Don’t let winter keep you from having fun with your kids! Do a quick and easy paper snowflake garland craft to keep everyone busy and happy!
We made and decorated blue paper snowflakes, and I strung the snowflakes up into a cute homemade garland for the mantel.
For our learning portion of the day, we added shiny alphabet stickers to some of the snowflakes.
It was a great way to add some letter learning and add a little pizzazz to our simple paper snowflakes.
I’ve been really into winter decorations this year.
Last year, we had just moved into a new home and had zero decorations. Just blank walls and empty shelves.
So, we decorated early for Christmas. Like the first week of November early.
Every available surface was covered with Christmas decor. Enough to make the Grinch scowl and howl.
But then Boxing Day came.
We put all the Christmas decorations away. No more shiny ornaments, no more jingly bells, no more twinkly lights.
And definitely no more gingerbread cookies.
Our house was empty again.
Do you feel like that, too, when it’s time to take down the Christmas decorations? Or are you relieved to see them go?
This year, let’s replace the Christmas decorations with a cute paper snowflake garland to decorate the house all winter long!
Looking for an organized guide of fun, easy activities to do with your toddler that also encourages their growth and development?
I’ve created a 3-month activity planner just for busy parents like you! The plan includes 65 detailed, simple, and stress-free activities including: arts and crafts, sensory play, motor skills, and STEM–all using easy-to-find supplies.
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How We Did It: Painting Snowflakes
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Making these paper snowflakes could not be any easier!
Forget the fancy folding and fancy scissor-work. This is a toddler craft, for crying out loud!
I used a paper cutter to cut horizontal sheets of dark blue and light blue construction paper into 1″ strips. Then I cut those strips in half.
My two-year-old, Ella, wanted to help gluing the strips together.
I asked her to glue strips of paper together at their centers until she completed the snowflake.
After some prompting (and off-camera assistance!), we finished gluing all the snowflakes.
Time to decorate!
I set out a little plastic dish of white paint and a couple Q-tips for painting.
Next, we got out white chalk and alphabet stickers.
Ella made dots and markings with the chalk on the paper snowflakes.
Then she named letters and I peeled the stickers for her. She put the letter stickers right on top of her chalk dots, just like we do for dot sticker art activities.
This was a great way to add a little alphabet learning to our snowflake craft. I love that when she sees the snowflake garland now, she names some of the letters on the snowflakes!
We don’t do much formal teaching with our girls. Playing alphabet games and featuring letters in uncomplicated activities, like washing magnet letters for water play, is how we like to teach letters.
Making the Painted Snowflake Garland
To connect the paper snowflakes, I threaded a needle with white embroidery floss.
I sewed the snowflakes together by bringing the thread through the top of a snowflake from back to front.
Then, I made a small stitch across the top of the snowflake so that the thread came out the back.
This ensured that the snowflakes would stay facing forward on the string.
Ella loves her pretty snowflake garland!
With this quick and easy painted snowflake garland hung up in your home, you won’t even miss the Christmas decorations!
Your Turn! Make a Painted Snowflake Garland
Painted Snowflake Garland
Supplies
- 2 sheets construction paper light blue and dark blue
- glue sticks
- white paint
- 2 cotton swabs
- white chalk
- 1 sheet sticker letters
- 1 needle and strong thread
Instructions
- Turn each sheet of construction paper to landscape orientation, and cut it into one inch strips. Then cut those strips in half. You should have strips of paper approx. 1″ x 4.25″.
- Glue the paper strips together at their centers to form snowflakes.
- Once glue is dry, begin painting the snowflakes however you wish.
- Use the white chalk to make dots on the snowflakes. Place letter stickers over the chalk marks.
- Thread a needle with embroidery floss or strong thread.
- Sew the snowflakes together by bringing the thread through the top of a snowflake from back to front. Make a small stitch across the top of the snowflake so that the thread comes out the back.
- Repeat with all the snowflakes to create a garland!
Do you wish you could leave your Christmas decorations up longer, or are you ready to take them down once Christmas is over? Comment below!
Looking for an organized guide of fun, easy activities to do with your toddler that also encourages their growth and development?
I’ve created a 3-month activity planner just for busy parents like you! The plan includes 65 detailed, simple, and stress-free activities including: arts and crafts, sensory play, motor skills, and STEM–all using easy-to-find supplies.
Let me help make planning activities for your toddler easy, so you can skip the stress and get straight to the fun!
Comment below: what makes your toddler unique? Mine loves to make up her own silly songs!