By: Jessica Wright
Halloween is jam-packed full of hands-on projects and crafts for kids of all ages. Unfortunately, many of these projects only entertain them for the half hour it takes to make them. This spider web allows kids to not only create something, but also play with it when it’s done. This project is also good for fine motor skills.
For this project, you’ll need….
For the Web
- Yarn
- Box – A square, adult shoebox or larger works best. You only want the edges and back, like a frame.
- Scissors
- Tape
For the Spiders
- Pipecleaner – 2 for each spider
- Bottle caps – Milk jug size work best
- Hot glue/gun
- Googly eyes – Optional
Let’s start with the web.
1. Take your box and use either the scissors, a pen, or a knife to poke the sides of the box full of holes. Make sure the holes go all the way through.
2. Cut the yarn into long pieces. I found that 3-4 feet is a good size. Depending on the size of your box, you may want to cut them longer.
3. Tape the ends of the yarn pieces so that they are easier to push through the holes.
4. Give the yarn to the kids and let them string it through the holes as they wish. You may need to tie the ends off for them so they can pull it tight.
While the kids are playing with the web, you can make the spiders. If the kids want to help with the spiders, you may want to try puffball spiders with craft glue, but these seem to hold up the best.
1. Plug in glue gun to get it warming up.
2. Cut the two pipecleaners in half.
3. Place all four pipecleaner pieces in the milk lid.
4. Coat the inside of the lid with hot glue. This will take a while to cool, but craft glue would take days.
5. **Optional: Glue eyes onto the spider once the legs are dry.
Now, the kids can continuously play with the spiders on the web! This is also a great opportunity to teach about how spiders have eight legs while insects have six, or how they make their webs. Be creative, and have fun!
