How to Enjoy Arts & Crafts with Your Kids

If you want to get the most out of arts and crafts time with your kids, it's important to set up a space where the materials are easy to reach. You’ll also want to have a craft table large enough to accommodate the project. This area doesn't have to be a whole room — a corner of the kitchen or the living room will do — but having a specific zone for crafts will reduce time collecting supplies and make cleaning up afterwards go much faster.

By keeping supplies corralled in dedicated storage bins, not only will everything be within reach, but you’ll also know exactly what items you’re running low on. Additionally, if you have more than one child crafting at a time, designated individual spaces will help deter arguments. If your craft area is needed for another purpose, it’s nice to have a bookshelf nearby to place the supply bins and any works of art still in progress.

If you set out to do a project that is too difficult, your kids may get easily frustrated and leave most of the work to you. But if a project is too easy, they might get bored and lose interest. Therefore, finding the happy medium is the key to success. A great crafting project will appeal to your child’s strengths while adding just enough challenge to make the task more interesting.

For instance, if your child loves scrapbooking or making collages but struggles a little with fine motor skills, a die-cut machine can help them bring their imagination to life without them having to get frustrated about making intricate cuts with scissors. There are a variety of die-cutting tools available to make the exact shapes and letters your kid wants to paste on a page.

Oftentimes, letting children lead with the projects they have in mind is a great way to make sure the project appeals to them. However, it’s also easy for kids to be overly ambitious, so think about ways you could simplify the craft or break it into approachable steps.

Before you start any projects, make sure you have all the arts and crafts supplies you need. Most craft activities require things like scissors, tape, glue, paper and felt, but there are also many new kids' arts and crafts products on the market these days such as 3D art pens.

Once you have a sense of what project your children want to do, you can make a list of what you’ll need. You might find that you already have some of what’s needed within your office and school supplies. Though if you do make a run to the craft store, your kids would probably love to take part in the shopping experience.

If your kids are older, they might be interested doing projects with the latest tech-forward crafting tools. Complex projects are possible with devices like 3D printers that enable making objects like keychains and sculptures. You might be surprised by how quickly your kids can learn these machines and use them to express their creativity, especially when you serve as a role model. Keep in mind that these machines cost significantly more than basic art supplies and the 3D filament must also be replenished, which adds more expense.

One of the most important things to remember when doing arts and crafts with your kids is that they take time. To help kids avoid perfectionistic tendencies, remind them that mistakes just make their project more unique. Keep in mind that they are learning important skills through play and try not to rush them through the creative process.

Unless you are working with a goal in mind, such as creating party favors or a printing out a birthday note for a friend using greeting card software, your goal is simply to have fun together. Take your time, enjoy the process and recognize that a project might need to be completed in multiple crafting sessions that are dictated by your child’s attention span.

If you’ve followed the suggestions above, you’ll likely have a better time crafting with your kids. When you have a dedicated space, a project that your child is excited about and all the necessary materials, you can enjoy seeing their imagination take off while simultaneously bonding with them.