How to… Keep your kids amused for 20 minutes while you are incredibly busy

There are a gazillion things to do around this time of year, and if you are finding you can’t get on with anything whilst being pestered by bored children get them using up their Christmas excitement with some quick and easy crafts.

These activities need next to no setting up and can be as simple or complicated as you like.

Activity One – The Credit Crunch Christmas Card

Reduce your outgoings by having the children make their own Christmas cards for relatives. This one took about 30 seconds.

1. Get card.
2. Fold card in half.
3. Dunk child’s hand in paint.
4. Sprinkle some glitter over glue.
5. Job done.

 

Activity Two – The Snowflake Decoration

Remember these from school? All you need is some white paper, we took ours out of the printer. If your children can be trusted with a paint brush then you can get them to paint and decorate the paper first.

1. Get white paper.
2. Fold in half, and half again.
3. Cut out zig zag shapes being careful not to cut the entire thing in half.
4. Unfold.
5. Job done.

 

Activity Three – The Links Decoration

Again, remember these from school? Again all you need is some white paper, and again we took ours out of the printer. Again if your children are not going to decorate the walls and carpet give them paint ad glitter to decorate first.

1. Get white paper and scissors – supervise with scissors
2. Cut paper into stips
3. Glue or tape strip into a circle.
4. Repeat with strips linking them together and continue until bored
5. Job done.