by Tierney O'Hara

Created on: November 28, 2011   Last Updated: January 09, 2012

Easy holiday gifts kids love to make

Children love getting Christmas presents, but they also love giving presents to friends and family. Homemade gifts, made from the heart, are a great way to give a special present to a loved one.  Crafts are fun to begin with, but when children know they are making a present for their beloved Granny or best friend Sophie, they will truly experience Christmas spirit which is about giving and not just receiving and they'll have the joy of making a present

Help your child find easy crafts or projects that they can do mostly by themselves and watch how happy they’ll be when they can proudly show off their handmade goods or treats. Some of the easiest and cheapest gifts to make often turn out to be the most cherished, so none of these gifts are too expensive or too difficult to make.

-Bookmarks

Readers in the family will love getting a hand-drawn, colorful bookmark from their favorite little Christmas elf. Depending upon the age of the child, you can let them cut it out themselves or help them do the hard work of cutting through cardboard.  If you have saved Christmas cards from the previous year, you can cut your bookmark out of old cards, but plan on two rectangles for each bookmark which you can then glue together for stiffness.

Once the cutting is over, let your child decorate the bookmark with crayons, colored pencils or paints, then punch a hole in the top and show your child how to attach long strands of yarn or ribbon to finish off the bookmark.  If you are lucky enough to have a laminator, you can laminate the bookmarks your children make for longer lasting wear.

-Original art

Purchase small frames - 3 x 5 or 5 x 7 inches work best.  Frames that come with mats are the best and magically turn the simplest scribble into a delightful work of art. Use a stiff paper for the art so that it will keep its shape in the frame and this will also help to keep the paper from tearing when your little artists are creating.

Sometimes it helps to have pictures available for your children to look at as inspirations.  Picking a theme often helps the child know what to draw and some children benefit from using only a few crayons or colored pencils for their artwork so that colors stay sharp and clear and images don’t become muddied.

You can also cut out a shape from a bit of toddler scribbling and glue it onto the paper and then frame it. Be sure to have your “Picasso” sign the art work before

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>