10 Activities to do with kids on the school holidays
1) Rock painting
The list of benefits of rock painting for children is endless, but today we want to focus on how rock painting helps us and the kids engage in a mindful activity, connecting our feelings, our senses through painting on a very tactile surface.
Rock by Daphne Birett
More rock painting ideas for all ages >
2) Paint a pot
Refresh any old planters using contrasting paint pens. Use the plant stencils, if you have them, to make an easy plant pot design.
Complete the pot with irregular circles and dots of many colours.
Planter by Nidhi Pathak
More ideas for your garden and plants >
3) Paint a mug
Create your own personalised mugs using paint pens on plain ceramic mugs. You will need to bake for 30-60 minutes on your home oven at 150-180 Celsius - we have also tried 250°C for 20-25 minutes.
4) Do a fun design on clothes
Painting on clothes is one of the easiest ways to enjoy your artwork while wearing it.
This painted jackets was made by Jen Hall, you can find her on Facebook as Painty Hands.
5) Make a library bag
Standing out from the crowd at Library time is easy when you design your own library bag! Painting on canvas is a very fun craft for kids of any age (and of course adults too!)
6) DIY shoes
You can use both the fabric pens and the acrylic paint pens on shoes, keep in mind the fabric pens are permanent but the acrylic paint pens will fade if not protected with fabric protector, or if washed too frequently (we recommend you use the paint pens on pairs of shoes that don't need to be washed as often).
Shoes by Jaz (13 years old, mum Daphne Birett).
Look for more shoe painting ideas >
7) Colour on dry autumn leaves
Gather dry leaves and paint freestyle patterns on them. You can make straight and squiggly lines, dots and more!
Use different colours on each leaf to make it more fun - and add details in black and white on top!.
Craft by Julie @pipdotart
8) Do recycled art
Recycling materials for crafting is one of the best activities to do at school, we teach the kid how any material can be repurposed into something artistic and fun. It doesn’t have to be messy, and the setup can be quick to allow for more creative time.
9) Make colourful cards
Creating handmade cards is a very fun activity for the school holidays, and it doesn’t have to be messy at all! We know with today’s busy schedules, it’s harder to set up a kids craft activity involving paper cuttings, glue, glitter and more - and then cleaning after!
- With glitter and metallic paint pens, kids can add the sparkle without the mess.
- Using washi tapes they can decorate envelopes, borders, collage different shapes and patterns - and more.
- Watercolour pens and silky stix are the perfect addition to the pen station, they are easy to use and bring a fun, watery element to the lesson without the need for messy water jugs and cleanup.
10) Create a memory game
Memory games are an all-time favourite board game. They foster memory - as the name very clearly states - so we wanted to foster art and craft too!
We've seen the memory games sold at stores, they have generic animals or items that most kids don't feel identified with. A pair of cows and a pair of ducks are fun... but how about asking your kids what characters or objects they would love to have in their own game?
1 Response
These ideas look so fun! cannot wait to do some of these with my child :)