RAG MusicPlay & Recreation
Lovely Play & Recreation

[Indoor Activities] A Collection of Craft Ideas Recommended for Elementary School Students

These days, DIY has firmly taken root as a go-to hobby.

When you visit a home improvement store or a 100-yen shop, you’ll even find dedicated sections for it.

Plenty of households probably already have the materials and tools on hand.

In this article, we’ve rounded up craft ideas recommended for elementary school students who are interested in making things!

We’ll introduce everything from board games everyone can play together to practical ideas you can keep using at home after you’ve made them.

Find the project that suits you best and give it a try!

[Indoor Play] Craft Ideas Recommended for Elementary Schoolers (11–20)

Marble Kaleidoscope

[At-home Independent Research Dojo] “The Marble Kaleidoscope” Edition (How to Make a Kaleidoscope)
Marble Kaleidoscope

A marble kaleidoscope that’s perfect for at-home crafting time or independent study projects.

It’s great because you can make it easily with everyday items like marbles and candy containers! First, take acrylic mirrors (you can get them at 100-yen shops), cut them into strips, and combine them to form a triangular tube.

Next, make a round hole in the bottom of a candy container, insert a marble and then the mirror tube, and close it with a lid that you’ve pre-punched—done! Kaleidoscopes may seem hard to make by hand, but you can actually put one together easily with surprisingly simple materials.

Add your favorite decorations to create a kaleidoscope with your own original design—how lovely!

Sumikko Gurashi piggy bank

[Perfect for a Summer Vacation Project!] How to Make a Piggy Bank (Sumikko Gurashi)
Sumikko Gurashi piggy bank

I’ll introduce how to make a Sumikko Gurashi piggy bank out of origami.

Prepare two sheets of origami paper and one small sheet, then let’s get started.

Use the small origami paper to make the 5-yen coin part.

Fold the corners toward the center, then fold the surrounding corners as well.

It will form the shape of a 5-yen coin, so draw the details with a felt-tip pen.

For the base piggy bank, fold the origami toward the center to create creases.

Following the creases, tuck the paper inward to form a square box.

Make two identical boxes; on one of them, attach the 5-yen coin and draw the face.

The key point is to change the color of the origami depending on the character.

Rubber band gun with two materials

[Recommended for summer vacation crafts!] How to make a rubber band gun with just two materials!!
Rubber band gun with two materials

Here’s a simple rubber band gun idea you can make with about three pairs of disposable chopsticks and around ten rubber bands.

Split all the chopsticks into single sticks; leave three as they are, and cut the rest into three different lengths.

If you use a utility knife for cutting, handle it with care.

It’s also a good idea to sand the cut edges for safety.

Combine the cut chopsticks to build the body, grip, and trigger, and finally create a notch at the front end of the body where the rubber band will hook.

The body tends to be long and unstable, so reinforce it by bracing it from below with shorter chopstick pieces.

5 Easy DIY Crafts You Can Try

5-minute crafts you can make! Easy! 5 fun projects you can play with — summarized in 5 minutes.
5 Easy DIY Crafts You Can Try

Kids love crafts, but as first graders it can be hard to stay focused for a long time.

So here are some quick craft ideas you can finish in a short time.

You can make five things: a moving boat, a guitar, a fortune slip (omikuji), a ghost that pops out of a box, and a spinning top.

The materials are mostly recyclables—things you likely have at home—such as milk cartons, plastic bottles, wooden chopsticks, straws, ice cream sticks, and plastic bags.

You can play with each item after you make it, so once you’re done, decorate it however you like and put it to use as a fun at-home activity.

Cute mini-sized craft

15 cute handmade ideas 💕 Mini-sized crafts!
Cute mini-sized craft

Mini crafts made with easily available materials from 100-yen shops, such as origami paper, straws, and stickers.

You can whip up small items like keychains, mini bags, paper flowers, and wind chimes in no time.

They’re perfect for decorating your room or for small gifts to friends.

With a little creativity and ingenuity, you can make all kinds of accessories, so why not use the ideas introduced here as inspiration to create your own original pieces? Turning your own ideas into tangible form can be a very rewarding experience.

Refreshing! Square Bag

@n.annlee321

A cool-looking square bag design 💕 Perfect for a summer vacation craft project, too 🥰🫶✨#100-yen-shop#100-yen shop DIY#Summer VacationSummer Vacation CraftDaiso

♬ Good luck to me tomorrow – NANAOAKARI

Here’s an idea for making a bag using bag hardware from a 100-yen shop, plant pot mesh, and yarn in your favorite color and material.

First, cut the plant pot mesh to match the size of the bag hardware, then crochet or stitch the yarn onto the mesh.

Once you’ve finished attaching the yarn, sew the mesh and the bag hardware together.

Finally, add the handles and your favorite decorations to complete the bag.

With this method as a reference, it seems like you could create all kinds of items depending on your ideas!

[Indoor Activities] Craft Ideas Recommended for Elementary School Students (21–30)

cool pen holder

[100-Yen Store DIY] Summer Vacation Craft: Simple Accessories — Make Your Pen Holder Look Cool!
cool pen holder

Let me introduce a very handy and stylish pen holder.

Prepare a wooden box, wooden boards, an interior mesh frame, paint, a brush, glue, and sandpaper, and let’s get started.

Cut the wooden boards, paint them, and glue them together.

Glue on the interior mesh frame as well.

Once it’s dry, it’s complete.

This pen holder makes the contents easy to see and offers great ventilation—give it a try! Adding illustrations or decorations to give it a personal touch will make it even more wonderful.