BEYOND GLUE AND GLITTER:
How Crafting Builds Essential Life Skills in Children
Crafting doesn’t require much – just a few materials and an open mind – but offers many benefits. Whether painting, gluing, or simply exploring textures and colors, crafting creates far more than just producing adorable refrigerator decorations; it creates powerful learning opportunities for children to engage at their own pace. It’s not about perfection or enthusiasm for art; it’s about the process and the growth that happens along the way. In this article, we’ll look at the many assets of crafting and how it provides every child with the opportunity to build essential life skills in their own unique way.
The Magic Behind the Making
When children sit at a craft table, they’re not just creating art but building neural pathways that support learning and development (Mayar, 2022). Each snip of scissors, a swirl of paint, or careful sticker placement is a mini-lesson in development. Here’s how a simple craft project becomes a powerful learning lab:
✅ Enhancing Fine Motor Skills: Whether it’s drawing, cutting, or threading beads, crafting helps children improve their fine motor skills, which are essential for tasks that require precision and hand cont
✅ Boosting Problem-Solving: Crafting constantly challenges children to make decisions, from choosing colors to figuring out how to fix mistakes. This process helps them think critically about their choices and develop flexibility.
✅ Stimulating Creativity: Crafting gives children the freedom to experiment. As they work with different shapes, design from their imagination, or mix unusual colors, they’re developing their ability to create new ideas and alternative ways to express themselves and their feelings.
✅ Enhancing executive functioning skills: Crafting, as a form of structured play, naturally exercises the mental skills essential for planning, focusing attention, remembering instructions, and juggling multiple tasks. As children gather materials and follow steps, they practice planning and organization. The sustained concentration required to complete a project builds focus and attention. When challenges arise, like a pipe cleaner bending the wrong way or glue not holding, children learn flexible thinking and problem-solving. Even waiting for glue to dry or taking turns with popular materials becomes a self-regulation and impulse management practice. These executive function skills, honed through crafting, support their development and help them thrive in different environments. (Bastianoni, 2010)
✅ Incorporating Multisensory Learning: Crafting engages multiple senses – visual, tactile, and sometimes auditory. This multisensory approach activates more areas of the brain. A rich sensory experience supports learning. Engaging multiple senses activates different parts of the brain, enhances understanding, and makes it easier for children to grasp and retain information.
Social Skills Bloom at the Craft Table
Crafting in group settings is a powerful tool for fostering social skills among children. Children naturally cultivate communication abilities and emotional intelligence as they engage in creative activities together. The craft table becomes a safe space to express themselves freely while building lasting friendships in an inclusive environment.
Through shared creative experiences, children develop essential skills for navigating social interactions and resolving conflicts. Through sharing materials and ideas and learning the art of negotiation, the group setting provides rich opportunities to exchange thoughts, collaborate and enhance overall communication.
Moreover, crafting offers a unique avenue for developing empathy. Through creative expression, children explore and discuss emotions, helping them recognize and appreciate others’ feelings (Thomas, 2009). They develop resilience and patience as they navigate challenges in their projects, such as sharing materials or working together on ideas. This process of overcoming obstacles and celebrating achievements builds confidence and strengthens social bonds.
Crafting provides a unique opportunity for children to build essential social skills in a fun and engaging environment. Working together on creative projects teaches children to communicate, collaborate, and express themselves while developing empathy and resilience.
Ultimately, crafting is more than just an art activity; it’s a valuable tool (Smith, 2016) for fostering connections and nurturing friendships that last a lifetime.
Crafting Connections is excited to embrace this philosophy as they launch their program dedicated to supporting neurodivergent children through creative expression and social connection.
We invite parents and educators to recognize the profound impact that crafting can have on children’s development.
To learn more, visit Crafting Connections.
- References:
Bastianoni, R. (2010). The linguistic benefits of using crafts in TEYL. The International TEYL Journal. - Thomas, B. (2009). Creative coping skills for children: Emotional support through arts and crafts activities. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
- Page, T., & Thorsteinsson, G. (2018). The importance and benefits of practicing craft. Bulletin of Institute of Technology and Vocational Education, 32, 44.
- Fair, C., Vandermaas‐Peeler, M., Beaudry, R., & Dew, J. (2005). ‘I learned how little kids think’: third‐graders’ scaffolding of craft activities with preschoolers. Early Child Development and Care, 175(3), 229-241.
AUTHORS’ BIO
Dafna Barhad, BOT, OTD Candidate
Pediatric Occupational Therapist
Dafna’s experience includes over 20 years of working with neurodivergent children in developmental centers and private practice. She specializes in sensory processing and play-based interventions, while also guiding parents and educational teams to effectively support children’s growth. Dafna graduated with BOT from Tel-Aviv University and holds an associate degree in Psychodynamic Approaches with Children. During the last couple of years she has been facilitating social-emotional learning groups for younger populations at The Meeting House as well as pursuing her Doctorate in Occupational Therapy at Boston University.
Kim McGarvey, MSW
As a clinical social worker who specializes in infant and early childhood development, Kim received her Masters in Social Work from New York University and studied infant and parent development at Bank Street College of Education. She facilitates parent support groups and has directed afterschool programs. Kim has worked with infants, children and parents in hospital, school and mental health settings for 30 years. She has experience working with typically developing and neurodivergent children, as well as children with chronic illness. Kim was employed at The Meeting House as Director of the Juniors Afterschool program and served as the Associate Program Coordinator of the Pacella Parent Child Center at New York Psychoanalytic Institute.
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Craig Selinger
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