Spending time at home with the kids? If so, most parents try to limit screentime. They don’t want their kids glued to the tv or video games when not eating, sleeping, or doing school work. 

A way to get your kids involved in something fun, and maybe a little bit educational, if you’re stuck indoors is with little crafting projects. 

Here, we’ve rounded up a few of our favorite easy crafts for kids. Try these at home to get you started on making craft time a new tradition!

Backyard Projects

For those with a little bit of outdoor space, including decks and patios, DIY backyard projects can be a lot of fun. 

Wind chime

Grab a sturdy stick or dowel, or if you have a solid round metal or plastic hoop that can work for your wind chime too. Grab colorful yarn or string and you’re halfway there. Then look around the house for anything that could make noise: old keys, buttons, smaller sticks, old silverware and tools, and even plastic bottle tops work. Tie the string around the stick or hoop and then around your found objects, varying the height. 

Birdfeeders

Save your old toilet paper and paper towel rolls for this one. Collect a few, poke a few holes at the top and thread yarn through them. Then, grab some peanut butter and spread it around the outside of the rolls, sprinkle with birdseed, and you’re good to go. This will help you bring some birds to the yard for you and the kids to identify.

Indoor Projects

There are plenty of fun projects you can create indoors too. Here are a few. 

DIY Playdough

Did you know you can make your own playdough? All you need is cornstarch, baking soda, and water. Combine the ingredients and then heat in a saucepan until it forms a solid, about five minutes. Spread it out on a tray to cool, and you can add in food coloring or essential oils if you want. Then, hand it to your kids to play.

Marble Run

If you have plenty of old tubes from paper towels and toilet paper rolls, you’re good to go with this one. You can help the kids’ layout a mini racetrack for marbles or other small balls or even toy cars to run through. Just tape together towers and bridges, drop in the marble, and you’re off to the races.

Paper Plane Flight School

While paper planes are decidedly analog old school toys, that doesn’t mean they can’t provide hours of entertainment. Especially if you go a step further and make it into a game. With this, make some paper planes and then get a big piece of cardboard, cut some holes in it (where the planes will fit) and assign points. The kids can work on flying the planes through the holes for points.

These are just a few easy DIY crafts you can make with and for your kids that will turn into fun projects they will enjoy.