Struggles with cooperative crafting
As a mom of two daughters (one is 8 and the other 5), it can be a serious struggle to find an activity that they can work on together without getting frustrated. My 8 year old is a perfectionist and my 5 year old is just learning all the crafting skills – and she just doesn’t do it as perfectly as the 8 year old wants. I really wanted this project to be something that they could work on together and be equally proud of when it went up.
Before they got home from school I put the frame of the heart together so that they could have fun with putting the tissue paper in the middle. The 8 year old was excited for the craft, but the 5 year old initially didn’t even want to participate. I think she compares herself to her sister and it’s hard to meet her perfectionist standards. I am really trying to build her confidence up so we started small by me saying, “Want to just cut up or rip some tissue paper?” I said it doesn’t have to be perfect and it’s meant to look a little messy. By relieving the pressure to make a final perfect product she started cutting and eventually got really into it. She helped put the tissue paper on the heart and everything! I felt really proud of her for participating. The 8 year old wasn’t totally happy with the color combination and the placement of the tissue paper but I reminded her that her sister could decorate her section the way she wanted to and that this craft didn’t need to be “perfect.” I was also proud of my 8 year old for showing some flexibility!
This craft is very easy and only needs a few materials:
- Poster board (I didn’t have poster board so I found an old gift bag that I could cut up).
- Contact paper
- Tissue paper
- Black paint and paintbrush (or whatever color you want)
- Scotch tape for hanging on your window
Here are the steps:
- Cut out heart frame (by folder poster board together)
- Paint the frame
- Place the frame on contact paper
- Cut up or rip the tissue paper and place on contact paper
Enjoy! If you enjoyed this please pin it and follow my page for more ideas.
With wonder,
Rachel
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