Pipe Cleaners - Page 3 of 16

The Egg Carton Bridge Weaver

Steps:

Flip your empty egg carton upside down on the table.
Use your markers to draw small dots on the very top of each egg cup.
Adult step: Use scissors to poke a small, narrow hole through each marker dot.
Give your child a pipe cleaner and ask them to push one end into a hole.
Encourage them to bend the pipe cleaner over to a different egg cup.
Have them push the other end into a second hole to make a bridge.
Continue adding pipe cleaners to create a crisscross web over the peaks.
Challenge them to see how many colorful bridges they can build without any collapsing!

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child when they are using scissors or pipe cleaners to avoid pokes.

The Fuzzy Button Link

Steps:

Select several colorful pipe cleaners and a handful of large buttons.
Show your child how to thread a pipe cleaner through a button hole.
Ask them to pull it halfway and twist the end to secure it.
Have them thread the other end through a hole in another button.
Continue connecting buttons with pipe cleaners to form a long link chain.
Challenge your child to see how many links they can add to the chain!

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child during play as buttons and pipe cleaners can be a choking hazard.

The Cup Ring Connector

Steps:

Use markers to draw three colorful dots around the rim of each paper cup.
Hold the cup steady with your helper hand while you use the hole puncher.
Squeeze the puncher hard to make a hole right on top of each marker dot.
Take a pipe cleaner and slide it through a hole in the first cup.
Slide the other end of the pipe cleaner into a hole in a second cup.
Twist the ends of the pipe cleaner together to lock the cups together!
Keep adding more cups and pipe cleaners to build a long, bendy cup train.

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child while using a hole puncher to prevent finger pinches. Check pipe cleaner ends for sharpness before play.

The Beaded Rainbow Arch

Steps:

Roll two large balls of playdough into thick cloud shapes.
Place the clouds about six inches apart on a flat table.
Select a pipe cleaner and a handful of matching beads.
Have your child slide the beads onto the pipe cleaner one by one.
Push one end of the wire deep into the first playdough cloud.
Bend the wire into a curve and push the other end into the second cloud.
Repeat this for every color of the rainbow!

Safety Tip:
Adult supervision is required. Beads and pipe cleaners are small and can be a choking hazard.

The Pipe Cleaner Reef Rescue

Steps:

Turn the egg carton upside down on the table.
Use markers to color each bump of the carton a different color.
Use the tip of your scissors to poke a small hole in the top of each bump.
Pick up a pipe cleaner and push it into one of the holes.
Bend the pipe cleaner so it looks like wavy seaweed.
Pick up a bead and slide it onto the pipe cleaner seaweed.
Repeat this for all the holes until your reef is full of color!

Safety Tip:
Adult supervision is required when using scissors. These should only be used to poke the holes. Beads are a choking hazard; keep them away from younger children and pets.