C rafts
*At the beginning of each craft entry are estimates for the cost and amount of time needed to complete the craft. The dollar signs indicate a cost range from ($) basically no expense (Supplies are probably in your church supply cabinet.) to ($$$) fairly inexpensive, involving purchases from a discount store.
African House / 8
Autograph Accordion / 5 Back Scratcher / 5 Baker’s Clay / 35
Beaded Candy Cane Ornament / 12 Bead Necklace/Bracelet / 14
Betty Barrette Holder / 14 Bird Feeder / 38
Birdseed Bell / 38 Bookplate / 11 Bookworm Chart / 11 Bread Craft Dough / 36 Bubble Solution / 36
Candy Cane Heart Ornament / 13 Candy Jar / 23
Candy Pieces Tree Ornament / 13 Care Can / 5
Catalog Art / 8
Chocolate-Dipped Spoons / 23 Church Keys / 6
Cinnamon-Sugar Canister / 24 Clothes-Peg Doll / 22
Coat of Many Colors / 15 Colored Circles Art / 8 Colored Pasta / 36
Cookie Cutter Cutouts / 8 Cookie Cutter Ornament / 13 Crayon Comb Art / 19 Crayon Cutting / 19 Crayon Rubbings / 19 Crazy Putty Goop / 36 Cross Bookmark / 11 Crystal Garden / 26 Cup Bells / 13
Decorative Box / 26 Disposable Apron / 15 Doll Cradle / 20 Door Hanger / 26
Drinking Straw Necklace / 15 Drum / 33
Earth Mosaic / 8
Edible Craft Recipes (See Snacks .) Elephant Bookends / 26
E-Mail / 18
Fancy Flowerpot / 27 Fancy Shoelaces / 15 Fancy Socks / 15 Fill ’Er Up Cup / 6 Fireworks Art / 20 First-Aid Kit Starter / 6 Flower Stick / 27 Friendly Invitation / 19 Friendship Mobile / 32 Gift Bag / 19
Growth Chart / 6 Guitar / 33 Hand Purse / 16 Hanky Doll / 23 Headband Crown / 18 Heart Pocket / 6 Heart Rings / 16
Homemade Candle / 27 Hot Pad / 24
Humbuzzer / 33
“I Can Fly” Mobile / 32 Invisible Ink / 37 Jar Cookies / 24 Lacy Ornament / 13 Leaf-Print Stationery / 5 Luminaries / 39
Magnetic Calendar / 27 Make a House a Home / 9 Meltdown / 20
Me Poster / 9 Message Bottle / 7 Mirror, Mirror / 17 Mixed-Up Collage / 9 Musical Nails / 34
My Family Tree / 9 Nature’s Toy Shop / 5 Origami Mobile / 33 Page Puzzle / 7 Painted Rocks / 38 Paper Airplanes / 21 Paper Doll / 21
Papier-Mâché Globe / 34 Papier-Mâché Maracas / 34 Papier-Mâché Pins / 35 Pencil Puppy / 28 Personalized Apron / 15 Photo Folder / 7
Picture Frame / 28 Pinwheel / 23
Pipe-Cleaner Person / 22 Planets Mobile / 32 Play Dough / 37 Potato Stamp / 10 Potpourri Angel / 21 Potpourri Circle / 28 Potpourri Jar / 29 Pretty Pencil Cup / 29 Pretty Soap Dish / 29 Puffy Paint / 36
Puffy, Sparkly Bookmarks / 12 Punch Art / 29
Punched Dot Art / 10 Recipe Booklet / 25 Recipe Card Holder / 25 Refrigerator Worm / 29 Rock Paperweight / 30 Sandpaper Art / 20 Sandpaper Blocks / 33 Sand Sculpture / 30
Scented Christmas Sand Play / 37 Scented Padded Hanger / 16 Seasonal Wreath / 30 Seed Mosaic / 10 Seed Napkin Rings / 25 Seed Necklace / 17 Shake ’n Snow Ball / 14 Silly Silhouette / 10 Sleeper Shirt / 17 Soap Bible / 12 Sock Puppet / 21
*Before serving food, make sure you have checked with parents about any food aller- gies.
Spice-Scented Drawer Sachets / 16 Stained-Glass Jar / 30
Stained-Glass Window / 20 Stick Puppet / 21
Storybook / 12 Straw Art / 10 Sun Visor / 17 Surprise Pictures / 7 Tambourine / 34 Teddy Bear Blocks / 31 Tin Star / 14
Tissue-Paper Carnations / 31 Tissue-Paper Window / 31 Travel Bag / 18
Wall Mural / 11 Windsock / 39 Wise Old Owl / 11
Wooden Spoon Decoration / 31 WWJD Bracelet / 18
Yarn Banner / 32 Yarn Bracelet / 18 Yarn Doll / 22
Reproducible Pages
Snacks
Crafts
Icons indicate that a craft uses an idea or page from the corresponding resource section
Nature’s Toy Shop ($, 15 minutes)
Materials—Pebbles, quickdrying adhesive cement
Provide a variety of pebbles and rocks for the girls to choose from.
The girls can assemble them in a variety of ways to make pebble creatures. When they have decided on what they want to make, help them cement the pebbles together.
Leaf-Print Stationery ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Paintbrushes, plain paper (white or another light color, 12 sheets per girl), rolling pins or cans, plain envelopes (12 per girl), a variety of leaves, acrylic paints, paper towels
Have the girls choose a leaf and paint the leaf on the side that the veins are felt on (usually the back). Have them each take one of the twelve sheets of paper and decide where to place the leaf to make stationery. Have them position the leaf with the painted side down and then cover it with a paper towel. Roll a rolling pin or can over it. Have them remove the paper towel and carefully lift off the leaf.
Each leaf will probably make one or two more prints before it needs to be repainted. Let each print dry thoroughly. Repeat the process on each sheet of paper and, if desired, on the back of each envelope.
Patterns may be made with more than one leaf. Narrow leaves could line the page to make a border; leaves in a row look like a growing vine; some leaves make a pretty fan shape.
Autograph Accordion ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—Construction paper, blunt scissors, tape, crayons
Let the girls fold their sheets of construction paper in half several times, then unfold and cut along the fold creases. They should come out with several uniform rectangles. Help them tape these pieces end to end and then fold them together like an accordion. Have each girl color the front of her booklet. When all the girls have done this, let them trade books and sign their names in each other’s books.
Back Scratcher ($$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Plastic back scratchers, lengths of thin ribbon, slips of paper, markers, a hole punch
Have the girls write a memory verse reference or an encouraging phrase on their slips of paper. Punch a hole in one end of the paper slips. Then help them tie one end of the ribbon tightly near the curved part of the back scratcher and the other end to the slip of paper.
Care Can ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—Empty soda cans, tempera paints, water, bowls, paint- brushes, smocks
Mix up several colors of tempera paint and allow each girl to paint her soda can to relate to the unit’s theme. The girls can use their cans to collect money for a club project.
Church Keys ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Cardboard key pattern, white paper, a marker, colorful copier paper, crayons, a hole punch, 6-inch lengths of yarn
Trace ten keys onto a piece of white paper and write a one to threeword summary of one of the Ten Commandments on each key.
Photocopy the keys onto colorful paper. Have the girls trace each commandment summary with different colors of crayons before cut- ting all ten keys out. Punch a hole in the handle end of each key. Let each girl thread her keys together with a piece of yarn and tie the ends of the yarn together.
