Recommended for elementary school kids! A collection of fun craft ideas for 2nd graders

10 years as a kindergarten teacher / elementary school teacher / junior and senior high school teacher / childminderkepiko
Graduated from Kunitachi College of Music, Faculty of Music (now: Department of Music Culture and Education, Early Childhood Music Education major). In elementary school, my homeroom teacher was Jun Kusaba, a game researcher. After graduating from university, I worked as a kindergarten teacher for 10 years and as an after-school childcare instructor for 7 years, then took a position as a music teacher at an international school in Singapore. In addition to music education, I engaged in activities that introduced Japanese culture, traditional games, and recreational activities, working with many children. Later, through freelance writing, planning, and editing at Shogakukan, I met many delightful adults and experienced the joy of communicating and sharing. Drawing on the perspective cultivated in the field of education and my experience as an editor, I provide practical information with an emphasis on both input and output, mainly in areas related to music and children. My hobbies include instruments, singing, handicrafts, toys, drawing, traditional games, the outdoors, and books. My special skill is spinning-top tricks.

Second-grade elementary school students are full of imagination and start becoming interested in playing with friends and making things.

Their dexterity improves, and they begin to show interest in colors and shapes.

This stage in elementary school is an important time for learning the joy of turning their own ideas into tangible forms.

Through crafts, they develop creativity and concentration.

They also gain confidence by experiencing success.

Here, we introduce craft ideas that second graders can enjoy making.

Adults can have fun together too, so please give them a try!

Recommended for elementary school students! A collection of fun crafts to make for 2nd graders (141–150)

Handmade okonomiyaki craft

@n.annlee321
I already posted how to make okonomiyaki before. ☺️✨#HandmadeToys Summer Vacation Craft Childcare
♬ Athletic Meet “Heaven and Hell” (No Introduction) – Shinonome

Let’s try making okonomiyaki and yakisoba—just like the ones you see at summer festival stalls—using craft materials! Here, we mainly introduce how to make the griddle and spatula.

Feel free to create the okonomiyaki and yakisoba themselves using yarn, felt, and other materials.

For the griddle, cut 2 cm-wide strips from both long edges of a color foam board and attach silver origami paper to them.

Then cover the remaining center piece with black construction paper to form the griddle surface, and glue it between the cut side pieces.

Also attach 1 cm-wide strips of silver origami along the top and bottom edges of the griddle.

Draw in the vent openings, and it’s complete! For the spatula, cut a milk carton into a spatula shape and cover it with aluminum foil—that’s all you need!

Raise the rankinglower

sasashina

Report a problem

Flower fidget spinner

@n.annlee321
A festive plum blossom hand spinner ☺️✨#2022 #tiktok classroom Life with children #VideoYouCan'tHelpButWatch
♬ Relaxing cute everyday BGM – Hiraoka

How about making your own hand spinner that twirls between your fingers or on a desk, finished in a cute flower shape? Use two circles cut from cardboard for the finger pads, connect them with a toothpick to form the axle, and attach the spinning flower piece between them, leaving a slight gap as you assemble the axle.

The way it spins will change depending on the gap between your fingers and the rotating part, as well as the size of the hole the toothpick passes through, so try building it while experimenting with ways to make it spin longer.

Raise the rankinglower

kappamaki

Report a problem

Flower Hand-cranked Spinning Top

@n.annlee321
A hand-spun top that you spin with your palm ☺️✨Summer Vacation Craft #tiktok classroom Life with children #HandmadeToys
♬ Monkeys Spinning Monkeys – Kevin MacLeod & Kevin The Monkey

Let’s make a hand-spun top that you spin vigorously with your hand, designed with a cute, flower-inspired look.

We’ll use a disposable chopstick as the top’s axle, and wrap long, folded strips of paper around it to form the shape of the top.

Everyone should clearly imagine their favorite flower and think about which colors of paper will best match that flower.

Wrapping the paper tightly is the key to making the whole piece sturdy and ensuring it spins well.

Raise the rankinglower

kappamaki

Report a problem

Cute shaved ice piggy bank

@n.annlee321
Adorably peeking shaved-ice piggy bank 💓☺️✨#HandmadeToys Summer Vacation Craft piggy bank
♬ EMA – go!go!vanillas

Here’s an idea for a shaved-ice coin bank made from a milk carton.

It’s adorable because a little face pops out when you put a coin in.

Prepare a small milk carton and peel off the outer printed layer so it’s white.

Cut the spout into a mountain shape.

Draw the syrup part with a pen, attach an iridescent (aurora) sheet, and create the slot for inserting coins.

Next, pierce a rotating cardboard piece with a bamboo skewer and fix it inside the milk carton.

Thread the face piece onto the part of the skewer that sticks out of the carton and glue it in place, then decorate the other end with beads.

Attach thick paper around it to hide the skewer, and close the spout to finish.

Raise the rankinglower

sasashina

Report a problem

An hourglass made of straws

@silk_haru3mama
Summer vacation craft 🌻 It's fun—when you flip it over like an hourglass, the straws flow down! ⌛️#Summer Vacation Summer Vacation Craft #AtHomePlay #HandmadeToys work Educational toy #craft
♬ Another Day of Sun from La La Land [ORIGINAL COVER] – SoundWorks

Let’s make a toy where short straws fall like an hourglass.

First, cut a wire to 40 cm and wrap it around a pencil to make a spring.

Prepare two small paper cups and make a hole in the center of each bottom; thread one cup onto one end of the spring and secure it.

Stretch the spring and thread short, cut pieces of straw onto it.

Then thread and secure the other paper cup on the opposite end.

To prevent the spring from expanding and contracting, bridge two chopsticks between the two cups and glue them in place, and you’re done! Decorate the paper cups and chopsticks with masking tape or stickers to make it cute.

Raise the rankinglower

sasashina

Report a problem