How to Make Valentines With Your Preschooler

Preschoolers have boundless energy for craft projects. Channel some of that energy into making valentines.

Things You'll Need

• Foil Paper
• Elmer's Glue-All
• Crayons
• Fabrics
• Glitter
• Heart-shaped Stencils
• Paper Doilies
• Foil-wrapped Candy Hearts
• Suckers
• Finger Paints
• Heart-shaped Cookie Cutters
• Safety Scissors
• Construction Paper
• Felt-tip Pens
• Markers

Instructions

1. Assemble your supplies - glue, safety scissors, construction paper, paint, doilies, glitter, markers and crayons. Make other materials available if you can, such as foil paper, fabric, ink stamps or old wallpaper.

2. Have the child trace heart-shaped stencils or cookie cutters to create heart shapes. You may need to assist with the tracing.

3. Let the child cut the heart out using safety scissors. Expect the edges to be a bit rough and uneven. Remember that this is part of the beauty of a child's creation.

4. Explain the creative decorating options available to the child. He or she may glue a doily onto the heart, add some glitter, write a message in crayon, color or fingerpaint a design on the heart, or glue several hearts of different shapes onto a card to create a collage.

5. Try not to be critical of whatever path the child selects. Whatever the outcome, the artwork will be a learning experience.

6. Show the child how to cut two slits in the valentine to stick a sucker through the valentine, or allow the child to glue foil-wrapped heart candies on the valentine. Have extra suckers or candy on hand because making valentines is hunger-inducing!

7. Help the child write any message he or she chooses, and encourage him or her to sign his or her own name without your help.

Tips & Warnings

• Preschoolers have limited attention spans, so do not expect that the child will be able to make more then one or two valentines in a sitting.