Ten Cheap Crafts Supplies to Entertain Children in the Summer

Summer doesn't have to be a dreaded affair. While it would be unwise to pull out all the tricks up your sleeve at once, you do need to gather a collection.

Entertaining children in this day and age of technological wonders can be quite a challenge. Some children have been brainwashed to believe that the only fun to be had is in video games and cartoons. On the other hand, exercising the mind has become overwhelming due to the standardized tests public schools seem to concentrate on. Some parents feel their child may deserve the whole summer of doing nothing but vegging out in front of the television. Others may feel that because the kids have been accustomed to staying so busy during the school year, they absolutely must accommodate them in the same manner during the summer.

Reaching a happy medium is the best way to help your child during the summer. Building up a handy craft supply and notebook of ideas is a great way to pass the time, keep your child's mind healthy, and provide some positive entertainment without overwhelming them.

Ideas for your craft supply include:
1. Craft scissors--they come in all sorts of shapes to make even plain paper decorative. Craft scissors can be bought in groups, which provides a long-term investment that can be used over and over again by children of all ages.

2. Markers--There are so many different types of markers now on the market. These, too, can last a long time if taken care of properly. There are washable markers, crayons shaped like markers, many different colors of highlighting markers, and even multi colors of permanent markers.

3.Stickers--Stickers can be bought in sheets, with themes in mind or at random. They can be purchased at the thrift stores for only a few dollars and while there are some that can be reused, many are not. But kids love stickers, and you can choose to give your children a certain number of stickers at a time to keep from using them all up at once.

4. Construction paper/Card Stock--paper is sold in so many varieties these days that it is mind boggling. For the valuable projects you may want to invest in more quality paper, which you can even catch during sales for your stock. Even the cheapest of papers made can be used to entertain during craft times.

5. Baubles--This includes a wide range of items. These can be a collection of bottle caps, multi-colored rocks, marbles, buttons, little figures, or even old jewelry. To get the best bargains, you can search the garage sales or thrift shops on bag day and bag articles just for the button collection. You can save old fish tank rocks, clean them up, and stash them in your craft supply. Marbles and little figures can be collected cheap from used board games.

6. Old fabric--People used to collect old fabrics just for quilting or doll clothes. Fabric has gained popularity in the crafting world over the years. Buying used clothing just for the fabric to use in your child's crafts is a great idea. You can cut it up and not feel guilty about wasting money or an expensive store-bought fabric.

7. Glue--Hit those back to school sales to gather a stock for your next rainy day, summer vacation, or unplanned weekend. Glue can be bought cheap or even made with flour and water. A variety of glue is best, but remember that if your stock grows too large and isn't used soon enough, the stick glue can dry up over time.

8. Nature items--Nature has some great items that kids can go on quests to obtain for crafts. Small pine cones, clean sticks, dried leaves, and gumballs from gum trees are just a few of nature's gifts.

9. Feathers--While it can be illegal to gather feathers to make things to sell or even for a personal collection, there are feathers to be bought in packs at the craft supply section of a store or from those feather boas your child has outgrown.

10. Old magazines--Old birding magazines, hunting magazines, children's magazines, or even craft magazines can be obtained used and cheap, sometimes even free at the local library.

Now that you've got the ideas for your stock, you can let your imagination and your child's run wild with the possibilities of creativity. Feel free to add your own ideas to the list and set about gathering your thoughts for what to make with these wonderful cheap supplies. Oh, by the way, collages are always great if you can't think of anything else at the moment. Plus, they can be framed to decorate the walls.

One of the almost forgotten fun ways to pass the time is with board games. Put a twist on the idea by helping your children create their own board games with their newly acquired craft supplies. Learning from the experts, homeschool moms that is, you can get all sorts of ideas to help your children enjoy their summer and maintain what they've learned throughout the previous school year. Here are some web sites to obtain instructions for home-made board games: http://www.abcteach.com
http://www.sparklebox2.co.uk/misc/cutout.html
http://www.webeans.net
http://www.esl-lounge.com/board_gamesindex.shtml
Of course, we must not leave out one of the leading popular suppliers of crafts materials: http://www.crayola.com