Fill ’Er Up Cup ($, 15 minutes)
Materials—Paper, foam, or plastic cups; glue; glitter; construction paper; felt scraps; pasta shells; buttons
Give each girl a cup. Let the girls glue decorations to their cups.
First-Aid Kit Starter ($$$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Small boxes with lids, white and red tempera paint, water, bowls, brushes, bandages, lists of other first-aid supplies needed, smocks
Let the girls paint their boxes white with a large red cross on top.
When the paint is dry, the girls can fill them with the bandages and lists of other supplies needed.
Growth Chart ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Construction paper, cellophane tape, a yardstick, a black marker, crayons
Have the girls tape several sheets of construction paper together, end to end, until the combined length is greater than each girl’s height. Lay the charts on the floor and have the girls lie on them with their feet lined up with the bottom edge of the chart. Measure each girl with the yardstick and draw a solid line at her height. Mark the chart with the height in feet and inches, the date, and the girl’s name. Let the girls color their charts while the other girls are being measured.
Heart Pocket ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Cardboard heart pattern, pencils, construction paper in contrasting colors, blunt scissors, crayons, slips of paper (A heart pattern is in the Reproducible Pages.)
Help the girls trace around the heart pattern onto a sheet of con- struction paper. Then the girls can cut out the paper hearts. Repeat this process with a contrasting color of construction paper. Instruct the girls to place a fine line of glue on the side and bottom edges of one of the hearts and press the two hearts together, forming a heart- shaped pocket.
They can color and write a verse or phrase on both sides of the heart. Then have them write words or phrases that refer to the verse or phrase onto several slips of paper and place them inside their heartshaped pocket.
Message Bottle ($, 15 minutes)
Materials—Empty soda bottles (one per girl), sand or dirt, paper, crayons, corks to fit the bottle mouths
Pour some sand into the bottoms of the bottles to keep them from tipping when they are in the water. Give each girl a soda bot- tle with sand in it, a piece of paper, and some crayons. Have the girls write a message or draw a picture (a treasure map would be fun) on a sheet of paper before rolling it up and sticking it inside their bottles. Cork each of the bottles. The girls can float these bot- tles in their bathtubs at home or in some other body of water.
Page Puzzle ($, 10 minutes)
Materials—Pages cut out of an old book, thin cardboard sheets, glue, scissors
Give each girl a page out of an old book, a cardboard sheet, and some glue. Have each girl glue her book page to a sheet of card- board. Since the cardboard is difficult for the girls to cut, cut them into several puzzle pieces for them. The girls can put their puzzles back together at home.
Photo Folder ($$$, 20 minutes/20 minutes)
Materials—Camera, construction paper, glue, crayons, markers, stickers
Take color photographs of each girl in the club and print them.
At the next club meeting, the girls fold sheets of construction paper in half and glue their own photographs inside. Then let them deco- rate the covers of their photo folders.
Artwork
Surprise Pictures ($, 10 minutes)
Materials—Paper, ink or tempera paint, eye droppers
Have each girl fold a sheet of paper in half. Have them open it and drop two or three drops of ink or tempera paint into the fold.
Then they can gently fold the paper in half again and then open it.
The unusual designs and pictures will be a surprise. Have each of the girls think of a title for her picture.
African House ($, 15 minutes)
Materials—Construction paper (one sheet per girl), blunt scissors, glue, crayons, pencils, straws, House (A house pattern is available in the Reproducible Pages.), posterboard or card stock
Transfer the House reproducible to posterboard or card stock and cut it out to use as a pattern. Provide several patterns. The girls can trace the house on their pieces of construction paper and cut the straws to fill in the roof and side walls. (Be sure they cut the straws the right length to fit inside the outline.) They should glue the straws in place as they cut them. Remind them to leave an opening for a door. If time allows, have them color the straws.
Catalog Art ($, 15 minutes)
Materials—Old catalogs, blunt scissors, paper, glue
Let the girls cut out pictures from the catalogs and glue them onto their sheets of paper to create scenes or stories related to the unit or lesson theme.
Colored Circles Art ($$, 10 minutes)
Materials—Packs of five-flavor Life-Savers candy; construction paper, cut in half
Have the girls lick the candies well and press them firmly onto the paper to form whatever designs they like. They may eat any remain- ing candies.
Cookie Cutter Cutouts ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Cookie cutters in shapes related to the unit theme, con- struction paper, pencils, crayons and/or markers, blunt scissors, glue, white paper
Let the girls trace around the cookie cutters on construction paper, color the shapes, and then cut them out. Each girl should make sev- eral shapes and glue them onto white paper in a scene.
Earth Mosaic ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Sheets of paper; a black marker; tiny pieces of green, blue, and brown tissue paper; glue; cotton swabs; World (A world pattern is in the Reproducible Pages.)
Draw a large circle and add squiggly lines to outline the coasts of some of the earth’s continents or use the world pattern. Make enough photocopies of this sheet for all the girls in the club. Give each girl a photocopy of the earth and a small handful of each of the three colors of tissue paper. Have the girls spread a thin layer of glue over the areas of the globe that represent oceans and press pieces of blue paper into the glue until the glued sections are filled.
They can repeat this process for the land, using green and brown pieces to represent land and mountains.
Make a House a Home ($, 45 minutes)
Materials—12-inch by 18-inch sheets of construction paper (one per girl), large triangles from construction paper (two per girl), glue, blunt scissors, old home decor magazines or catalogs
Have the girls fold their sheets in half across the width then unfold them. Show the girls how to fold in the two sides to meet in the middle. Let them glue the triangles to the tops of the side flaps so that when the flaps are folded over, the triangles form the roof of a house. Then they can open the flaps and draw a vertical and a horizontal line across the inside, dividing it into four rooms—living room, kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom. Instruct them to cut win- dows, doors, paintings, furniture, and fireplaces out of the magazines and glue them on the outside and interior of the houses, filling each room with the appropriate furniture.
Me Poster ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Construction paper, old magazines, glue, crayons and/or markers
Tell the girls to choose pictures from the magazines that tell some- thing about their lives. Have them cut the pictures out and glue them to their construction paper. Then let them color their posters. If prepared in advance, ask the girls to bring a baby picture and a cur- rent school picture to the club meeting.
Mixed-Up Collage ($, 15 minutes)
Materials—Old magazines, blunt scissors, paper, glue, crayons
Let the girls cut related pictures (such as animals) out of the maga- zines. Have them cut each picture apart in random sections. Then they can glue the picture pieces to sheets of paper however they want to, creating mixed-up pictures (For instance, an animal could have a walrus head, eagle wings, a giraffe neck, and penguin feet.).
Other objects that can be cut out and arranged could be people, buildings, landscapes, etc.
My Family Tree ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Cardboard tree pattern, a marker, construction paper, sheets of selfadhesive filing labels, crayons, Tree (A tree pattern is in the Reproducible Pages.)
Provide photocopies of the tree pattern or trace a tree outline onto enough sheets of construction paper for each girl in the club. Give each girl a sheet of paper with a tree on it, a sheet of labels, and a few crayons. Have the girls write their grandparents’ and parents’
names on the labels. Show them how to place the labels on their trees in a Y-pattern to create a diagram of their families’ genealogy.
Then let the girls color their trees.
