Table of contents for Winter 2024 in Creative Steps

The latest Ofsted report, "Research and Analysis: Best Start in Life," sheds light on critical insights regarding early childhood development, with a particular emphasis on the role of play in shaping a child’s future. As the report highlights, the early years are pivotal in laying the foundation for a child’s cognitive, social, and emotional growth. Central to this development is the concept of play, which Ofsted identifies as a key driver of learning during the formative years. Play, according to the report, is not only a source of enjoyment but also a crucial tool for developing key skills such as problem-solving, language acquisition, and emotional regulation. The report underscores that children learn best when they are actively engaged in playful, hands-on experiences, as these interactions help them make sense of…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ Newspaper■ Masking Tape■ PVA glue■ Glue brush■ Paints■ Paintbrushes■ Coloured card■ Scissors■ Pencil■ Ribbon or string■ Sticky tape 1 To make the reindeer, scrunch up a sheet of newspaper into a ball. Wrap 2 or 3 more sheets over the top, press again into a tight ball. Cover the whole ball with masking tape to make a smooth, round shape. To make a penguin, press the newspaper into an egg shape for the body. 2 Sit the ball on small bowl or container (like a yogurt pot) to stop it rolling around. Brush with paint and leave to dry. 3 Paint eyes and a mouth, or glue on card cut outs. Glue card antlers and ears for the reindeer with a tissue paper ball or pompom nose…

LOLLY STICK TREES STORE CUPBOARD ■ Plain lolly sticks■ Green paint & brushes■ Different coloured paint for decoration■ Small decorations such as self-adhesive gems, small pompoms, snowflake confetti & star sequins■ PVA glue or glue gun (adult use only!)■ Thin ribbon for hanging■ Sticky tape (optional) 1 Paint lots of lolly sticks with green paint. Paint one side first, leave to dry and then paint the other. The paint dries really quickly so this won’t take long. 2 Using either PVA glue or a glue gun, take the green lolly sticks and join them together in the shape of a triangle. If you are using PVA glue, you might have to hold the sticks together for a moment to make sure they join together really well. 3 When the sticks…

1 Draw a gingerbread man outline onto an A4 brown envelope. 2 Carefully cut it out to make 2 matching shapes. 3 Decorate one of the gingerbread cut outs with painted patterns. Use a small brush for wavy lines or zigzags. Print dots with cotton buds dipped in paint. Leave to dry. Leave the other shape unpainted. 4 Brush a small amount of glue down the middle of the body and along the arms and legs of the unpainted gingerbread shape. Stick small pieces of bubble wrap or cotton wool on top as padding, keeping at least 2cm clear around the edge. 5 Brush glue all the way around the padded shape right up to the edges, then carefully press the painted gingerbread man over the top. Stick the two…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ 2 cardboard cups■ Scissors■ Pencil■ Parcel tape (or any wide packaging tape)■ Paints■ Brushes 1 Carefully make a hole in the bottom of two sturdy cardboard cups, use scissors to open out the holes to 3-4cm, trim off the card. The holes help make a louder sound on the finished drum. 2 Tape the two cups together, end to end with the holes in the middle. 3 Cover one of the open tops with strips of packaging tape. Add more pieces until you have 2 or 3 layers and no gaps. Leave the other end open. 4 Paint the sides with stripes and patterns, leave to dry. ■ A Kwanzaa ceremony often includes drumming and music. Sometimes drumming is used to begin the festivities. HINTS & TIPS…

Shooting Star STORE CUPBOARD ■ Brown card■ Yellow, orange, cerise and blue foam■ Orange and red star stickers■ Glittery letter stickers■ Black fine liner pen■ Strong glue■ Scissors 1 Make a brown square card. 2 Cut out the parts of the star from foam. 3 Stick star stickers to the front of the yellow star. Use a red and orange star. 4 Glue the star and the tail to the card. 5 Stick the words "New Year" to the front of the card with foam stickers. 6 With a fine liner pen, draw on stars. 2025 Card Make a pale green card. Cut out a silver star and a purple star. Glue them to the top of the card. Cut out "2025" from foam (or use foam stickers). Stick to…

