Free Crafts for Kids that Stimulate the Mind

Do you need something fun to do with your kids? Are you out of ideas AND money? Here are some craft ideas for things you can make out of household items. If you make these free crafts with your kids, you will have hours of fun that will cost much less than another trip to the movies or the amusement park.

With a little imagination, you can turn your old compact discs or DVD's into fun pets! Let's turn that old scratched CD into Teddy the Turtle!

Supplies: old CD, green fun foam, dark and light green felt, goggle eyes, fabric paint, some cardboard, and green acrylic paint.

Directions:

1. Put the CD onto the dark green felt. Trace around it and cut out the circle, and put to one side.

2. Paint the front of the disc with the green acrylic paint, and let it dry.

3. Figure out how many letters you have in your first name. You'll need to cut that many octagons out to design your turtle. Take the cardboard and cut out a small octagon (stop sign shape). This will be your pattern. Use this pattern to trace as many octagons as you need onto the light green felt. Cut an extra one out for the middle of the disc.

4. Take the fun foam and cut out legs. They will look like large Popsicle sticks. Cut a similar shape for the head, but make it longer. Also, make three triangles for the tail.

5. Take the tail, legs and head and glue them to the back of the CD. Cover all of this by gluing that green circle from Step 1 over it.

6. Take the goggle eyes and attach them to the top of the head with glue.

7. Take the stop sign shapes and glue on enough of them so that you can spell out your name. Put one more octagon in the middle of the CD.

8. Using fabric paint, write your name on the stop sign shapes, with one letter in each shape.

9. You can leave the octagon in the very center of your turtle blank, or you can add a design of your choosing.

Done with your turtle already and you want more free crafts to do? Try turning your dryer sheets into butterflies!

Supplies: Glue, a clothes peg with a spring, used dryer sheets, and a magnet.

Directions:

1. Hold your used dryer sheet so that it looks like a standing rectangle. Gather and "crunch' the middle together between your thumb and index finger.

2. Clip it in the center with your peg.

3. Next, paint the clothing pin and attach a magnet to the rear side.

4. Now you have a butterfly magnet that you can stick to your refrigerator and keep any important notes or photographs in there.

Your children should get a great deal of enjoyment out of what you have made together. These free crafts will keep your kids busy while stimulating their creativity at the same time.