5 Simple Crafts For Preschoolers That Build Connection

Easy crafts? When you’re a mom with three kids under six, it can feel nearly impossible to find even a few quiet minutes to sit down and enjoy your kids, let alone run around the house and play catch with them. But these five simple activities helped me connect with my kids easily.

Why These Crafts Matter (Even If You’re Not Crafty)

I remember when I used to scroll past craft ideas on Pinterest, thinking, “Ohh, that’s cute, but who has time for that?” because,
most days, I’m just trying to make it to bedtime so that I can have my “me time”.

But then, over time, I realised that doing these crafts didn’t have to be overwhelming; I could just simplify them. So, I started doing quick, low-prep ones at the dining table.

And you know what? They’ve become some of our best moments together. Now, we do crafts to talk and learn about so many different things.

Let’s jump into it:

1. Puffy Paint Rainbow

How we bonded over it: I let my daughter mix the paint herself, which she enjoyed very much. And, as she spread the paint over each rainbow arch, we talked about our favourite colours. And rainbows, being a metaphor for feelings, we talked about our feelings and which colour represented that feeling.

Easy Crafts

What you need:

  • Shaving cream + white glue (mixed 1:1 for puffy paint)
  • Food colouring or paint
  • Muffin tin or small cups
  • Spoon or spatula
  • Cardstock or thick paper

Steps:

  1. Mix your puffy paint in a muffin tin (each colour in a separate slot).
  2. Draw or outline a rainbow shape on paper.
  3. Let your child spread the paint over each arch.
  4. Have a conversation with your child as they paint each arch.

2. Popsicle Confetti Craft

How we bonded over it: With popsicle ice being the biggest order of the Summer season, and my kids’ absolute favourite summer treat, we used this craft as an opportunity to talk about all the fun food flavours out there. They even created their own puffy paint “flavours” and gave each one the cutest names: Blueberry Splashy, Purply cream, Banana Wiggle, and Cloudy.

What you need:

  • Popsicle stick templates (drawn or printed)
  • Paints or crayons
  • Crepe paper or tissue paper
  • Glue stick or white glue

Steps:

  1. Draw/print and cut out popsicle outlines on paper.
  2. Add real popsicle sticks behind the outlined popsicle, then spread your different flavours of puffy paint mixture.
  3. For your sprinkles, tear crepe paper into tiny bits and sprinkle on the spread puffy paint for a “confetti ice cream” look.
  4. Talk about different food flavours or even turn it into a pretend play snack bar.

3. Footprint Bugs

How we bonded over it: I used my kids’ footprints for this one (Yes, including the baby’s, LOL!). Their little feet wiggled like worms every time I brushed them with the paintbrush. But, we didn’t leave it at a cute keepsake craft (even though that’s nice as well), we turned it into a three-in-one activity:

  • Tactile sensory fun (hello, tickly paintbrush!)
  • Body awareness (they LOVED feeling the tickle underneath their feet, and seeing their foot turn into a bug!)
  • Bug talk — we talked about where bugs live, what they eat, and their life cycle while we created.

Supplies:

  • White paper
  • Paint & a black marker
  • Googly eyes (optional)
  • Tape or glue
  • Paper straws

Steps:

  1. Paint underneath your child’s foot and stamp on a sheet of paper. Let the paint dry.
  2. When the paint is dry, draw the eyes, mouth, antennae and legs (if needed). Then, cut out the foot stamp (carefully cut around it) and glue or tape the paper straw behind it.
  3. Use them to tell a story or talk about bugs like we did.

4. Animal Stick Puppets

How we bonded over it: These crafts go hand-in-hand with storytime.
And, as a Bible-believing family, it felt like the perfect hands-on way to talk about Day Six of God’s Creation, when He made the animals.

So, to help my kids really understand what it means to create, we made our own animals out of popsicle sticks. As we did, we talked through how God designed each creature bit by bit — from the eyes to the mouth. We still use them when we read Genesis 1.

Supplies:

  • Popsicle sticks
  • Construction paper or white paper
  • Markers, glue, and googly eyes
  • Scissors

Steps:

  1. Read a favourite animal book (we used the bible).
  2. Draw and cut out the animals’ heads (we did a tiger and a lion).
  3. Glue the heads to popsicle sticks, then add the eyes, ears, mouth, mane or stripes (Whatever is relevant to the animal you’re making).
  4. Use during storytime or for retelling the story in their own words.

5. Egg Carton Flower Garden

How we bonded over it: We used it as a chance to talk about how God made the flowers, the trees and everything in nature. We also made a pretend garden where my kids got to pick pretend flowers and rearrange their “garden.” Another plus is that it’s an easy upcycled craft that uses what you already have at home.

What I made
What my kids’ made

Supplies:

  • Two empty egg cartons
  • Washable paint
  • Scissors
  • Glue
  • Popsicle sticks (for stems)
  • Optional: Buttons, pom-poms, or stickers for the flower centres

Steps:

  1. Cut the egg carton cups apart and trim the edges into petal shapes. Paint another egg carton green, and make a hole at the top of each cup. ( That will be your garden.)
  2. Let your child paint each petal in fun colours. (Use paint sticks, they’re easier to manage and they dry faster).
  3. Once painted, glue a popsicle stick to the back of each flower to make the stem.
  4. Decorate the centres with pom-poms, or stickers (or just leave them painted — it’s up to them!).
  5. Arrange the flowers by inserting the sticks through the holes of the painted egg carton.

Conclusion

With crafts like these, you don’t need to think about purchasing a million fancy supplies; instead, you get to create beautiful moments where you feel present and get the chance to say, “Yes, I did something with them today.”

That being said, if you’re interested in more ideas just like this, check out my other posts:

I wrote all of these with you in mind — the not-so-crafty mama who, between her job and mommy duties, still wants to make memories with her kids.

I hope this post helped you in some way. If you liked it, hit that subscribe button to get new ideas each week, or follow me on Instagram @3craftmama for more everyday ideas and crafts you can actually do.