5 Secrets to REALLY Engage Kids Through Arts and Crafts

Posted on Apr 16, 2020

Over the years we've had the privilege of teaching thousands of kids at our crafting studio in Cape Town.

And we've learned a couple of handy tricks on how to REALLY keep kids aged 2 to 12 engaged from the start until the very end of a 45 minute to 1 hour long arts and crafts class.

We’ve had countless flabbergasted parents come to us and say things like: 

‘My son has never been able to engage in an activity for longer than 10 minutes and you had him totally zoned in for 45 minutes?!

How did you do that?!

What’s your secret?!’

Well, it turns out there are 5 secrets. And they all work together to create the perfect environment for keeping kids engaged.

If you are a kids arts & crafts club owner (or an aspiring one), you can use these 5 steps to make sure your in-person or online classes are suuuper engaging (and keep those kids coming back for more).

Are you ready?

Okay, let's jump right in.

 Secret 1: Make cool crafts 

Nothing – and I mean nothing – will kill creativity quicker than doing a craft that is booooring. 

It is so important to pick a craft lesson that is topical, age appropriate, cool and relevant for the kids.

Ask the kids what they like and what their interests are and create crafts around those topics.

Kids should know that if they come to your club or if you are going to craft together at home, they get to create super cool crafts.

Think about it like this: what would a 5 year old enjoy more? To knit a scarf (laaaame) or create a cool dinosaur that roarrrrs! :)

 Secret 2: Welcome everyone individually 

 Don't miss the important word here - individually. 

Welcome everyone individually, make them feel important, call out their names, ask questions and ENGAGE with them! 

Pause! And ask them questions: "Hey John, how was football today?"... "Hi Cindy, how was your birthday party last week?"… 

With our two younger age groups, ages 2-3 and 4-6, we always start our classes with our welcome song to the tune of 'Frère Jacques':

"Where is Henry? Where is Henry?

There he is, there he is,

Ready for crafting club? Ready for crafting club?

YES I AM! YES I AM!"

Did you catch yourself singing along? :)

Get the kids to sing with you and give you a high five when they say - YES I AM! YES I AM! Our students usually get so excited at this point that they yell this part out!

Our kids know the song so well by now and they just LOVVVVE it when it's time to call out their name. It makes them feel SO important. 

Now you may be thinking: "Surely I can’t start each class using the same song week after week? That's so boring."

Have you ever heard kids say “Let’s do it again . . . and again, and again!”?

Repetition is very important in early childhood development. It helps kids to build confidence and strengthens the teeny weeny little connections in the brain that help them learn. Most importantly, repetition and predictability make children feel safe. 

Think back to when you learned to ride a bike. You had to practise, practise, practise until you gained enough confidence, increased your speed and became skilled. 

Apply this tip to all your crafting activities. It's a good thing to repeat games, songs and crafting skills.

Now that we have selected a cool craft, and we have welcomed everyone, the next secret is...

 Secret 3: Have a dialogue when introducing the theme 

Don't just start handing out paintbrushes and expect them to jump in.

It's really important to take the time to introduce and discuss the theme, or the topic of the craft.

Since we already know that your craft theme is super cool and topical for the kids (check!) we know the kids are going to be excited to hear what they are making today.

Have a detailed discussion and dialogue around the theme. 

Remember to get down onto their level

If the craft today is a jellyfish and you are crafting with 3 year olds, instead of calling out jellyfish facts, think about how they understand what a jellyfish is.

Ask questions: "Who's seen a jellyfish? What does a jellyfish look like? Who can tell me what a jellyfish feels like?" You will see them start engaging. Enter their world and ask questions on their level.

When a topic triggers curiosity in a child, that is when inquiry-based learning, problem solving, creativity and….. ENGAGEMENT happens!

We also know that crafting, creativity, and play all go hand in hand. So, to add more fun to the theme...

Ages 2 to 6:  Play a game that relates to the craft

Play is an integral part of learning, especially in early childhood development.

You may be familiar with the term 'play-based learning'. When children play, they get to experiment and make choices for themselves that they would not normally otherwise make. Kids should have the freedom to have fun, make mistakes and try again.

