Easy, Fun Crafts?

[osuche]

I am volunteering on Saturday at a children's group home. It's a program where we make breakfast with the kids (see below). After breakfast we have about an hour with a small group of kids.

Any ideas on good crafts or a game to do with the kids? I am looking for something that won't be stressful for emotionally hurt kiddos, but will let them exercise thier creativity and feel comfortable around us.

All ideas appreciated. Thanks. :loveshowe

Edgewood Center for Children
• The Breakfast Club is an opportunity for volunteers to meet Edgewood’s children at our Vicente Campus and make breakfast with them. The Campus is a residential treatment facility for children with severe emotional disabilities. The Breakfast Club provides a safe and structured way for them to develop social skills and interact with the community.

Who are the Edgewood children?
• The children range in age from 6 to 16, and live in one of four cottages, or group homes: Stow, Lane, Dimond, and Halleck. Most of our children have experienced abuse and neglect, resulting in emotional, behavioral, and academic challenges. They receive intensive multidisciplinary services at Edgewood until they are ready for a lower level of group care, family reunification, or foster care.

How does the Breakfast Club work?
• The morning begins with an orientation about Edgewood, the residential treatment program, and the children we serve. Volunteers are divided into four teams and assigned to a cottage. With staff supervision, volunteers prepare and serve breakfast for the children. All food is provided for the simple menus. Clean-up is followed by quiet time in the cottages, then an optional group recreational activity.

[LixyChick]

Good cause ((((osuche))))

I just woke up but my brain didn't follow...lol! I know others will have plenty of ideas though. Good luck!

[osuche]

((((Lixy)))) ~~ go and drink some coffee and get back to me, hun. :p :D

[Lilith]

:) So great! Do you know how old the kids you will be assigned to are? Are the houses are divided by age appropriateness or are they in family units?

I know they are 6-16 but that is a huge jump in abilities. You only have about an hour?

[osuche]

I don't know exact ages, but I think ours will be older (10-14 ish) and yes we only have an hour. :(

I was *hoping* you would see this thread... and might tell me a little something about what I should and shouldn't do with these kids. ((((Lil))))

[Lilith]

Don't assume they will be on the same developmental level as what you used to be at 10-14. Some will act more mature and some less. Seems like abused kids grow up too fast or refuse to. Keep in mind these kids typically have education issues (but other types of smarts) so activities that are physical or do not involve reading will be good ones.

Here is a link of some online crafty sorts of things
http://familyfun.go.com/arts-and-crafts/season/specialfeature/summer-camp-crafts/

One thing my boys like is beans. You can buy a bunch of different kinds and colors, get some old jar lids and paint them with spray paint then just pour in some glue and let them turn them into mosaics. Better, because it requires fine motor, for older kids. You could get magnets for the back of them. They would be able to take this where ever they go.

Another cool activity that I have seen and kids loved it is also a lesson on symmetry. Print pics of animals off the web (color) but make sure that when you cut off half the picture a kid could make the other half. In other words faces of animals looking head on work best. Let the students try to create the other half and color using colored pencils.

Game- my kids love "Quiet Ball" kids stand on chairs silent and they toss a foam or small ball. Talk=out, bad throw= out, missed catchable throw=out, arguing over a call= out. Last one standing wins. If it get to take too long make them do it one hand behind their back.

One thing you may want to try is to get pictures of the kids. They may not have many of themselves. You could do the old standby polaroid pics and make frames.

[Lilith]

I have also built structures with kids using toothpicks and small marshmallows, and sugar cubes.

[Lilith]

Something contrary to what I originally posted but,


They might like to tape record lower level books and make "books on tapes" for the younger kids there. They get to be the super stars and if you let them choose the books they will pick ones they can read. And other kids will benefit.

[imaginewithme]

Wow--this sounds great. Thanks for doing this osuche

[Lilith]

btw the toothpicks and marshmallows go to gether and the sugarcubes are a separate building material. The sugar cubes you can lick or use glue.

[wyndhy]

awesome ideas lil!

rain sticks are easy and the decorating is the fun part.

self portraits, or a group portrait

charcoal rubbings.

a fun game is blind rummage. put a bunch of items into a bag and have a kid come put their hand in the bag and find a particular item using only their hands/fingers.

or red light/green light. one person (the light) stands at one end of the room and everyone else (the cars) stands at the other. the light, with their back to the cars, says 'red light green light. one! two! three!' (they can say it as fast or as slow as they want or start out slow, then fast, etc...you get the point) and spins around to face the group after saying three. while the light is speaking, the cars may move, but as soon as the light says 'three' they have to freeze. anyone caught moving a single muscle is out. the object is to be the first car to make it to the light. then they get to be the light. the object of the light is to try and trip up the cars so that they're caught moving.

[wyndhy]

btw...cool way to spend a morning osuche...whatever you choose to do, have fun!

[osuche]

((((Lilith))))) ~~ you are tuly a Goddess!

I posed *all* the ideas to my group and will let you know what the consensus is for an activity

[Lilith]

wyndy great ideas! I love blind rummage.

[osuche]

((((Wyndhy))) ~~ I am adding these to the list, too!

[maddy]

This is such a neat idea... I would love to do a program of this style. That's all I got, I'm out of energy to think of anything creative.

[Lilith]

Dying to hear how it went osuche!

[osuche]

Well...we made breakfast for the kids (scrambled eggs, hashed browns, fruit salad, cinnamon toast, and juice). One of the kids came down and helped us with breakfast.

After everyone ate, they had quiet time. All the craft ideas (I'd brought animal pics and crayons, and toothpicks/marshmallows) got trumped. It seems that one of the kids had tried to run away the night before, and the entire group was on a kind of "lock down."

We were gently encouraged to leave and let the kids work out their problems with their counselors.

One interesting thing...we had 8-10 year olds and their maturity ranges varied widely. The kids were really sweet and we spent breakfast telling jokes and riddles. I'd love to go back another time, under better and less rushed circumstances.

Thanks to Lil and Wyndhy for the great ideas...I *will* use them in the future.

[Lilith]

Sounds like what happens to me all the time. I make the best plans for fun and then one of them does something stupid. Often they sabotage themselves.

[wyndhy]

...almost as if they feel they don't deserve it. :(

[Lilith]

exactly.

[osuche]

:( I'm going to go back. I felt as if these kids had so many transient adults come into their lives that the guard was too fully up. The place was really nice and homey, and the kids were just sweet kids. I want my next experience to be better, and last longer.