Easy Kids Crafts for Fourth of July

I don’t know why the Fourth of July feels like a crafting holiday to me, but it does. I guess it’s because stars and stripes and red, white and blue are such simple things to work with and build off of, and there’s something extra-homey about a kid-made American flag.

Even if you’re not super crafty yourself, these kid crafts for the Forth of July are quick and easy to make and fun to use as decor for all your holiday gatherings.

These cute ribbon wand flags from Ruffles and Rain Boots are also a great fine-motor skill activity for little ones as they loop the ribbon to attach it to the stick. Add to the fun by painting the sticks if you like (before you add the ribbon, of course!).

Speaking of ribbon, Momfessionals has an easy flag craft inspired by a wind sock made from a plastic cup and ribbons. This one is especially great for parents (or teachers!) who don’t like the mess that’s often associated with kids crafting.

Stringing beads is another great fine-motor skill builder, and kids can get lots of practice stringing beads when they make these patriotic necklaces. These are made with beads and paper straws. Littler kids can make beaded bracelets with pipe cleaners and pony beads. Get the tutorial from Buggy and Buddy.

Paper tubes are a great base for all sorts of crafts, including this patriotic blower from Natural Beach Living. There is a little painting involved, so this one isn’t quite as quick as some of the other ones, but they’re still really cute.

I thought these rockets from Heart Filled Spaces were also a paper tube craft, but it’s actually all made with cardstock cut with a cutting machine (there are instructions for doing it by hand, too). You could use a tube if you wanted to make it a little easier!

Or make this cute straw painted paper plate star craft from Our Kid Things. This one can get a little messy, but it’s also a lot of fun!

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Fun Outdoor Games for Fourth of July and Summer Events

As I write this, back to school time is right around the corner, and if you have kids going to school for the first time or who might need a refresher on what school is like, books can be a big help in calming fears and letting them know what to expect.

School Days by Fabiola Sepulvelda is a wordless picture book full of photographs of various things that happen during the school day, such as leaving home, getting off the bus, greeting your teacher, raising your hand to talk, circle time, reading, quiet work, lunch, recess, art and music, and greeting your parent at the end of the day.

This is a nice book to prompt conversations about the way things might look and things that might happen at school, and could also be used in the classroom to talk about routines and what happens each day. It’s meant to be for kids who don’t yet know how to read, but could be used with older kids as well.

Ready for School by Dona Herweck Rice and illustrated by Amanda Morrow follows a little girl through a day getting ready for school and thinking about all the things that happen at school. It covers things like calendar time, mat time, being read to, math (they’re learning to count to five), recess and art. She’s so excited to go she wakes her mom up and it’s still nighttime.

This one is good for kids who like reminders of how the routine goes (both getting ready for school and being there) and those who might be apprehensive about what’s going to happen or if it will be fun.

The same author has a series of books that are meant to be for ESL learners but would work for others as well. Welcome to School has photos and single words or short phrases for things you do to get ready for school, different ways you might travel there, greetings, morning meeting activities. people you might see at school (like teacher, student, custodian), places and objects you’ll find around school, things at recess and school rules (like line up and raise hand).

Your School Day uses longer phrases (“riding in car” instead of just “car,” for example) and older children in the photos. The routine is also for older kids and uses bigger words like announcements and equipment. It also shows photos of different subjects kids might study, different kinds of learning groups and more people and places you’ll find in school.

A Day at School is kind of in between these two, with older elementary students going through many of the same things. This one doesn’t mention morning meetings but also doesn’t use the level of vocabulary of the book for older kids. Either this one of Welcome to School would be fine to use with young kids who already speak English but might like to see all the things and people they’ll see at school.

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