Summer Homemade Crafts for Children

Stay in the cool and do some crafts during the summer.

Summer is a useful time to do crafts. Kids are out of school, and it's usually blistering hot outside, making outdoor play impossible for very long. Make homemade crafts in the air-conditioning with very few items. Unlike other aspects of summer, like the weather, summer-themed crafts will give your kids a taste of summer all year.

Ice Cream Cones

This tasty-looking treat will last a long time without melting---even in scorching hot weather. For each cone, kids will need a piece of brown construction paper, a pompom and craft glue. Have them trace an old CD onto the construction paper, then cut out the circle. Have them cut out a "wedge" from the circle that goes about halfway in, and is about one inch wide. They can then grab the corners from the wedge and roll the paper into a cone shape, using tape to secure it. Have them choose the pompom they want for their ice cream scoop, then put some craft glue on the rim of the "cone" and attach the pompom. If they want, they can add "sprinkles" by gluing on some tiny beads or even real ice cream sprinkles.

Fireworks

Nothing says "summer" like large, bright fireworks. With this craft idea from Kaboose, kids can make their own fireworks with just some construction paper, glitter and glue. Have kids trace their hands on white construction paper three times, then cut out all of the hand prints. Have them spread glue all over the hand prints, making sure that all of the hands are facing the same direction (i.e. all of them have thumbs on the left or right), then sprinkle glitter on and shake off any excess. Once the hand prints are dry, have the kids stack the bottom part of the palms on top of each other. Fan them out so that the fingers are "bursting" out in all directions, then staple them in place together for a complete firework.

Watermelon

Make a far less messy version of this welcome treat on a hot day. This simple craft from TheIdeaBox.com only requires a paper plate, some construction paper, and tempera paint, plus some raisins for seeds. Each child will need half a paper plate for his watermelon. Have the kids paint the entire paper plate surface green, then let it dry. While it's drying, trace a circle that is about six to seven inches in diameter (like a small plate, or a margarine tub lid) onto a piece of pink or red construction paper. Have kids fold the circles in half, then cut them. They may then glue one of the half-circles to the paper plate to look like watermelon. For seeds, have them glue on some raisins or real watermelon seeds, if you have some. Otherwise, they can just draw them on with a marker.

References

• Kaboose: Pom-Pom Ice Cream Cone
• TheIdeaBox.com: A Slice of Watermelon