[Childcare] Winter Projects You’ll Want to Try! Recommended Craft Ideas

20 years of experience as a nursery teacher / kindergarten teacherhiyoko sensei
I’m Hiyoko-sensei, a former nursery school teacher from Hyogo Prefecture. Ever since I was five, my dream was to become a childcare worker, and before I knew it, 20 years had passed since I achieved that dream. Through singing and playing with the children, I kept working with the spirit of someone in their twenties, even as I increasingly felt my physical limits year by year (haha). From here on, I’d like to share helpful information carefully and thoughtfully, drawing on my on-site experience.
Nursery Teacher Mom Writertsukada moe
After working for five years at an after-school childcare club and three years at a nursery school, I began working as a freelance writer. I’m a mother of two children. Inspired by playing the flute in the school wind ensemble in elementary school, I joined a jazz club at university. I’ve also incorporated ukulele and piano performance into childcare. Playing, laughing, feeling sad, feeling frustrated—through all kinds of experiences, I want children to grow.

Winter is packed with events like Christmas and New Year’s.

With one fun event after another, children are surely full of excitement.

Plus, winter-specific activities and warm, cozy motifs add color to everyday life.

In this article, we’ll introduce craft ideas to enjoy during the winter season.

If your ideas have been getting repetitive or you’re looking for a hint, please use this as a reference.

Since the things children make are treated as works, we use the term “seisaku” (production) in the text.

[Childcare] Projects to Try in Winter! Recommended Craft Ideas (71–80)

How to make a skeleton Mount Fuji

@haruharo_made
TikTok document New Year’s craft / [Skeleton Mount Fuji] [Materials] • Ribbon • Japanese-pattern paper plate (Seria) • Scissors • Transparent film • Glue • Color filmCrafts for 4-year-olds　Crafts for 5-year-olds #3-year-old crafts #2-year-old's craft Crafts for 1-year-olds Crafts for 0-year-olds Production #Nursery school Wall decoration #StayHomeTime #AtHomePlay Production ideas #Nursery School Craft Winter Craft #Kindergarten Kindergarten craft Nursery teacher / Childcare worker Kindergarten Teacher wall surface　#ChristmasTree Production for children under age (infants and toddlers)　Simple craft Made in December　# January production Made in February　 New Year’s craft　#Daruma making　Tatsu Production #Mask making　Mask #paint　Sticker application　Round sticker Sticker-pasting craft　　　　　Hanging ornament drawing paper　#ConstructionPaperArt　 Paint making　　paper plate　Paper plate craft　Paper Plate Craft　Threading (a cord/strap through a hole)
♬ Stylish cafe-style BGM – Hiro Hattori

How about incorporating Mt.

Fuji—known as a lucky charm—into a January craft idea? This is a translucent “skeleton” Mt.

Fuji that looks sparkly and beautiful when displayed by a window.

First, cut a Mt.

Fuji shape out of the center of a paper plate.

Then, from the back, attach the snowcap made from construction paper, and glue on a clear film covered with blue-toned color film.

Finally, add a ribbon at the top of Mt.

Fuji to finish! It’s recommended to prepare several colors of color film, cut them into small pieces, and layer a few to create the effect.

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Let’s make it with cardboard stamps! Cute shishimai (lion dance)

https://www.tiktok.com/@chooobo2/video/7442299731532975367

If you roll a strip of cardboard into a spiral and dab it in paint, then press it onto paper, it makes the pattern for a shishimai (lion dance) costume! Using that pattern, let’s make a hanging shishimai decoration.

First, take a green sheet of construction paper cut into a rectangle and stamp any pattern you like.

Next, sprinkle on small pieces of gold origami paper to add a festive touch.

Finally, attach a shishimai face made from construction paper to one corner, add a string to the back, and you’re done! A plain backing works fine, but if you stick washi masking tape along the top and bottom, it will look like a hanging scroll and be extra lovely.

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A horse made with marble art

@eto2239
No.323 Horse 🐴#MarbleArt #marbleart #art #artwork #fyp
♬ IRIS OUT – Kenshi Yonezu

Art sparks children’s creativity! Kids’ ideas and perspectives can sometimes reveal things adults might overlook or fail to notice.

This time, let’s use marbles, paper, and paint to create a dynamic, free-form horse face.

First, roll marbles dipped in black paint across the paper to make patterns.

Next, color in the areas that look like the horse’s face and mane with colored pens or paint to finish.

It looks like it’ll become a one-of-a-kind, original New Year’s card—no two pieces will be the same.

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Challenge in childcare! First calligraphy play

@miraistep.hoikuen
New Year – January Crafts#Nursery school Nursery teacher / Childcare worker Saitama Prefecture Saitama City Mirai Step New Year First calligraphy of the year #Nursery School Craft #Year of the Snake
♫ Original Song – Mirai Step Co., Ltd. – Mirai Step Co., Ltd.

Kakizome is the first calligraphy of the year, in which people write down their New Year’s resolutions and wishes with the hope of improving their handwriting.

Although it’s an event that assumes you can write characters, it’s the New Year—so why not let children from infants to preschoolers enjoy their own style of kakizome? For older preschoolers who are practicing letters in preparation for school, it’s a good idea to write that year’s zodiac animal in hiragana.

For infants, writing characters is a high hurdle, so encourage them to try it as a drawing activity while letting them feel the texture of the brush and washi paper.

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Recommended for childcare! January’s shishimai (lion dance) craft

@hoiku.labo
[January Wall Decorations] Construction paper shishimai illustration ideas♪Childcare Nursery teacher / Childcare worker Kindergarten Teacher Childcare job openings Childcare Column #NurseryTeacherThings #IWantToConnectWithChildcareWorkers #Nursery School Craft #DaycarePreparation Nursery School Practicum Childcare student Aspiring childcare worker Childcare Job Lab Nursery teacher skills Job change activities #JobChange #nursery_teacher_job_change Nursery teacher employment Production #Craft work Production drawing paper #ConstructionPaperCrafts Poster Board Craft New Year’s craft #Shishimai
♬ Probably – YOASOBI

Let me introduce an idea for making a shishimai (lion dance) craft, which is said to ward off bad luck when it bites your head.

You’ll use construction paper and crayons, and you’ll cut the shishimai parts out of the paper.

The parts to cut are four: the body, head, ears, mouth, and hair.

Glue the parts onto a base sheet of construction paper to create the shishimai, then draw the face, teeth, body patterns, and feet with crayons.

Once you decorate the blank areas of the base however you like, it’s complete! You can use New Year’s-themed stickers for the decorations, or simply draw with crayons—both are great.

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