toddler home made toys

Discovery Bottles

Total Time Needed:

30 Minutes or less

Ages: 6 months and up

Shake it up, baby! Toddlers love getting a reaction, and these nifty bottles let them do just that -- without tiring out Mom and Dad in the process.

These simple little shakers offer mesmerizing first experiments in floating, sinking, and swirling. (For a fun lesson in pouring, older tots can use a funnel to help fill them.) We recommend sealing the caps with hot glue, but you'll still want to make sure that junior spares these bottles any vigorous teething.

Materials

• Clear plastic bottle (we used Aquapods by Poland Spring)
• Sequins, buttons, ribbon, yarn, and other shakable objects

• Water
• Hot glue

Instructions

1. To start, insert a handful of objects into a clear plastic bottle. In one bottle, we put sequins, buttons, and baubles of varying sizes, and in the others, we put ribbon and yarn cut into half-inch, 2-inch, and 5-inch lengths.
   
2. Fill the bottle with water, leaving about an inch of space at the top. Firmly secure the lid with hot glue and let it dry completely (about 5 minutes) before giving it to your child.
   
   
   

   Drawing Dough

   
   Total Time Needed:

   1 Hour

   A cross between paint and dough, this delightful concoction is fun to squeeze out into puffy, colorful designs. As it dries, the salt in the dough crystallizes, leaving behind a glittering abstraction that, like a Rorschach inkblot, is open to interpretation. Here's how to make enough for 2 bottles.

Materials

• 2/3 cup each of water, flour, and salt
• Washable tempera paints

• Squeeze bottles (we got ours at Michael's for $2 per 2-pack)

Instructions

1. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the water, flour, and salt (the dough will be just barely pourable).
   
2. Divide the dough between two bowls and stir a few drops of washable tempera paint into each. Pour the dough into squeeze bottles.
   
3. Protect your work surface, then have your artist create colorful designs on thick construction paper or card stock. Leave them flat to dry (drying times will vary depending on the dough's thickness).
   
   
   

   Drumroll, Please

   
   Total Time Needed:

   1 Hour

   This easy-to-make instrument just can't be beat -- no, wait, it can! It provides even the youngest musicians with a wonderfully rich and resonant sound. Click here for instructions on how to make the mallet drumsticks.

Materials

• Large, cylindrical oatmeal container
• Craft knife
• Tyvek (what no-rip envelopes are made of; available at your local post office or at office supply stores)

• Markers
• Duct Tape
• Heavy-duty wrapping paper or one of your child's drawings

Instructions

1. Remove the lid from a large, cylindrical oatmeal container. Cut out the bottom with a craft knife.
   
2. Cut a piece of Tyvek (what no-rip envelopes are made of; available at your local post office or at office supply stores) into a circle that's 4 inches wider than the mouth of the oatmeal carton. (For instance, if your container measures 5 inches across, the Tyvek should be 9 inches.) Don't worry about making the circle perfectly round; we traced the carton onto our envelope, then cut around it, keeping our scissors roughly 2 inches from that line.
   
3. If you like, have your child decorate the Tyvek with markers while you cut eight 2-inch lengths of packing or duct tape. Now tape the Tyvek over the mouth of the container. To get it as taut as possible, adhere 2 pieces of tape directly opposite each other after pulling the Tyvek tight between them. Continue in the same way around the container, until all 8 strips are applied in pairs (you'll need to gather the material slightly as you go). Finally, cut one last, longer piece of tape and wrap it all the way around the edge of the Tyvek.
   
4. Jazz up the drum by decorating it with heavy-duty wrapping paper or one of your child's drawings, held in place with packing tape or colorful duct tape.
   
   
   To add to the fun: Make a few more in different sizes so your child can have a complete drum set.

Mailing Tube Rain Sticks

 

Total Time Needed:

2-3 Hours

Your tot can enjoy the sound of a gentle rainfall -- without the sogginess -- thanks to this easy-to-make sound-alike instrument. Our twist on the classic creates a noisy, kid-safe maze for falling grain with just a mailing tube and aluminum foil, and gives toddlers plenty of crafting opportunities to "do it myself."

Materials

• 16-1/2- by 6-inch piece of clear Con-Tact paper
• Small pieces of colored tissue paper (torn or cut)
• 15- by 1-1.2-inch mailing tube (available for $1.50 at Staples)
• 2-1/2-foot length of aluminum foil

• Broom
• 1/3 cup of rice
• 2 tablespoons of unpopped corn
• Hot glue

Instructions

1. Peel the backing off the Con-Tact paper. Let your child decorate the sticky side with tissue paper. (Alternatively, have her paint the tube, then cover it with the Con-Tact paper.) Wrap the paper around the tube and tuck the extra length inside the ends (for ease, cut small slits around the overhang before folding it in).
   