Body Detective! Decode Your Sensory Signals Janet Krauthamer & Christiane Engel £10.99 (BB) www.barefootbooks.com What does it mean when your tummy makes funny noises or when goosebumps appear on your skin? Your body is telling you that you're hungry or cold! Learn all about sensory signals and how your brain and body communicate through interactive, playful riddles in this STEM-filled book. Age 4 years + We say… With interactive pull-tabs, this clever book introduces children to understanding their body and encourages mindfulness The Kawaii Princess Drawing & Activity Book www.tuttlepublishing.com £11.99 (PB) Have hours of fun learning to draw cute manga-style princesses by tracing the outlines provided, colouring them in, and then drawing them yourself on the practice pages. Take a princess quiz, cut out adorable cards and envelopes, learn…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ Handful of onion skins■ Small saucepan with lid■ Water■ Slotted spoon■ Small sieve■ Jar with lid 1 Put the skins into the pan with just enough water to cover them. Place the lid on and simmer over a gentle heat for 15 minutes.Ask an adult to help when using the hob and hot water. 2 Take the pan off the heat and leave it overnight. The longer you wait, the richer the colour will become. 3 Remove the skins using the slotted spoon and pop them in a compost bin if you have one. Drain the liquid through the sieve into the jar, and seal. This project is taken from Make Art with Nature: Find Inspiration and Materials From Nature by Pippa Pixley published by DK, £14.99.…

WOBBLE BOARD The wobble board is a musical instrument made from a hardboard sheet. It originates in Australia and is really easy to make and great fun to play! Here we use the traditional aboriginal technique of dot painting to decorate our board. STORE CUPBOARD ■ Mount board■ Paints in natural earth tones■ Cotton buds■ Plastic dish■ Pencil■ Newspaper 1 Put newspaper down to protect your work surface from paint spills. Sketch a simple design on the sheet of mount board. Leave some large sections of blank space if you want to avoid painting the whole sheet. 2 Using a variety of colours, place blobs of paint into the plastic dish. Dip the cotton wool buds into the paint and start creating your design. Leave to dry when complete. To play…

CRAFT Buddy unwraps festive fun with kits that spark joy this Christmas! As the festive season approaches, Craft Buddy have a wonderful range of holiday products that celebrate creativity, family connection, and the joy of screen-free time. Continuing the festive fun, new for this year are the innovative 2-in-1 Festive Crystal Art® Hanging Buddies featuring six adorable characters, including Santa, Angel, Snowman, Reindeer, Gnome and Soldier. Freestanding or with hanging string, ideal for displaying on your tree, these iconic Buddies will add a special hand-made touch to Christmas and make a perfect stocking filler at £4.99. In time for Advent 2024, Craft Buddy launches its first Crystal Art® Advent Calendar Tree. Discover the joy of 24 daily surprises. Each day adds a sparkling opportunity to crystalise decorations for the 40cm…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ 4 green paper cups (or paint white cups with green paint)■ Cone shaped party hat■ Small pom-poms■ Green paint■ Medium paintbrush■ Star sticker■ Scissors■ Ruler■ Pencil■ Strong glue■ Skewer Quick Tree 1 Cut the rim off a cup. 2 Cut upwards to make fringing. 3 Paint the top of the cup green and leave to dry. 4 Stick on a star sticker. 5 Stick on red gemstones. 6 Put a cup inside the fringed cup. Tall Tree 1 Take 3 paper cups and cut off the white rim around the bottom of the cups (Adult assistance required). 2 Cut the 1st cup upwards to make the look of fringing for a fir tree. 3 Measure 2cm from the bottom of the 2nd cup and cut around the…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ Large and small plastic cups/baking bowls■ Water■ Festive items (e.g. small pinecones, red berries, orange slices, mini ornaments, colorful beads)■ Pebbles (to weigh down the small cup)■ Food colouring (optional)■ Battery-operated tea light■ Freezer 1 Place the small plastic cup inside the larger one. 2 Add a few pebbles to the small cup to keep it from floating. 3 Arrange the festive items in the gap between the cups. 4 Fill the gap with water. 5 Add food colouring if desired (optional). 6 Freeze until solid. 7 Place a tea light in the center to enjoy the frozen glow. 8 Optionally, release the ice candle from the molds and transfer it to a shallow bowl to catch melting water, allowing children to observe the light as the…

