Making Activity Bins for Studying Art & Doing Crafts

This is part of a series. Here you will learn how to make an art and craft bin. The topics covered will include materials to stock and instructions for a few of the crafts and activities.

In this section, I'll talk about materials that every Art and Craft bin should have and can be used universally for many different projects. You will need various types of paper. Construction paper, drawing paper, tissue paper, card stock, poster board, and assorted art papers are all essential. You can also go to art stores and craft stores and look at all the different types of paper. You should find something interesting. You can never have too many types of paper. Your paper won't fit in your art & craft bin, so you'll need to keep your paper organized and in close proximity to the bins. You will also need various shapes of paintbrushes, various drawing pencils, crayons, markers, and oil pastels. You may also want to include chalk for fun. These items will fit into your bin. Next, you'll need a 1 inch thick three-ring binder to keep all your art lessons in. You'll also need one to keep your craft project instructions in. You will see how to make these below and a few ideas for projects. You will also need children's how-to books for drawing and painting. Some other materials you'll need are glue, scotch tape, yarn or some other type of string you like, scissors, and mini paint sets. If your bin does not house all this stuff, feel free to create more than one bin for art and crafts. I personally usually have about 20 just for crafts as they seem to multiply on me. Just keep the ones with the items used more often in easier reach than the less frequently used ones. Feel free to add other fun items like sequins, bells, glitter (not recommended for children under 10, as this is a messy item - use sequins or glitter pens as an alternative), beads, chenille stems, cotton balls, feathers, buttons, and anything else crafty.

Below, you will see some project ideas and instructions and a few handy hints. Enjoy!