How to Create a Child's Craft Box: Crafts for Self Motivated Kids

A busy child is a happy child. Crafts are fun and therapeutic. Some kids love crafts so much that they take their own initiative to involve themselves in crafts, even when their parents don't have the time to participate in all their craft projects. Sometimes a kid wants to make a craft in secret, because it is a gift for a family member. Crafts are great because it challenges a child's creativity, and improves dexterity. It also is personally rewarding to take scraps of things or recycled items and transform them into treasures. I have seen many a grandparent who has treasured their grandchildren's crafts so much that they saved them for decades. There are fond memories attached to things made by hand, and it's all about love. The labor of love is the driving force behind most crafts that are created as gifts. Your child may have an entrepreneurial nature and learn to create and perfect a craft they intend to sell as a school or church fundraiser or craft fair or flea market, or even involve their parents to sell their items online. Whatever the driving force, a child should be encouraged to pursue the creation of crafts. Here are some tips to creating a Child's Craft Box, along with creating an atmosphere of encouragement and safety.

1. Get a Crafty Container. The best craft container is a clear hard box with a tightly fitted lid. Visit the storage section of your Wal-mart or Target and you will see a wide variety and selection of clear boxes from shoebox size to underbed storage. The underbed storage container is perfect because it can be slid out of the way, when not in use, and it has enough space to give room to "grow" in accumulating craft supplies. Additionally it can house smaller containers of items from candy tins to hold buttons or google eyes, or manilla envelopes to hold paper cut outs.

2. Teach your child to view things with a creative eye and see its potential. You just finished a roll of paper towels. That round cardboard tube could be the basis of a craft or a form to create a craft, whether it is a mobile, or stuffing for a piñata or something else. Brainstorm or consult some library craft books or the internet for crafts that involve cardboard toilet paper and paper towel rolls. If something catches your child's fancy, then add it to the craft box.

3. So you are going to cut an old shirt into rags? Save those buttons and add them to your child's craft box. You have a juice lid you just washed? Your child may be interested in experimenting with tin punch. You just finished a can of coffee? Wash and dry it and give it to your child who may transform it into a gift container or a piggy bank or something else nifty.

4. You may be involved in crafts yourself and have plenty of leftover items that would work perfectly to be added to your child's craft box. Maybe you have a small piece of ribbon, or felt or pipe cleaners, or textured cardstock paper or a rubber stamper or ink pad or some colored markers or a piece of styrofoam or some fabric scraps or a small ball or yarn. Donate it to the child's craft box. From empty spools of thread to recycled gift bows, or beads from a broken necklace, many throw away items have potential to be transformed into a child's craft.

5. Discuss safety and craft rules with your child. If they are starting a new craft, they have never done before, tell them they need to consult you about the type of craft and what it involves, in case there needs to be a special craft set up so their is no damage to the carpet or furniture. You can teach them how to create crafts in a way to protect unforeseen spills of glue or paint. You may designate a standard craft operating procedure to avoid problems, which may involve using a vinyl tablecloth beneath all crafts, or having rags or paper towels nearby to prevent any messes. You may require the use of safety scissors, or instruct your child when they reach a certain step in their craft they need to get you for help if a certain step is more challenging or a potential safety issue. Discuss what could go wrong and how to prevent it. This will save arguments and mistakes and damage to household items.

6. Visit the library with your child and borrow several craft books to peruse project ideas. See what sparks your child's interest and imagination. It might be jewelry making or rug hooking or sewing pillows or puppets or making collages with beans and macaroni or card making or making candy crafts. Different seasons lend themselves to different crafts from nature items to holiday ornament making to making a special gift for Dad. The books will open up the world of crafts to your child and they will naturally gravitate to those things that interest them. Maybe your child wants to make toys for the family pet, or gifts for a Christmas grab bag or scout friends.

Creating a craft box for your child will keep them from being bored, and help promote less time spent watching television or playing video games. Praise their efforts and genuinely compliment what you like most about their latest creation, and you will fuel their passion and positively reinforce their efforts. From saving paper bags for paper crafts to using cardstock to make personalized gift tags to making a placemat or decorating a picture frame, your child can collect shells and beads and strings and all kinds of wonderful items they can add to their craft box and use to create something fun and practical or a decoration for their bedroom. Everyday you can surprise your child with something new you didn't throw away that can be added to their craft box and suggest potential ideas and see if they have ideas too. Then set aside some time where you can involve yourself with your child's craft making. It will increase communication, strengthen your relationship and it's all good.