Aug 20

Copy Paper Crafts for Kids

by Jeanne Heiberg

As long as you have 8-1/2” x 11” copy paper, you have the makings of fun and easy crafts you can use with your students to reinforce your lessons.

Make greeting cards for any occasion
Fold a sheet of paper in half, top to bottom. Then fold in half again, left to right. Hold with folds to the left or at the top; this is the “front” of the card. Design or decorate the front and open the card to write a greeting inside. Add more designs or decorations. You might even want to write on the back of the card “This card especially designed for you by …” and sign your name.

Make prayer booklets and journals
Fold in half, top to bottom, as many sheets as you wish. (You will have four times as many pages as you do sheets of paper.) With the fold on the left side (the “spine”), punch two holes about half an inch from the fold. Thread a piece of yarn through the holes, tie in the “front,” and decorate the cover.

Make paper chains
Cut 1” wide strips of paper. Write words or draw symbols on the strips appropriate for the liturgical season, the celebration of a Sacrament, or any special occasion. Join the ends of one strip to form a circle and glue in place. Pass a second strip through that circle to form another, continuing into a chain.

Make crowns
Cut a sheet of paper in half lengthwise and place the two strips on top of each other. Fold the layered strip into accordion pleats, about 1” wide. Cut from the middle of one side of the folded paper to the top of the other side. When you unfold the paper, you have two strips of peaks and valleys. With tape or glue, attach the two strips together where they match the best. (This is a good idea for the Feast of Christ the King. Or you may want students to draw pointed twigs on the crown to represent Jesus’ crown of thorns.)

Make cone baskets for many uses
Draw a large circle on a sheet (trace around a plate). Cut out the circle and cut a slice from the circle up to 1/4 of the “pie,” 1/8 for a wider basket. Bring cut edges of the circle together to form a cone. Overlap edges and glue or tape. Form strips of paper into loops and attach at the top for hanging or carrying.

Jeanne Heiberg is the author of Advent Arts & Christmas Crafts (Paulist Press) and Advent calendars (Creative Communications). She has taught art, writing, creative catechetics, and meditation, and has directed parish catechetical programs. Jeanne writes, paints, and gives writing workshops in upstate New York.

Copyright 2010, Peter Li, Inc. This article may not be reprinted or reproduced in any form without permission, except for use with your classes or families.

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