#86: Bunny Ears: Update From the Archives

Easter is just around the corner and it's everything eggs and bunnies! Here's an easy Easter craft for kids: Make a Bunny Ears Headband!



You will need this printable pdf template of the bunny ear headband, paper, markers or crayons, glue, and as an option: tape or a stapler.

Print off the template on white paper. Have your kids colour their ears and cut them out. Glue the bottoms of the ears on a long strip of paper (the headband) about 50 cm/20 inches long. Adjust this around your child's head and either tape, glue, or staple it at that spot.

Your child is now, officially, a bunny rabbit! Wasn't that easy?!

Note: While I originally thought cardstock would make better ears, I've since discovered that plain paper works well. The curvature of the headband keeps the ears from flopping down. However, if you want more durable ears, cardstock is still a good option.

Make it a family activity: Bunny ears for everyone!
This activity promotes: fine motor skills, imagination, and creativity.

#398: Easter Tree

Make your own Easter Tree to decorate your home or to use as a centerpiece at your table.



To make a basic tree you will need: A branch with many little twigs on it, clay or playdough, small plant pot, and decorations.

Place the clay or playdough in the bottom of the pot. Push the branch into the playdough or clay. Once it dries, it will hold it in place quite nicely. Then, add decorations to the tree.

For the decorations, you can either make your own at home or buy some from a craft or dollar store.

You can also decorate your pot using markers, glitter glue, stickers, or foam pieces.

As well, you can place the streamers from Easter baskets on top of the clay to decorate your pot.


Make this a family activity: Get together to make your own decorations for your Easter tree--more people means more ideas!

This activity promotes creativity and fine motor skills.

#397: Colour Easter Eggs

This is a safe and easy way to colour eggs for Easter.



To colour Easter eggs you will need: Hardboiled eggs (cooked in their shells), crepe paper (you can rip up party streams), water, and papertowel.

Take small pieces of crepe paper and wet them. Lay them over the egg until the egg is coloured. Set the egg on the papertowel to dry. Once the crepe paper is dried, peel it off. Some of the colour should have stayed behind to decorate the egg.

P.S. If you keep the eggs cool, you can eat them afterwards!


Make this a family activity: Get everyone together to make eggs.

This activity promotes creativity and colour awareness.

#396: Eggcarton Easter Bunny

To make a little Easter bunny you will need: an egg carton, cotton ball or craft pompom ball, pipe cleaner, marker, googly eyes, and glue.


Cut one egg piece off an egg carton. Cut the pipe cleaner in half. Fold each piece in half. Poke the ends into the carton for ears. Glue the googly eyes and puffy tail on. Draw on a face using the marker and you have a cute little Easter bunny.


Make this a family activity: Have each family member make their own and use them as a place setting decoration at Easter.

This activity promotes fine motor skills.

#337: New Year's Resolution

Tonight we say goodbye to 2009 and hello to the year 2010.


On New Year's Eve (today), many people make New Year's resolutions. A New Year's resolution is something you decide to do in the new year. Usually, a resolution is something you promise to do that will help make you a better person in some way. It can be simple like trying to remember to make your bed every morning to bigger things like not picking on the small kid in your class anymore.

Do you have something you would like to do in the new year? Make it a resolution and try not to break it!


Make this a family activity: ask your family what resolutions they are making.

This activity promotes self-development and self-awareness.

#331: Sing Christmas Carols

Merry Christmas, everyone!

What Christmas carols (songs) do you know?



You can sing your carols by your self, with your family or even go out as a group, caroling for your neighbours.

Do you need lyrics?


Make this a family activity: Take the family out caroling.

This activity promotes Christmas spirit and musical skills.

#328: Candy Christmas Tree

Make a pretty, edible (that means you can eat it) Christmas tree.



You will need: a pointy ended ice cream cone, green icing, and candies.

Cover the ice cream cone with icing and stick your candies on the tree and voila! You have a yummy tree.

For icing, you can make your own, or buy premade icing in grocery stores.


Make this a family activity: Get everyone around the table, making Christmas trees.

This activity promotes creativity and tactile awareness.

#324: Gingerbread House

Make a gingerbread house. And eat it! (I believe that gingerbread houses should be gobbled up!)



You will need gingerbread OR graham wafer crackers (you can buy these, which is easier), royal icing (you can find a recipe here--you also might be able to buy some from a bakery or find mix in a grocery store), candies, a plate and a knife to spread the icing.

