Be sure to pin this fun Kid’s DIY Craft!
This is a great DIY craft project for pre-schoolers and their mom or dad to make together! In our experience, kids seem to be born with an amazing natural ability to draw birds and fish, so we”ve done this in the studio with kids as young as three and a half, and their little fish always come out so cute!
Wouldn”t it be nice to have pet fish that never needed feeding (or any other care for that matter)? That lived forever and never had to be dropped off at the neighbor”s when your family goes to Disney? In the ocean, sea creatures are either being preyed upon or doing the preying. This craft will let you create an entire tank of miniature exotic aquatic creatures that can all co-exist peacefully and without fear of extinction.
You Need:
• One small glass or plastic fishbowl
• One sheet of shrinking plastic. When heated in an oven, Shrinky Dinks shrink to approximately 40% of their original size, and become about the thickness of a nickel and very hard, without losing their original color or shape.
• Sharpies or other permanent markers
• Scissors
• Hole punch
•Acrylic Paint (note: acrylic paint does not wash out of clothing, so wear old play clothes!)
• Small soft paintbrush
• Fishing line or thin wire
• Tiny buttons
• 2 wine corks, cut into three pieces each
• Small pebbles for bottom of the fishbowl
• Hot glue gun (with adult supervision)
How Do It:
• Using Sharpies or other permanent markers, have your child draw as many small fish and other exotic sea creatures on the Shrinky Dinks as they would like. Do not use waxy materials to draw on the Shrinky Dinks (like crayons, oil pastel, waxy colored pencils etc.) as they will rub off. Punch them with a hole punch. The holes will shrink to the size where you can still insert a think wire or fishing line.
• Follow directions on the Shrinky Dink package to bake. Most shrinking plastic calls for heating at 300 degrees for approximately 3 – 5 minutes. There will be a lot of curling while they are shrinking, which is very fun to watch, but don”t interfere with the shrinking process by trying to flatten them out! They will eventually become totally flat on their own, and that is how you”ll know they are done! Let cool before removing from baking sheet.
• After they have cooled, tie a short piece of fishing line or wire to the sea creatures. On the other end of the wire, tie a small button.
• Cut wine corks into three pieces each.
• Hot glue the button on the other end of the fish to the bottom of the cork. When the cork is placed in water it will float and the fish that are dangled from it will appear to swim.
• Now your child needs to create a habitat for their fish! Using the acrylic paint, on the outside of the fishbowl, your child can paint an underwater scene. Get creative! Suggest they paint sand, coral, seaweed, and bubbles. Let the paint dry for 30 minutes.
• Fill the bowl ¾ with water and place the sea creatures in the tank and let your children enjoy watching how they interact. You should replace the water every few weeks.
****Have any comments, feedback, or topics that you”d like to see Holly give advice on? Leave a comment below! She”ll be answering any questions you have and would love to hear what you”d like to see her blog about! For more great posts from Jennifer, click here.****
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