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Autumn brings with it the fragrance and vibrant colors that we enjoy only once a year for a very short time! As a mother who home schools, we have found a few great crafts that work double time in teaching a child to be artistic in his or her own way.

Our favorite Autumn craft works hand in hand with our Summer crafts. It involves planting a wonderful bed of flowers. You will need to purchase the following items, and can usually track these down in a dollar store.

1. Several packages of seeds. Our favorites are Marigolds, because they give to us even as they die.

2. A small trowel or shovel for your child to use to dig in his or her flower bed.

3. A small package of Miracle Grow if you live in an area with poor soil.

4. Construction or drawing paper.

5. Crayons.

6. An inexpensive box of snack sized baggies.

Begin in late May by planting your seeds. Teach your child the correct way to dig in the soil, the correct depth of the wholes needed to begin your seeds road to life, and the correct amount of water to give the plants each day.

Bind several pages of construction or drawing paper together with glue, ribbons, yarn or material. Use this as your child's journal for the summer. He or she can make an entry each day to show the progress of his beautiful plants as they grow and prosper. Let them illustrate to their hearts content, help them write the messages they wish to leave if necessary.

As the Summer goes on, and your Marigolds bloom and die, teach your children to pluck the dead blooms. Take them inside, open them and remove the new seeds that will be inside the dead bloom. These should be left to dry for a day or two, and then packaged into the snack sized baggies for safe keeping. If this is done every time one of your blooms dies, you will have new life for next year with enough to share with everyone on your gift giving list.

The beauty of this craft continues after the flowers have gone. You can use envelopes, hand crafted seed packets, or kraft colored seed packets purchased from a craft store. Allow your children to decorate them with hand drawn pictures, stickers, old buttons or any other accessories you have laying around the house that they think will make a beautiful gift.

Once they are done with their seed packets, fill them gently with your Marigold seeds that you have been saving, and pack them away for a very personal, very thoughtful gift to everyone on your list! If you have used our Summer craft idea, you will have a beautifully handcrafted basket from your child to add the seed packs too.

Use the leaves and flower petals from your garden to create a hand crafted gift book from your children as well. Press the leaves or petals between two pieces of construction or drawing paper. Include pieces of bark or shards of wood in their collage. Show your children how to run a crayon gently over the surface of them to create a lifelike, colorful drawing of their garden. Add their artistic creations to their gift baskets. Don't forget to have them sign and date it!

As Fall progresses, have them look for acorns that have dropped from the trees, and use non-toxic, washable paints to decorate them. Be sure to let the acorns dry first before painting. This will create a beautiful, natural, decorative addition to their baskets.

You can take pride in the idea that for just a few dollars, you have given your children fun science and art lessons, the ability to enjoy the gift of giving without the commercialization of having to present an expensive present every time, and the pride in knowing that they created this beautiful basket for someone they love.

Learn more about this author, Melanie Winters.
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