I have recently come to the conclusion that
we need more quiet activities for the kids to do. If I am going to stay sane,
we need more quiet activities. After all a quiet house makes for a happy mommy…
at least when it is quiet and I KNOW what the kids are doing. When it is quiet
and I don’t know what the kids are up to I know I am in trouble. So I try to
keep those little hands busy with educational and constructive activities.
I decided that we will be having a tray
craft series over the next couple of weeks. Here is why: these craft trays are
super inexpensive to make, really easy to store, and are a great way to
entertain the kiddos. They make the dream of quiet play a reality. So over the
next couple of weeks we will be working on creating different play trays. First
up is the Felt Play Tray.
What you need:
97¢ Cookie sheet from Walmart
2 - 9”x12” Felt sheets in the color of choice
{I buy them buy the piece at Joann Fabrics, but they are available in packs as
well}.
Hot glue gun
Glue for the hot glue gun
Sandpaper
Scissors
Take the 2 sheets of felt and lay them in the
cookie sheet to determine where to cut the second piece of felt. There will be
a seam.
Cut the second felt sheet so that your entire
tray is covered. Mine are about 1½ inches thick.
Take the sandpaper and give the tray a light sanding to scrape it up and give the glue some grip.
Take your hot glue gun and make hot glue lines
across your tray {I did this going the short way so that my glue did not cool
too much. Make about 1½” -2” thick lines of hot glue on the cookie sheet and
then stop.
Take your full felt sheet and press it onto
the hot glue. Make sure it is straight and that you are pressing it down all
over so that it is adhering to all of the glue.
Lift up the unattached felt and repeat the
hot glue and pressing process again. Do this until all of felt is attached to
the tray.
Set aside to cool and dry {we typically do our
crafts in the morning and then the kiddos get to play with our creations in the
afternoon.}
Please use your common sense when doing crafts with hot glue. The glue can get really hot and can burn you, so please do not just hand over a hot glue gun and let your children go bananas – this could result in serious injury. This craft is to be done by an adult or with adult supervision.
My boys love these felt boards. I love how quiet my house is with these felt boards. There are little felt pieces you can buy online for the kiddos to play with and they can be bought in sets. I have some from my teaching days, but since making these felt boards I have added some more sets to my wish list online.
I love how educational these felt boards can
be. Aside from using them for a quiet activity at home or as entertainment on
car rides {because YES they do fit in the pockets behind the seats for easy transportability},
these felt boards and felt pieces can be used to teach all kinds of things.
Think early math skills for the child who needs to SEE it! Think social and
emotional skills using felt family pieces or felt faces. The list for how this
can be used for educational purposes can go on and on and on. I cannot wait to
dig deep and find new ways to incorporate this into my schedule with my
children.
Have you ever played
with a felt board?