Potato Stamp ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—Potatoes, cut in half; small metal cookie cutters; a knife;
paper towels or napkins; tempera paint; water; bowls; paintbrushes;
light construction paper; crayons and/or markers
Give each girl half of a potato. Using a metal cookie cutter, help her push the potato down onto the cookie cutter about 1/4 of an inch.
The edges of the potato not used for the design should fall off or be cut away by an adult. Have the girl blot the cut surface of the potato with a paper towel or napkin to remove moisture. Show the girls how to brush tempera paint on the potato and use it as a stamp to make designs on paper. When the paint has dried, the girls can add details around the stamped designs with crayons or markers.
Variation: The girls can make wrapping paper by creating a pattern with the potato stamps on a large sheet of butcher paper.
Punched Dot Art ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—Construction paper in various colors, a hole punch, white paper, glue
Punch out and save a large number of construction paper holes in different colors.
Let the girls glue the colored dots to their sheets of paper to form patterns or pictures related to the unit theme.
Seed Mosaic ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—10-inch posterboard squares; pencils or pens; white glue;
cotton swabs; assorted seeds, beans, and grains
Give each girl a piece of posterboard and let her draw a design on it. Show the girls how to spread a thick layer of glue on a small area of the posterboard and set one color or shape of seeds, beans, or grains in it. They can repeat this process using different colors and shapes of seeds, beans, and grains each time.
Silly Silhouette ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Roll of newsprint or butcher paper, scissors, crayons and/
or markers
For each girl: roll out some of the newsprint, have her lie on it, and trace around her body with a black crayon. Cut each girl’s sil- houette from the roll and let her color it, adding clothes and acces- sories. You may want to have the girls color their silhouettes with costumes related to the unit theme. When they are finished, they can cut out their silhouettes.
Straw Art ($$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Drinking straws, scissors, glue, coloring books
Cut the drinking straws into 1-inch pieces. Let the girls glue the straw pieces around the edges of simple coloring-book pictures or fill the pictures in with straw pieces.
Wall Mural ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—Butcher paper, masking tape, magazines, scissors, glue, crayons, markers
Tape a long piece of butcher paper to the wall and let the girls decorate it with magazine clippings and their own drawings.
Wise Old Owl ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Large paper bags (one per girl), construction paper, newspaper, a stapler, glue
Have the girls cut out feet from orange construction paper, beaks from yellow, eyes from white, and feathers from brown (Cut tall tri- angles for the feathers.) to create their owls. Have the girls crumple newspaper and fill their paper bags halfway with it. Show them how to fold the top of the bag and hold it there while a sponsor staples it closed. The girls can then glue on the feet, a beak, the eyes, and the feathers to the bag.
Books and Bookmarks
Bookworm Chart ($, 10 minutes)
Materials—Construction paper; crayons and/or markers; pencils;
glitter, glue, stickers, etc.
Give each girl a large sheet of construction paper and have her draw a fat worm with segments on its body. Instruct her to write her name on the bottom of her chart and the title of this activity on the top. Then let her decorate the part of her paper that surrounds the worm, using glue, glitter, stickers, crayons, etc. The girls can color in one segment of the worm for each passage, chapter, or book they finish reading.
Bookplate ($, 10 minutes)
Materials—Large peel-and-stick labels, a pen, markers, Puffy Paint (Instructions for Puffy Paint are in the Crafts.)
Write “This Book Belongs To:” across the top of each label. Let each girl decorate her bookplate with markers and/or Puffy Paint.
Cross Bookmark ($$, 10 minutes)
Materials—Cross-shaped, plastic needlepoint canvas (one per girl);
yarn or thin ribbon; cellophane tape
Help the girls tape one end of their yarn or ribbon to create a
“needle.” Show them how to weave the yarn or ribbon through holes in the canvas in patterns of their own making, or show them how to cover the entire cross.
Puffy, Sparkly Bookmarks ($$, 10 minutes)
Materials—Construction paper, Puffy Paint, glue, glitter, scissors (Instructions for Puffy Paint are in the Crafts.)
Cut the construction paper into bookmark-sized strips. Let the girls decorate their bookmarks with Puffy Paint and glitter.
Soap Bible ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Bars of soap (one per girl), black felt, scissors, glue, gold glitter
Cut the black felt to fit three sides of the soap. Help each girl glue a piece of felt around three sides of her bar of soap, like the cover of a Bible. Have the girls write “Holy Bible” in glue on the front cover, then sprinkle the glue with glitter and shake off the excess.
Storybook ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Clean foam trays (two per girl); a hobby knife; white paper; a hole punch; yarn; scissors; pens; tempera paints; water;
bowls; paintbrushes
Trim off the raised sides of the foam trays to leave flat sheets. Cut the white paper in half and give the girls four half-sheets of paper.
Have each girl color a series of pictures that tell a story related to the unit theme. Sandwich the pages between two trays and punch several holes along the left side. Show the girls how to wrap tape around the end of a length of yarn and thread it through the holes, tying knots in both ends and trimming off any excess yarn. Have the girls create a cover illustration for their storybook by drawing a pic- ture and title for their story with a pen that still has its cap on, cre- ating deep indentions. Mix up several colors of paint in bowls and help the girls load their brushes lightly with paint. When a girl gen- tly brushes the paint across her cover, it will color only those sec- tions of the cover that are not indented.
Christmas
Beaded Candy Cane Ornament ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Large beads, red and white; red or white pipe cleaners Give each girl a pipe cleaner. Help the girls bend a knot on one end of their pipe cleaners. They can add the beads to the pipe clean- ers, alternating colors. When a girl has come an inch from the end of her pipe cleaner, help her bend the end of it into a knot. The candy cane should be flexible enough to bend over at the end to form a hook.
Variation: Use green, white, and red beads and bend the pipe cleaner to form a circle to make wreaths. Glue on a small lace bow if desired.
Candy Pieces Tree Ornament ($$$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Squares of clear plastic wrap, candy-coated chocolate pieces, 20-inch lengths of red curling ribbon, 10-inch lengths of green and white curling ribbon, blunt scissors
Let each girl drop a handful of candy pieces in the center of a square of plastic wrap, then gather the corners up and twist the wrap tightly, forming a candy-filled ball. Have her hold the wrap tightly while an adult helper ties one of the shorter lengths of ribbon around the top. Then the girl can tie on the other color of shorter ribbon, using a double knot. Help the girl form a 10-inch loop in the long pieces of ribbon and tie them around the top of the plastic wrap, leaving two tails approximately 5 inches long. Show her how to curl the ribbon with one of the blades of her scissors, helping if necessary.
Cookie Cutter Ornament ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Cookie cutters in holiday shapes (one per girl), lace edg- ing, blunt scissors, 6-inch lengths of thin ribbon, glue
Let the girls glue lace edging around their cookie cutters. Have them cut off any excess and glue a loop of ribbon at the top.
Cup Bells ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Heavy paper cups (not foam, one per girl), gold and silver spray paint, glue, glitter, jingle bells, 12-inch lengths of very thin ribbon
Spraypaint the cups and allow them to dry. Let the girls run a line of glue around the lip of their cups, sprinkle it with glitter, and shake off the excess. Help them poke a small hole in the bottom of their cups. Show the girls how to thread the ribbon through the jingle bell and tie it off about 2 inches above the bell. This knot is important, since it keeps the jingle bell from going all the way to the top of the cup when the bell is hung. The girls can then thread the loose end of the ribbon through the hole inside the cup and tie the ribbon in a knot just above the cup.
