Craft suggestions for 4-11 year olds

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I help run a club for 4-11 year olds, and I plan the craft activities. I'm running out of ideas so was hoping some of you might be able to give some more ideas! They need to be fairly cheap as the club is free to attend and funded by donations. So Baker Ross kits are too expensive! We typically have about 15 kids. Recently I've done plasticine models, bubble wands with beads and pipe cleaners, paper windmills, scratch art, sticker collages, and pom pom shooters with balloons and loo rolls.

Fairy/elf gardens? Disposable foil trays, get them to scavenge grass/stones/shells/leaves. We use Bakewell tart tins to make tiny ponds

Painted rocks? (you can also use sharpies) - look at Pinterest for ideas.

Salt dough? Do you have access to an oven to bake them?
One day making then and the next painting them?

Making felting pictures is really popular with this age group. Uses sharp pins so more suitable for the 7-11 half of the room.

Origami folding, so long as you choose fairly simple patterns.

I also look at Pinterest for ideas for this kind of thing.

Make bunting with paper flags.
Pop-up greetings cards.
Papier mache.
Marbling (with oil on water).
Potato prints.

As well as potato prints, you can use all sorts of other veg the same way - cauliflower, carrots and cabbage leaves are good.

Thank you, some good ideas! What's felting, I've not come across that before.

Get some acrylic paint pens for decorating rocks/glass jars/plastic flower pots. They're about £10 for a pack, but can be used for so many things.

Make necklaces/bracelets. You need elastic which is cheap and then beads (also cheap from e.g. The Works) or can use old buttons/chopped up straws/dried pasta/anything with a hole in it.

Saltdough.

Papier mache, make bowls and then decorate.

Make a chatterbox (Google chatterbox craft). All you need is paper and pens.

Make magnets. You'd need cardboard (we use saved cereal boxes), pens and magnetic tape (available from Poundland).

Collage.

Make box cars/vehicles. Not expensive but you would need to save up some cardboard boxes, plastic milk lids (for wheels) etc.

Jam jar lanterns theimaginationtree.com/jam-jar-and-tissue-paper-luminaries/

Rolled paper beads www.easypeasyandfun.com/how-to-make-paper-beads/

Paper plate dreamcatchers www.bakerross.co.uk/craft-ideas/kids/paper-plate-dream-catcher/

Hobbycraft do suncatchers (with paint) for a pound or so each.

Sun catchers supersimple.com/article/suncatcher-craft/

Pen pot www.redtedart.com/diy-penguin-pencil-holder/

Shoebox football www.muminthemadhouse.com/shoebox-table-football-foosball/

Thank you, these ideas are really helpful!

Friendship bracelets
Pompoms (can make into animals with googly eyes!)
Junk modelling
Masking tape pictures

Plastic bottle planters www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/craft-ideas/a43629/upcycled-soda-bottle-planters/

Cereal/shoe box village. Younger ones can paint the road layout and gardens on lining paper and older ones can cut and paint the building boxes. I once made an incredible castle with colour printouts of stone work and masonry detail using decoupage techniques (painting on PVA)

@Aroundtheworldin80moves

Friendship bracelets Pompoms (can make into animals with googly eyes!) Junk modelling Masking tape pictures

Masking tape pictures sounds interesting, how do you do that?

Masking tape pictures

Using masking tape to make patterns or shapes on your paper. Paint over them, then remove the masking tape when paint is dry and it leaves the patterns behind.

Like that geometric wall decorating popular in Lockdown 1.

@Aroundtheworldin80moves

Masking tape pictures

Using masking tape to make patterns or shapes on your paper. Paint over them, then remove the masking tape when paint is dry and it leaves the patterns behind.

Like that geometric wall decorating popular in Lockdown 1.

Thanks, will give that a go!

Flower pot pens - paint a small flower pot, fill with dry beans, add a flower pen.

Stainglass windows with black paper frames and tissue paper

Can you still melt crisp packets in the oven and make key chains?

Use lolly sticks and wool to make God's eyes. My class if 7-9 year olds loved that. Google search....

I was about 8 and made a tapestry bag out of canvas and wool. It took weeks but I loved doing it a little at a time. I used it for years! I was also taught crochet at that age. The class could do one or two each and you could make a class blanket.

Thank you, will be trying these ideas out!

You can buy cheap cupcake cases and use them to make pictures/cards. Stick one on paper to make a flower head and draw a stem and leaves. Flatten one to make a risk body then stick another one folded into a triangle shape to make a tail.

There’s probably other ideas. Think I saw it on mister maker and good for the younger ones.

I've had success with this recipe for bath bombs...
www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/how-make-bath-bomb/amp