The worst part of winter in the Midwest is the constant threat of snow days. Last week, my son had an unexpected three days off of school. Of course, he spent most of this time complaining that he was bored and didn’t have any toys to play with.
Since a trip to the toy store in the middle of a blizzard didn’t seem like the best idea, I suggested he try making some toys with the craft supplies we had around the house.
When I was little, I loved making paper dolls and designing fun little outfits for them. I couldn’t convince my son that doll making was a good way to pass the time, but I did show him some origami paper toys that were a hit. Click on the links below to find tutorials I created for About Origami:
One activity that goes over really well if you have boys is making a jar full of ninja stars and trying to toss them into a bucket on the other side of the room. If you don’t have origami paper on hand, make them from magazine pages.
If you don’t mind a lot of cutting and you have a printer with a full color ink cartridge, Canon Creative Park and HP Creative Studio both have some really awesome printable toy projects.
What sorts of tricks do you use to keep your kids busy during snow days?
Photo credit: Dana Hinders