Candy Cane Heart Ornament ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Small candy canes (wrapped in plastic), glue, jingle bells, 6-inch lengths of thin ribbon
Leaving the candy canes in their wrappers, have the girls put them together to form a heart and help them glue the wrappers together. Then let the girls glue a bell and a loop of ribbon at the top of their hearts.
Lacy Ornament ($$, 20 minutes/20 minutes)
Materials—Small balloons (one per girl), liquid starch, a bowl, white string, a straight pin, 8-inch lengths of ribbon
Help the girls blow up their balloons or blow up the balloons and tie off for the girls. Let the girls dip long pieces of string in the liquid starch and wrap the wet string around their balloons randomly, leav- ing spaces to create a lacy look. Allow them to dry.
At the next club meeting, pop the girls’ balloons with a straight pin and have the girls pull the pieces of their balloons out of their lacy globes. Let them string a ribbon through the holes in the orna- ment and tie it off to create a hanging loop.
Shake ’n Snow Ball ($$$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Baby food jars with lids (one per girl), epoxy glue, white aquarium gravel, a miniature plastic object (one per girl), water, sil- ver glitter, cotton balls
Have the girls remove the lids of their baby food jars and add the gravel and a plastic object to each. Have them fill their jars with water and then sprinkle about 1/4 teaspoon of silver glitter into the water. Insruct them to spread epoxy glue around the rims of the jars and screw on the lids. Then have the girls use white glue to attach cotton balls around the lid to create snow banks. At the end of the club meeting, the girls should be able to turn their Shake ’n Snow Balls right side up and enjoy the swirling “snow” inside.
Tin Star ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Aluminum foil pie plates, scissors or tin snips, ballpoint pens, glue, a hole punch, 6-inch lengths of thin ribbon
Cut symmetrical shapes, such as stars or open Bibles, out of the bottoms of pie plates. Give each girl two of the same shape. Using a pen, the girls can draw patterns on the backs of the two shapes. The designs will come through the other side as though the shapes were embossed. Let the girls glue their embossed shapes together, back to back. Punch a hole at the top and tie a ribbon through it to make it a tree ornament
Clothing and Accessories
Bead Necklace/Bracelet ($$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Wooden, plastic, ceramic, and metal beads in various shapes and sizes; strips of leather, plastic, or string
Let each girl string beads together on a strip of plastic, leather, or string and tie it to the proper size for a necklace or bracelet.
Betty Barrette Holder ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Posterboard; a bowl; a pencil; scissors; crayons and/or markers; glue; 2-feet lengths of yellow, red, brown, and black yarn;
barrettes (two per girl)
Trace circles on posterboard, using the bowl as a guide, and cut them out. (You will need one circle per girl.) Let each girl pick out about eight strands of yarn in the colors she wants for the hair. Give each girl a circle. Have the girls place several lines of glue around the top third of the circles and then press the hair into the glue, making sure the hair is even on both sides. Show the girls how to braid each
side of the yarn hair. Have them attach the barrettes to the braids.
Let them color in Betty’s face as they desire.
Coat of Many Colors ($, 15 minutes)
Materials—Brown paper grocery bags (one per girl); blunt scissors;
old wrapping paper, wallpaper, or fabric; glue
Cut the neckhole and armholes in each brown paper grocery bag.
Cut an opening down the front of the bag. Let the girls cut out pieces of old wrapping paper, wallpaper, or fabric and glue them to the grocery bags in patches.
Personalized Apron ($$$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Small, plain, canvas aprons; puff paint; markers
Let the girls design their own aprons using puff paints and mark- ers. Be sure their names go on the aprons someplace.
Disposable Apron ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Large paper napkins, wide ribbon, scissors, a stapler Wrap ribbon around each girl’s waist and cut off a length long enough for it to be easily tied at the back. Each girl will need two of these. Help the girls find the middle point of their ribbons. Then give each girl ten napkins and have her center the stack of napkins on top of the two ribbons. One ribbon should run along the top of the napkins and one along the bottom. Staple the napkins to the ribbons while the girl holds them in place. As the girls use their aprons, they can tear off the dirty napkin on top and use the clean one below.
Drinking Straw Necklace ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Yarn; tape; scissors; colored drinking straws, cut into 1inch pieces
Measure a length of yarn to fit each girl’s neck, and cut the yarn a couple inches longer. (Be sure it is long enough to go over the girl’s head after it is tied.) Wrap a piece of tape tightly around one end of each piece of yarn. Have each girl hold the taped end of the yarn and thread pieces of drinking straws onto the yarn. When they are finished, tie the ends of the yarn together.
Variation: Use the same technique to make belts, headbands, brace- lets, etc.
Fancy Shoelaces ($$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Wide, white shoelaces; puff paint
Have each girl decorate a set of shoelaces with puff paint.
Fancy Socks ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Girls’ white socks, hot glue, a hot glue gun, ribbons, puff paint
Buy or have the girls bring in plain white socks in their sizes (one- size-fits-all will work). Using hot glue, add ribbons to the socks that the girls pick out. Let the girls use puff paint to add squiggles and designs to the cuffs.
Hand Purse ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—Construction paper, 6-inch pieces of yarn, glue, large stickers, crayons
Give each girl a sheet of construction paper and have her fold the construction paper in half. Show her how to glue the sides together to form a pouch. Then she can glue both ends of a piece of yarn to each side of the open end, creating two handles. Have the girls pick out four stickers and place them firmly over the ends of the yarn handles, hiding and further fastening them to the purse. Let the girls color their purses.
Heart Rings ($$, 1 hour)
Materials—Bread Craft Dough (Directions for Bread Craft Dough are in the Crafts.), plastic rings with bases, glue, varnish or lacquer
Let the girls shape the dough into heart shapes and press their hearts onto the ring base before the dough dries. Then let the hearts dry. When they are dry, help the girls glue them to the ring bases and spray them with varnish or lacquer. Let the completed rings dry before the girls take them home.
Variation: Punch a small hole in the heart and thread a ribbon through it for a heart necklace.
Spice-Scented Drawer Sachets ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Potpourri (cinnamon or spice scented), measuring cups, 6-inch circles of finely meshed netting, ribbon
Allow the girls to place a cupful of potpourri in the center of their netting circles and then gather up the edges. Have them hold their sachets together as you tie the ribbon in a bow around the top of the netting.
Scented Padded Hanger ($$, 45 minutes)
Materials—Wire coat hangers, skeins of multicolored yarn, glue sticks, scissors, potpourri (with small pieces), 9-inch netting squares, 6-inch lengths of thin ribbon
Tie the end of a skein of yarn around the hanger where the hook joins the hanger’s frame. Have the girls coat all sides of their hangers with glue from the glue sticks, making the wires sticky. Then show them how to hold the skein of yarn and carefully pass it through and around the hanger repeatedly, wrapping a continuous string of yarn around the wire and keeping each pass as close to the last as possible. When the girls have wrapped the entire hanger, they can apply glue to the yarn already wrapped around the hanger and then
continue wrapping by going back the other way. When they finish this, cut the yarn off and glue the loose end down carefully.
Make potpourri sachets by wrapping a tablespoon of potpourri into netting and tying it securely closed with a ribbon. Using the loose ends of the ribbon, tie the sachet at the base of the hanger’s hook.
