home. It’s a great way to introduce kids to gardening, especially if you don’t have much outdoor space to work with.
- Cornhole Set
Cornhole is one of the classic party games, and it’s surprisingly easy to build your own set of cornhole boards at home. Most older kids will be able to master the basic construction tasks involved, and even youngsters can help paint the colorful boards. Theme them any way you want — favorite sports teams, designs celebrating local pride, nature scenes or pretty much anything that your imagination (or your kids’) can come up with.
- Wind Chimes
There are tons of different ways to create DIY wind chimes, and many are perfect for kids. You can recycle all kinds of interesting materials into wind chimes, from bottle caps to aluminum cans to keys and beyond, and the coolest thing is that each material will change the sound with its own unique tone! Making a family wind chime, with every member getting to choose a few pieces, is an awesome way to make sure everyone feels included on this project.
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- Tie-Dyeing
Everyone gets the chance to express their creativity in a family tie-dyeing session. And even better, everyone comes out with a cool new shirt (or other item of clothing) to wear! A tie-dye kit is usually the way to go, as it comes with everything you’ll need, including a range of brightly colored dyes that kids will love. Try tie-dyeing a washcloth or pillowcase as your first project to help kids get the hang of it and then move on to t-shirts.
- Sun Prints
Sun prints are a fast and fun way to make beautiful art using nature as your canvas. All you’ll need are some leaves and flowers from the garden, specially treated sun print paper and, of course, the power of sunshine. To make a print, simply arrange your leaves and flowers (or anything reasonably flat) on a covered piece of the specially treated paper and then expose it to the sun for a few seconds. The process creates an amazing natural work of art that can look great in your home.
- Glove Monsters
Teach kids some basic sewing skills and give them a fun and cuddly monster toy by doing a glove monster project. All you need is one of the soft woolen-type gloves, sewing supplies and some bits to sew onto the monster. These can include buttons for eyes, fabric squiggles for a mouth and pretty much any other kind of funky shape that you can sew onto a glove. For even more imaginative fun, give your monsters names and practice making up stories about them together.
- Slime Factory
Making slime with kids is cheap, easy and tons of fun, which is why it’s become a classic family activity. (Let’s not pretend like adults don’t enjoy throwing some slime around, either.) The ingredients of the most popular recipes are incredibly simple. Most center around school glue, baking soda and water. Plus, you can do all kinds of fun stuff to slime, including making it magnetic, adding dazzling colors and oh so much more!
- Photo Magnets
The flat-backed glass beads you can find at any craft store are actually super easy to turn into cool customizable photo magnets. You just need to print out some (very small) photos from your computer and attach them to the back of these glass beads using Mod Podge or a similar compound, backed with some craft paper in a fun pattern. Once they’re dry, just hot glue a small magnet to the back and your family’s creations can adorn the refrigerator.
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