Lovely childcare

[Childcare] Ideas for January wall decorations

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.
9 years of experience as a nursery school teacherShibata Risa
I am an active nursery school teacher with 9 years of experience. After graduating from university, I worked at a daycare center. The time I spent happily with children—playing piano, singing songs, and doing finger-play—are priceless memories to me. Currently, while raising three children of my own, I work at an after-school day service, engaging with children and providing individualized developmental support. Drawing on my diverse experiences as a childcare worker and as a mother, I hope to express and convey my thoughts through writing.

In this article, we introduce January wall decoration ideas that are useful both in childcare settings and at home! For children, January is full of fun—New Year’s Day otoshidama gifts, traditional New Year’s games, playing in the snow, and more.

Let’s create an original wall display that incorporates all the fun events of January! We’ve gathered New Year–themed ideas like ema wishing plaques, hanetsuki paddles, and shishimai lion dances, as well as wall art projects you can make together with children.

Create a bright, festive display that’s perfect for welcoming the New Year!

[Childcare] Ideas for January wall decorations (61–70)

[Origami] Snowman

Origami: Snowman with a hat and scarf from a single sheet [Origami] Snowman with hat and scarf (using only one sheet)

[Origami] Snowman

This origami snowman is perfect for December, when it’s also the season of snow.

A snowman is made by placing one snowball on top of another, right? With a clever folding method, you can express the two stacked snowballs using just a single sheet of origami paper.

You can also make a scarf around the snowman’s neck.

If you use polka-dot or patterned paper, the pattern becomes the scarf, making it extra cute.

You can draw the eyes and mouth yourself, so each snowman has its own personality.

You can stick them on a wreath or a calendar, so try arranging them in different ways to expand the range of your creations.

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Oden that can also become a wall!

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Here’s a craft project for making oden that even toddlers can do, and it can also be used for wall displays! First, let’s make the oden shop.

Cut colored construction paper into a face shape, then draw or glue on the oden shopkeeper’s facial features.

For very young children, prepare the face parts in advance.

Apply glue to the head area and stick on yarn hair piece by piece.

It’ll be fun to have yarn in various colors.

Next, let’s make the oden ingredients.

Stamp the konnyaku pattern using a cotton swab, make lots of your favorite ingredients, and then glue them onto colored construction paper of your choice to finish!

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Shishimai Lion Dance in Torn-Paper Collage

[Kindergarten/Daycare] January: Tear-and-Paste Craft! Shishimai (Lion Dance) Artwork & Craft Part 1

Shishimai Lion Dance in Torn-Paper Collage

Making a shishimai (lion dance) wall decoration is a great way to nurture children’s creativity.

Although shishimai can have a scary image, in this craft we’ll make a cute, stylized version.

First, create the head of the lion dance using a paper-cutting technique and paste it onto construction paper.

Here’s where kids can really use their imagination: have them freely draw the body of the shishimai.

Instead of just drawing, they can also enjoy expressing it with torn-paper collage.

Depending on their age, lightly sketching the general outline of the body for them may help things go more smoothly.

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A snowman made with doilies and paper cutouts

How about making a stylish snowman using lace-patterned doilies? Prepare two round doilies and let the children freely draw the eyes, mouth, and more.

Then decorate with paper cutouts made from origami in various shapes! You can use the cutouts as the snowman’s clothing or as patterns surrounding it—feel free to get creative.

If the children are still too young to handle scissors easily, the teacher can prepare some cutouts in advance.

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Snowmen made from clay or felt

Let’s make warm, cute snowmen using paper clay or felt! Form two flat round shapes out of paper clay for the snowman’s head and body, and use beads, yarn, or pipe cleaners for the eyes, mouth, and body buttons.

If you’re using felt, similarly cut two white circles to make the snowman’s shape, then attach the other parts using felt in your favorite colors.

Children can choose whichever method is easier for them, and when you combine their creations on the wall, you’ll get a variety of different snowmen!

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Snowman made with paint and origami

It’s hard to draw a white snowman on white construction paper, but on any color other than white, it’s much easier to draw a cute, pure-white snowman.

Pick your favorite color of construction paper—blue, red, anything—and start by painting a white snowman.

It’s a good idea to paint the small parts like the eyes and mouth at the same time.

Once the snowman is painted, use origami paper to make a bucket hat and mittens by cutting them out with scissors.

If the children aren’t yet comfortable with scissors, teachers should prepare these parts in advance.

Finally, glue the cut-out bucket and other pieces onto the construction paper where you drew the snowman, and you’re done!

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Torn-Paper Collage: Daruma Craft for 2-Year-Olds

[New Year Craft] Daruma Wall Decorations Explained by a Nursery Teacher! (For Ages 2 and Up)

Torn-Paper Collage: Daruma Craft for 2-Year-Olds

How about incorporating a daruma made with torn-paper collage into your New Year’s wall decorations—an activity suitable even for 2-year-olds? Children can freely stick on the facial parts of the daruma, adding a ‘fukuwarai’ element that makes the process fun! Teachers prepare in advance by cutting the daruma body and facial parts out of construction paper.

Let the children enjoy arranging the facial parts on the daruma however they like.

You can also have them tear pieces of origami and paste them onto the daruma’s body to create patterns.

Encourage the children to use paper in their favorite colors.

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