DIY Game Set

Kiddos are so naturally creative that we often forget how some kids can feel intimidated or "not good at art." No worries! Whenever you hear those words, flip the activity around a little bit and turn the art or craft materials into a GAME. Not a competitive art game, but a real game. Thinking about art materials in a different way can help kids get over a creative block and get them inventing in no time. And we've got three super easy ways to do just that.

Materials: our Arts and Crafts Supply Library + a stapler ... that's it!!

Tic-Tac-Toe: this is the easiest of the games to create and you might find yourself toting around a bundle of fuzzy sticks to have at the ready.

1. Make a grid: pick four fuzzy sticks in the same color and criss cross them to make an even playing grid.

2. Make playing pieces: for the "X" playing pieces, pick 5 fuzzy sticks of the same color. Cut each fuzzy stick in half and twist pieces in the middle to create an "X" shape. For the "O" playing pieces, pick 5 fuzzy sticks of the same color. Wind each piece into an "O" shape. Stretch that creativity and try making different-shaped playing pieces—stars + hearts, anyone?!

3. Play! no explanation needed for this classic game.

Memory: this is an especially fun game for younger kids, but good for all ages to keep brains sharp too.

1. Make playing pieces: pick eight wooden discs from the Supply Library. Create pairs of discs out of different colors. If you want to make the game easier for younger kids, you can use pairs of the same color discs. Use any of the craft supplies to create the same design on a pair of discs—use your imagination, but the flat materials tend to work better. To make the game more difficult for older kids, create a larger number of pairs by cutting the felt pieces into squares instead of wooden discs and decorate the squares into matching pairs.

2. Play! once all your playing pieces have dried, jumble them up and place in a grid upside down. Take turns searching for a pair by turning over two pieces per turn. If you don't find a pair, turn discs back over and the next player goes. Play until all pairs have been found and the person with the most pairs wins!

Pom Toss: there's something about this simple idea that totally gets kids of all ages going!

1. Make playing board: pick three to five felt pieces of different colors from the Supply Library and the same number of craft sticks. Curl each felt piece into a cylinder. Secure shape by stapling edges together at top and bottom. Staple a craft stick to the overlapping edges. Label each cylinder with a point value—we cut out a felt number to glue to each stick, but you can also try using the rhinestone stickers or skip the sticks and sew a number directly on the front. Place the cylinders at increasing distances on a non-stick surface (carpet works great!) or you can get fancy and glue them on to a piece of recycled cardboard too.

2. Pick playing pieces: each player picks a different colored pom.

3. Play! you can come up with whatever rules you like, but a good basic starting point is to give every player a set number of turns (five is good). Each player alternates tossing their pom into the playing board cylinders trying to get as many points as they can within their number of turns.

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Get ready for game night with our Arts and Crafts Library!

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