9 Spring Crafts for Kids Elementary—Fun, Colorful, and Totally Doable (Even If You’re Craft-Challenged)
Spring’s finally here, and honestly, it’s about time. It’s the perfect season for outdoor activities More sunshine (maybe), flowers popping up, and kids bouncing off the walls with energy—yep, we’re all living it.
As parents, we’re always searching for fun ways to keep our children busy and happy. Sometimes screen time just isn’t enough to keep kids engaged .
We get it—finding easy spring crafts that are mess-friendly and that kids actually enjoy can be a total game-changer for those long afternoons.
Grab your supplies and join us as we dive into some playful and creative spring craft ideas for elementary kids. Let’s just embrace the chaos together!
1) Doily Butterflies with Colorful Wings
Nothing says “spring” like fluttery butterflies stuck to the fridge. For this one, we paint paper doilies in wild colors—watercolors or markers, whatever’s handy.
Once they dry, we pinch the middle and clip on a clothespin. Boom—instant butterfly.
Check out the step-by-step at PBS’s doily butterfly craft guide. Who knew easy crafts could look this cute?
2) Pipe Cleaner Flower Bouquets
Pipe cleaners are basically magic sticks, especially when our little ones twist them into the cutest flower . We love twisting them into the cutest flowers—plus, no glue disasters.
Grab a handful of colors and let the kids twist and bend. That’s it—flower power!
Need a little inspo? Here’s 3 Easy Flowers using Pipe Cleaners for step-by-step vibes.
Bunch them up for a bright flower craft bouquet that never wilts. It’s a mood booster, especially on those rainy days.
3) Spring Flower Wreath to Brighten Doors
Let’s be real—our front door could use a little happy. Team up with the kiddos and make a spring flower wreath.
All it takes is a wreath form, some fake flowers, and a glue gun (watch those fingers!).
Let the kids pick wild color combos for their egg carton flowers . If you need ideas, here’s an easy DIY for spring floral wreaths.
4) Nature Rolls Using Leaves and Petals
Nature rolls are messy fun at its best. We grab a big sheet of paper, slather on glue, and press on every leaf and petal we can find.
It’s like nature bingo, but stickier. Every little smooshed petal totally counts as art—especially during springtime promise.
Need inspiration? Check out these spring nature crafts for kids. We’re all about the creative chaos here.
5) Cotton and Cardboard Tube Lambs
These little lambs are just adorable. Grab a cardboard tube, cover it with cotton balls, and stick on some felt ears—so easy.
Everyone’s sheep looks a little different, and that’s the charm. Add pipe cleaner legs or draw silly faces if you want.
Here’s a quick cardboard tube lamb tutorial if you need a guide. No big mess, just fuzzy fun and giggles.
6) Snippy Chicks from Paper Shapes
Time to channel our inner artists! For snippy chicks, we grab yellow paper, some patterned scraps, and kid scissors.
We cut strips and shapes, then glue them together to make funny little chicks. It’s a mess, it’s adorable, and it builds those scissor skills.
No one’s judging if our toddlers’ chicks look wild—those crazy feathers are half the fun.
7) Paper Caterpillar Craft with Googly Eyes
Let’s be honest—googly eyes make everything cuter. We cut colored paper into circles, glue them in a row, and watch our caterpillar come to life.
Add a smile, some wild eyebrows, and stick on those googly eyes. Here’s an easy caterpillar craft if you want a visual.
8) Watercolor Butterfly Art Project
Let’s grab paints and get messy with some watercolor butterfly art. Even the splatters look cool—no perfection required.
Fold your paper, splash on colors, and watch them blend into magical wings. Kids go wild with this one.
Need visuals? There’s a super easy video guide on painting watercolor butterflies.
9) Flower Garden Scene Canvas Painting
Let’s talk about a craft that turns our wildest flower dreams into real art. We grab a canvas, paint, and let those little hands go for it—no such thing as a “wrong” flower.
