Art Projects for Kids: How to Make a Coin Bank

Piggy banks are a common item seen in children's room. Kids seem to get a lot of excitement out of putting money in their piggy banks. Now coin banks can be even more fun. You can help your kids make their own banks and help teach them early on how to save their money. Art projects are also a great way to keep your children occupied and get them out from in front of the television. This art project is best for kids who are at least four years old. Making your own coin bank is very easy, but it can get messy. Here are some things you'll need in order to help your kids with this fun craft:

Materials:

-Empty plastic bottle

-acrylic paint

-Mod Podge

-paintbrushes

-old t-shirts or aprons

-x-acto knife

Instructions

1. The first step in making your own coin bank is to choose a plastic bottle that will hold the coins. I used a Simply Orange orange juice bottle because I liked the shape, but the bottle choice is up to you and your children. Once you have chosen the bottle that will become your coin bank, rinse it out to make sure it's clean.

2. After you've rinsed out your future coin bank, you can really begin on the fun part of this craft. Painting the bottle is the next step. Painting with children can be messy, and acrylic paint has a tendency to stain, so make sure that your kids are wearing old clothes or at least something to protect their good clothes. Acrylic paint works well because it sticks to the plastic and it dries quickly, but I'm sure that other types of paints would work as well. Paint the bottle a solid color to being with.

3. When the background of your coin bank is painted, give it a few minutes to dry completely. When your background is painted, you and your children can use the paint to decorate the coin bank however you want. You'll need to let it sit for a little a while once you're done.

(optional) If decorating the bottle with paint isn't something that your kids are interested in, you can substitute the paint with cardboard cutouts or stickers. You can also use these in addition to the paint.

4. When the paint dries, apply a coat of Mod Podge to the your new coin bank so that the paint (or anything else you used to decorate) stays on the bottle and doesn't peel off in the future.

5. Once the decorating is done, it's time for the adult only part of this project. To put the coins into the bank, you'll need to make a slit in the lid of the bottle. Use an x-acto knife, but don't use too much force or you could slip and hurt yourself. Use the knife to cut in the same place over and over again until you pierce through.

6. Place the lid back on the bottle and let your kids enjoy their new, self-made, coin bank that they can use to save their money.