With this age group, it also helps to burn some energy so that they can later sit down, relax and focus on the craft. For busy toddlers, assess their engagement and attention throughout and alternate between crafting and games during the lesson.

Not sure what games to play? Grab one of our free lesson plans to get fun age-appropriate games to play as part of every craft.

Ages 7 to 12:  Brainstorm ideas together

This age group won't necessarily get as excited if you start blowing bubbles. So, instead we rather focus on practising STEAM skills with ages 7-12.

The importance of STEAM education goes far beyond the current trend. If you are new to this whatchamacallit STEAM scene……  lemme fill you in. 

STEAM is the acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Maths. This educational mindset integrates these different disciplines that prepare our kids for a world of rapidly changing technology.

STEAM crafting mirrors the processes and thinking that scientists, engineers, architects, and innovators use in the REAL world.

The first step of any engineering process is to identify the problem, ask questions, evaluate and brainstorm solutions. Do this together at the beginning of every class. 

Nurture curiosity in your kids and set them up for the future!

To read more about how to integrate STEAM into your crafting classes check out our blog: 3 Easy Ways to Add STEAM to Your Kids Crafting Classes.

 

 Secret 4: Celebrate the process 

Celebrate the experience of discovery and the freedom of choice that kids have, and let the crafting process be child-directed. 

Emphasis should not be placed on attempting to make the craft look perfectly like the prototype.

Place emphasis, instead, where magic lies - in the process of creation and the skills that the kids develop along the way.

 So what does this mean, practically?

It means:

  1. Do not put all of the materials for the craft out all at once and
  2. Do NOT craft for the child.  

Introduce the materials one after the other over time

Introduce a step and put one art or craft material out and see what the kids do with it.

Allow them to discover different textures, colours, and smells, and encourage exploration.

As soon as they get bored with a task and start fidgeting, that's your cue to hand out the next material. Don't take the previous one away (this allows for slower, more relaxed exploration and won't make the kids feel like they need to rush).

By introducing materials slowly it allows children to slow down and properly explore each material and step in the process.

When a child struggles with a task, guide them by asking questions rather than taking over

If we step in to help a child when they cannot manage, they never learn how to do it for themselves. And, even worse, they end up feeling that the craft is not theirs.

Ask questions, and give gentle suggestions or possible options for the child to guide them. 

What is more beautiful than the smile of a child with a craft in his hands, proud of all the effort, the choices, the failures, the challenges and finally his or her OWN work?

We love to end our crafting sessions with everyone saying together “I made this” - creating a personal vocabulary that speaks of ownership, capability, confidence and joy.

Check out our blog episode 3 Secrets to Building Your Child’s Confidence to learn more practical ways to build a child's confidence. 

And last but not least:

 Secret 5: Wind down 

This step is extremely important as this signals the end of the class. Once your students have attended your classes a couple of times they will know that this part of the routine means they need to calm down and get ready to go home.

Discuss what you learned

After much excitement, start with basic stretching: reach for the sky, touch your toes, touch your nose and wiggle, wiggle, wiggle your body.

For the 2-5 year olds we also like to play the song “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”. Let everyone lay on their backs and wind down to the gentle music.

Take a moment to say thank you to the kids and talk about what you appreciated and enjoyed in this class.

Do you know what happens then?! When you get to know your students and their lovely quirky personalities and truly engage with them?

You get showered with LOVE rainbows! You get love rainbows in the forms of hugs, sweet whispers, little notes, and adorable photos from moms showing how much their kids are enjoying and playing with their crafts that they made all by themselves. 

Now here is the most important thing:

No matter what your arts & crafts club business dreams are, these 5 principles will help you create something that really matters, something that lasts, and most importantly something that stands apart, which will enable you to touch little and big lives in your community.

Now, we'd love to hear from you...

Which one of these principles will you apply next time you craft with kids? 

  1. Make cool crafts
  2. Welcome everyone individually
  3. Have a dialogue when introducing the theme
  4. Celebrate the process
  5. Wind down

Want to implement these principles but don't have an arts & crafts club yet? We'd love to help you get started!

Head over here to join our online workshop and get started TODAY: www.creativecraftingclub.com/gs-workshop-signup