2. Crush the foil lengthwise into a long cylinder, then wrap it around the handle of a broom to form a coil. Slide the coil off the handle, stretch it until it's slightly longer than the tube, then push it into the tube. Use hot glue or masking tape to secure the ends of the foil inside the tube, about 1/4 inch from each opening.
   
3. Hot-glue a cap to one end of the tube, then help your child pour the rice and corn into the other end (a funnel or small pitcher works well). Hot-glue the other cap in place.
   

toddler craft

Color in a Bag

Total Time Needed:

2-3 Hours

"For the youngest kids, art is really about the tactility of the materials, what they feel like," says Abbey Hendrickson, a former educator at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Massachusetts. We can't think of a more tactile experience than squeezing and pressing designs into these sealed bags of colored cornstarch. For an interesting light-table effect, tape a bag to a low window and let your child use his fingers to draw patterns while the sun shines through.

Materials

• 1 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 4 cups cold water

• Food coloring
• 2 gallon-size ziplock bags
• Duct tape

Instructions

1. Over medium heat, combine the cornstarch, sugar, and water in a saucepan, stirring continuously.
   
2. Once the mixture begins to thicken, remove the pan from the heat and stir for another minute or so until it thickens to a pudding like consistency. Let it cool for 30 minutes.
   
3. Spoon the mixture into two bowls, stir a few drops of food coloring into each (we used red and yellow), then divide the colors between the ziplock bags. Seal the bags with duct tape and let your child mix and mash the colors (they'll keep for up to a week).
   

Fun outdoor games

Hula Hoop-la!

Build your physical skills while having fun

Top of Form

Bottom of Form

Total Time Needed:

30 Minutes or less

The hula hoop may have had its heyday in the 1950s, but thanks to renewed interest from fitness-focused families, hooping is hip again. Fans note that the low-impact sport strengthens core muscles, fosters coordination, and best of all, is fun. To get you started, here are some tips from Beth Morey, a teacher and kids' hooping instructor from Missoula, Montana.

Instructions

1.      Choose the right hoop. Bigger and heavier are better for beginners. A good rule of thumb: when held perpendicular to the ground, the hoop should come up to at least the user's belly button. Also look for a heavier hoop made from 3/4-inch tubing (or make you r own — see our tip below).

2.      Find the rhythm. Contrary to popular belief, you don't move your hips in a circle to keep a hoop spinning. It's actually a rocking motion. (A)

3.      Stand with your feet hip-width apart and one foot slightly in front of the other. Hold the hoop and practice rocking your hips from front to back. Alternatively, stand with your feet parallel and rock your hips from side to side. (B)

4.      Stand with the hoop resting against your lower back and pulled slightly toward the back foot. (C) Rock out: quickly whip the hoop in the direction of your front foot while rocking your hips.

5.      Listen to music. Hooping is rhythmic in nature, so playing music with a moderately fast beat can help new hoopers master the movement.

6.      Take a break. If your hoop is spending more time around your ankles than your hips, try hand-hooping instead: spin the hoop around your hand horizontally overhead or in a vertical position at your side.

Tips:

Do it yourself: Hoops are widely available at major retailers and sporting goods stores, but for a durable hoop with a customized fit, try making your own.

First Night Flashlight Limbo

In this lights-out version of a classic party game, the object is to avoid the beam of the flashlight.

What You Need

·         2 flashlights

Instructions

1.      Clear a floor space and turn off the lights.

2.      Two kids, each holding a flashlight, stand a few feet apart, turn on the flashlights, and point them at each other to create a level beam of light for the others to limbo under.

Penguin Shuffle

Here's an amusing indoor race that challenges kids' balancing skills, penguin style.

What You Need

·         Beanbag or Hacky Sack-style footbag

Instructions

1.      Have the children stand side by side with their "eggs" (beanbags or Hacky Sack-style footbags) on top of their feet.

2.      Players try to shuffle across the room without dropping their "eggs." The first one to succeed wins.  
Penny Spoon Race

 
This challenge may sound simple, but it's a tricky test of grace and speed.

What You Need

·         Bowl of pennies

·         Large spoons

Instructions

1.      Setup: Mark the start and finish lines. Count the number of pennies it takes to fill a spoon, and place that many pennies per player in a bowl.

2.      Playing the Game: Each player gets a spoon and fills it with the specified amount of pennies. After the referee calls "Ready, Set, Go!" players race toward the finish line. If a penny falls from a spoon, the player has to stop, pick up the coin, and put it back onto the spoon before continuing. The first player to cross the finish line with a full spoon wins.

If there are a lot of racers, divide them into heats and have a race between the winners to determine the champion.