Free
45 mins
Ages 5+
Envelope wall tidy
Stick old envelopes onto a covered piece of cardboard box and hang it up for pens, hair clips and treasures.
Crafts and slime
Upcycled desk tidy
Cover a few empty bottles and kitchen roll tubes in wrapping paper, stick them on a cardboard base, and you've got a desk tidy with a pot for every pen, pencil and paintbrush. It's a good one for back-to-school or a homemade present.
Ages5+
Time45 mins
CostFree
MessLow mess
WhereIndoors
What you need
Grown-ups should cut the plastic bottles, as the cut edges can be sharp. Cover any rough edges with tape.
Let's go
Cover the cardboard square with wrapping paper, folding it over the edges and taping it underneath.
A grown-up cuts the tops off the plastic bottles so they're a good height for pens. Cut one of the tubes in half so you have pots of different heights.
Wrap each bottle and tube in wrapping paper and tape it in place, tucking the extra paper inside the top.
Stand them on the base, tallest at the back, and stick them down with strong glue.
Leave to dry, then fill with pens, pencils, scissors, rulers and paintbrushes.
Real talk
- Use the kids' own drawings or comic pages instead of wrapping paper.
- Add a small box or a jar lid for paper clips, rubbers and sharpeners.
- Make one for a teacher or grandparent and fill it with new pencils.
Back to school?
Library events and museum learning days are a great free way to get them excited about a new term.
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