30 arts and crafts ideas for toddlers of 2 and 3 years

Keeping toddlers entertained is hard but rewarding work so before we take you through our crafts for 3 year olds we just want to say well done to all parents! You're all doing a great job. Now let's get on to the good stuff - crafts to do with your 2 and 3 year olds. Painting, building and crafting, in general, are great for building toddlers motor skills and helping their vocabulary to develop. The benefits of getting messy with your toddlers are huge and not to mention a lovely bonding activity. It's important to choose craft activities that are suitable and designed for toddlers. Many craft boxes and sets include small species which can be a choking hazard which is why we've collected these crafts for toddlers that are safe, fun and educational. All the crafts in this blog post are parent-approved and toddler tested! Plus many of the crafts below are budget-friendly and use items already in your craft stash like pipe cleaners.

We've also collected a whole bunch of craft ideas for kids and a list of crafts for teens so you can keep the whole family entertained throughout the summer holidays. But for now, here's some crafts for toddlers that will start to feed your little one's creativity and curiosity.

Crafts for 2 and 3 year olds

Playdough

Playdough is a great craft for toddlers because it's easy for little hands to manipulate and squish. Make your own playdough for your toddlers to play with The Imagination Tree's recipe. It's made from natural materials meaning it's completely safe if it accidentally strays into little mouths!

Mosaics

Crafts for 3 year olds don't come simpler than this mosaic kit. It's a step up from colouring in and will test your toddlers colour matching and sticking skills. There's six colourful characters for them to decorate and over 400 sticky foam pads to get creative with (a safer alternative to glue!)

Egg carton flowers

Affordable crafts for toddlers are a parents dream! I Hearts and Craft's egg carton flowers are a cheap, cheerful activity that uses materials from around the house to create something cute. Stick their flower creations to a card and give to granny and grandpa as an Easter card.

Sewing and colouring kits

Etsy, £8.50

Your toddler will love colouring in these friendly woodland creatures and with a little supervision, you can teach them to sew too! It comes with a plastic needle, colourful thread, pens - plus you can choose what woodland animal you'd like. This is a wonderful craft for 3 year olds because it will help them to develop their motor skills.

Suncatcher

Get the kids glueing and sticking with our easy to follow sun catcher tutorial. It's the perfect craft for toddlers and can be made on a rainy afternoon. We also have a video tutorial for this craft if you need a little extra help.

Finger Painting

Buy now from Etsy, £24.08

Painting is a great way for toddlers to practice coordination, ready for when they start to hold pens and pencils. This painting kit is all about using their hands and getting messy!

Stamps

Stamps are a traditional yet fab craft for toddlers. You can buy stamp kits from all over the web or you can make some yourself using Mollie Makes' how to make a rubber stamp tutorial. Turn old rubbers into your kids favourite animals and help them to start stamping.

Colouring pages

Mollie Makes' free printable colouring pages are suitable for both adults and toddlers. Sit down on a rainy afternoon with them and let them colour in these friendly little faces.

Paper plate crafts

There's plenty of crafts for toddlers that use just paper plates. Swans, elephants and even bees can be made from this household item! Not Toy Gifts have this lovely bumblebee tutorial up on their blog.

Flower printing

Another craft for toddlers that uses simple items. Learning 4 Kids explain the benefits of flower printing on their blog but we love it because it's such a simple activity that uses minimal equipment!

Handprint puppets

Follow Baker Ross' tutorial to make these handprint sea life puppets. Use your toddler's hands to create their favourite animal then put of a puppet show with their new creations.

Jewellery making

These easy thread wooden beads make the cutest craft for toddlers ever. Get them to practice shapes and colours as well as threading with this affordable kit from Amazon.

Natural collaging

Head out in nature with this easy craft for toddlers. Collaging is a great way of letting your kids explore different textures and understand the natural world. Mother Nature has some great natural suggestions for your collage so you can skip all the sequins and glitter and pick a more eco-friendly approach.

Paper weaving

Baker Ross, £5.95

Practice weaving with your toddlers using these colourful paper fish. The kit comes with everything you need to make these rainbow creatures.

DIY wind chimes

This is a fab craft if you have kids of multiple ages. Get the older ones covering the yoghurt pots with the tissue paper and threading the bells through and get the younger ones to paint the outside. Petit Fernand have loads of crafts for toddlers and older children on their blog.

Fire breathing dragon

Toilet rolls can be turned into a huge range of crafts for 3 years olds. Even a fire-breathing dragon! Use Baker Ross' tutorial to make this firey creature and check out our toilet roll crafts for more easy crafts for toddlers.

Moving snail

Colour in this friendly snail with your toddler then use Arty Crafty Kids' tutorial to create this peek a boo snail.

Handprint ornament

This glittery salt dough handprint would make a sweet keepsake gift for someone special. Use our easy recipe for salt dough and simple dip their hands in.

Bubble painting

Toddlers (and older siblings too) will love making these bubble prints using a mixture of washing-up liquid and paint. Find the tutorial at Happiness is Homemade.

Marbled paper

Make beautiful marbled patterns using just shaving foam and paint. Alice and Lois explain how it’s done.

Superhero mask

What kid doesn’t want to be a superhero? With these free printable mask templates from Itsy Bitsy Fun your toddlers can create their own costume.

Boredom buster jar

The idea for when you’ve run out of ideas! Get your little one to decorate a jar, then fill it with strips of paper suggesting fun activities they can try. Great for rainy days – and you can tailor it to their age and interests too. Find the tutorial at 5 Minute Fun.

Palm printers

£4.20, Early Learning Centre

These paint printers have elastic strips on the back so toddlers can wear them on their hands – let the messy, crafty play begin!

Sticker book

When you’re on the go or need a quick no-prep creative activity, why not make fun farmyard scenes with this Usborne sticker book, which comes with more than 130 stickers? Crafts for 2 years olds don't have to be complicated.

Reindeer Christmas cards

It’s never too early to start making handmade Christmas cards! We can’t resist this sweet footprint reindeer from Emma Owl.

Foam jewellery

£7.50, Early Learning Centre

Help toddlers make their own bracelets, necklaces and more with this foam jewellery kit.

Oobleck

Part craft, part science… all fun! Little ones will enjoy creating this strange substance, colouring it with food dyes and exploring what happens when they give it a squish. Find the tutorial for making and painting with oobleck at Babble Dabble Do.

Etsy, £15How cute are crafts for toddlers that mimick adult crafts!? We love this mini block printing kit for kids on Etsy. You can turn their creations into cards after too.

Kinetic Sand

Kinetic sand is super fun for toddlers to play with. Follow our how to make kinetic sand tutorial and then make little scenes, shapes and even write words into the sand with them.

Chalk art

We're going old school with this craft for toddlers. Let them get creative on the walls of the house or patio with these fun chalk art ideas.

We hope you've enjoyed our arts and crafts for toddlers round up! Be sure to check out our free craft patterns for adults too. We've also got a range of easy Halloween crafts for kids and even some homemade gifts for teachers ideas.