Variation: Add sachets to clothes hangers that are already padded.
This is a much more expensive but quicker method.
Seed Necklace ($$, 45 minutes)
Materials—Lightweight cardboard, 10-inch lengths of gold cord, additional pieces of gold cord, glue, birdseed, food coloring, bowls, scissors
Cut shapes related to the unit or lesson theme out of cardboard.
Fill several bowls with birdseed, then pour a teaspoon of food color- ing into each bowl, creating different-colored seeds. Give each girl a shape, and then have the girls glue one end of a 10-inch gold cord to the left side of the back of the shape and the other end to the right side of the back of the shape to form the necklace’s chain. Then help them glue another piece of cord around the shape’s edge, cut- ting off the excess. Have them draw a thin line of glue around the shape just inside the cord border. Have the girls sprinkle this glue with one color of seeds and shake off the excess. Repeat this process with increasingly smaller outlines of glue and different-colored seed until the shape is filled in with seed.
Mirror, Mirror ($$$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Mirrors (small hand or purse-sized), paint pens
Using paint pens, let the girls decorate the hard plastic backs or handles of the mirrors with any design they choose.
Variation: Have the girls add pigtails and bangs with yarn and rib- bon and draw a face on the back of the mirror.
Sleeper Shirt ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Men’s white cotton T-shirts, puff paint, large buttons, small bows, plastic jewels
Let the girls bring their own T-shirts and decorate them, using paint, buttons, bows, and jewels. These make great sleepers.
Sun Visor ($$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Large rectangles of posterboard, sturdy scissors, markers, glue, glitter, stickers
Near one end of each posterboard rectangle, draw an oblong circle large enough to fit partially over a young girl’s head (you will need one per girl). Cut the circles out, and round off of the corners. Let each girl decorate the top of a visor however she wants. Make sure every girl writes her name on the bottom of the visor with a marker.
Travel Bag ($$$, 15 minutes)
Materials—12-inch canvas or felt circles (one per girl), a hole punch, 12-inch leather strips (one per girl)
Punch a hole every 2 inches around the perimeter of the canvas circles, about ½ inch in from the edge. Give each girl a circle and a leather strip. Show the girls how to weave the leather through the holes all the way around the circle. This will force the edges of the circle to gather. Help the girls to tie two knots in each end of their leather strips. To close the bags, the girls can pull the ends of the leather tight and tie a bow. They can fill this bag with jewelry or other small items.
WWJD Bracelet ($$$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Leather or plastic strips; beads with the letters W, J, and D on them
This popular bracelet reminds the girls to ask themselves the question, “What Would Jesus Do?” Have the girls put the beads on their strips in proper order (WWJD). Tie a knot in each end of the leather or plastic to keep the beads on. Then tie the bracelets around the girls’ left wrists. (These bracelets can be purchased in many Christian bookstores and be used as awards.)
Headband Crown ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Wide plastic headbands, glue, large craft jewels
Let the girls glue jewels to headbands to create their own personal crowns.
Yarn Bracelet ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—12-inch lengths of yarn in various colors
Let the girls choose three pieces of yarn. Show them how to braid the yarn by bringing the outside string on one side over and
between the others and alternating sides. Double knot the ends of the braid around each girl’s wrist, allowing enough room for the girl to slip off the bracelet over her hand.
Crafts for Others
E-Mail ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Blank postcards (one per girl), crayons, stickers, markers, ballpoint pens, postage stamps
Have the girls color and decorate the fronts of their postcards and write a short message of encouragement to someone the club has picked. Then they can place the correct postage stamp on their post- cards. Address and send the cards after the club meeting.
Variation: Write “Encouraging Note” on the front of the postcards and have the girls decorate the card with hand-drawn musical notes or stickers.
Friendly Invitation ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—Light-colored construction paper, crayons, a permanent marker
Give each of the girls a piece of construction paper and have the girls fold their sheets of construction paper in half. They can color the outside like a greeting card, preferably with a picture depicting what the girls do in a typical club meeting. While the girls are color- ing their cards, go around to each one and write “Come with me to Prims!” inside their cards, leaving space at the bottom for the girls to write in their names.
Gift Bag ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Paper lunch bags, Puffy Paint, markers, crayons, buttons, shells, lace, ribbon, glue, tissue paper, tape (Directions for Puffy Paint are in the Crafts.)
Give each girl a lunch bag and let her decorate it with Puffy Paint, markers, crayons, and other decorations. Then help her use tissue paper to wrap one of the other crafts from this unit to give to a friend or family member. Have her put the gift in the gift bag.
Crayons
Crayon Comb Art ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Jumbo crayons, a sharp hobby knife, white construction paper
Have the girls peel all the paper off of the crayons. Cut notches along the length of each crayon, creating combs. Let the girls use the crayon combs to draw pictures related to the unit theme.
Crayon Cutting ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Index cards; crayons, especially black ones; toothpicks Give each girl an index card. Have the girls color the entire index card with a rainbow of bright colors, making sure no paper shows through. Then have them color over this layer with a thick layer of black crayon. When the girls draw pictures in the crayon wax with toothpicks, they will cut through the black crayon and reveal the multicolored crayon patterns beneath.
Variation: Use black tempera paint mixed with liquid soap instead of black crayon.
Crayon Rubbings ($, 15 minutes)
Materials—White paper; crayons (black or metallic, if possible); tex- tured items, such as coins, leaves, paper doilies
Have the girls peel back the paper from half of a crayon. Then have them cover the textured items with sheets of paper. Have them lightly rub over the papers with the side of the crayons. The design from the textured items underneath their papers will show through.
Fireworks Art ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Neon-colored crayons, black construction paper, black watercolor paint, water, watercolor brushes
Give each girl a piece of black construction paper. Have the girls draw the bursts and swirls that fireworks make in the sky with vari- ous colors of neon crayons. Have them paint over the whole picture with black watercolor paint. The paint will not stick to the crayon wax, highlighting the fireworks.
Meltdown ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—White paper, crayon shavings, a terry washcloth, a warm iron
Give each girl a piece of white paper. Have her fold the paper in half and sprinkle the inside with various colors of crayon shavings.
Place a washcloth over the folded paper and carefully go over it with a warm—not hot—iron. Before the crayon cools, let the girls open their papers and enjoy the designs.
Sandpaper Art ($$, 45 minutes)
Materials—Crayons, sandpaper (one sheet per girl), newspaper, white construction paper, a steam iron
Let the girls color pictures or designs on sheets of sandpaper. They will have to press hard to get a lot of color into the sandpaper. Place the sandpaper, face up, on several layers of newspaper and have the girls cover the sandpaper with a piece of white construction paper.
With the iron on low to medium, iron over the paper lightly until the crayon wax just begins to melt. Peel away the construction paper and allow it to cool. This project yields an impressionistic style of artwork—with little or no details.
Stained-Glass Window ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—Crayons, white paper, vegetable oil, cotton balls Using black crayons, each girl will draw a design on a piece of white paper like the outlines on stained-glass windows. Have them color in the individual shapes with colored crayons. Then turn each paper over and wet a cotton ball with vegetable oil. Let each girl coat the back of her picture with the oil, making the paper translu- cent when it is held up to a light.
