PRE-SCHOOL IDEA:

SNOWMAN STICKER COLLAGE OR SCENE:

Materials: Coloured paper, assorted snowman stickers, (optional) crayons or markers.

 Step 1: Give your child a coloured sheet of paper and some snowman stickers.  Have your child either create a collage of the stickers or a scene using the stickers.
Step 2: Encourage your child to add embellishments to the collage or scene by using crayons or markers.

 

Cottonball Snowman Craft:

Materials: Coloured paper (we used black), cotton balls, googly craft eyes, ribbon, beads, orange pipe cleaner, white glue, a paper bowl or waxed paper to put the glue on, damp cloth for sticky fingers (This is a messy craft).

Step 1: Have your child create a snowman on the paper by dipping the cotton balls in the white glue and arranging on the paper.

Step 2: Cut out a small piece of orange pipe cleaner to use as a carrot nose and have your child glue the nose and googly eyes to the snowman’s head.

Step 3: Next have your child decorate the snowman using ribbon for a scarf (I tied the small pieces of ribbon in a little note to give it more of a scarf feel) and beads for buttons.  Let your child’s creativity take over.  He/she could add more cotton balls for snow on the ground, or use twigs or pipe cleaners for arms.

Juice Bottle Snowman Lanterns:

Materials: a sharp craft knife (for parent  use only),  juice bottles (POM juice bottles are even shaped like snowmen!), white tissue paper cut into strips and squares, white glue, old paint brush, old yogurt pot, ribbons and beads, black permanent marker, LED light.

Step 1: (Parent step) Carefully cut a hole in the bottom of hte plastic bottle.  This was the hardest part of the craft!  Be sure that the LED light can fight through it.

Step 2: Create a simple paste by mixing equal parts water and glue in an empty yogurt pot and then paste the pieces of white tissue to the bottle (our tissue had specks of coloured glitter in it). Let completely this dry (on wax paper...good to work on, too).

Step 3: Have your child decorate the "snowman" using beads, ribbons, pipe cleaners, coloured paper.  Glue the pieces on with white glue and then rest it on its back so the items don't slide off.

Step 3: One dry you can turn on an LED light and slip the snowman on top of the light so that it glows!

Snowman Crafts

Dried Glue Snowman Ornaments:

Materials:  Waxed paper, permanent marker (like a Sharpie), white glue (a new bottle works well since they are easier to squeeze), various beads, orange pipe cleaner, string.

 Step 1: Have your child draw the basic shape of a snowman onto the waxed paper.  You may have to help little ones.

Step 2: Now have your child squeeze white glue from a bottle onto the waxed paper keeping the glue inside the drawn lines of the snowman shape.

Step 3: Now your child can add details like bead eyes, bead buttons, a bead mouth, and a small cut piece of orange pipe cleaner as a carrot nose.

Step 4: Carefully lay a piece of string arranged in a loop in the glue so that when the glue dries the string is attached to the glue and that it forms a hook to hand the ornament on your Christmas Tree or to attach to presents. 

Step 5: The hardest part of this craft is waiting for the glue to dry...depending on how much glue your child used it could take a few days!

Puffy Paint Snowman:

Materials: Coloured paper (we used black), cotton balls, googly craft eyes, ribbon, beads, orange pipe cleaner, white glue, a paper bowl or waxed paper to put the glue on, damp cloth for sticky fingers (This is a messy craft).

Step 1: Have your child create a snowman on the paper by dipping the cotton balls in the white glue and arranging on the paper.

Step 2: Cut out a small piece of orange pipe cleaner to use as a carrot nose and have your child glue the nose and googly eyes to the snowman’s head.

Step 3: Next have your child decorate the snowman using ribbon for a scarf (I tied the small pieces of ribbon in a little note to give it more of a scarf feel) and beads for buttons.  Let your child’s creativity take over.  He/she could add more cotton balls for snow on the ground, or use twigs or pipe cleaners for arms.

Snowman Magnets:

Materials: Jar lid , white pom poms in various sizes) , craft googly eyes, white glue, beads, orange pipecleaner, glitter (Optional but highly recommended), wax paper, damp cloth for sticky fingers, sticky back magnets (we just recycled one of those advertisement magnets you sometimes get in the mail...we cut it into pieces and used white glue to stick it on to the jar lid).

