Happy day from Happy Plays!
Grab a cup and make a Christmas tree!
Gather recyclable items available at home that you would like to use for your Christmas tree. By gluing a small paper cup and a tissue core together, you would be able to form a Christmas tree!
From gathering materials to doing the arts and crafts activity, you and your child have multiple opportunities to talk, communicate, and bond. You can ask the child what materials you will be using– crayons, paint, pens, scissors, tape, and glue for creating and decorating the tree. There’s no limit in choosing what materials to use!
This activity can be done individually where the child and the parent/caregiver respectively create their own artwork. On the other hand, this activity can also be cooperative where the child and the playmate (a sibling or a parent/caregiver) will create one artwork.
Either format of this activity would help the child develop life skills needed to be independent and responsible adults in the future – like focus, resourcefulness, perseverance, and planning. It would also hone their fine motor skills as they put the decorations one by one and sequencing skills and following instructions when the playmate gives directions on how to form the tree.
There are plenty of opportunities to introduce new vocabulary words, model different language forms, and even practice target sounds in the conversations while doing this craft project. By having an interaction that encourages sharing and exchanges of thoughts and ideas, the child would also have many chances to practice language skills like requesting, commenting, and responding.
