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] January Wall Decoration Ideas (11–20)

Shishimai (lion dance) with handprints and cardboard stamps

Try making a festive New Year’s shishimai (lion dance) using handprints! You can also enjoy stamp play.

First, make a handprint with green paint on construction paper.

If you spread your fingers wide, it will look more like a shishimai.

Next, use a rolled-up piece of cardboard as a stamp to dab red paint and create the costume’s pattern.

The teacher should prepare the lion’s facial parts in advance, and then work together with the children to glue them on and draw the expressions.

A lively, dynamic shishimai will boost the New Year spirit!

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New Year’s first calligraphy drawn freely

Perfect for New Year’s! Here are some creative ideas for kakizome (first calligraphy of the year).

Even if we say “kakizome,” this is a free-form version that even children who can’t write characters yet can try.

Depending on age, let them try drawing pictures, writing characters, or simple words.

After they do their kakizome on drawing paper, paste it onto a slightly larger sheet to serve as a backing.

Then attach rolled sheets of paper to the top and bottom to give it a hanging scroll look.

Finally, add pre-made parts like a rabbit daruma, a gold fan, and pieces of washi-patterned origami, and it’s done! For younger children, it’s best to prepare the parts in advance so they can simply stick them on like stickers.

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New Year hanging decorations

This is a New Year’s hanging decoration made by adorning a ribbon with auspicious items.

You create New Year’s motifs like kagami mochi, sea bream (tai), battledores (hagoita), and spinning tops (koma) by cutting and pasting construction paper.

You can also add accents such as pieces made from tissue paper or small fans.

By changing the overall color scheme, you can give it a calm or a pop look, so feel free to adjust it depending on where you’ll display it.

If you’re making it with children, you can enjoy the process together by cutting the construction paper and gluing the pieces in place.

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A hanging daruma ornament made by crumpling tissue paper

How about making a hanging Daruma decoration from crumpled tissue paper for a January craft? The steps are easy for children, so let’s enjoy making it together! First, crumple tissue paper, put it into a plastic bag, tie the opening, and shape it into a ball.

Next, cut colored construction paper into a circle and draw the Daruma’s face.

Finally, attach the face to the body with double-sided tape and fix it to vinyl tape to finish! The Daruma’s patterns will look lovely using round stickers or origami paper cut into squares.

The unique Daruma figures the children create will brighten up your January wall display!

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A spinning top made from a paper plate

[Childcare Craft] Perfect for New Year's wall decorations! Spinning tops made from paper plates | Frames made from paper plates

A spinning top made from a paper plate

Why not make a spinning-top wall decoration using paper plates? The structure is simple, so even small children can try it.

There are two main steps: first, use a halved paper plate and construction paper to recreate the shape of a spinning top.

Once it’s assembled, decorate it with any illustrations or patterns you like to finish.

If the final step is difficult, using handprints or stamps works well too.

By the way, if you paint the top brown, it can look like an acorn-style top.

You can also combine it with other decorations so it looks like animals are riding on the top for extra fun.

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