Dolls and Toys
Doll Cradle ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Empty oatmeal containers (half a container per girl), a serrated knife, tempera paints, water, bowls, paintbrushes, scrap material or felt, scissors, glue
Before club, cut the oatmeal containers in half lengthwise. Each half will be a cradle. Give each girl a cradle. Let the girls paint the
outsides of their cradles however they want to. Then help them glue a fabric lining inside the cradle.
Paper Airplanes ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—White paper, stickers, crayons and/or markers, paper clips
To make a paper airplane, fold the paper in half lengthwise, and then open it back up. Fold one corner into the fold line to make a tri- angle; do the same on the other side. Then fold that triangle in toward the fold again on both sides. Turn the plane over and pull the sides up. Take each side and fold it halfway down. It should be ready to fly.
Help the girls fold their own planes as much as possible and give them free rein in decorating them. Put a paper clip on the underside of the nose to add more weight in the front and help the planes fly farther. Curling the back corners of the wings up or down can affect the direction in which the planes fly.
Paper Doll ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—White card stock, scissors, crayons and/or markers, con- struction paper, blunt scissors
Use card stock, a permanent marker, and scissors to create simple patterns for a paper doll and several items of clothing (complete with tabs). Trace the doll repeatedly onto card stock and cut these out carefully. Let the girls use the clothes patterns to trace clothing for their dolls onto construction paper. Let them color their dolls and the doll clothes however they want. As much as possible, allow the girls to cut out their own dolls’ clothes.
Potpourri Angel ($$$, 20 minutes)
Materials—9-inch squares of netting (one per girl), 14-inch strips of
½-inch-wide florist’s ribbon, potpourri, 2-inch-long wire garland with stars, glue, scissors
Place a small pile of potpourri in the middle of each girl’s netting and have her pull up the four corners to form a sort of basket with the potpourri in the bottom. While the girl holds up the corners of her netting, tie it closed with the ribbon just above the potpourri.
This will form a head and a flowing dress when it is turned over.
Help the girls tie their ribbons into bows to create the angels’ wings.
Glue the garland around the angels’ heads to form halos.
Stick Puppet ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Craft sticks, construction paper, fabric scraps, blunt scis- sors, glue
Let the girls glue pieces of construction paper and fabric to craft sticks to create people or animals.
Sock Puppet ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Old thick socks, a permanent marker, felt, blunt scissors, glue, pom-poms, construction paper
Let each girl bring an old sock from home. Use lace-trimmed socks to add a feminine touch. Have each girl insert her arm into the sock, leaving a few inches of the toe hanging. The girls should use their free hands to reverse the toes of their socks back between their fingers and thumbs, creating movable mouths. Before the girls remove the socks from their hands, mark where the eyes for their puppets should be (across the middle joints of their fingers) with a permanent marker.
When the girls remove the socks, have them cut out felt eyes and ears and glue them to the socks, using the marks made earlier as a guide. They can also glue the ends of a number of pieces of yarn to the top of the puppets’ heads to create hair. They can glue on pom- poms for the noses. They could add extras such as eyelashes cut from construction paper for fun.
Pipe-Cleaner Person ($, 15 minutes)
Materials—12-inch pipe cleaners, scissors
Give each girl a pipe cleaner and scissors. Ask the girls to follow your instructions while you make one of these figures. Fold a pipe cleaner into three equal parts. Cut off one-third and set it aside.
Holding the folded pipe cleaner about 1 inch below the fold, twist it completely around and shape the top section to form the head.
Holding the pipe cleaner about 1½ inches below this “neck,” give it a twist and shape the middle section to form the oblong body.
Straighten the ends of the pipe cleaner to form the legs, bending them near the tips to form the feet. Fold the shorter piece of pipe cleaner in half. Slip it over the neck and twist it completely around to form arms.
Clothes-Peg Doll ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Clothes-pegs (one per girl), ink pens, cloth, thin ribbon or rubber bands, yarn, scissors
Have the girls draw a face on the knob end of their clothes-pegs.
Have them each cut a piece of cloth about an inch longer than the clothes-peg and wrap it around the clothes-peg below the face. Use a ribbon or a rubber band to hold the clothing on. Have them glue yarn to the heads for hair.
Yarn Doll ($, 45 minutes)
Materials—8-inch squares of cardboard (one per girl), two colors of yarn, scissors
Have the girls wrap a continuous length of yarn around a piece of cardboard about one hundred times. Help them slip the yarn off the cardboard and tie off the top 2 inches with contrasting yarn to form a head. When each girl has done this, have her cut the bottom loops apart. (Do not cut the loops at the head.)
Show the girls how to separate groups of strands on either side of the head and tie them together near the ends to create arms and
hands. Do the same for the feet. They can also tie a piece of yarn around the doll’s middle to form a waist.
Variation: Braid the bottom portion of the yarn doll in sections to make an octopus.
Hanky Doll ($$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Handkerchiefs, cotton balls, ribbon or rubber bands Give each girl a handkerchief, several cotton balls, and an elastic band. Have them place the cotton balls in a pile on the table in front of them, then cover the cotton balls with the handkerchief. When they close their fingers around the cotton balls beneath the fabric, it will gather the handkerchief into a neck and they can tie this by wrapping ribbon or a rubber band under the cotton balls. Help the girls to tie a knot in each of two opposite corners to form hands.
Pinwheel ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—6-inch squares of construction paper (one per girl), blunt scissors, pencils with erasers, straight pins, small stickers (optional)
Have the girls fold their squares in half diagonally and crease them firmly. Then have them unfold the squares and fold them diagonally again the other way and crease this second fold. When the squares are unfolded, they will have an X through them, marking the center.
Help the girls cut a 3½-inch slit along each fold, from the corners toward the center of the square. Then show them how to bend each corner over so that the tips of all four corners cover the center mark.
While the girls are holding their wheels together, push a straight pin through each one, securing the four tips to the center. Then help each girl push her pin into the side of her pencil eraser.
Let the girls add stickers to their pinwheels, if desired. When they hold the pencil handles of their pinwheels and blow steadily at the front of their pinwheels, the wheels will spin.
For and From the Kitchen
Candy Jar ($$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Wide-mouthed glass jars (one per girl), paint pens, rib- bon, scissors, individually wrapped candy
Give each girl a glass jar. Using paint pens, let the girls decorate the outside of the jars with any design they choose. Have them tie a ribbon around the neck of the jar and then fill the jar with candy.
Chocolate-Dipped Spoons ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Plastic spoons, semisweet or milk chocolate chips, a microwave-safe bowl and microwave or a slow cooker, waxed paper, a marker, candy sprinkles (optional), ribbon
Melt the chocolate in the microwave or slow cooker. Allow each girl to take one spoon and dip it in the chocolate. Have her pull the spoon out of the chocolate and rest it on a piece of waxed paper that has her name on it. Let the girls sprinkle their spoons with candy sprinkles. When the chocolate has hardened, have the girls tie the waxed paper around the spoon and put a ribbon around the handle, just like wrapping a package. Suggest they give this spoon to a friend to use to stir hot chocolate or tea.
Cinnamon-Sugar Canister ($$$, 20 minutes)
Materials—A large bowl, ground cinnamon, sugar, salt shakers (one per girl), funnels, spoons, paper towels, ribbon, scissors
Mix three parts sugar to one part ground cinnamon. Give each girl a salt shaker. Help the girls remove the stopper or lid from their shak- ers and fill them with the cinnamon-sugar mixture using spoons and funnels. If the stopper is on the bottom of the shaker, have the girl hold a paper towel over the holes in the shaker’s top as she pours in the mixture. Once the stopper or lid is back in place, the girls can tie a ribbon around the top of their shakers for decoration.