Use the icing as glue to hold pieces of graham wafer crackers (or gingerbread) together to make a house shape. Decorate it with pieces of candy.

Take a picture and then eat it!

Enjoy!


Make this a family activity: Build one large gingerbread house together or make small, individual houses.

This activity promotes creativity and a little bit of baking skills.

#312: Decorate a Christmas Tree/or For the Holidays

What do you celebrate in December?


Help someone decorate for the upcoming holidays. You can decorate for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Ramadan, or another holiday.


Make this a family activity: Sing songs and get ready for the holidays.

This activity promotes a sense of tradition, family, belonging, and personal history.

#310: Write a Letter to Santa Claus

Write a letter to Santa. Tell him how you've been doing and let him know what you would like for Christmas. If you write him now, he might even have time to write you back!



If you want to mail your letter to Santa (don't forget to include your mailing address so he can mail his letter to you):

Santa’s Canadian mailing address:
Santa Claus
The North Pole, Canada
HOH OHO

Santa’s American (United States) mailing address:
North Pole Christmas Cancellation
Postmaster
5400 Mail Trail
Fairbanks AK 99709-9998

Note: You don't have to mail your letter to Santa, you can also leave it by milk and cookies on Christmas Eve and he'll read it when he stops by to fill your stocking.

Make this a family activity: I don't think you are ever too old to write a nice letter to Santa.

This activity promotes the spirit of Christmas and giving as well as literacy skills.

#276: Carve a Jack-O-Lantern

Happy Halloween! Make a jack-o-lantern to greet trick-or-treaters.




Cut the top off a pumpkin. Cut at an angle so you can place the top back on as a lid. Scoop the seeds and stringy bits out of the pumpkin using a spoon or scoop. (Make sure you use a special pumpkin carving knife safe for children or have an adult make the cuts for you.) Once you have scooped the seeds out, draw a face on the front of the pumpkin. Cut out the face. Place a candle or flashlight inside the jack-o-lantern (pumpkin). Voila! Done.


Make this a family activity: Work together to make your jack-o-lantern.

This activity promotes creativity and Halloween spirit.

#114: Homemade Cards

Happy Mother's Day!

Make your mom a homemade card.




Homemade cards always feel more special than a card made in a store (although there is nothing wrong with those!).

You can make a homemade card with plain paper, construction paper, coloured paper or use special card making supplies. Simply fold your paper in a card shape, draw, paint, stamp or glue.

Create and enjoy!


This activity promotes creativity and self-expression through art.

#86: Virtual Easter Egg Hunt / Bunny Ears

The Easter Egg Hunt is now closed. However, you can still make the craft (bunny ears) by clicking here.



This activity promotes eye-hand coordination.

Happy Easter! The Easter bunny has been to It's All Kid's Play (dot ca). He mentioned he was going to leave a craft project for my blog readers. He said, "follow the Easter Eggs to find the craft that will make you look like me. Have fun!"


Thanks, Easter Bunny. To start the hunt, click here and begin looking for eggs. When you find one, click on it. Keeping finding and clicking on the eggs until you find the Easter Bunny. Enjoy the hunt everyone! P.S. You might have to hit the 'refresh' button on your Internet browser for the eggs to appear.

#60: Look for a Leprechaun

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Can you find a leprechaun?

A leprechaun is a male faerie from Ireland. They are said to have a lot of money (gold). If you keep your eye on one, he can't escape, but as soon as you look away, he can vanish. So if you see one, keep your eye on him! They especially like to play jokes/pranks on people--so watch out!

This activity promotes the knowledge of Irish mythology and the use of imagination.

#29: Make a Valentine

Happy Valentine's Day!

If you haven't made (or bought) and given out your valentine's already, make your own and mail them or give them away. It's valentine's day! Let's celebrate.

There are hundreds of ways to make your own valentine so see what you have at home and cut and glue and tape and cut some more and draw and colour and ta-da! In no time you'll have a valentine. I bet your parents would love a homemade valentine. In fact, making your own valentine is always more special. :)




This activity promotes creativity and giving.

#17: Search for a Groundhog

Happy Groundhog Day!

If the groundhog comes out of its burrow and sees its shadow, that means six more weeks of winter!

See if you can find a groundhog today. You can look outside, see if you community has a groundhog celebration and a groundhog mascot, or even go to the zoo and see if they have a groundhog.

It's a silly tradition, watching the groundhog, but it sure is fun!

This activity promotes discovery.