I admit it, I haven’t done a lot of crafts with the kids lately. I really would like to change that; it just seems with summer the crafts haven’t been high on my priority list.
But this craft is a quick and easy one, perfect for the summer sunshine! I have to thank my mom for this one, actually. She did it with my niece (she watches her during the day), and she kept the supplies handy so my little preschooler could do it when we visited.
The materials are simple: clear contact paper, scissors, colored tissue paper, and a ribbon (which you could actually skip using).
First, carefully peel the backing off the contact paper. (Use twice the length of paper that you want your fish to be, as you will be folding it in half.)
Then have your child sprinkle the cut up tissue paper on one half of the sticky part of contact paper. If the child is old enough, they can even cut the tissue paper up ahead of time. We folded it up accorrdian style to make it easier to cut, and my 3 1/2 year old had fun trying to cut it, with a little help from me.
Once they have covered the contact paper with colorful tissue paper pieces, fold the other half of the contact paper over, so both sticky sides are touching. Smooth it flat.
Then cut out your fish shape (or another animal if you prefer). I free-handed it, but you could also use a permanent marker and draw it out first. Since the paper is clear, you could even trace it from another picture.
We punched a hole at the top to add a ribbon to hang it, but if you are hanging it in a window, you could also just use a little Scotch tape.
Peanut was super proud of her sun-catcher fish. She hung it in her window when we got home and couldn’t wait to show her daddy.
Guess I need to start doing more crafts with them again…
Rachel says
Looks like fun. I will copy it and see if I can get my daughter out of the pool long enough to do some crafts. We used to do them all the time and just kind of got away from it.