Step 1: Turn the jar lid over so the inside is facing up and fill it with white glue.

Step 2: If you are using glitter then have your child choose the colour and sprinkle it onto the white glue.

Step 3: If you used glitter you will need to add a bit more white glue in the location where the pom poms will sit.  Have your child glue the pom poms to create a snowman.

Step 4: Put some white glue on a piece of wax paper and let your child dip the beads, googly eyes and small pipe cleaner nose into the glue to place on the snowman.

Step 5:  You can either let the snowman dry first and then add a sticky backed piece of magnet or do as we did and glue a piece of recycled magnet to the back.  Let the craft lay on waxed paper to dry.

Step 6:  The drying takes the longest but afterwards you have a cute fridge magnet!

Sometimes the simplest things, like stickers, make the best craft projects, especially if your child is very young.

SNOWMAN - Paper Collage Style:

Materials: Coloured paper, black paper, white paper, pencil, various sized cups or lids to trace circles, child safe scissors, glue stick, damp cloth for sticky fingers, markers.

Step 1: Have your child pick a colour for the background (you could also fold the paper to create a card and make this craft as the cover of a beautiful homemade Christmas Card or a Thank you for the Gift card!!).

Step 2: Have your child trace around various lids or cups or bowls to create the ‘snowballs’ for the craft.

Step 3: Have your child glue the balls together to form a snowman!  Three ‘snowballs’ make a traditional looking snowman but 2 work as well and your child may want to use more to create a giant snowman.  Let imaginations soar!

Step 4: Next work with your child to draw and cut out various accessories for the snowman.  My boys wanted top hats, carrot noses, stick arms and mittens or gloves.  My youngest cut out buttons and my eldest added a pipe and a shovel. 

Step 5: Glue the accessories onto the snowman. Your child may now want to add details using markers like eyes, a mouth or buttons.

Step 6: Display or give away as a snowy gift or card.

Sock Snowman:

Materials: white sock, rice, elastics, coloured pom poms, googly eyes, white glue, black permanent marker.

Step 1: Younger kids may require help for this step.  Fill the bottom of the sock with rice and then shape into a two ball snowman using one of the elastics to hold it in place in the middle (keep wrapping until tight). Add more rice if needed and then use the second elastic to create the head of the snowman.  Fold the sock under a few times to create a little cap on its head.

Step 2: Now the snowman is ready for decorating.  My son used pom poms for the hat and buttons and an orange pom pom for the nose.  Glue these details on with white glue or fabric glue if you have any. he glued googly eyes as well.  A ribbon could be added as a scarf but he didn't want one.

Step 3: Once the decorations are dry have your child draw a smile on the snowman and viola you have an adorable decoration to brighten up any shelf or table. This would even make a cute gift! 

You don't have to live in a place with snow to make a snowman!  Try some of these crafts to create your own snowmen without fear of frost bite!

Copyright 2016. Family Theme Days. All rights reserved.

SNOWMAN STICK PUPPETS:

Materials: White craft foam (or stiff white construction paper), black craft foam (or stiff black construction paper),  washable white craft glue, popsicle sticks or drinking straws, orange pipe cleaner, other pipe cleaners, markers, damp facecloth for sticky fingers

 Step 1: Trace various bottle/container caps onto the white foam or paper and cut out circles in three different sizes.

Step 2: Cut out the black foam/paper in the shape of a top hat.

Step 3: Have your child draw eyes on the smallest circle and buttons on the two larger circles.

Step 4: Have your child glue the circles together on top of the popsicle stick to make a snowman shape (or tape them to a drinking straw).

Step 5: Have your child glue the hat on the snowman’s head.

Step 6: Snip a small amount of orange pipe cleaner as a carrot nose  and have your child glue it on his/her snowman’s face.

Step 7: Have your child pick another coloured pipe cleaner to be twisted around the snowman as a scarf once it is dry.

 OPTIONAL: When the puppets are dry have your child/children make up a story for a simple puppet show.