Oh, you’re not a crafty Pinterest mom? Well, actually, this is the place for you too!
Personally, I could be that Pinterest mom if I really wanted to be. But with my level of energy and current stage of life, I can’t and won’t keep up with the online expectations of picture-perfect activities with my kids. I choose to dial back our lifestyle to low-key activities whenever possible.
These five easy summer crafts can all be done outside if you so choose. These ideas are in favor of the non-Pinterest mom — the mom who wants to help her kids have a little spark of creativity, but who doesn’t have the energy or time to gather a billion little supplies from this store and that. In fact, I think most of us would have most (if not all) of these supplies at home already!
Are you with me? If so, read on for EASY peasy crafts to get the creativity flowing in all of you this summer!
EASY Summer Crafts for Kids (and the Non-Pinterest Mom)
1. Nature Name Plaques
Materials:
- Scrap of wood/cardboard
- Sticks/stones/leaves/flowers/mulch pieces, etc. from the yard
- Elmer’s glue
Send your kids outside to gather natural materials from the yard! They may need a reminder to get some things that are skinny so they can form the letters of their name, plus add whatever flair they want to it. Hand them the glue, and let them go to town arranging and sticking!
2. Chalk “Stained Glass”
- Sidewalk chalk
- Painters/masking tape
This is an idea that spread across many households during the pandemic days — I forget about it sometimes, so we’re bringing it back now that my kids are a bit older!
The kids may need a little help getting started with creating a square with tape or deciding a natural limit to their “stained glass” art. (I gave my kids the choice between creating this art on the driveway, fence, or front walkway. Then I helped them create a square out of the tape.) Once the boundary is set, let the kids decide where to place strips of tape within the box. Then color in the empty spaces with sidewalk chalk! Removing the tape afterward is a pretty awe-inspiring moment! My kids were so proud of their art, and I love it too.
3. Painted Rock Garden Snake
Materials:
- Rocks
- Paint
- Paintbrushes
Have the kids gather rocks from the yard (You set the size and number boundaries, Mom!). Your child can paint each rock however they choose to, and place them in a line somewhere in your garden or yard. You may want to call this cute little guy a caterpillar, but we call him a snake. To each their own! You can also make this a summer-long project that your child adds to over time. Maybe you decide to find a rock to add to it every time you go for a summer walk as a family!
4. Crayon Rubbings & Poetry
Materials:
- Paper
- Broken crayons with paper removed
- Pencil/Markers
Teach the kids how to make rubbings on surfaces, by holding a piece of paper over a textured surface, and rubbing over it with the long side of a crayon. Then send those kids outside to find textured surfaces on their own to make rubbings from!
You can label each rubbing with what it was made from, like we did. Then practice rhyming words together by coming up with a short poem about each item they made a rubbing from! Have the kids write their poem on each paper to practice their writing skills this summer.
5. Sun Prints
Materials:
- Colored construction paper
- Toys/natural materials from the yard
You’ll want to save this idea for sunny days. Let your child pick out their favorite construction paper color from the stash, and some toys or stones, sticks, flowers, etc. from the yard. Find a sunny spot in the yard where you can lay the paper flat. If there’s a bit of a breeze, just secure the corners with some masking tape underneath. Let your child arrange their treasures on the paper, and leave it alone for at least four to six hours.
The parts of the paper exposed to sunlight will become lighter, while the spots covered by your child’s treasures will stay darker! After you see this occurring, remove the treasures from the paper and admire the art. There is a specific sun print paper you could also buy from Amazon for this project!
See, these aren’t too energy-consuming, right?! I hope these ideas are just the spark to your child’s creative brain exploring their world this summer! Happy EASY crafting, Mamas!
