Crafts for Toddlers

I love how the printing technique in this moon craft makes it look like little craters all over the moons surface! This is a really easy craft to set up and not too messy either (well, for painting anyway!) It’s perfect for toddlers and preschoolers as well as reception age or even older kids who you just want a nice, simple space themed craft for – I’ve also added some ideas below on how you could adapt it for different ages so if you have more than one kid at home who you want to craft with it’s a good one for keeping them both entertained.

Kike this craft? Make sure that you bookmark or pin it to save it for later plus keep reading for some of our favourite books for space loving kids and more easy, achievable craft ideas.

My kids are really interested in space and stars, I think everyone is a bit really. We watched a programme last week which showed how craters formed on the moon when it’s hit by meteors – if you’re feeling brave on the mess front it was basically dropping a ball into some flour to see the crater form – possibly more of an activity for outside! We saw it on Blue Peter but Motherhood On A Dime has this post on a making moon craters experiment which shows it all in action.

Anyway, back to our moon craft. I’ve gone with a paper plate as the base for the moon. You could of course just cut out a circle from a piece of white paper (draw around a bowl or plate) but I wanted to make this as quick to set up as I could plus if you’re dealing with a large amount of paint paper can get sloppy really easily.

Pop some paint onto a plate to make it easier to print with, we have an old picnic plate that I keep in the cupboard for this and it’s such a good one to be able to use again and again.

Why Use Pom Poms?

I’ve used pom poms for this activity because they’re great for creating that crater style of painting but they’re also fab for helping support your child’s pincer grip too – where they’re holding things using their thumb and finger. It’s important for things like holding a pencil or doing up a zip as they get older, if you’d like to read more on it there’s a good post on Therapy Street for Kids about it which includes lots of other ideas for developing pincer grasp too.

Using your pom poms paint the surface of your moon, I’ve used a mixture of silver paint and grey paint made from black and white mixed together. You can then either display your moon craft as it is or glue it onto some black card and add some stars.

Adapting this Craft for Different Ages

I’ve used black card as the background which children can add some stars on to – metallic or chalk pens are good for drawing on black (felt tips won’t normally show) or younger kids could stick on some star shaped stickers.

What else could they draw in space? You could add planets, constellations, rockets or aliens. Maybe even one of the meteors about to hit the moon!

Or maybe draw and cut out a little astronaut or alien to add to your moon? How about a little flag to stick on it – from your own country or your child could make a little flag design of their own (I’m in the UK, we’re not going to be popping flags on the moon anytime soon here!)

Space books for kids

All of these space themed books are ones that we own and that my kids enjoy which is why you’ll find both factual books and umm… poop.

• Goodnight Spaceman by Michelle Robinson – one of our favourites especially as it was inspired by ESA Astronaut Tim Peake who writes an introduction in the UK version, I believe the US one has an introduction from NASA Astronaut Colonel Cady Coleman.
• Dinosaur Rocket by Penny Dale – a simple book that’s perfect for younger kids (especially dinosaur loving ones!)
• The Dinosaur That Pooped a Planet by Tom Fletcher and Dougie Poynter – I think we own all of the Dinosaur That Pooped books? They make my kids laugh a lot and to be honest I enjoy them too which if you end up reading the same book a lot is very important!
• The Solar System (Usborne Beginners) by Emily Bone – A good factual book that has been read a lot over the years.

More Easy Crafts for Kids

Fancy trying another space craft? This paper plate twirler with it’s free rocket printable would be perfect.

Or fancy another pom pom printing idea? Check out these tree painting activities.

Or finally for another simple paper plate craft this under the sea collage is super easy to make.