Encouraging your preschooler to do crafts not only provides her with an opportunity to express her creativity, it provides several other benefits. Taking part in craft activities helps her to develop fine-motor skills and can improve her coordination and strength, according to EarlyChildhoodEducation.co.uk. Holding a crayon or paint brush, using blunt-tip preschooler’s scissors and gluing items on paper all provide your preschooler with these benefits.

Mini-Popsicle-Stick Kite

While the mini-Popsicle-stick kites can take an hour or more to make, according to FamilyEducation.com, when your preschooler is finished, he’ll have a kite that he can actually fly. By gluing four overlapping Popsicle sticks together to create a diamond shape, the frame of the kite is made. The frame can then be used as a template to design the paper kite. Tissue paper is the best paper to use since it is lightweight. Once the tissue paper is cut to fit the frame, have your preschooler glue it to the Popsicle sticks and add embellishments like stickers and glitter. When a piece of ribbon or yarn is stapled to the bottom of the kite, it’s ready for your preschooler to fly.

Pencil Box

With a kid-sized shoebox, your preschooler can create a pencil box that can hold her basic school supplies inside. Allow your preschooler to paint the box any color she’d like with non-toxic paint. Using stickers, glitter and foam cutouts, your preschooler can decorate her box. She’ll need your assistance to poke holes in the top of the box lid once her box is decorated. These holes will hold her crayons, markers or pencils. When the box is completely dry, it is ready for your preschooler to use.

Binoculars

In addition to the fun your preschooler will have when making a pair of her own binoculars, once they are made, they can be used as a toy that promotes imaginary play. To make binoculars, provide your preschooler with non-toxic paint, stickers and other embellishments to decorate two cardboard toilet-paper-roll tubes. Once the tubes are dry, use clear packing tape to affix them together lengthwise, one next to the other. You’ll need to help your preschooler by punching a hole in the outside end of each tube. A piece of yarn can be strung through each hole and knotted at the end to create the binocular strap. As an alternative, staple the yarn to the tube if a hole-punch is not available.