Kids Christmas Crafts: Recycled Tree Ornaments

by Lyn Lomasi; Co-owner of Brand Shamans &  Write W.A.V.E. Media

Image © Raymond Gilford; Flickr.com

Kids love making crafts. What better time to teach them a new one than Christmas? 'Tis the season for spending quality time together. Christmas crafts can offer that time. Whether you are a parent, grandparent, caregiver, or teacher, this can be a fun Christmas project to do with kids.

When my siblings and I were kids, we loved doing Christmas crafts with my mom and this idea stems from that. We made our own Christmas ornaments every year as a tradition. Each year we did something different. One year we had tons of leftover Christmas wrapping paper, ribbons, and a box full of old toy blocks no one used anymore. Here's what we came up with.

Materials Needed

Only a few things are needed to make your own mock Christmas tree ornaments from recycled materials. Scotch tape, leftover Christmas wrapping paper (even the wrinkled stuff and scraps are fine), leftover Christmas ribbons, scissors, and some old toy blocks will be your crafting materials.

Instructions

This is a very simple craft that many kids can do. Some may need parental help, while others may not. Anyone who knows how to wrap a present in gift wrap can do this Christmas craft. First, give all the kids a stack of blocks. Be sure they all have the same amount or someone will be crying or bragging halfway through.

Next, pass out enough leftover gift wrap to wrap each block. We always have plenty, as we save our gift wrap every year after unwrapping presents. The leftovers still work for various things, such as crafts. Each child should also have enough tape and ribbons to complete the wrapping, as well as a pair of safety scissors.

Instruct the children to cut out appropriate wrapping sizes of paper for each block. Help the kids who need adult assistance. Next, tell the children to wrap each block just like wrapping a present. For those who don't know how, you can either instruct them or help them, depending on age and ability.

Once all the blocks have been wrapped, you and the kids can tie the ribbons around them, so that they tie in a plus pattern on top. Tie another ribbon underneath that ribbon, right in the center of the top. Make a loop out of it, tying a bow at the top of the loop. That loop will be used to hang the ornaments from the tree.

These Christmas tree ornament crafts can be given as gifts or kept for home or school use. This is also a great craft to do with the kids right on Christmas day because of all the wrappings that will be available for use.

*I originally published a version of this via Yahoo Contributor Network