[Childcare] Fun craft ideas and craft activities perfect for summer

Let’s make sea creatures out of scrap materials

[5-year-olds] Let the children’s imaginations run wild! Let’s make sea creatures out of scrap materials!

Crafts made from recycled materials are a great way for kids to casually engage with eco-friendly practices and the SDGs! Try combining everyday recycled items—like empty tissue or snack boxes, gashapon capsules, cardboard, and wrapping paper—to create sea creatures.

An empty box can transform into a big fish, and wrapping paper can become beautiful fish scales—there are countless ways to use them.

Of course, you can also mix in construction paper or origami.

If everyone sticks their creations onto a large sheet of poster paper imagined as the sea, you can bring an ocean right into your room!

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SAKI

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Fun Opening of the Beach Season

Seasonal wall display. July: 'Opening of the Sea'

Many children were probably eagerly awaiting the day the beach officially opens.

Let’s create works that let everyone enjoy ocean scenes—both the kids who actually go to the beach and those who don’t.

Start with drawings of children swimming, add sea creatures like fish and seaweed, depict cute animals playing in the ocean, and even try making mermaids.

If you combine these ocean scenes with beach activities like watermelon splitting and beach-ball games on the shore, you can capture an even more fun, summery seaside vibe!

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SAKI

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ice koma

[Brain-Boosting Play] Easy and cooling indoor ice play perfect for summer #SummerPlay #IcePlay #SpinningTops #Kindergarten #ElementarySchool

Let’s make and play with icy spinning tops that are cool, refreshing, and beautiful to look at.

Freeze decorations like colorful, glittering beads or small toys inside the ice.

Silicone cups work best as molds—the silicone peels away from the ice smoothly, making them easy to use.

Insert a stick to serve as the top’s spindle before freezing so it sets in place.

Once it’s chilled and solid in the freezer, it’s done.

To make it slide and spin more easily, give it a few preliminary spins to shape and smooth the tip.

The decorations inside the ice look gorgeous while the top is spinning.

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nikki

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Easy-to-make takoyaki

[Preschool Craft] Perfect for a summer festival! Easy-to-make takoyaki preschool craft

Let’s make takoyaki, a classic summer festival food stall item.

First, cut slits along the edge of brown construction paper, glue it together, and shape it into a 3D form to make the takoyaki plate.

Next, prepare tissue paper and construction paper to make the takoyaki.

Wrap construction paper around a crumpled ball of tissue paper to form a sphere, then brush on a mixture of liquid laundry starch (or glue) and paint to create the sauce.

Finally, finely cut green and red construction paper and sprinkle them over the takoyaki to finish.

You’ll have realistic-looking takoyaki, perfect for playing “takoyaki shop.”

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tsukada moe

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Paper cup sunflower

Paper-cup sunflowers for wall displays

Here’s an idea for making a three-dimensional sunflower using a common material: a paper cup.

Cut off the rim of the paper cup, then wrap double-sided tape around the bottom part.

Use the double-sided tape as a guide to cut the cup into 16 equal sections.

Peel off the tape and attach each strip by rolling it inward one by one.

Add color with pens or crayons, and the sunflower’s blossom is complete! For the finishing touch, make the stem and leaves out of origami paper to create an even more realistic summer scene.

Some steps can be tricky for children to do alone, so it’s best to enjoy making it together with a teacher or guardian.

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miyabi

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Sunflower with paper plates

Let's make sunflowers out of paper plates and let summer flowers bloom.

This is a sunflower you can make using a simple paper plate! First, color the rim of the plate yellow and cut it into petal shapes.

Next, prepare plenty of torn pieces of origami paper and stick them onto the center of the plate to finish.

Depending on your child’s age, let them handle the tearing of the origami or the cutting with scissors.

For the center of the plate, you can also try other techniques besides torn-paper collage—such as sponge stamping or marble rolling—to bring out the children’s individuality and make it even more fun.

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miyabi

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Orihime and Hikoboshi

[Nursery Craft] First installment of Tanabata crafts made by daycare teachers: the basics. Adorable Orihime and Hikoboshi that are a huge hit with parents of children ages 0 to 5! We’ll share tips and methods for having fun crafting together with kids. The practical demo and explanation start now.

How about making Orihime and Hikoboshi before Tanabata so they can safely meet once a year? Cut construction paper to prepare a large star as the base, and pre-assemble parts like Orihime and Hikoboshi’s faces and hair.

For their bodies, use the children’s adorable handprints! Add patterns to the backing paper using tools like sponge daubers, then attach the prepared parts on top.

Finally, staple on some paper streamers and adhere that piece to the bottom of the base to complete a perfect craft for Tanabata.

If you share the Tanabata story beforehand with a picture book, the children may enjoy the activity even more.

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yuri

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