Muffin Case Poppies

Its coming up to that time of year again, where we remember those who gave their lives in the ultimate sacrifice. 

Its a humbling time for those of us who understand the momentous weight of it all, when we consider the price that they paid. I often wonder whether of faced with the same situation again, if we would find it within ourselves to play our part. 

Obviously, working with toddlers, we know that much of this is beyond their little worlds, so in toddler group, for now, we just concentrate on the scarlet of the poppy that is the symbol of our Remembrance.

This poppy craft doesn't allow much for individuality, but they were easy and proved a popular craft when we made them last year. Lets' put it this way; none were left behind!!

Poppy craft

Equipment:

• Red Muffin cases

• Black buttons or large black sequins (we preferred buttons, because they were easier to handle. Bigger buttons are the best.

• PVA glue/glue pots/glue spreaders

• Green lolly sticks

• Felt pen (for writing names on sticks)

• Overalls

• Baby wipes

Preparation:

• Order red muffin paper cases and green lolly sticks (we ordered ours from Amazon). This may need to be done some time in advance, in order to ensure it arrives in time.

• Source/gather black buttons (we bought a selection from Hobbycraft and teased out the black ones.

Method:

1. Show the children how to place a blob PVA glue on one end of their green lolly stick, and place their red muffin case over the top.

2. Show the children how to place another blob of PVA glue in the centre of the red muffin case, and place their black buttons over the glue. Some children used more than one.

3. Write the children's names on their lolly sticks and place on the home table.

Please note: any links to or mentions of specific materials are purely to aid sourcing, no earnings are made via these links.

Autumnal Trees

One of my favourite seasons as far as craft is concerned is Autumn. The colours spark joy in me, especially when I see blazing Autumnal colour contrasting with a bright blue sky, on a clear, sunny Autumn day.

Capturing those colours in toddler craft is so much fun, especially when its a craft as simple as this one. The children had great fun doing this one, so much so, that the little artist responsible for this picture made three versions!

The original aim was to use photocopied sheets, such as those used in another Autumn Tree craft, but in the event, the photocopier broke, so we ended up drawing the trees for the children, using brown crayon. In some ways this probably actually resulted in a nicer finish.

Autumn Tree

Equipment:

• Photocopied tree sheet (A3)

• Paint in autumnal hues

• Paint trays (paper plates on this occasion

• Aluminium foil

• Pens (for labelling pictures)

• Painting overalls

• Baby wipes

Preparation:

• Draw tree shape and photocopy copies for each child.

• Scrunch up foil into loose balls and place in the paint trays, ready for 'blobbing'.

Method:

1. Roll up sleeves and put on overalls.

2. Show children how to apply paint to the foil balls and use them to dab paint onto the tree shape.

3. Children apply paint to the trees.

4. Tree pictures labelled and left to dry on the home table.

5. Clean up children, before they leave the table.