Cut colored cards into a range of shapes, such as squares, circles and triangles, and use a hole punch to punch holes around the outside of each shape. Let children use colored crayons to decorate the card shapes as they wish. Let children weave strands of wool in a variety of colors in and out of the holes in their card shapes. Tie knots at the back of the card to secure each wool strand after weaving. Children can also thread buttons, macaroni or cut straws onto wool while threading through holes, as suggested by Nancy Lewis Bartlett, author of "Children's Art and Crafts."
Provide white paper plates and materials such as crayons, colored tissue paper, feathers, sequins, wool, scissors and glue. Help children to create paper plate characters by drawing faces onto the plates and then decorating them as they wish. For example, they could create a cat by drawing eyes, nose and mouth, and then adding black woolen "whiskers" and triangle-shaped tissue paper ears. Offer suggestions, but let children develop their own ideas too. Cut two holes that are about 1 inch apart at the bottom of each plate just large enough for children to place their fingers through and make their puppet "walk."
Let children make handprints with paint on heavy paper, such as construction paper, and then use crayons and craft materials to develop handprint characters, as suggested by the Clever Toddler Activities website. For example, use gray paint for handprint elephants, with fingers as legs and the thumb for the trunk; brown paint for hedgehogs; or a variety of colored paint for handprint fish. Help children cut out their handprint characters and glue onto small sticks or pipe cleaners to make stick puppets.
This toddler craft activity is suggested by the Engage Today website. Boil some spaghetti for about five minutes, until pliable, but not soggy. Allow spaghetti to cool before letting children place strands onto cards to make shapes and images. Glue is not required because starch causes the spaghetti to stick to the cards. Alternatively, let children draw shapes and images onto cards before following the outlines with cooked spaghetti strands. Children can use watercolor paints to add further colors to the pictures after they have finished arranging spaghetti strands.