December 8, 2014
Holiday breaks mean that the kids will be home with ample free time. If your home is like mine this can mean trouble. So we’ve put together our list of 7 favorite bug craft projects to keep the kids busy over the upcoming holiday break.
- Playdough Bug Fossils: Surely you have some playdough in the house. If you are like our house you probably have some plastic bugs in the house as well. Pull those both together and start making some playdough fossils. You can make this a learning lesson about animals, bugs, dinosaurs, and fossils if you like. Or you can just let them create and see where they end up leading the conversations.
- Glowstick Lightning Bugs: With recycled materials around the house and a few light sticks you can create all kinds of light up items. We like the water bottle version of the lightning bug, but the light up Easter egg bugs make for some really neat projects as well.
- Bead Bugs: With some pipe cleaners and a box of beads you can create all kinds of bugs for decorating and pretend play. Whether you are making dragonflies or caterpillars with the color arrangements and free play imagination who knows what your kids might come up with.
- Dirt Dough and Just About Anything Else: You can follow this recipe for making “dirt dough” and combine it with whatever play toys of your (or your kids) choosing to create a unique play environment. If you have older kids and you want to up the ante then have them create some playdough mud. Complete it with some bugs and they can let their younger siblings dig through the ‘mud’ in order to find the bugs living inside the mud.
- Dinosaur Eggs: I remember having that wasp frozen in the ice tray as a kid and my dad thinking it was the funniest thing in the world. I don’t remember thinking it was as funny. However, a bit of a twist on that idea and you do have some fun, a few plastic dinosaurs (or other bug if you like) frozen into an egg shape can make for some fun discovery time for a little kid.
- Robot Bug: Do you have some mechanically inclined children? Here’s a bit of technology meets craft with a bug twist. Pull together some of these household items along with a model sized motor. You can follow the instructions linked here and then you kid will be frustrated and thrilled with their building of a robot. For a kid nothing beats creating something. So why not take a leap into something cool like a mini bug robot.
- Human Sized Sticky Spider Web: So you finished painting one of the bedrooms over the holiday, now you have this plethora of blue painters tape and no real use for it. Here is a great idea. Use the painters tape to make a human sized spider web between a door frame and then have a contest to see how much paper or random items can get stuck to the spider web. If you have boys be prepared to have them jump into said spider web and tear it down. For boys it is just too tempting to resist not jumping into it.Want some more ideas for kids bug craft projects? You can always check out Pinterest, there are tons of ideas people have been creating and trying out posted there.