Maker Monday: kids can make easy, sparkling winter trees

Looking to keep kids busy this week and over the holiday break? This Maker Monday project is great ahead of Christmas and it also gives kids a chance to create sparkling trees throughout the winter season.

They’re fun to make and look great standing alone on a shelf or as part of a forest full of trees. The size of your trees will depend on the size of the paper you choose. Smaller versions can make great place cards for a holiday dinner, while larger ones are a beautiful decoration.

All the supplies for this Maker Monday project are items you may have around the house or can buy at a dollar store. A note to kid makers: Please work with a parent or caregiver on this Maker Monday project and always be very careful when using tools of any kind.

Maker Monday materials you’ll need:

• construction paper (or other paper)
• scissors
• a plate or pie pan to use for tracing a circle
• markers
• optional decorations: glitter, stickers, beads

Maker Monday instructions:

STEP 1: Place the plate or pie pan (or whatever you’re using to trace your circle) top down on your sheet of paper. Trace the circle with a marker (or pen or pencil). Then remove the plate and cut out the circle.

STEP 2: Fold the circle in half and cut along the crease so you have two half-circle pieces.

Step 3: Fold in the outer parts of the half-circle, so that the paper is folded in thirds with the curved side down (see above).

STEP 4: Fold back the edges of each side piece, so you have a flat triangle across the back and the two sides folded open. This creates the card opening. (See above.) Your message will go inside on the flat area that looks like a piece of pie.

STEP 5: Fold the entire piece of paper inward, in half. Then cut out small “V” shapes along the edge, leaving spaces in between. For young kids, it may help to mark the “V” spots with a pencil as a guide and let them cut along the pencil lines.

STEP 6: Open the paper and you’ll see your stand-up tree! Now it’s time to write a special message inside and then decorate the outside any way you like. Kids can draw on streamers, lights, stars, candy canes or anything else to create a fabulous effect. A shimmer of glitter, beads or stickers can be a great finishing touch.

Want more at-home fun making beautiful things? Check out dozens and dozens of other Maker Monday projects right here. And if you’re looking to keep kids busy through the holiday school break, we’ve got ideas right here. 

Do you have an idea for a Maker Monday craft project? If so, please share it with Kidsburgh! Send your maker activities to info@kidsburgh.org.