Family Art And Craft Projects

Working on an art and craft project with your family is a great way to get closer to them, and is a great way to share some time together and strengthen family ties. There are no shortage of art and craft projects out there, and of course, some will be better suited to accomplish the goal of strengthening family ties than others.

In sifting through the stacks of projects available, try to pick a project that does the following:

  1. Gives each family member a role in the project. There’s nothing that will put a damper on a family project faster than having one person do all the work, while everyone else stands by and watches. Keep everyone engaged in the work at hand, and use the time to start conversations. Art and craft projects should be a means to an end. It’s nice to have a finished project, but it’s even nicer to keep in touch with what’s going on in each others lives.
  2. Is a project that will hold the interest of everyone involved. It’s nice to have a hand in whatever project your family decides to undertake, but you and your family will be more likely to look forward to your ‘together time’ and working on your family project if it’s something that actually interests them. This might call for flexibility on your part, but in all reality, you’ll probably be able to find a ton of interests you share in common. Pick something that you can all agree on.
  3. Sticks to a schedule. If there is a set time for your project, then it will be harder to just keep putting it off because of scheduling conflicts. This point isn’t as important for families with young children, because your schedule is usually their schedule. You don’t need to ask your five-year old to check his availability for the evening of the 27th for example… However, when your family matures, you’ll find that consistency reduces friction, and if there’s a set time when you want to make yourself available for family time, they can work with you, and won’t feel neglected or restricted. Having a schedule also teaches lessons in responsibility.

If the project your family decides to work on gives everyone something to do, holds their interest, and is something that can easily be worked into everyone’s schedule, then you will have yourself a great family project. Everyone will look forward to family time, and communication, love, and respect will grow. Overall, your family will see that they’re important enough to you to want to spend time with them, and they’ll want to do the same for you!