Glue on pom-poms or tissue paper for a 3D touch. Kids love seeing their flower garden come to life—messy brushstrokes, happy giggles, all of it.
This is spring crafting at its cutest. Our walls will thank us.
Why Spring Crafts Are Pure Magic for Elementary Kids
Spring crafts aren’t just about keeping preschoolers busy. When we pull out glue, paint, and googly eyes for spring crafts for kids , we’re giving our kids a real boost in learning, confidence, and creativity—plus, we get to make a mess together.
Hands-On Learning Without the Boring Bits
Let’s be honest—kids hardly remember a worksheet, but they’ll talk for weeks about making a garden out of popsicle sticks. Spring crafts make learning fun because we’re getting our hands dirty and our brains working at the same time.
When we make flower crowns or paint butterflies, we help our kids practice things like counting petals, spotting patterns, and following directions.
For kindergarten science fans, crafts with seeds or leaves spark beauty and curiosity about nature and how plants grow. Simple stuff like sorting beads by color or measuring yarn builds fine motor skills, which secretly preps them for writing and other important things at school.
If you want more ideas, check out some easy spring crafts for kids.
Building Confidence One Glitter Disaster at a Time
Have you ever seen a kid beam after sticking a pipe cleaner in a pile of pom-poms and calling it a “fuzzy caterpillar”? That’s confidence being built in real-time and, honestly, it’s the cutest thing ever.
Every time we let our kids get creative with crafts—glitter explosions, glue mishaps, and all—we’re cheering them on as problem solvers and artists.
If something turns out weird, that’s fine! They learn it’s okay to make mistakes and try again (and again… and maybe a few more times).
We celebrate every wonky flower and lopsided rainbow. Soon our kids do too.
They start to believe their own ideas are amazing. Besides, cleaning up glitter together is, like, the ultimate team bonding.
Tips For Stress-Free Crafting With Kids
We’ve all been elbow-deep in glitter and glue before, wishing we had a magic wand to keep things easy. Managing supplies and mess doesn’t have to be overwhelming if we plan ahead, especially when using items like tissue paper .
It’s okay to give ourselves a break when things get sticky (literally). Sometimes you just have to laugh and roll with it.
Stocking Up Your Craft Stash Without Breaking the Bank
We don’t need fancy supplies to make cute crafts. Our go-to places are dollar stores, discount bins, and even our own recycling.
Think egg cartons, paper plates, toilet tubes, and leftover fabric scraps. Treasures are everywhere if you look hard enough.
Crafty Must-Haves:
- Construction paper (tons of colors!)
- Washable markers and glue sticks
- Popsicle sticks and pipe cleaners
- Googly eyes for instant smiles
- Old buttons, ribbons, and twine
We like to keep supplies sorted in clear bins or Ziploc bags. It saves us from hunting for that one purple pom-pom while a kid yells, “MOMMMM!”
If we see sales, we stock up and hide the good scissors (trust us). And don’t forget, you can reuse a lot from nature!
Sticks, leaves, rocks, and flowers can make gorgeous projects—these are my favourite material . Check out these creative spring crafts for kids for inspiration.
How to Embrace the Mess (And Keep Your Sanity)
Let’s be honest—crafting with kids is messy, especially during summer . Like, “Why is there glue in the dog’s fur?” messy.
But here’s our thing: let’s just make life a bit easier on ourselves. We cover tables with old newspapers or plastic tablecloths before we even start.
Spills don’t feel like the end of the world anymore. They’re just, “Hey, hand me another wipe.”
We set up clear zones: craft area, drying zone, trash spot. That way, the paint mostly stays put.
Everyone throws on old shirts or aprons, even us. Why should kids have all the fun with wild outfits?
When it’s time to clean up, we crank up our favorite playlist. We turn it into a five-minute race—suddenly, the mess just disappears.
Some days, the crafts are the mess, and that’s fine. If things get wild again, here are more sweet calming crafts for kids for when our patience needs a quick recharge!
