-
Step 1
All children love blocks. As I write this my one-year old daughter is contentedly stacking some on the floor. Large rectangular building blocks are very popular. The cardboard or foam ones that you buy in the store cost about $25. You can also make these yourself by covering the packaging boxes of household items (tissue boxes, oatmeal boxes, shoe boxes, etc.) with paper. It's an easy and fun project. See full instructions in the resource guide below.
-
Step 2
The Waldorf School believes that toys made from natural materials have a positive influence on child development. My daughter received several plastic dolls for her first birthday. I'm letting her play with them for now, but have plans for this Christmas to replace them with cloth dolls that I made myself. Making a homemade fabric doll is easy enough that, with a little help a child of 8-9 could do it.
-
Step 3
By the age of 3-4, many little girls will want doll houses. Little boys enjoy doll houses too, as well as similarly-constructed buildings--such as garages and gas stations--that give them an opportunity to play with people and cars together. You can build a doll house or related building for your child by taping together boxes, applying some simple papier mache techniques, and decorating with paint and fabric materials to add some finishing touches. Explore your undiscovered artistic talents with this project!
-
Step 4
There are few things easier than making your own salt dough (which is essentially homemade "Play Dough"). All you need is flour, salt, and water. Unlike it's store-bought cousin, homemade salt dough has the added benefit of hardening when it dries or when baked in the oven. It is therefore perfect to use for making ornaments and other clay modeling projects. It is similarly easy to make children's craft dough from cornstarch.
-
Step 5
A few generations ago, bean bags used to be in most every child's collection of toys. These bags are fun for young infants to grasp and manipulate and, for older children, they can be used in many types of toss games. To make your own bean bags, all you need are some dried beans, cloth, and a needle and thread.
