Thank you Scholastic Klutz for sponsoring this post.
The days are long and busy when you have kids. As my kids have gotten older, I’ve realized there is limited time to connect as a family. You have to be very intentional about spending time together and a family craft night is a great opportunity to do just that. Have you ever planned a fun family craft night? With the help of Klutz activities and crafts, a subsidiary of Scholastic, we had a blast with our first craft night at home. The Scholastic Kids Klutz Crafts are educational products and are even perfect for independent play. They are safe, burden-free, easy to use and kid-driven. Here’s how you can plan a fun family craft night too.
1. Pick age-appropriate crafts.
To maintain the interest of all, it’s important that you find an activity that the whole family can be involved in. From the youngest to the oldest, you’ll need to capture everyone’s attention. With the variety of Klutz activities and crafts, it’s easy to appeal to kids as young as 7 and up. I even found the Klutz Tiny Ceramic Studio craft was appealing for me too. You can make little bowls, plates, and vases with whatever style you desire.
The kit includes a little pottery workshop with all the tools you need, including a turntable wheel and mini bowl mold. Simply let your creations air-dry, then paint them with vivid colors. Finally, glaze your pots, plates, bowls, and vases with clear glaze to get that artisanal finish. After reviewing all the steps, we were ready to jump in!
2. Find a teaching moment.
One thing I loved about this Scholastic kids Klutz craft was the 24-page instruction and inspiration book. It really gave us all the tips we needed to succeed with pottery making. We learned so much we’ve been talking about doing more pottery making! With the help of the book, I was able to instruct the kids on how to use the sculpting tools, how to deal with common clay issues, and share a ton of inspiration. We even talked about all the items in our home that likely went through a similar pottery making process. Such a simple craft can easily become a teaching moment for us all.
3. Snacks are essentials.
What’s a family craft night without snacks? Seriously, it’s so easy to put some of your family’s favorite snacks in a bowl to enjoy. Popcorn, a yogurt bowl with granola, and peanuts are all easy and budget friendly eats. These were items we had on hand. But don’t be limited by these options. Look around your pantry and see what snack options work best – cookies, cheese and crackers, veggies and dip? The whole family can enjoy their favorite snack – just in time for family craft night.
4. No pressure!
There is no pressure for family craft night because it’s all about connecting and having fun. If you keep that in mind, the night will be a success. Kids just want to have fun, so as a parent, lighten up. Turn on some fun music, eat the snacks, and be silly with the kids. Brandon had to work for this craft night but I made sure to get in on the fun with the kids. I even made my own ceramic plate to hold my rings.
Believe me, I won’t be a ceramic artist anytime soon. However, it was fun to be by the kids and work with our hands. I set the intention to have fun and there was no pressure. Once we were done with our ceramic pottery we were all proud of our work. Family craft night isn’t a competition – it’s about family.
One thing I loved about this Scholastic kids klutz craft was how educational it was for all of us. Marley was the only one who had worked with clay before. If I did, I don’t remember so it was like my first time. But again, we all learned a lot and are definitely planning another craft night.
The instruction/inspiration book even included ways to use the tiny ceramics. Paper or real flowers make great props for the vase and I can use my plate for my jewelry. Buddy collects coins so he used his bowl for a little penny collection. I displayed our tiny ceramics on a sideboard with coffee table books. Once we saw how we could display and use our handmade pottery it really did make us proud. We actually made that with our hands!
The kids are getting older and time is limited. Could you plan a family craft night at home to connect with your kids? You’ll never regret the time it took to create a memorable night together. With the help of Scholastic Klutz it’s so easy to get an activity or craft set with all the tools you need to make a family craft night a success. Whatever you plan, don’t forget the most important element – have fun and no pressure. A fun family craft night is simply about family.
My best,
