Use Stickers to Encourage Creativity on 2 Levels

First, let me explain that my kids love "projects." We use that word in our home to describe any focused art (loosely speaking) activity. Last night when my 3 year olds were getting especially wild, I asked if they wanted to do a project. Presto! They stopped in their tracks and ran to their table and sat down. So far, so good.

Next, a problem. Mom hadn't thought far enough ahead to realize that she had no project for them. Ummm....aha! We had recently gotten each of them a  Melissa & Doug Sticker Collection Book. Like most 3 year olds, mine are sticker crazy! Since I know they love stickers this was sure to be fun for them. 

We had one boy version of the sticker collection book and one girl version.  I had never seen all the pages of the sticker collection books before because they come sealed. I was happily surprised that so many stickers came in each book...and each sticker was a good size. Better yet, the stickers came in themes by page. In the pink sticker collection book there were dogs & cats, farm animals, ballerinas, flowers & butterflies, fashion dress up, tea party and more! In the blue sticker collection book there were dinosaurs, pirates, knights, bugs, construction vehicles, race cars, jungle animals, emergency vehicles, sports, and more! Each book was very impressive!

The Sticker Project Part I:

Have the child choose a sticker and put it on a piece of construction paper. Repeat until the paper is full. This part of the project encourages them to make choices on their own, create their own "theme", and arrange their stickers in a way that's creatively pleasing to them.

I was glad that we used construction paper because it allowed us to peel up some of the stickers are rearrange them. They aren't reusable stickers but you can lift them once or twice without ripping them if you use construction paper.

The Sticker Project Part II:

Use the completed sticker artwork for story time! This part of the project allows your child to use their imagination to create unique stories, learn new vocabulary words, practice taking turns (with you or another sibling), and practice speech & language skills.

Instead of our usual bedtime storybooks, last night we used the stickers to let them tell stories. I pulled out my daughter's sticker artwork and said "Why don't you point to something on here and tell me about it." That was all my daughter needed to go on and on and on. I'll admit her story was crazy. Something about a dog with a bone(those were stickers) and a roller coaster, eating meat, and picking flowers. I just smiled and said "Great!" 

Then it was my son's turn. He was more literal "That dog eating a bone and he eating a bone and then he eat the bone." "Wow! Great Story!" Then I took a turn too! We did this with both sticker artwork projects and they absolutely loved it. They asked to do more but their ogre Mom wanted them to go to bed so we agreed we'd do it again today! I'm even thinking of making these into a book for them and each night we can choose one of the pages to do our story telling!

If your child also loves stickers check these out
Sticker Collection Books by Melissa & Doug  800+ stickers for ONLY $3.99 per book!

I am sure that you will be happy with these stickers because of the size of each of them, the themes, the thickness of the paper, and the sheer quantity of stickers - 

These other sticker books are also available ON SALE for Only $3.99 each:
Alphabets & Numbers Sticker Collection Book

Fashion Sticker Collection Book

We're always looking for simple projects that: 

• Don't require many materials on hand
• Use imagination and encourage creativity
• Are appropriate for toddlers and/or preschool children

If you have a fun, easy project please tell us about it in comments!