Does anyone have any inexpensive craft projects for a 7 year old boy? He is my nephew and he gets bored easily. I don't have a lot of money, so I thought maybe next time he comes over we could do some crafts together. Thank you.
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go to pencil arts on the internet and copy some of the pictures in the interest of the 7 year old. If your printer doesn't enlarge then take it to the liabrary and enlarge the picture. let him color these pictures for one project. for another you can go to the craft section in walmart and the little self stick foam shapes seem to let their imagination carry them away. Good luck...I have 2 of them and very short attention spans one is adhd. Looking up things in the encyclopedia is also sometimes good.
Make your own playdough. Put 1 cup water, 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup salt, 2 teaspoons cooking oil and 2 teaspoons cream of tartar in a pan. Add a little food coloring and cook gently for a few minutes until the mixture forms a ball. Store in a plastic container.
Lolly or popsicle sticks, washed and dried, can be made into many interesting objects such as doll's furniture.
Paper plates make great masks. Cut out holes for the eyes and attach a piece of elastic once the plates are painted or drawn on. Halve the plates to make carnival eye masks and attach a popsicle stick as a handle. Good luck.
www.papertoys.com is a website that has free printables that you can cut and assemble. They're better printed on card stock; but your printer should be able to handle it.
If you aren't afraid of a mess, try papier mache. Decide what you two want to make, and make an armature (the "skeleton") from things you find around the house--paper towel tubes, rolled up newspaper, empty bottles, boxes, and so on. You can tape the pieces together with masking tape. Once you have a good skeleton, you will need to tear lots and lots of newspaper up into strips about an inch wide.
My fav. paste is "wheat paste", which you can buy at a store that handles wall-paper. It is not expensive, and, in my opinion, makes the best papier mache! You can also use the flour-water or glue-water recipes you can find online. You will now be making a MESS, so use an old plastic tablecloth or the like to protect the floor (and I recommend working on the floor--you are less likely to spill a bucket of paste!) BAsically, you dip the strips into the paste, pull them between your fingers to get the excess paste off, then put them on the armature. You will overlap slightly as you lay strips. Once you have a good layer, let it dry. (This can take from several hours to a day or two.) Add another layer or two (or more) until the project feels "solid". Once the mache is done and dry, you can paint your project.
You can make whatever his imagination can come up with--robots, spaceships, boats, pinatas, anything....
www.instructables.com has lots of video tutorials if you go on and search paper mache or papier mache.
Have fun! Don't fear the mess; it seems too many kids never get to get messy anymore...
This isn't really a craft. But how about making cookies with him? What 7 year old would turn down cookies to have for a snack and then take home to brag about what a good baker he is. Who knows? You might turn him on to a profession! Have fun.
Salt Dough is easy and cheap; several recipes here on Thriftyfun.
Macaroni pictures, necklaces, and even sculptures are easy and way inexpensive.
The Dollar Tree is amazing for crafts supplies, from yarn to Popsicle sticks, to wooden shapes, foam, paints and more.
Take him shopping, and you can find out what he likes, or browse the different craft websites and find out what peaks his interest. Have fun! PS: Don't pass up the thrift shops!
Why not introduce him to service projects: make cards for those in nursing homes, collect canned food from neighbors and take them to a shelter, see who in the neighborhood may need help weeding their garden, make cookies for those who are ill or can't get out. The rewards of doing little acts of kindness for others will bring him much happiness. Have him brainstorm about other ideas as well. You have a chance to mold him into a very fine and caring young man!
Paper airplanes or simple origami can be fun. Here is a great site with easy instructions:
www.paperairplanes.co.uk/
Check out familyfun.go.com/
Have him collect junk articles in a particular color around your house (ie all blue stuff -- ribbon, boxes, bottle caps, bread clip,buttons, thread, candy wrappers, pen, etc. just junky stuff -- little things) Have a look together at all the different shades of that color, the differences in texture, and so on. Then hot glue these things together (letting him run the glue gun) into an abstract sculpture on a piece of cardboard painted or covered with paper of the same color (in this example, blue). This is a recycle project and has zero cost except for the glue.
When my kids were young, we would grate broken crayons, sprinkle them in an interesting pattern on a piece of waxed paper. Cover with another sheet of waxed paper and iron with the iron set on low, until the crayon melts. I would do all of this on a thick layer of newspaper. When it cools, the waxed paper can be cut to even it out or even to make interesting shapes. Taped to a window, you have instant stained glass.
Purchase a clay pot and bottom for pot. The bottom can be a bit larger. Turn the pot upside down and place the bottom for pot right side up on pot, creating a miniature bird bath. Glue (craft glue or elmers works great). You can have him place a few small pebbles in the bird bath and glue a small bird (mushroom birds at craft store) on the rim. You can even make a small slit in birds mouth and add a piece of moss. He can also paint the birdbath, I used a clear varnish on the pot first (water base found at craft stores near craft paints) as clay pots absorb moisture pretty fast. Then when he paints it (if he wants to) the paint sticks nicely. The small clay pots will easily fit on a window sill, sit on a desk or end table. He can make one for his mom/grandma/you. This is a tried and true kids/adult springtime craft. Even my 2 year old grandson loved making them.
Just a note...I purchased a large clay pot and pot bottom as a bird bath for my patio. I didn't paint it, just placed smooth river rocks (can be found at the Dollar Tree)
in it and added water when needed. The birds really did love it. Any questions, write me back, Nonna6
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