Is That Paras’ Place of Worship? Sukhbinder Kaur and Rajpal Singh rrp £10.99 (BB) www.sharecharityuk.com Let’s go on another sensory journey with Paras and his friend Pete as they go in search for Paras’ place of worship. With a range of textures and bright pictures, this is a stimulating book for little hands to explore. Age 1 year + We say… The latest Paras adventure for little ones to help understand the various places people go to worship Whole Whale Karen Yin & Nelleke Verhoeff £10.99 (BB) www.barefootbooks.com No one likes to be left out! Young readers will giggle with delight as one hundred unusual animals try to squeeze into the oversized pages of this raucous rhyming tale. “But can we fit a whole blue whale?” is repeated throughout, as…

The world’s largest school wildlife survey returns, with tens of thousands of school children watching and counting the UK’s birds for the RSPB’s Big Schools’ Birdwatch. Over 95,000 school children and teachers took part in 2024, counting more than 135,000 thousand birds. The Birdwatch – which takes place during the first half of the Spring term (7 January – 14 February) – is a chance for children to participate in a UK-wide citizen science project and generate real life data. The Birdwatch involves children watching and counting the birds that visit their school grounds or outdoor space, before sending the results to the RSPB. With over a million school children taking part since its launch in 2002, the RSPB Big Schools’ Birdwatch has become a much-loved annual event, that helps…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ Cardboard plate■ Pencil■ Red paint■ Gold card■ Thick black pen■ Scissors■ Glue■ Ribbon or string■ Sticky tape 1 Draw around a cardboard plate onto the reverse side of some gold card (or use a piece of plain card painted with gold paint). Draw a snake shape using the circle outline as a guide then cut it out. 2 Paint the cardboard plate red. Leave it to dry. 3 Draw 2025 numbers, cut them out. It’s easier to cut into the ‘0’ from the edge to make a hole in the middle. 4 Draw eyes and patterns on the snake with a black marker pen. Outline the numbers in black. Glue the snake onto the plate with the numbers in the middle. Leave to dry. Tape a ribbon…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ Large red pom-pom■ 6 purple and red medium pom-poms■ 10 small pink and purple pom-poms■ Purple pipe cleaner■ Red felt■ Large wiggly eyes■ Green foam■ Green marker pen■ Strong glue■ Scissors 1 Cut a pipe cleaner into 3 pieces to create 2 antennae 6cm each and a 3cm mouth (ask an adult for assistance if required). 2 Cut two small red hearts from felt. 3 Glue the medium pom-poms together to form a line and then glue the line to the red head pom-pom. 4 Stick the small pom-poms to the medium pom-poms to make feet. 5 Glue the red hearts to the purple antennae. 6 Put glue on the ends of the antennae and push into the red head. 7 Bend the mouth pipe cleaner section…

There’s No Such Thing as a Silly Question Mike Rampton & Guilherme Karsten £18.99 (HB) www.nosycrow.com Covering a range of subjects from science, technology, engineering and mathematics to evolution, zoology, social history and more, this hilarious yet clever book expertly answers 213 of the most unusual and interesting questions you never thought to ask about the world. Age 8 years + We say… Hilarious, fascinating and weird! A perfect book for inquisitive minds The Kids Book of Craft Love Irene Smit and Astrid Van der Hulst £16.99 (PB) www.workman.com Filled to the brim with engaging activities that invite the reader to tear out pages, cut and paste, assemble, sticker, build, and turn the two-dimensional sheets into three-dimensional wonders. Make gift boxes, a paper flower bouquet, a woodland scene for your…

