Arts-and-Crafts Store Expedition

Glue! Sparkles! Finger paints! A kid in a crafts store can be as excited as a kid in a candy store (hey, they even have stuff to MAKE candy here!). And the more fun you have, the more fun your kids will have. Best of all, building a birdhouse, a beaded bracelet or a back-to-school pencil box builds the bonds between you. What to Pack

• Your inner artist

Now Get Exploring!

• Go online. See if your local arts-and-crafts store has a website and preview their services, supplies and project ideas. Talk about what kind of a project you and your child would like to do together.
• Explore colors. At the store, name all the colors in a paint box.
• Rainbow search. Look at all the shades of yarn available and see if your child can make up special names for them based on things he knows: T-shirt blue, toy box red, Grandma's eyes green, etc.
• Investigate shapes. Name the shapes of the frames: oval, square, rectangle, circle. Name the 3-D shapes of Styrofoam forms: sphere, cone, etc.
• Go on a texture scavenger hunt. Can your child find something soft, scratchy, sticky, hard, smooth, bumpy? Can she find three things made of wood? Of wax? Of paper?
• See in reverse. Look for lollipop or cupcake molds. Can your child identify what each will make? Next look at rubber stamps. What will each picture be?
• Flower check. Go into the plant section and see if your child can distinguish between the silk flowers and the real deal. What's alive and what's not? How do you know?
• What's the same? What do stickers, labels, glue and tape have in common? What about silver frames, silver beads and silver bakeware?
• Go on safari. How many animals can your child spot in the store? Look for carved birds, crocheted bunnies, elephant beads and more.
• Scout out ABCs. A is for art sets, B is for buttons, C is for candy molds, D is for decorations, E is for easel, F is for felt and so on.
• Pick a project. Scrapbooking? Birdhouse building? Soap making? Ask for help finding a project that matches your child's interests and ability levels.
• Read all about it. Check out Creative Crafts for Kids by Gill Dickenson and the extensive collection of book sets published by Klutz.

Educational Perks Doing a craft project together helps your child learn art smarts—principles of color, light, design and the physics of how things (mosaics, mobiles and music boxes) go together. In addition, arts and crafts teach kids to follow directions, practice eye-hand coordination and build small motor skills, while they boost imagination, creativity and self-esteem. Bonus Explorer Activity Make a list of other craft projects your child would like to try based on the things he saw on your expedition.

For more exploring, play Dora's Great Big World game, find do-together Dora crafts, recipes, and activities, and print a personalized Explorer Kit for your child at DoraTheExplorer.com.

Thanks to Susan Hood

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