Lovely childcare

Perfect for January bulletin boards! A collection of Daruma craft ideas kids will love in childcare settings

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 for 10 years as a kindergarten teacher and for 7 years as an after-school childcare instructor, then took a post as a music teacher at an international school in Singapore. In addition to music education, I also engaged in activities that shared Japanese culture, traditional games, and recreational play, working with many children. Afterwards, through freelance writing, planning, and editing work at Shogakukan, I met many delightful adults and experienced the joy of communicating and conveying ideas. Leveraging the perspective cultivated in educational settings and my experience as an editor, I aim to deliver practical information—focusing on fields related to music and children—that values both input and output. Hobbies include instruments, singing, handcrafts, toys, drawing, traditional play, the outdoors, books, DIY, and crafts. Special skill: spinning-top tricks.
20 years of experience as a nursery teacher / kindergarten teacherhiyoko sensei
I’m Hiyoko-sensei, a former nursery school teacher from Hyogo Prefecture. Ever since I was five, my dream was to become a childcare worker, and before I knew it, 20 years had passed since I achieved that dream. Through singing and playing with the children, I kept working with the spirit of someone in their twenties, even as I increasingly felt my physical limits year by year (haha). From here on, I’d like to share helpful information carefully and thoughtfully, drawing on my on-site experience.

Many teachers are probably thinking about what kinds of daruma crafts they can enjoy making with the children to brighten up the nursery room in January.

Here, we’ve gathered ideas you can also use for classroom wall displays, from stamp play and wobbling mechanisms made with paper plates to growth records that use handprints and footprints.

Let the children enjoy the feel of paint, freely express themselves with glue and crayons, and try daruma crafts that bring out their “I want to try!” spirit.

Use these ideas as a reference for creating a warm wall display that’s perfect for starting the new year.

子どもたちの作品は芸術作品として扱われるため、本文では「制作（seisaku）」という用語を用います。

I want to decorate the January wall! A collection of Daruma craft ideas to enjoy in childcare (21–30)

Have fun with transparent tape! Daruma doll toy

http://www.lemon8-app.com

Make a die by sticking strips of clear tape together, then draw a daruma inspired by the hugely popular children’s book series “Daruma-san” on it.

Believe it or not, that’s all it takes to finish the toy! Since it’s made of tape, even if a small child accidentally squashes it, it easily springs back to its original shape.

You can use it like building blocks, or even enjoy squashing it on purpose.

Try making different daruma with various expressions and colors.

They’re cute just to display, too.

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Daruma’s Mayudama Rolling

[Easy!] Daruma Doll Mayudama Rolling [New Year’s Craft]

Daruma’s Mayudama Rolling

A mysterious toy with a marble inside that moves as if it’s alive when you roll it: the Mayudama Roller.

In this idea, it’s made with a daruma motif.

First, cut three strip-shaped pieces measuring 1.5 × 10 cm from red construction paper.

Layer the three strips radially and glue them together at the center.

Gather all the ends, place a marble inside, and glue the ends together to form a sphere.

Then stick on a white round sticker with a face drawn on it to finish.

Try rolling it down a slope and have fun!

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Want to decorate your January wall! A collection of Daruma craft ideas to enjoy in childcare (31–40)

Fun with black construction paper! Making snowmen

@hekimen_25
Winter craft: We made snowmen using crayons and paint! ⛄️❄️🎵#Childcare Crafting #Wall Creation Nursery teacher / Childcare worker I tried making it Snowman
♬ Merry Christmas and Happy New Year – neozilla

Here’s a craft idea: paint a snowman with white paint on black construction paper, then finish by adding a paper bucket and mittens, plus face stickers.

For the snowman, draw a circular outline and fill it in with paint.

Because it’s surprisingly hard not to paint outside the lines, if infants are doing this activity, it’s better to either prepare pre-painted pieces or have an adult cut a snowman shape from the child’s white-painted paper and glue it onto the background.

If you put double-sided tape on the back of the bucket and mittens, kids can use them like stickers, making them easier for little hands to handle.

Once the snowman is done, use cotton swab stamping to add a snowy landscape in the empty space to complete the project.

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Cute Daruma origami

[ New Year Origami ] Easy and Cute Daruma Folding Method | Origami Daruma

Cute Daruma origami

Auspicious! Making colorful daruma with the children and lining them up as decorations would instantly brighten up the room, wouldn’t it? Daruma are often displayed as New Year’s ornaments, and it’s said their origin as lucky charms comes from their characteristic of getting back up even after they fall.

It’s also lovely to make them with origami in the children’s favorite colors.

However, since the colors of daruma each carry meaning, it can be a great time to deepen learning while crafting.

This is a recommended idea for preschool classes, so be sure to give it a try.

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Cute wobbly daruma doll

[Preschool Craft] New Year’s decoration: cute wobbly Daruma | Daruma doll for New Year’s decoration

Cute wobbly daruma doll

Let’s make a cute daruma that wobbles when you poke it.

You’ll need a paper plate, construction paper, and a pen.

Please prepare construction paper in four colors for the body, face, eyes, and decorations.

First, cut the body piece of construction paper into a circle to match the size of the paper plate.

Next, cut an oval from the face-colored paper, and cut two small circles from the eye-colored paper.

Glue them in order—body, face, then eyes—and draw the pupils with the pen.

Then cut three ovals from the decorative paper and stick them below the face.

Fold the paper plate in half and attach the daruma to one side—that’s it! If you’re making this with small children, adults should prepare the parts in advance.

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Let’s roll and make a snowman!

[January - Craft Activity] Crumple-and-Tear Snowman ☃

Let’s roll and make a snowman!

Crumpling tissue paper and sticking on stickers is so much fun! How about making a snowman craft that’s perfect for winter? First, have the children crumple white tissue paper into balls in whatever size they like.

You’ll also use tissue paper torn into strips; if that step is tricky, an adult can prepare it in advance.

Put the crumpled tissue paper and the torn strips together into a clear plastic bag, then shape it into an oval.

Tie the middle with a chenille stem (pipe cleaner) to form a snowman shape.

Use round stickers for the face, make a bucket hat from construction paper, and attach it with double-sided tape.

If you want to hang it, punch a hole in the bucket, and thread a string through.

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Fun New Year’s crafts for childcare: how to make them

[Production] How to Make New Year’s Crafts [Nursery School/Kindergarten]

Fun New Year’s crafts for childcare: how to make them

These are perfect crafts for an auspicious New Year.

The wobbly daruma made with a paper plate uses familiar recycled materials, so even very young children can enjoy making it.

For the eyes, round stickers could work well.

For the kadomatsu made with a milk carton and toilet paper rolls, adjust the lengths of the “bamboo” pieces and use accordion-folded origami to finish the overall look in a balanced way.

It’s also good finger dexterity practice.

For the shimenawa, carefully teach the children the order of bundling and braiding so it has a nice, full volume.

Enjoy making these while experiencing Japanese culture.

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