[For 4-year-olds] Winter craft ideas to enjoy at daycare and kindergarten
Children who attend kindergarten and nursery school are likely looking forward to celebrating Christmas and winter events together with their friends and teachers.
In the chilly winter, some people may be looking for events that can be enjoyed not only outdoors but also indoors.
In this article, we’ve compiled a collection of recommended winter craft ideas for four-year-olds in childcare settings.
We’re also introducing activities that involve using their hands and thinking about what to make as they work, which can help nurture concentration and thinking skills through play.
Try making these items that are fun to create and fun to play with!
Because the children’s creations are treated as works, we refer to them as “seisaku” (制作, craft/creation) in the text.
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[For 4-year-olds] Winter craft ideas to enjoy at daycare or kindergarten (81–90)
Oden made with origami and tissue paper
Tissue paper can transform into all sorts of oden ingredients! For chikuwa, wrap white tissue paper around a toilet paper roll core and brush on brown paint with a cotton swab—done.
For mochi kinchaku, put a small crumpled piece of tissue inside yellow tissue paper and twist the opening shut with a chenille stem—OK! Combine these with other oden items made from origami, and you’ve got a full plate of oden.
You can also make kombu by accordion-folding black tissue paper and securing the center with a chenille stem, and make an egg by sticking a ball of yellow tissue paper onto light orange origami!
A wall display of oden that even two-year-olds can enjoy!
Stick this on the wall and it’s sure to make you hungry! First, cut out the shapes of a pot and soup from construction paper and glue them in place.
Next, cut out your favorite oden ingredients from construction paper.
If teachers at kindergartens or nurseries, or parents/guardians, pre-draw the shapes of various oden ingredients on the paper, children will only need to do the cutting.
Once the ingredients are cut out, arrange and paste them however you like inside the pot you made at the start—that’s it! Paste lots of your favorite ingredients and complete your very own original oden pot.
Colon and a cute reindeer
Turn the origami paper to the back and crease it in half.
Fold the bottom edge up to meet the crease.
Shift the crease by folding the edge to align with the fold line.
Fold the left and right sides to meet the center line.
Fold the white section down to the edge.
After folding up both bottom corners of the white section, pull them upward.
Next, squash-fold so that the creases land on the corners.
Fold the edges with the image of reindeer antlers in mind.
Finally, fold the left and right sides diagonally so they cross slightly at the center, letting the “horns” peek out a bit, to form the body—and you’re done! Use round stickers or a pen to draw a cute face.
Made with sponge stamps! Fun oden
Using sponge stamps, we’ll create patterns for oden ingredients.
For example, for konnyaku, if you press a coarse-textured sponge or a sponge with raised bumps onto a triangle-cut piece of gray construction paper like a stamp, you can make the konnyaku’s speckled texture.
In the same way, using a sponge with carved grooves will make the daikon’s striations, and a sponge with fine cuts can create the wavy, mottled pattern of fish cakes.
Once your oden ingredients are ready, paste them onto construction paper cut into the shape of a pot to complete your oden hot pot!
For winter childcare! Origami oden
Let’s make oden out of origami, with three items—konnyaku, daikon, and chikuwa—skewered on a stick.
First, fold a gray sheet of origami paper twice to make a small triangle, draw a pattern, and you’ll have the konnyaku.
Next, fold a yellow sheet using the “cushion fold,” then fold all four corners inward to round it out; draw a cross-shaped slit to finish the daikon.
For the chikuwa, draw a pattern on brown origami paper and roll it into a tube shape.
Finally, fold another sheet into a long, thin skewer and attach the three pieces you made.
Your oden is complete!
Christmas cake hat
A Christmas cake hat—exciting, isn’t it? It’s a wonderful craft idea that expands children’s imagination.
After rolling the construction paper into a cone, decorate it with colored paper; it would be fun to freely design fruits and cream, too.
Use an elastic band to adjust the fit so it sits snugly on the head.
If threading the elastic is difficult, please do it together with friends or a teacher.
This hat is perfect for creating a festive atmosphere at a Christmas party.
Let’s all enjoy making them together and create lots of winter memories.
[For 4-year-olds] Winter craft ideas to enjoy at daycare and kindergarten (91–100)
tapestry
If you’re looking for a fun indoor craft for the cold season, how about making a tapestry? It’s a delightful idea you can create with familiar materials like yarn and cardboard! First, prepare a square piece of cardboard and several colors of yarn.
Cut slits along the edges of the cardboard wherever you like, and loop the yarn into the slits.
To finish, secure the yarn on the back with tape—and you’re done! Letting children choose the yarn colors helps foster independence, and asking “What kind of pattern should we make?” boosts their imagination.
Plus, it’s a great way to fully engage their fine motor skills!
