Our Friends at Helping Hands

Working with the kids is rewarding and always such a treat. Seeing them delight in their own abilities is precious beyond words! Samantha, Amanda and I feel very lucky that PaperTrailsNJ is catching on with the little ones! Of course we have their parents to thank!

We thought we would do a Halloween morning of fun, but the parents voted on our kids selfies! The kids ranging from 18 months to 4 years old presented a challenge for us with this particular craft. We were concerned would it work, would it come out ok? We designed bigger pieces for our little friends and pre-made the kits so that each one had their very own choices of pieces to make their selfie with! This was doable because we were able to see what they looked like beforehand. Choosing the pieces ahead would still leave them plenty of creativity in making their selfie, but with the hope it might somewhat resemble themselves and we could have them complete their selfie in the allotted time we were given.

Arriving at the Family Care Center is so much fun because the kids are so happy to see us. One thing that is certain is that they all love the glue sticks! Initially, they really like to draw or paint with them! It’s adorable to watch their little hands manipulate the glue stick, but at the same time we were concerned if the parents would appreciate the final product! They feel like the glue is artwork! After awhile they got interested in gluing their “selfie” pieces to where they belonged i.e./where is your nose, hair, mouth, eyes...SOOO cute!

When we introduced the kids to washi tape- Oh boy! They loved it to play with and then decorate their selfies with it! It is always interesting to see how our craft designs get the kids involved and puts them in a calm, deep-thinking kind of mood. They really don't ask questions..they know what they want to do with their very own masterpieces!

I would have to say it was another fun-filled day with Helping Hands! When kids hug you goodbye, you know you have done your job.