[Childcare] A collection of craft ideas for enjoying Setsubun
As Setsubun approaches, nursery schools and kindergartens get busy preparing for bean-throwing.
Crafts that incorporate Setsubun-specific motifs—like oni (ogre) masks, bean boxes, and eho-maki—are a wonderful opportunity to deepen children’s interest in the seasons.
Here, we’ve gathered ideas for Setsubun crafts that you can enjoy using familiar materials such as origami, paper plates, and construction paper.
By drawing cute oni expressions or designing their own horns, each child can create a piece that shines with their individuality.
How about enjoying the Setsubun festivities while making things together with the children?
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[Childcare] A Collection of Craft Ideas to Enjoy Setsubun (81–90)
ogre mask
This is a mask, using a paper plate, themed after the oni (ogre) that’s essential for Setsubun.
By having everyone make one—not just the person playing the oni—it may help people feel more familiar with the oni.
The project is simple: punch holes in a paper plate for the eyes, paint it, and attach hair and horn pieces.
It’s also fun because you can freely customize it—choose the oni’s color, the parts, and the expression.
How about making and wearing your own unique oni mask, then getting into character and playing as your very own oni?
Oni’s hat
For a February event, Setsubun, let’s make an ogre (oni) horned headpiece.
It’s a hat that both adults and children can wear, so it’s fun to make several in different colors.
You’ll need colored construction paper, colorful yarn, and an elastic band for wearing it.
Make the oni’s fluffy hair by bundling the yarn, then attach small horns made from the colored paper.
Finally, add the elastic band that goes around the head, and you’re done.
There are no difficult steps, and you’ll have a unique Setsubun item.
Enjoy making and wearing this playful oni hat!
ogre’s iron club
As the proverb “oni ni kanabō” (like giving an ogre a metal club) suggests, ogres and their clubs are inseparable! If you’re making an oni for Setsubun, why not make a club too while taking the proverb’s meaning into account? It’s very easy: roll up some newspaper into a stick shape and insert it into a plastic bottle, then cover the newspaper part with vinyl tape and the bottle with colored vinyl.
To mimic the club’s spikes, stick on some pom-poms, and you’re done! After making it, be sure to keep a close eye on playtime so no one gets hurt from swinging it around.
Oni’s Den-den Daiko (Demon’s Pellet Drum)
These are oni-themed den-den daiko (hand drums) you can not only display but also make and play with! Create parts like the oni’s face, hair, and horns from construction paper and attach them to cardboard.
Secure the chopstick handle firmly to the back of the oni’s face, and make holes on the left and right sides for the strings.
Let the kids draw the face however they like.
Finally, thread strings tipped with aluminum-foil balls through the holes and tie them, and you’re done! Since it’s made of paper it won’t sound like a real drum, but you can spin it around and have lots of fun.
Oni’s hat
This is a cute hat designed like an ogre, made from large construction paper.
Unlike a mask, it doesn’t cover the face, so it’s safer to play while wearing it—an important point.
There are some complex steps, such as folding along creases made in the paper, so providing support—like having them follow a sample—may be important.
It’s finished by attaching parts such as the ogre’s hair and facial features to a helmet-like base.
Letting them design their own ogre during this final step might make it easier to understand.
In conclusion
We introduced ideas for Setsubun crafts.
From demon masks and hats to bean boxes, each one truly enhances the festive atmosphere of Setsubun.
As you craft, take the opportunity to explore the origins and meaning of Setsubun with the children and enjoy this seasonal event together.
By wearing their very own original creations, may everyone have a memorable time during the bean-throwing celebration.