Valentine’s Day: Art & Craft Ideas For Children Of All Ages
10th Feb 2022
Valentine’s Day: Art & Craft Ideas For Children Of All Ages
Valentine's Day is upon us again!
This festival is a global celebration of love and the chance for people to show their affection and appreciation to those close to them.
Valentine's day is said to have originated from Roman Times and can trace its origins to the 6th century BC and the Lupercalia festival. Valentine’s Day has gradually evolved and the first steps to its modern format were seen in 496 A.D, as the then Pope Gelasius I, made the feast of ‘St.Valentine's Day’ into an official holiday.
Fast forward a few centuries and people now show their care and love by giving gifts such as flowers and chocolates. The tradition of the chocolate box has roughly been around for more than 140 years as Richard Cadbury, of Cadbury’s fame, introduced the first box of Valentine's Day chocolates in 1868.
Valentine’s Day has a global scope and ‘Cupid’, the winged angel connected with Valentine’s Day, is the mythical son of Venus – The ancient goddess of love!
People also like to send letters / videos to loved ones and some are still influenced by classic romantic stories. For example, thousands of people still send letters to Verona, Italy for Juliet, the character from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, in the hope that she will still receive them.
Valentine’s Day has also given wider scope to the English Language with expressions such as “Wearing your heart on your sleeve!” The origins of this term are quite remarkable. In the Middle Ages, young people drew names to see who their Valentine would be and then pin their name to their sleeve for a week. This act would be a public display of affection so that everyone would know their supposed true feelings to a specific person.
Even though Valentine’s Day is now a billion-dollar industry, the best expressions of love are those which are heartfelt and sincere!
Why not create a simple art and craft at home for those closest to you!
Idea 1 - No-Bake Valentines Day Treats
Everyone loves a Valentine’s Day treat. Here is a really simple one you can do at home. All you need is:-
Golden Oreos
Candy Melts (chocolate)
Sprinkles
Melt the candy melts ( chocolate ) in a bowl. Let it cool slightly then dip the oreos into it. Before the chocolate cools, put a few sprinkles over the top.
For full instructions, please follow this website:
Fun collage activity for all ages and it’s a great project for the whole family to encourage, also, a great piece of art to display at home.
What you need is a big piece of white paper and paint. Draw some heart shapes or allow children to trace with a heart cookie cutter with a marker. Put various paints in a muffin tray for children to paint. You can get your child to explore by using different kinds of tools, including paint brush, fork, feather, sponge. Use whatever you can think of or you have at home for free exploration!
Edible finger paint is preferable for babies and toddlers!
Click this link to find out how to make edible finger paint:
Try making this simple and gorgeous nature valentine keepsake! It’s easy enough for a preschooler, yet older kids will love making this nature craft as well. Just gather a few supplies and start making these beautiful clay hearts.
Roll out the clay and choose a cookie-cutter design and cut out your clay hearts! Grab some flowers and start decorating. Make sure you push the flower petals into the clay with gentle pressure. This will help them stay in place. And if you want to hang it then make a hole. Let it dry for 2-3 days. Enjoy!
Idea 5: A Sewn Leaf Heart
Warm someone’s heart with this simple and unique gift!
Leaves (best to use freshly fallen ones)
Scissors
Needle
Thread
Piece of paper for the secret message
Collect some big leaves. Cut out a heart shape out of a leaf. Keep the stem of the leaf in the middle to make it look really great.
Thread the needle and sew along or around the edge of your leaf. You can also sew in the middle. When you finish sewing, tie it off to secure your stitching.
If you would like to include a secret message to your loved one, cut out two hearts of the same shape (leaves that are still green are best for this). Put one leaf on top of the other and start sewing them together, leaving a small gap in which you can slip your secret message before you complete your stitching. Tie it off to secure and voilà! You have your perfect Valentine’s gift.
Younger children can create a heart tree painting. This simple task can use sponges to make heart stamps to create the leaves and grass. This painting art form is perfect for Valentine’s Day! Parents / guardians can easily adapt it to make it work for kids of all ages.
For this project, parents can create simple templates to get the project going.
Idea 9: Easy Q-Tip Painted Heart Art
This simple q-tip painted heart art idea is fun and easy to prepare and just uses a few items. This is a great idea for students to practice making patterns and for those who love to paint.
ink pads – reds and pinks (you can also use finger paints)
black marker
scissors
pencil (optional)
Idea 11: Nature Weaving Heart
Here is a simple nature weaving activity for Valentine’s Day. The contrast of the natural cardboard heart with the colourful flowers makes this the most beautiful gift to hand out this Valentine’s Day! What’s the best part? You just need a few supplies that you probably have lying around your house to make this simple valentine craft.
Supplies:
Cardboard
Flowers
Scissors
Rubber bands
First, cut out the shape of a heart and snip little slits on the side of the heart so you have a place to put your rubber bands. This will help the rubber bands to stay in place when you weave the flowers. And now start weaving the flowers. Enjoy!
Idea 12 - Scavenger Hunt
Everyone loves to take part in a scavenger hunt. This Valentine’s Day, why not have a scavenger hunt around the house? These are pre-made clues that you can put around the house to search for a mystery candy prize. Once they’ve got the idea, your child can write their own clues in a bid to search for more chocolate!
