Dear Melissa,
My kids are out of school today for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Do you have any ideas for fun crafts to help celebrate the day?
When I was in elementary school, our Catholic school actually had school on MLK Day, while the public schools were out. It was a really fun day, because we spent the day coloring pictures representing Dr. King’s life and legacy, writing essays about peace and unity, and watching civil rights videos. The MLK Day activities were a great break from your typical Monday at school. While I am very glad that we take the time to honor Dr. King’s life and work with a National Holiday, I always wonder if I got a better education on equal rights for all while sitting in the classroom, as compared to other children who had the day off and learned nothing of the teachings of this great man.
Therefore, I give a big thank you to my elementary school, Immaculate Conception in Fort Smith, for teaching me about Martin Luther King, Jr. and giving me some great ideas for projects to do with my own children on this day off. I also searched the Internet for other fun, different projects. If you are like me and are doing all of these MLK Day Activities last minute, I am limiting the required materials to those that I currently have on hand in my own art cabinet. However, as an OT mama, I do have quite a large art cabinet!
Handprint Dream Catcher Trace and cut out handprints from differe
nt colors of construction paper. This makes for an even better activity if you have more than one child/adult’s handprints. Then take a paper plate and cut out the center. Weave the handprints together with interlocking fingers to create a “dream catcher” and glue/staple the handprints to another paper plate. Tie a string/yarn to the top of the paper plate so that it can be hung over your child’s bed. This craft is to represent how people of all different colors/backgrounds can work together for one purpose. (source: Kids Creative Chaos)
MLK Timeline My son LOVES timelines. He makes them on the history of the earth, the history of the United States, which dinosaurs lived when, you name it! Now, he was a touch grumpy when I asked him to make one at this past morning, inste
ad of getting to watch his favorite TV show, but he ended up being a great sport about it and doing a terrific job! Simply tape a few sheets of typing paper together, Google a few facts about Dr. King’s life, and have your child write down these facts to create a timeline. Finally, your child can illustrate each of these events, and – voila – an MLK timeline!
Your Child’s Dream My daughter was also a fairly good sport whe
n I drug her away from her morning cartoons and asked her to make a craft project to feature on this blog. I simply asked what ideas she had to help people, either now as a child, or what she could do as a grown-up. Then, she drew a picture of this dream. You can either write out the dream for her, or have her write it on her own – an OT will always try to sneak in a writing assignment! Since my daughter likes to build forts in the living room, “Caroline’s Dream” was to one day build houses for people who are homeless!
Multi-Colored Face Poster This one was inspired by Andy Warhol paintings! For this activity, the child simply draws his/her face. Then, photo copy or trace this same face picture into 4 boxes on the same large page or poster board. Next, have your child color each face a different color. The crazier the colors, the better! This activity is a great way to encourage children to think about different cultures or races, and how the exterior may change, but that the exterior colors do not change the person inside. (source: Activity Village)
credit: Activity Village
Colorful Hand Wreath Again, multiple colors of hands working together in one craft is always a good idea, not to mention a beautiful wreath decoration! For this craft, you cut out hand prints in various colors of construction paper. It’s even better if you have hand prints from different people. Staple/glue the handprints together so that the wrist sections are all in the center of the circle and the fingers are all facing outward to create a wreath pattern. Beautiful! (source: Activity Village)
Color Simple. Classic. Fun. I have added some coloring pages for the occasion. Here are some links to some great MLK Coloring/Activity pages: Activity Village, Crayola, Education.com
Have fun with your kiddos creating these fantastic crafts this Martin Luther King, Jr. Day! I shared pictures of our families crafts, please share yours too!
Resources:
Kids Creative Chaos: Handprint Dream Catcher (accessed January 2016)
Activity Village: Multi-coloured Face Poster (accessed January 2016)