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Every so often, we go through phases where we get really into using certain craft materials and we’ll use them over and over again.
That happens to be the case right now with egg cartons and we have been finding fun new ways to reuse them for the past week or two.
They’re just so easy to create with and reusing them gives you the perfect opportunity to teach your child all about recycling.
Our current obsession with them started with just such a project. One that fit perfectly into our bumblebee theme unit.
These adorable little guys are so much fun to make and really, what kid doesn’t love to paint?
For this project, you’ll need to plan ahead and save a cardboard egg carton. On top of that, you’ll need:
- Yellow and black paint
- Pipe cleaners
- Googly eyes
- Scissors
- Paintbrush
First, let your child decide how long they want their bumblebee to be and cut your egg carton.
Then get to painting! At this point, we pulled out a few pictures of bumblebees so that we could look at their stripes for a little inspiration. It’s also a fun way to work on patterns with your preschooler.
Once your bumblebee’s body is dry, grab the pipe cleaners. We used a black pipe cleaner for the antenna and the stinger and decided on a yellow one for the wings but you could easily personalize each of your bumblebees by changing up the color of their wings.
For the antenna and the stinger, cut two pipe cleaners in half. Take the first two halves and set them aside for your antenna. With the second pipe cleaner, cut one half in half again. You’ll use one of those quarters for your stinger.
Using your scissors, poke two holes in the top of your bumblebees head and thread your pipe cleaners in. To make sure they stay, turn your bee upside down and bend the part you threaded through over to hold it in place. Bend the tops to give them that curved look and go ahead and give your little guy a couple of eyes.
Use your scissors to poke another hole in the end of your bumblebee and thread the stinger through. Repeat the bending process inside the egg carton to make sure it stays in place.
Finally, poke two holes, one in the middle of each side of your bee, for your wings. For each wing, take a pipe cleaner and create a tear drop shape by bending it in half and twist the ends together. Thread the ends through your holes and repeat on the other side.
Now your bumblebee is ready to fly and your preschooler has a new found appreciation for things that normally would just get thrown away :)
