![[Childcare] Recommended crafts and activities for March, such as Hina Matsuri (Doll’s Festival) and cherry blossoms](https://i.ytimg.com/vi_webp/LNH6pMp6fzY/maxresdefault.webp)
[Childcare] Recommended crafts and activities for March, such as Hina Matsuri (Doll’s Festival) and cherry blossoms
March, when you can feel spring arriving.
The warm, sunny spring weather naturally lifts the spirits, doesn’t it?
This time, we’ve gathered recommended craft ideas perfect for March.
From events like Hinamatsuri (Girls’ Day) and graduation ceremonies to seasonal themes such as cherry blossoms, butterflies, and strawberries, there are plenty of ideas that capture the feeling of spring!
Before you start making things, we recommend going on a walk with the children to see and touch the charming spring plants and insects unique to the season.
It will surely expand their image of spring and help them create wonderful works!
Display what you make around the room and fully enjoy the spring atmosphere.
Because items made by children are treated as “works,” we refer to them as “seisaku (制作)” in the text.
[Childcare] Recommended crafts and activities for March, such as Hinamatsuri and cherry blossoms (1–10)
horsetail
If children attend kindergartens or daycare centers in the city, they may not have many chances to see horsetails.
Since they can only be seen in spring, why not include them in an art project so the children can learn about them? The method is simple: pre-cut parts like the horsetail’s head, stem, and joints (hakama), then have the children paste them onto a base.
Children old enough to use scissors can cut out the parts themselves.
For the head’s crisscross pattern, using a cotton swab dipped in paint gives just the right textured look.
5 Easy Spring Origami Models
Speaking of spring, various things come to mind, like the Doll Festival, flowers, butterflies, and bush warblers.
How about making some spring-themed motifs with origami? Children can easily try making simple pieces, such as hina dolls and imperial attendants by folding washi-patterned origami to look like kimonos and drawing faces, or tulips by folding the flower, stem, and leaves separately and then gluing them together.
Let’s decorate the wall little by little with everyone’s creations and get ready for the long-awaited spring!
Also for Hinamatsuri! Cherry Blossom Papercut
Let’s cut origami paper and make lots of cherry blossoms! Fold the origami into a triangle twice, then open it once.
With the widest angle at the top, crease it in half from the top.
Fold both ends toward the far edge to form a shape like a triangle with three spiky points at the top.
Next, cut it into the shape of a single cherry blossom petal and unfold—done! If you want a papercut-style design, use the same folding method, but while cutting the petal shape, also cut out the center.
When you unfold it, each petal will look slightly hollowed out.
Make them in various colors and sizes, and decorate with plenty of them!
Also great for walls! Sakura paper cutouts
When people think of spring in Japan, many imagine cherry blossoms.
With that in mind, here’s an idea for a cherry blossom wall decoration.
Fold creases into origami paper and cut it with scissors to make the pieces.
It would be perfect for entrance or graduation ceremonies.
It’s also lovely to add a message and give it as a gift.
When making it, be careful that your fold lines are straight and that the angle of your cuts is correct.
Changing the cutting angle will alter the shape of the petals, so take care.
That said, you can also intentionally vary the angles to add your own creative touch.
Dandelion wall decoration
How about decorating your room for spring with a dandelion wall display, one of the flowers that symbolize the season? The shapes of the petals and leaves are each quite intricate, but if you use free downloadable templates, you won’t have to draw them from scratch—so even teachers who aren’t confident with drawing or drafting will be fine! Once you cut them out and add the creases, all that’s left is to glue the pieces together, making it a great step for children to help with.
You can also tell them, “After the yellow flower, it turns into white fluff!”—and they’ll enjoy spotting dandelions on your walks even more.
Fluffy wall-hanging Hina dolls
Let’s make a fluffy wall-hanging Hina dolls craft using a paper plate, with decoration balls as a highlight to resemble arare rice crackers.
Prepare a deep paper plate, decoration balls, cotton, glue, and construction paper.
Drip glue onto the paper plate and attach the cotton.
Cut construction paper into a round, egg-like shape, then glue on the kimono and parts for the Empress (mebina) and Emperor (obina), and draw their faces.
Once you attach them to the base, finish by gluing on the fluffy decoration balls that look like arare.
It’s also recommended to cut and glue sparkly origami onto the decoration balls for extra shine.
Cherry blossom art made with paper clay and tissue paper
https://www.tiktok.com/@levwell_hoikushi/video/7608834676727368980Speaking of spring, it’s all about cherry blossoms! Let’s try making cherry blossoms using brightly colored pink tissue paper.
Be sure to cut the tissue paper into small pieces in advance.
Create a tree trunk from brown construction paper, place a ball of clay, and flatten it from above using a clear file.
After placing the tissue paper on the clay, use a thin stick like a chopstick to press the tissue paper into the clay.
By pressing in lots of tissue paper, you’ll create cherry blossoms in full bloom.
This craft lets you enjoy both the step of cutting construction paper with scissors and the tactile feel of the clay and tissue paper.
