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Tuesday 9 July 2019

Keeping The Kids Safe When Crafting


Collaborative Post

Crafting with your children has many advantages. It’s a brilliant chance to spend some time together doing something fun. It’s a chance for your kids to see you get stuck in and learn something new. It’s a wonderful and exciting way to teach them more about the world, and a way to support their school work with inspiring and colourful home projects. It’s one of the few times that you will encourage them to be messy at home. 

Child holding a paint pot and squeezing out paint, with other paint pots in the foreground


One of the best things about crafting with kids is that there’s so much that you can do. You could paint, knit, colour and draw. You could build models or textiles. You could make decorations for their bedroom or things for them to play with. A family that explores crafting together is never bored. Your kids always have plenty to do and you get the pleasure of watching their excitement as they try something new, but as a parent it’s your job to keep things safe. Crafting can be great fun but it can also be dangerous without the right precautions.

Have Ground Rules
Kids think that rules are bad. They believe that they make things boring or take the fun away, but as adults, we know that this isn’t the case. Rules don’t stop the fun. They just keep it safe. If anything, they can increase the enjoyment with guidelines and structure. You don’t need lots of rules but things like keeping craft materials in a specific area and sitting down while you work can be good guidelines that keep everyone safe.

Teach Them How To Use Equipment
Some equipment, like vinyl cutting machines (that you can learn more about at www.vinylcuttingmachineguide.com), should only be used by an adult. There are other things though that you might be comfortable with your kids using. If they are going to use anything at all, including scissors and glue, take the time to teach them how to use it safely and remind them when you need to.

Pay Attention
We’re all guilty of switching off from time to time. Our focus slides or we stop paying attention for a second to add a photo of our kids crafting to Instagram. That’s usually when accidents happen, trust me I know! When you are crafting with children they need your complete and undivided attention, especially when they are very young. Leave your phone in another room and avoid other distractions.

Keep It Age Appropriate
Toddlers love playing with plasticine and other dough. They like finger painting and making a mess. You might want to take paints outside and let them go crazy. Older children might prefer more detailed work. They might enjoy making models and experimenting with new things. As they get older what they can do and what they are capable of doing changes. Keep your crafting sessions age appropriate and they’ll be more interested while staying safe.

Read Labels
When playing with paints and other crafting materials, you should always read the labels to make sure that they are safe and free of toxins.

Ventilate
If you are using paints or any other chemicals, either play outdoors of keep windows open to avoid anything damaging in the air.


Overall though, try and be prepared for accidents, give the kids your full attention and try and be relaxed about the situation, but most of all enjoy the time crafting with your little ones.

Mummy Snowy Owl
xx


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