How to Make Candy Christmas Trains for Children

These little trains are so cute and so easy to assemble. They make fabulous stocking stuffers, decorations or gifts to give to classmates, teachers, or just about anyone. Children will also love helping to assemble these trains, along with adult supervision. The added bonus to this sweet and easy project is, it's entirely edible. Wrapped candies are hot-glued for assembly, so that when the candies are unwrapped it can all be a sweet treat. So, gather together the supplies below and let's climb aboard the Candy Christmas Train. These instructions are for making one Candy Christmas Train.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Hot glue gun and glue stick (for adult use only)
• Tube of Rolos or Lifesavers candy, in wrapper
• 4 round peppermints, in wrapper
• 1 caramel square, in wrapper
• 1 Hershey's kiss (any variety), in wrapper

1. Begin by having your glue gun ready and safely away from children. The heat does not have to be super hot, just hot enough to attach the pieces with a small dollop of glue. Note: Elmer's glue doesn't work well, as it tends to dry out and not hold the pieces together.
2. Take the 4 wrapped peppermints, which will become the wheels of train. Apply a drop of hot glue to the center of a peppermint and press it to toward the front "side" of the tube of rolos or lifesavers. Hold this in place with light pressure for at least 30 seconds. Repeat this step for the other side and for the 2 back wheels. Remember to hold each one in place long enough for the glue to adequately adhere the wrapper of the peppermints to the wrapper of the tubed candy. Once wheels are on, allow to sit for about 2 to 3 minutes. This is a good time to go on and start placing the wheels on a second train, if you are making more than one.
3. Take the wrapped square of caramel and place it on top of the "train" to the front so that the edge of the caramel square is only slightly back from the edge of the rolos/lifesavers roll after the wheels are stable. Hot glue a small drop of glue to the bottom of the caramel piece and hold it firmly into place for about 30 seconds. This becomes the base of the smokestack. Allow this to sit for about a minute, while repeating this step on your second train.
4. Take the wrapped Hershey's kiss and place a small drop of glue on the flat bottom side. Place the kiss on top of the caramel square. Leave the little Hershey's flag tag in place, as it will represent the smoke from the train. Be careful not to apply too much pressure holding the kiss onto the caramel because you don't want the kiss to become mashed.
5. Create many versions of this sweet little train simply by changing up the colors or candies you use. For example, you could use 2 red peppermint "wheels" and 2 green peppermint "wheels." You could use foil or gift wrap to cover the roll of rolos or lifesavers. You could hot glue red or green yarn wrapped around the middle of the finished train to use it as an ornament. Use your own ideas and imagination to create unique trains for each child on your Christmas list. No matter how you create your Christmas trains, add a sprinkling of fun and a dash of love to each one.

Tips & Warnings

• Try wrapping the caramel square in a small piece of Christmas paper so that it gives the appearance of a package.
• If you want to try larger Christmas trains, consider using the tubes of Tootsie Rolls, round cookies wrapped carefully in colored saran wrap and a large Hershey's kiss.
• Find a tiny snowman to glue to top of train, in the spirit of Frosty's return to the North Pole by train.
• Never leave hot glue guns around children.
• Be sure young children remove all wrapping before eating candy pieces.