Hot Pad ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Small, thick magazines (one per girl); masking tape; felt;
duct tape; markers
Help the girls tape around all sides of their magazines using masking tape. Cut the felt in pieces that will cover all sides of the magazine with excess to allow coverage of the edges. Then have each girl center her magazine on her piece of felt and pull the sides up to wrap around and cover the magazine. While the girls hold the seams, connect them securely with duct tape. Have the girls turn their hot pads over and decorate them with markers.
Note: Do not use glue or crayons on the hot pad, as these will melt under heat.
Jar Cookies ($$$, 45 minutes)
Materials—A cookie recipe; a hole punch; quart-size canning jars with lids; cloth squares; raffia; hot glue and a hot glue gun; dry ingredients for cookies, including chocolate chips or nuts; large fun- nels; several sets of measuring cups and spoons; crayons (Various cookie recipes are in the Snacks.)
Photocopy one of the cookie recipes in the Snacks section for each girl. Have the girls fold their copies twice and punch a hole in the top, folded corner. Have the girls color the front of the recipe square.
Put hot glue on each lid disk and have the girls put a square of cloth on the glue, letting the square edges hang loose.
Place all of the dry ingredients in bowls on the table. Place the cor- rect measuring cup in front of each ingredient. Have funnels and spoons handy to help with the filling of the jars. Line the girls up at the beginning of the table, and have them take turns filling their jars
with the proper amount of each dry ingredient. Several adult helpers will be needed on this project to keep the jars from being broken and to help the girls measure and funnel the ingredients.
When all ingredients are in the jars, have the girls place the lid disks on the jars and then screw the lid rings on over the material.
The corners of the cloth with hang out from underneath the ring.
Take several strands of raffia for each girl and tie the strands around the jar below the lid. Tie the recipe to the jar using the raffia also.
Variation: Tie the recipe to a cookie cutter with ribbon.
Recipe Booklet ($, 20 minutes)
Materials—Construction paper, photocopies of recipes related to the unit, crayons, a stapler, a permanent marker (A variety of recipes is in the Snacks.)
Give each girl two sheets of construction paper and copies of the recipes. Have the girls color both sheets of construction paper. These will be the covers of their booklets. Each girl can write her booklet’s title at the top of one of the sheets of construction paper. When the girls are finished coloring their covers, have them place the stack of recipes between the covers and staple their booklets together down the left side.
Variation: Use recipes from other lands and cultures.
Recipe Card Holder ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Clean, empty yogurt containers with lids (one per girl);
sturdy scissors; pebbles or dried beans; plastic forks (one per girl);
masking tape; tempera paints; water; bowls; paintbrushes
Punch a slit in each lid with scissors. Have each girl fill a container with pebbles or beans, put the lid on, and insert the handle of a fork as far as it will go down into the pebbles or beans inside. Help the girls to seal where the fork handle enters the lid with masking tape.
Then let the girls paint as much of their holders as they would like.
Recipe cards can be inserted between the tines of the forks to be held in place while your girls cook and bake.
Variation: Use spring-clamp clothespins and magnetic strips to create magnetic recipe card clips.
Seed Napkin Rings ($$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Paper towel tubes, a serrated knife, scissors, 1-inch by 4-inch strips of felt, glue, birdseed, paper plates
Cut the tubes into 1-inch-wide rings. Create enough so that each girl can have four rings. Show the girls how to glue felt around the outside of each tube. Have each girl draw designs with glue on her four rings, then roll these rings in a plate of birdseed so the seeds stick to the glue designs on the rings.
Home Decor
Crystal Garden ($$$, 45 minutes)
Materials—Charcoal briquettes (one per girl), glass jars (one per girl), salt, laundry bluing, water, ammonia, food coloring
Mix up a large batch of crystal solution using six parts each of salt, laundry bluing, and water, and one part ammonia.
Give each girl a glass jar. Have each girl put a charcoal briquette in the bottom of the jar. Pour some of the solution over the girls’
briquettes. (Store any extra solution in a covered container.) Let the girls carefully add a few drops of their favorite color of food color- ing to their coated briquettes. Crystals will begin to form in about 20 minutes. The girls can add more solution and food coloring to make their gardens continue to grow and change.
Note: If the girls are going to take their gardens home, they will need to have some of the solution and some food coloring.
Variation: Have the girls all help to create one large crystal garden that is kept in the clubroom and added to weekly.
Decorative Box ($$$, 30 minutes)
Materials—File boxes (one per girl), index cards, construction paper, scissors, glue, large buttons, small bows, crayons or markers
Give each girl a file box and a small stack of index cards. Let the girls use the materials available to decorate their file boxes accord- ing to the unit or lesson theme. Each girl should write information related to the lesson on some of the index cards and put them inside her file box.
Door Hanger ($, 15 minutes)
Materials—Posterboard, a measuring stick, scissors, a small cup, a pencil, tempera paints, water, bowls, paintbrushes
Cut each sheet of posterboard into twenty-four uniform rectangles, approximately 5 inches by 10 inches. One inch from the end of each rectangle, trace around the bottom of a cup and cut out the circle to create a hole that will fit over a door handle. Round off all four cor- ners of these door hangers, if desired. Have the girls paint their door hangers with a fun design or a design to fit the unit or lesson theme.
Elephant Bookends ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Empty liquid laundry-detergent bottles (two per girl), small stones, gray paint, paintbrushes, gray felt circles (four per girl), glue, plastic jewels, stickers, large buttons, small ribbons
Soak the detergent bottles until the labels come off. Remove and save the bottle caps. Give each girl two bottles. Have each girl fill her two bottles with stones, then have her paint the bottles gray. Give each girl two bottle caps to put on the tops of her bottles. After the bottles are dry, let her glue two felt circles into place on each bottle
to form the elephants’ ears. The girls can also glue decorations to the caps for their elephant bookends.
Homemade Candle ($$$, 1 hour)
Materials—Paraffin, a double boiler, water, a metal spoon, a crayon, 12-inch pieces of string (one per girl)
Melt the paraffin in the top of a double boiler. Add a colored wax crayon and stir. Give each girl a string and have them take turns dipping their strings in the hot wax. Once a layer is dried, they can dip it in again to add a second layer.
Variation: Using two double boilers and two different colors of crayon, let each girl choose between colors or alternate the layers.
Fancy Flowerpot ($$$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Small terra-cotta flower pots (one per girl), a gold paint marker, potting soil, flower seeds or plants
Using a gold paint marker, write a verse or phrase around each pot. Give each girl a pot and help the girls fill their pots with pot- ting soil. Then have them plant the seeds according to the instruc- tions on the packet. Or have the girls put some potting soil in the bottom of their pots and then lower a small plant into the pot before filling in the sides with more soil and packing it down a bit.
Variation: Use foam cups instead of pots, and let the girls color the cups with markers.
Flower Stick ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Wooden dowels or garden markers, modeling clay in various colors, sheets of paper, pens
Have the girls create flowers with modeling clay and then insert a dowel rod or garden marker into the bottom of the flowers while the clay is still soft. Have each girl put her flower stick on a sheet of paper with her name on it. Set these aside to dry until the next club meeting.