Pom-Pom Creatures STORE CUPBOARD ■ Cardboard (old packaging etc)■ Circular objects (in different sizes)■ Scissors■ Pen■ Wool■ Felt offcuts■ Wiggly eyes 1 On your cardboard draw around your largest curcular object (we used a drinking glass) and create another smaller circle within this (we used an egg cup). Cut out your 'doughnut' shape, and use as a template to create another. (A template is provided at the back of the magazine). 2 Put your two cardboard rings together and then start wrapping the wool through the centre hole and around the outer edge of the ring. 3 Once the whole ring is covered, cut through the outer edge of the wool, between the two cardboard ring layers. 4 Push a piece of wool between the two layers of card and…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ Lolly sticks■ Ruler■ PVA glue■ Glue brush■ Ribbon or string■ Paints■ Paintbrushes 1 To make a star, start by making 5 points from 10 lolly sticks. To make each point, glue 2 sticks together into a triangle with the open ends 8-10cm apart. Check all 5 points are the same size, adjusting the angles if you need to then leave the glue to dry. 2 Arrange the 5 points into a star shape, glue the ends then stick them together with the ends overlapping. Adjust the position if you need to before the glue dries to make an even star shape. Carefully press the points where the ends overlap so they stick together. 3 Make another star in the same way. Glue one star on top of…

When I was a young boy, an unusual pink, white, and black bird flew in front of me. Later, I learned it was a hoopoe,and seeing it started my life-long passion for birds. After reading this book, I hope you will love them as much as I do! Birds are brilliant. They are masters of the air and the only animals alive today with feathers. In fact, the first animals with feathers were dinosaurs, from which birds are descended. And that means every single bird is a living dinosaur, which is pretty mind-boggling! Birds lead fascinating lives, full of drama. They eat just about everything imaginable, sing beautifully, build fabulous nests, make friends, dance acrobatically, dive deep underwater, play tricks on each other, and even use tools. Best of all,…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ Black card■ Red card■ Gold paper■ White paper■ Pencil■ Glue■ Glue brush■ Scissors■ Ribbon or string 1 Draw the two snake shapes onto card then cut them out. Having two pieces makes it easier to make the coiled shape and arrange the snake in different positions. 2 Decorate the snakes with small triangles or strips of paper glued onto on the head and along the tail. Glue the snake in the middle of a black A4 background. 3 To make a border, fold a strip of gold paper in half, in half again and again. Cut the top and bottom edges into curves or zigzags then carefully open out the paper. Cut more strips in the same way then glue onto the background. 4 To make cut…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ Grey and white felt■ PVA glue■ White paint■ Medium paintbrush■ Twine or wool■ Black fine liner pen■ Pink felt tip pen■ Strong glue■ Scissors 1 Cut out the body and head from grey felt. 2 Cut out the top of the head from white felt. 3 Draw on the markings with a black fine liner pen. 4 With PVA glue, make blobs on the lamb's body and neck. Leave to dry. 5 Paint over the PVA glue with white paint and leave to dry. 6 Glue on the head and white fluffy top. 7 Colour in the insides of the ears with a pink felt tip pen. 8 Cut a piece of twine or wool and knot together and stick to the back of the neck. OTHER…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ A1 large sheet of green paper■ A1 large sheet of purple paper■ Green foam■ Scrap of red paper■ 2 eye stickers■ Black marker pen■ 2 skewers■ Black paint■ Medium paintbrush■ Long ruler■ Pencil■ Scissors■ Strong glue 1 Cut two strips from green paper, 3cm wide by 84cm long, and two from purple paper the same size. 2 Glue a green strip and a purple strip together at right angles. 3 Fold one strip over the other to make a concertina fold and do the same with the other two strips. 4 Glue the two concertina folded paper pieces together to make the snake’s body. 5 Cut out a head from the green foam and a tongue from red paper, then glue the head to the body, attach…

STORE CUPBOARD ■ A4 white card■ Orange and grey paints■ Medium paintbrush■ Black felt tip pen & black fine liner pen■ Felt tip pen in red and green■ Eye stickers■ Scissors■ Craft knife■ Piece of cardboard or cutting mat Dog Card Make the dog card in the same way. Paint grey and add dashes of black pen to give the look of fur. Leave the muzzle white. This time add sleepy eye stickers and a shiny blue envelope. Cat Card 1 Fold a sheet of white card in half. 2 Cut out a cat shape and tail. Cut the cat against the fold and through both pieces of card. 3 Paint the front of the card orange, leaving the feet white. Leave to dry. 4 Draw round the feet with…