Activites for the young at heart on the California Central Coast.

Baked Dough for Holiday Ornaments Bubble Wrap Prints Cheerio Necklace Easy Bead Bracelets

Glitter Playdough Halloween Spiders Paper Plate Tamborine/ Maraca Pine Bough Painting Play Dough

Silly Putty View All

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Baked Dough for Holiday Ornaments

Materials: 2 cups flour, 1 cup salt, 2 tbsp vegetable oil, 1 cup water, paint

Instructions: Mix flour, salt, and vegetable oil. Slowly add the water (3/4 to 1 cup) until you get a clay consistency. Work the dough into the shapes that you want. Use cookie cutters, play dough tools, or anything you can find. Don't forget to bring out the garlic press to make hair! (The stamps designed for play dough work great for the toddlers) Use a paint brush dipped in water to smooth out the edges of finished shapes. Don't forget to make a hole so you can hang your ornaments (I use the blunt end of a wooden shishkabob skewer). Bake your ornaments in a 250 degree oven for approximately 1 hour depending on ornament thickness. I have found that an ornament about 1/4" thick takes about 1 hour 20 minutes. Cool and paint!

Bubble Wrap Prints

Materials: bubble wrap, tempura paint, good quality paper

Instructions: Use tempera paints and have your child paint all over the "bubbles" on the wrap. Take a piece of good quality paper, set it gently on the painted bubble wrap, smooth it over with your hands to create a cool "print". Lift up gently. Repeat as often as your child wants!!

Neita Oates, Director, Happy Time Preschool, Pismo Beach, CA

Cheerio Necklace

Materials: string and cheerios

Instructions: This is a great activity for a child who is feeling under the weather. It is fun, encourages them to eat healthful cereal, and does not take too much energy. Just string Cheerios on any kind of string and let the kiddos enjoy their edible necklace. I remember using yarn as a child but I have found that a thicker plastic string manufactured for beads is easier for the younger crowd. You can find this at any craft store or in the bead aisle of stores like Walmart.

Easy Bead Bracelets

Materials: large plastic beads, pipe cleaners

Instructions: By stringing beads on pipe cleansers tots can easily bend bracelets into shape, and will quickly make "jewelry" for every member of the family.

Glitter Playdough

Materials: 3 cups flour, 1.5 cups salt, 6 teaspoons cream of tartar, 3 cups water, 3 to 4 tablespoons oil, icing food coloring (This paste will color the dough deep rich colors that regular food coloring can not match. Purchase at cake decorating or craft stores.), glitter

Instructions: Mix the dry ingredients (except the glitter) together in a big pan. Add the water, oil, and food coloring; stir until the lumps are worked out and the food coloring well-mixed. Cook the mixture over medium heat and continue stirring until the dough thickens and gathers into a big ball. When the dough cools, knead in the glitter. Keep the palydough in an air tight container or a sealed plastic baggie.

Bay Area Parent, December 1990

Halloween Spiders

Materials: Styrafoam balls, black pipe cleaners, glue, google eyes, red felt and black spray paint or craft paint.

Instructions: Paint or spray paint the styrafoam balls black and set aside to dry. Cut the pipe cleaners in thirds, cut mouths out of the felt. Have the kids stick the pipe cleaners in the styrafoam balls and then bend them for the legs. Then glue on eyes and a felt mouth. These spiders are easy and fun and turn out really cute - both my 19th month old and my 5.5 year old LOVE making them!

Paper Plate Tamborine/ Maraca

Materials: paper plate(s), beans or dry noodles, stapler, and decorating materials (i.e. markers, crayons, stickers, glitter glue, streamers, etc..)

Instructions: For a taborine put some beans or dry noodles between two paper plates and staple together. For a maraca fold over one paper plate with beans or noodles inside and staple the edges. Decorate however you like! When you are done crank up the music and dance!!!

Pine Bough Painting

Materials: any kind of paint, paper, and a pine tree bough

Instructions: Dip your pine tree "paint brush" in paint and "Dance" it across your paper for a fun design - great to do to classical music, or swing music for a faster tempo!

Neita Oates, Director, Happy Time Preschool, Pismo Beach, CA

Play Dough

Materials: 4 cups flour, 1 cup salt, 4 cups water, 4 tablespoons oil, 1/2 cup cream of tartar, food coloring.

Instructions: Mix all ingredients in a sauce pan and cook stirring over low/medium heat until play dough is completely formed and no longer sticky. Knead in food coloring and store in an air tight container.

Silly Putty

Materials: This is a non-edible recipe! White all purpose glue, liquid starch

Instructions: Mix two parts glue to one part liquid starch. Gradually add more starch if the puddy is too sticky.

Check out these crafts from FamilyFun.com!