Variation: Cut petals out of brightly colored felt and let the girls glue them together and onto a dowel rod or garden marker.
Magnetic Calendar ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—White paper, a ruler, a marker, crayons, glue, 8½-inch by 11-inch card stock, magnetic strips
Create a “Prims This Month” calendar of events related to girls clubs and the girls’ Sunday School classes. Photocopy one per girl.
Have the girls color in the title of the calendar before gluing it to a sheet of card stock. Show the girls how to glue a magnetic strip to the back of their calendar near the top so it can be placed on their refrigerator at home.
Variation: Create and photocopy a calendar for the whole year and staple it between sheets of construction paper. Let the girls decorate the cover.
Pencil Puppy ($$, 45 minutes)
Materials—Paper towel tubes (one per girl); blunt scissors; brown construction paper; brown pipe cleaners, cut in half; glue; brown tempera paint; water; bowls; paintbrushes
Cut an oval out of one side of each tube (like the opening of a canoe), leaving about an inch at either end. Cut 3-inch circles out of construction paper, cutting a slit in each one from the edge to the center point and snipping 1/4 inch into the edge every inch or so.
Give each girl a tube, one of the special construction-paper circles, brown construction paper, half a brown pipe cleaner, and a small bottle of glue. Show each girl how to run a thin line of glue down one side of the circle’s slit, then bend the circle into a cone with a base roughly the size of the opening in the end of the paper towel tube. Have her hold the glued seam together for several seconds to make sure the cone is glued together securely. Then have each girl run a ring of glue around the last 1/4 inch of one of her tube ends and set the cones against this end, pressing the tabs created earlier against the glue and holding it for a minute to secure it.
Let the girls use blunt scissors and cut out ears and feet for their dogs. The girls can glue these and the pipe-cleaner tail on them- selves. When all the glue dries, the girls can paint their dogs.
Picture Frame ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Popsicle sticks, wood glue, white glue, glitter
Have the girls lay down two sticks parallel to each other and place a dab of wood glue on each end of them. Then have them bridge the gap between the sticks with two more sticks, forming a square, by pressing their ends into the glue on the ends of the first two sticks. Add two or three more pairs of sticks onto this frame. Let the glue dry. Have the girls make patterns on their frames with white glue and then sprinkle them with glitter, shaking off the excess glit- ter. The girls can now glue a picture to the back of the frame so the picture shows through to the front.
Potpourri Circle ($$$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Embroidery hoops (one per girl), lace or netting, fabric, potpourri, lace edging, glue, thin ribbon, scissors
Cut the netting and fabric into circles that will fit into the embroi- dery hoop with just an edge showing. Separate each hoop into its two rings. Have the girls put the fabric into the larger ring and then let them spread a small handful of potpourri onto the fabric. Have them place the netting over the potpourri. Place the second hoop on the top of the netting and fit it inside the larger ring. Help the girls tighten the screws on their hoops. Have them run a line of glue around the edge of the hoop and ring the hoop with lace edging.
Help the girls tie small bows with ribbon and have them glue them to the bottom or top edges of their hoops.
Potpourri Jar ($$$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Canning jars (one per girl), potpourri, 8-inch lace doilies (one per girl), 24-inch lengths of thin ribbon (one per girl), scissors
Give each girl a jar, a doily, and a ribbon. Help the girls thread their ribbons around the edge of their doilies. Then have them fill their jars with potpourri and place their doilies on top of their jars.
When the girls pull on the ends of the ribbon, it will gather the doily around the lips of their jars. Help the girls tie pretty bows around their jars.
Pretty Pencil Cup ($, 30 minutes)
Materials—Empty juice concentrate cans, felt, a pencil, scissors, glue, tempera paints, water, bowls, paintbrushes
Trace around the end of a can onto felt, then cut out the circle slightly smaller than the can so that the felt fits easily into the can and lines the bottom. Use this circle as a pattern to cut one for each girl in the club. Have the girls draw a line of glue close to the
perimeter of their felt circles, then help them insert the felt into their empty cans and press the felt to the can’s bottom. Let each girl paint the outside of her empty can as she likes or according to the unit theme.
Variation: Glue pasta shells all around the outside of the cans and spray-paint them gold.
Pretty Soap Dish ($$, 1 hour)
Materials—Large plastic jar lids (one per girl); wrapping paper with small, pleasant designs; blunt scissors; glue; black markers; spray varnish
Let the girls cut pictures out of the wrapping paper and glue them to their lids, covering the lids completely on all sides. Allow the glue to dry before letting the girls write their names on the bottoms of their dishes. Spray them with varnish during the week and allow them to dry.
Punch Art ($$$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Squares of heavy-duty aluminum foil, small embroidery frames (one per girl), small nails, 6-inch lengths of thin ribbon, a hot glue gun and hot glue, clear suction cups with hooks
Fasten two layers of sturdy aluminum foil inside each embroidery frame. Let each girl use a small nail to punch holes in the foil, mak- ing a design. Have the girls glue both ends of a ribbon to the frame to form a hanger. Send each girl home with a suction cup and her artwork so it can be hung in a window.
Refrigerator Worm ($$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Spring-clamp clothespins (one per girl), small pom- poms, glue, medium rolling eyes, 1-inch pipe cleaner pieces, scissors, strip magnets
Let each girl glue several pom-poms closely together onto one side of a clothespin. Have them add eyes and two pipe cleaner pieces for antennae. Have them glue a magnet to the back of the worm.
Rock Paperweight ($$, 15 minutes)
Materials—Smooth rocks the size of the girls’ fists, 2-inch felt circles, scrap material, stickers, glitter, glue
Have the girls determine the flattest side of each rock and glue a felt circle to it to protect what the rock paperweights are set on.
Have the girls decorate their rocks in relation to the unit theme or as they wish.
Sand Sculpture ($$$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Different colors of food coloring, water, glass jars with lids, white sand (from a hardware or floral shop), stir rods, news- paper, baby food jars with lids, spoons, pencils or toothpicks
Pour a small amount of water into each glass jar and mix in the food coloring, just enough to get to the colors you want. Pour the sand into the jars and stir until the sand is colored uniformly. Pour off any excess liquid.
Pour the sand out onto newspaper, keeping the different colors separate. Allow the girls to take various colors of sand and pour them into clean baby food jars. They can make a design by layering the different colors and then poking down around the edges of their jars with pencils or toothpicks.
Seasonal Wreath ($$, 20 minutes)
Materials—Paper plates (one per girl), blunt scissors, construction paper cut out in seasonal shapes (leaves for fall, snowflakes for win- ter, flowers for spring, suns for summer, etc.), glue, 9-inch lengths of yarn
Show the girls how to cut out the middle of a plate by folding it in half without forming a crease and cutting around the curve of the plate. The girls can cut circles out of their plates, write words related to the lesson theme on the construction-paper shapes, and then glue them to the paper plate’s rim. Then have each girl glue both ends of a length of yarn to the back of the wreath at the top for the hanger.
Stained-Glass Jar ($$$, 30 minutes)
Materials—Small glass jars with lids (one per girl), colored tissue paper, glue, cotton swabs
Soak any labels off of the jars before beginning. Have the girls cut out pieces of tissue paper in random shapes and glue them to a jar, making a stained-glass pattern. Then let them rub glue, using cotton swabs, over the entire jar once it has been covered with paper. Allow it to dry.
