Here are some terrific books filled with fun and easy craft projects and activities to keep boredom at bay all summer long!
101 Kids Activities That Are the Bestest, Funnest Ever!: The Entertainment Solution for Parents, Relatives & Babysitters! (5/5 stars, currently priced at $8.89)
Easy, Creative and Fun Things to Keep Your Children Entertained and Happy
Never again will you hear the all-too-common call of, “I’m bored!” with this kid-pleaser for many ages.
Whether your kid is 3, 5 or 12 years old, there are hundreds of fun, educational and engaging things to do in this book. When they ask to watch television, you’ll have the perfect solution. 101 Kids Activities That Are the Bestest, Funnest Ever! has time-tested, exciting activities to keep your children laughing and learning for the whole day, every day.
Holly Homer and Rachel Miller are the women behind the wildly popular site KidsActivitiesBlog.com, which gets more than 2 million hits a month and has more than 71,000 fans on Facebook and 100,000 followers on Pinterest.
One-of-a-kind activities–never before seen on the blog–range from making edible play dough and homemade sidewalk chalk to playing shoebox pinball and creating a balance beam obstacle course. And with outdoor and indoor activities and tips for adjusting according to your child’s age, this book will provide hours and hours of never-ending fun with your family.This parenting life raft is also the perfect way to make sure caregivers are spending quality-time with your little ones.
Red Ted Art: Cute and Easy Crafts for Kids (5/5 stars, currently priced at $13.99)
Crafting has never been more popular and Maggy Woodley, the creative force behind Red Ted, is passionate about making things with her children, Max, four, and Pippa, two.
Using recycled materials and bits and bobs collected when out and about, here are over 60 utterly irresistible things to make with your kids. From adorable peanut shell finger puppets to walnut babies, loo roll marionettes and egg carton fairy lights, fabric mache bowls, stick men and shell crabs, stone people, and many more, these are projects for all the family to have fun with. And what’s more, the end results are so cute and desirable that they look great around the home, or make wonderfully unique and personal gifts.
With a funky, modern design and vibrant full colour photography throughout, this is a must-have addition to every young family’s bookshelf.
Martha Stewart’s Favorite Crafts for Kids: 175 Projects for Kids of All Ages to Create, Build, Design, Explore, and Share (4.5/5 stars, currently priced at $10.99)
Martha Stewart’s Favorite Crafts for Kids focuses on craft projects that children, aged three to twelve, can make with their parents.
These projects are fun, yet serve a practical purpose; children can wear, decorate, and play with what they make.
Filled with ideas for a range of ages, skill levels, and interests, this book lets children’s creativity run wild, while creating precious memories as parents and kids learn and create as a team.
Art Lab for Kids: 52 Creative Adventures in Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, Paper, and Mixed Media-For Budding Artists (4.5/5 stars, currently priced at $13.79)
“Susan Schwake’s Art Lab for Kids is a well-thought-out guide, making it easy to introduce art into children’s lives. Simple, clear explanations of technique, combined with inspiration from established artists, will enable children to feel successful and encouraged to explore art as a form of expression.” – Rebecca Emberley, best-selling children’s book author and illustrator
“Art Lab for Kids encourages all ages to be fearless in seeking and nurturing their creativity. With lessons, inspiration, and advice, Susan Schwake gives you the tools to find and explore your artistic side.” – Kathreen Ricketson, found and editor of http://www.whipup.net and http://www.action-pack.com
A refreshing source of ideas for creating fine art with children, Art Lab for Kids encourages the artist’s own voice, marks, and style. This fun and creative book features 52 fine art projects set into weekly lessons, beginning with drawing, moving through painting and printmaking, and then building to paper collage and mixed media. Each lesson features and relates to the work and style of a contemporary artist.
Lisa Congdon, Megan Bogonovich, and Amy Rice are just a few of the artists included. The labs can be used as singular projects or to build up to a year of hand-on fine art experiences. The lessons in this book are open-ended to be explored over and over–with different results each time! Colorful photos illustrate how different people using the same lesson will yield different results, exemplifying the way the lesson brings out each artist’s personal style. Art Lab for Kids is the perfect book for creative families, friends, and community groups and works as lesson plans for both experienced and new art teachers. Children of all ages and experience levels can be guided by adults and will enjoy these engaging exercises.
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