Keeping the kids busy this Christmas time can seem like a daunting task, but there’s plenty lying around to keep them busy, you just have to know where to look.
Shannon Wong-Nizic runs online parenting resource www.ohcreativeday.com and is adamant there’s plenty of items around the home to keep up with your kids’ curiosity.
Here’s some of Shannon’s top tips for creating an eco-friendly Christmas crafternoon
Reuse and recycle – In a season where excess and over-spending is promoted, be inspired by what you already have at home and reuse and recycle to create new Christmas projects. Get in the habit of collecting household items such as toilet roll holders, cardboard, scrap paper and cereal packets that can be turned into works of art!
Keep things simple and low-mess this festive season – Have a core set of materials for Christmas crafting that you can use again and again across different projects. For us, this means Pintor paint markers, scissors and sellotape. These items sit in a basket that can be pulled out at any time and packed up super quickly. I’ll often just leave the basket on the table as an enticing invitation and my children devise their own creative festive projects.
Craft connects us to loved ones far away – Handmade Christmas cards are such an easy but beautiful way to spread festive cheer, near and far. Try cutting up old cards and gift-tags, then re-make into new. It can be so rewarding to re-use old cards which often just get thrown away and creatively re-purpose them (and a cheaper alternative than buying new too!)
Let go of the expectations and just create – There is no such thing as ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ when it comes to creating with children. This is a time of the year when we can carry many expectations about how we want things to go and look which just creates even more stress. Sit down with the kids, loosen your control on the agenda and just create. Enjoy the process, don’t stress about the product.
Show that you value creativity – Joining in signals to your children that you value and make time for getting creative. Model that it’s okay to feel frustrated when your creative designs don’t turn out the way you envisioned. Model asking questions and curiosity – both important parts of the creative process!
Creating creates conversation – Busy hands make conversation flow. Enjoy the chatter that comes along with the fun of creating alongside your little artists!
