Starting school is a huge step in any child’s life (and in their parents’ lives too, when you think about it), and it can be an exciting, scary, emotional time all around. It’s that mix that can make things so unnerving, but the good news is that crafts can help – and they can help a lot in all kinds of different ways.
If you can work out which crafts are going to be useful and why and ensure they’re in place at the right time to help your child transition without too many issues, you’ll be able to help them build confidence, ease their worries and concerns, and even create some very special lasting memories that you and your child can enjoy thinking about even when things get a little tough and they have a wobble about attending school (it’s something that often happens, even if they’re really enjoying their new life at school). So let’s take a look at some of the fantastic crafts you can organize to help your child and ensure they can make the most of their education right from the start – read on to find out more.
Memory Keepsake Box
A memory keepsake box is a lovely idea, and it’s also really simple, so it’s definitely something you can put in place. The great thing about this craft is that it’s actually practical, so it’s not something that will end up just sitting on a shelf (or being thrown out to make room for other things), and it’s a good way to create a link between home and school, which could be something that helps soothe anxiety.
You’ll need to start with a plain wooden or cardboard box (any size is fine, although it does need to be large enough to have room inside it for special things) and then you can decorate that box with your child in any way you want to; use paint, glitter, stickers, or whatever else you like until the box is done and it’s a beautiful and unique memory box. Why is it called a memory box? It’s because you then get to fill it with mementos of home, like photos, a little toy, trinkets and souvenirs from trips, and so on. When they look at it, they’ll be reminded of home, and the idea is that it will make them feel calm and happy. Even better, you can add little notes to it so they get to hear from you when you’re apart – the Kissing Hand Poem is a great example of what you could include.
Of course, taking the box to school isn’t always a practical thing, and if that’s the case then why not keep it in the car for the school run, or make a point of looking at it together when your little one is feeling down? It could help massively.
Personalized Back-To-School Journal
Another great craft to do before your child goes to school (or goes back to school; it’s not just children going for the first time who can feel the jitters) is to create a personalized back-to-school journal. One of the reasons this is such a good idea is that it’s a brilliant want to encourage your child to get creative – the more creative the better, in fact – which is a skill they’ll need to use a lot when they’re at school. Getting those creative juices flowing in advance can help boost their confidence and ensure they’re able to participate in as many classes as they can.
It’s easy to see how you (or rather, they) would be able to decorate the cover and make it their own unique journal, but what about the inside? Well, inside they can write about their hopes, dreams, worries, or anything else they want to – getting thoughts out of your head and onto paper is a good way to reduce their power, and it makes it easier to come up with a solution. You could use the journal as a way to communicate because sometimes children find it hard to put their worries or goals into words, even when they really trust and love you, but never read the journal without their permission or that trust can easily be broken.
Handprint Art
There’s never a bad time to try some handprint art, and kids love it because it’s all about getting messy! Of course, that does mean that parents might not like it quite so much, but if you make sure you’ve got protection like sheets of newspaper over your furniture and flooring, it’s really not so bad – and the fun and peace of mind your child gets out of it makes cleaning up well worth it. Or why not clean up together, and help teach your little one some good habits before they go to school; it’s bound to help them.
Back to the handprint art, and you’ll need some non-toxic paint and some paper – that’s it (along with the willingness to get messy we mentioned above)! You just need to dip your hands into the paint and press them onto a sheet of paper, making patterns as you go. When the paint dries, you can embellish the handprints with marker pens, stickers, and other craft items that work together to create a unique work of art.
If you work together on this and have your handprints side by side and then hang it in a prominent place, it’s going to become a beautiful reminder that you’re always there for each other. To make that even more lovely, why not get the whole family involved? Just seeing something like that on the way out of the door to go to school could change your child’s whole mood for the better and remind them that they can get through anything – even those first few days at school – with their family by their side.
DIY Friendship Bracelets
Everyone knows that a friendship bracelet means a lot, and if you were given one by someone, it meant they were thinking of you and thought highly of you. So why not create matching friendship bracelets with your child? It’s a really classic craft that can even help to build fine motor skills, so it could be beneficial in all kinds of different ways, and it’s so simple – choose some colored wool or thread and some beads (make sure you pick your favorite colors and mix them with your child’s favorites) and weave it all together – you can get proper instructions online as to how to do it nicely. You can tell your child that these bracelets are something you can each wear when you’re apart and when you look at them, you’ll feel loved and supported.
You can also add a beautiful extra layer of meaning by adding a charm or a bead with a special symbol like a star or a heart, for example, that means something to the pair of you specifically – then it becomes really special.
Pocket Hug Tokens
There’s nothing like putting your hand in your pocket and finding what’s called a ‘pocket hug’ there, is there? What’s a pocket hug? It’s a small item that feels good to hold and even fidget with, and it’s an easy thing to carry around as a reminder of home and loved ones. For this activity, you can use air-dry clay, felt, or even small stones that you can decorate together – there aren’t any specific rules about what a pocket hug needs to look or feel like, and it’s really going to be down to you to make something you and your child find comforting in some way.
If you’re using clay, just shape it how you want it – you could make it into hearts, or just something that’s nice to hold. If it’s felt you prefer, you can cut it into the shape you’ve chosen (and it can be a random shape – as we said, there aren’t any rules). When it comes to stones, it’s just how they come, but you can still spend time feeling them until you get one that you’re happy with). Decorate whatever you’ve made or chosen with paint, markers, glitter, and so one, and once they’re dry, these little tokens can be slipped into your child’s pocket or backpack for them to hold into whenever they’re feeling nervous or homesick. And if you’ve got one too, you can start to feel more comforted if you’re feeling anxious about your child going to school.
First-Day Photo Frames
Although the photo itself can’t be added until later, you and your child can still make a lovely frame together – or, more accurately, you can buy a cheap frame and then decorate it however you want to. You’ll need to find a plain wooden frame (or you can make one out of cardboard if you prefer) and then you can let your child decorate it however they want.
All you have to do next is take a photo of them on their first day at school (and that’s something you’ll probably do anyway), add it to the frame, and you’ve got a fantastic reminder of the day.
