21 Awesome Cardboard Arts and Crafts Ideas for Kids
uick and easy activities are the necessary for young children because there is absolutely no guarantee a toddler will give your activity the time of day.
I picked cardboard crafts because most people have boxes at some point and plan to throw them away, so why not get another use out of it first?
That’s one reason why I love to do crafts that can be used over and over again like my cardboard car matching game or Chicka Boom Boom Tree Craft I did my my son using poster board.
Below I share a collection of cardboard activities that I view as simple, quick, fun, creative, and even sometimes educational 🙂
Enjoy!
- The kids love doing colorful crafts so I thought it would be great to talk about some great rainbow crafts kids would love today and share the rainbow activity we did at home! These activities inspire fun, creativity, and learning so I hope you enjoy!! Check out this DIY craft project out at Keep Toddlers Busy
1a. This is a staple for me and very simple!
2. These Cardboard Doll House are so fun and creative! Find it at Mini Mad Things
3. Great for any time of the year! (and anything related to spae is really in right now) Check out this project at Mini Mad Things.
4. I don’t quite know why, but toddlers seem to love rainbows. Maybe it’s the colors but rainbows are magical. Check this out at Playroom Stories
5. This Preschool Learning Activity using pizza cardboard and Clothespins with numbers was a hit with the kids! Keep Toddlers Busy.
6. Kids love paint, probably because it’s messy lol. This is a great way to have a fairly mess free and simple craft idea for kids. See how it’s done at
7. Winter is here! This activity is great for the whole season as snowflakes or stars. See how it’s done at Jennifer Rizzo.
8. Cardboard and counting, what can be better 🙂 Check it out at Grimm’s Wooden Toys.
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9. How cute is this dollhouse craft? Your tot may need some help with this but painting a cardboard house? Genius! Check it out at Say Yes!
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10. My kids just can’t get enough of chalk and it’s even better when you can do it in rain or shine. This is a great idea for all ages. Art Camp Studio.
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11. This cool project can also double as a learning activity! Very Cute. Check it out at The Craft Train
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12. How cute is the Noah’s Ark project. It’s perfect for pretend play. See the how-10 at The Craft Train
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13. These projects are the best! They may take a little extra preparation, but crafts used a toys last a long time for us. Check it out at Chalk Academy.
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14. This is truly a creative cardboard tube craft idea for kids. We did this one before and my son LOVED it. Noise is good lol. Rain dance at www.giftofcuriosity.com
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15. Aww this one is a great Valentine’s Day craft idea and its simple too! Check out this DIY activity at Our Kid Things
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16. As you may notice throughout my site, my son loves anything related to space. It’s such a great way to allow toddlers to explore! I love this cardboard rocket! She Knows
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17. Love, Love, Love. Boxes, Tunnels, plenty of play space. All good things for the toddler imagination! Cafe Mom
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18. This one does not need to be explained. Toddler and goop belong in the same sentence! See this awesome craft at The Imagination Tree.
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19. I love paper plate activities because they are fairly durable. This bumble project is a great idea! See the process at The Pinterested Parent.
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20. This is a great idea. Turkey or bird decorating can be a group activity! See it at Art Bar Blog
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21. This fall car project is a fun and easy way for your toddler to pretend play! Check out this DIY craft project out at Petite Party Studio.
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As I was browsing YouTube the other day, looking for some smokey eye makeup tips (YouTube can teach anything), I got sidetracked and started looking at toddler crafts and activities videos.
I came across this super cute video on how to make a caterpillar and I thought I would share this as a bonus. I love this activity because its basically super easy, colorful, and fun. Check it out!
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For more craft ideas you can check 9Mousai !
Check out another fun activity with painting from my Instagram page and be sure to follow!
It’s amazing what you can find on Pinterest 🙂 I just love these ideas and I know my children do and will love them too.
I hope you enjoyed this fun button craft idea for the kids! Please comment below and let me know some paint activities that keep your kids entertained! I would love to see some additional ideas! Also check out my posts on a great pom pom frame craft and popsicle stick crafts for more fun ideas! Also, remember to sign up for your FREE weekly activities planner on the top or the right side of the page and check out my printables page.
Welcome to my blog! I am an activity mom of three and I have over 15 years of experience crafting, writing, designing and creating. My mission is to bring fun, balance and learning to your busy homes with activities, tips, inspiration, and organization!
15 Comments
Melissa
Hi there, thanks for all your great ideas! I love the hand and foot design, and I think this will make a beautiful keepsake. We might test it out first and then make one as a present for the grandparents. We’ll follow that up with some toddler goop! Mine aren’t toddlers anymore but goop is fun whatever the age! Thank you
Kayla
You’re welcome! I definitely think that these activities are fun for all ages. Hope you all enjoy!
Corrine
So many great ideas here, thanks! I have a very busy toddler and I’m always trying to find stuff for her to do. Have you done any of these crafts? She has two older siblings and I love to find projects that they can all do together, do you think any of these are good for older kids (7 and 9) as well? Thanks!
Kayla
Yes I have done some of them and plan to do more! I will be posting an update soon.And yes I think almost all of these projects are great for kids of all ages. For the younger kids, the parents would just be a little more involved.
Stevie B.
In LOVE with the popsicle stick monsters and can’t wait to try them! I also can’t wait to try the fill painting using celery to “stamp” out the scales – so creative.
You might be able to put something other than rice in that rain stick to make different types of noises. Any suggestions?
Kayla
I Love the monsters too! LOL. I’m thinking something a little bigger would make a strong sound. Those little candy beads that you find in the cake section are the first thing to come to mind.
Allan
Your site is chock full of useful information. And you made it a fun read for your potential customers. As a grandpa, I can use this as a resource for all my grandkids, because they all love making different crafts and art projects. I will send a link to my daughter so she can make practical use out of your site.
Kayla
Awesome! I hope she enjoys. I try my best to add useful things to this site that will help parents keep their kids happy and healthy, tell her to check back often and also check out my post on Inspiring Your Child to Love Learning
Lauren
What cute ideas you have here. Most of these I’ve never heard of before. I especially love the keepsake hand and foot design project, the rain sticks and the tape resist art project. I’m babysitting my grandkids a couple of days a week and they would love these great arts and crafts. My grandson especially loves firetrucks so I’ll bet he’ll want to try that colored paper firetruck project! Thanks!
Kayla
Awesome! I hope you all have fun 🙂 I love the keepsake one as well .
Kenny
Great sharing! I use to look up for tutorials in youtube to get more ideas on how to keep the kids busy and at the same time nurture their creativity. Looking through your article got me so excited as there are a lot of crafts that I have not try like the popsicle monster, painting snow and the cute octopus cupcake liner. Will definitely save this article and share this to other parents too. Thanks.
Kayla
Awesome! Im glad you enjoyed the ideas and I will definitely be doing more craft how-to’s. Thanks for sharing as well!
Allan
Awesome stuff – this will be a great page to refer to for some ideas for my four grandkids. Thanks.
Kayla
Thaanks. Glad you enjoyed!
Craft Ideas For Kids
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