Crafty Friday: 4th of July Crafts

Well, in the spirit of the Independence Day, we’re making patriotic themed crafts!  There are two crafts this week, as one’s a little more difficult and better suited to the big kids, and the other’s simple and easy for the little ones. 

Here’s what you need for both:

Pinwheels

*cardstock or construction paper in shades of red, white and blue
*thin dowel or skewer
*tape                                                                                                                                         *ruler                                                                                                                                        *pushpin
*scissors
*stickers, paint, markers or crayons to decorate the pinwheel
Handprint Fireworks:
*paper (any kind)
* non-toxic paints in a variety of colors
*markers
*glitter                                                                                                                                      *glue and a paper plate

Pinwheels:

Step 1: Cut your dowel or skewer to your desired length.  Make sure if you’re using a skewer to cut off or sand down the pointed tip, or your child might use them as weapons.

Step 2:  Cut your paper of choice into a square.  We made 9” squares, but they were a little big, so 5”-8” square might work much better.  The kids can decorate the paper with colors and stickers before moving onto the next step.

Step 3: Use a ruler or straight edge to draw diagonal lines from corner to corner to end up with a big ‘X’ on your paper.

Step 4:  Cut along each diagonal line two-thirds of the way to the center of the square. 

Step 5:  Bring every other point in towards the center of the square, making sure they overlap slightly.  We used a piece of tape to help secure the underside of the folds to the pinwheel.

Step 6:  Poke the pushpin through the center of the pinwheel so that it keeps the points in place.  You might want to wiggle the pin around a bit to make the hole slightly larger, allowing the pinwheel to spin.

Step 6:  Push the pin into the skewer about a half an inch from the top. (We actually had to get the hammer out to help with this step)  We also wrapped the end with tape at the point where the pin will be placed to prevent it from splitting.  Make sure  you don’t poke the pin all of the way through the skewer.

Step 7:  Take your pinwheels outside and watch them spin as you run.

  

Handprint Fireworks:

This project is easy and fun for the little ones.  My little one, however, did not want to get paint on his hands, so my bigger child had to demonstrate the project. 

Step 1:  Pick your paint colors and paper color you want to use for the background.  We chose a dark blue paper to resemble night.  Gold, red and light blue would be our firework colors.

Step 2: Squirt the paint out onto a plate and let the kiddos dip their hands into the color, or paint their palms with a paintbrush.  Then, help them press their palms onto the paper to make the handprint.  Continue this until you have the desired amount of ‘fireworks’ on the paper.

Step 3:  After the handprints have dried, dot them with glue and sprinkle on glitter to give a sparkly effect.  And there you have it, handprint fireworks!

And just so Finn wouldn’t miss out on the fun, we made a few fireworks with glue, glitter and stickers. 

Happy 4th of July!

Nessa Dee