Preschoolers really enjoy the holidays and get really excited about giving and receiving gifts. One of the fun things you can do with a preschooler at Valentine’s Day is make a craft that they can give as a gift. This can be something simple like a picture or a card, or it can be something a little more hands on for the adult, such as a paint or glue, or cutting type of craft. No matter what kind of craft you do with a preschooler, keep in mind, the more holiday oriented it is, the more fun it will be for them to do.
The following is a couple of ideas for preschool age appropriate crafts that can be used as gifts:
The heart frame:
This is a craft that requires some preparation by an adult, but then can be left to the creative genius of the preschool child. For this craft you are going to want cardboard, a heart shape to trace from so craft paint or construction paper.
As the adult you are going to need to cut out a heart, then cut out a bigger heart so that you have a heart shaped frame. You are going to take a digital photo of the kid, and print it so you can put it in the frame. Paint the frame, or cover it with construction paper so that it is attractive. Then, turn it over to the preschool aged child.
The preschooler should be given a supply of markers, crayons, stickers, etc. If they are a little more advanced you can give them glue and embellishments or glitter as well. Make sure all of the items they are given are Valentine’s Day themed, so hearts, love notes, cupids, etc. Let the child decorate the frame however they want, then put their picture in it, and help them pick out someone to give their craft to.
A conversation heart:
This is a really fun activity for your preschool aged child. This is a craft that can be used to decorate their room to celebrate Valentine’s Day. What you need are several hearts cut out of different colors of construction paper, stickers, lettering, crayons, pencils, etc. What you are going to do is tell the preschooler a little about the treat conversation hearts that are such a popular Valentine’s Day gift. Explain to them that the hearts have messages on them about love, then help the preschooler to create their very own conversation hearts to hang on a window, door, or to give. They can come up with the phrase and you can help them write it on the hearts, then they can decorate the hearts. A fun alternative to paper conversation hearts is to make sugar cookies, and let the preschooler decorate them.