by Lauren Okely

Created on: December 21, 2007

Christmas, crafts and toddlers are all things I find both fun and, occasionally, challenging. The following are three ideas to combine all three.

1. Colour ins

Colour ins are simple to do and easy to make for any season, including Christmas. If you have drawing skills, you can make you own by drawing a simple outline. To make multiple copies, you can use a photocopier or scan in in to your computer and print them out.

Otherwise, it is easy to find themed colour ins with a quick search on the Internet. Colour ins which you can print out for your toddlers can be bought or gotten for free.

Failing both those, you can use some Christmas clipart with clean lines. Enlarge it and print it out.

2. Christmas cards

Making Christmas cards can be a fiddly business. However, if you use pre-cut shapes and large sturdy cards, even your toddlers can join in. You can cut out Christmas shapes such as stars, angles, trees and presents from paper yourself or look in a craft store for pre-cut pieces.

For toddlers at the older end, you can print shapes onto card so they can cut them out themselves. But make sure you supervise!

For more things to stick to your cards, you can use scraps of wrapping paper, recycled cards from last year, glitter and stickers. Toddlers can even cut out their own colour ins to stick on their card for Mummy.

Toddlers love learning to write their own name so have them sign their card to give to their friend, grandparent or sibling!

3. Wrapping paper

With some large sheets of paper, some stickers and some pens, toddlers can have fun making their own special wrapping paper. If your feeling especially adventurous, let them do some hand painting or even some foot painting.

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