How to Make Toys

Make quick stuffed animals. Fold the fabric in half, draw an animal shape on the top layer, and cut through both layers to make two matching animal shapes. Place the shapes on top of each other with their right sides together, and sew most of the way around the edges. Turn right side out, stuff with stuffing, and sew up the hole. Draw or sew on a face if you want.

Make toys that make noise. All sorts of noisemakers can be quite simple to construct. Fill an empty food container with beans and glue it closed for a simple rattle, or fold a paper plate in half and fill with beans before stapling around the edges. Use an empty oatmeal container or similar large cylinder for a drum. Stretch rubber bands around an empty box with one side open, then snap the rubber bands to make noise. Fold waxed paper over the teeth of a comb to make a basic kazoo. Make as many instruments as you want, then decorate them with paint or other art supplies.

Make beanbags, which are fun to juggle, play catch with and use for target practice. Cut out several fabric rectangles. Line two pieces up with their right sides together, and sew around three sides of the rectangle. Turn right side out and fill with beans, then sew up the last side.

Make masks. Cut eye holes out of paper grocery bags or paper plates. If you use paper plates, punch a hole in the left edge and another in the right edge of the plate, then attach a string or ribbon through each hole to tie the mask on with. Let kids decorate the masks with crayons, paint or markers, and by gluing on extra pieces like ears cut out of paper.

Make books. Place several sheets of blank paper on top of a sheet of construction paper. Fold the pile in half with the construction paper on the outside, then staple in several places along the folded edge. Write the story and put in the pictures yourself, or give the blank books to kids and let them take over the project.