Red Tarts

You’ll need:
2 cups flour
2/3 cup shortening
4 tablespoons water
Dash of salt
Jam

Cream the flour and shortening together. Stir in the salt and water. Make small balls of the dough and press it into a muffin tin. Bake at 350 degrees F for eight to 10 minutes or until slightly golden brown. Let them cool and drop in 1 to 2 tablespoons of jam. Serve with a strawberry milkshake for a fun Valentine’s Day snack.

Strawberry Milkshake

You’ll need:
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons chopped fresh strawberries or 1 tablespoon strawberry jam
Pinch of sugar
Ice (optional)

Mix four to five ice cubes, if desired. Pour into a tall glass with a straw and enjoy your cool shake.

Handmade Print Cards
This can be a messy project, so have your child put on an old T-shirt or an apron. Adult supervision is recommended so you don’t have red or pink handprints in places they don’t belong!

You’ll need:
Red and pink paint
One 1-inch paintbrush
Construction paper
Paper towels

Fold the construction paper in half to make a card. Have your child fold one sheet for each card he wants to make. Put the folded cards aside, then help your child paint the inner side of both his hands with either the red or pink paint. Carefully place the left hand on the construction paper in a northwest position and the right hand in a northeast position. Make sure to put both palms on top of each other. The handprints will form a heart. Let the card dry completely, then help your child write a message inside the card. Dried or pressed flowers also can be placed inside the card.

Preschool Poetry

You’ll need:
Paper
Pen

Older preschoolers are starting to get a sense for words. They are practicing their newfound skills of saying words that sound alike, or twisting and turning them to make them sound the same. Valentine’s Day is a wonderful time to introduce this classic rhyming poem to your child:

"Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Sugar is sweet
And so are you!"

Sit with your child and change the colors and flowers to make a new poem. By changing the colors of the flowers, you’ll have to find new rhyming words. If the words are funny or don’t make sense, that’s OK. Have fun! Be in tune with your child’s efforts to make a rhyme. Some children will make only one and some will make five or six. The introduction of similar sounding words should be your only goal here – besides having fun with your child!

Potpourri Heart Frame

You’ll need:
A cardboard box
A pencil
Scissors
Glue
A bag of potpourri
Ribbon

Trace a heart shape onto the cardboard and cut it out. Make the heart big enough to fit a 4-inch by 6-inch picture. Trace a smaller heart inside the big heart to be used as your frame opening. Attach a ribbon to the heart to be used later as a hanger. Let your child apply glue on the heart, then have him “hide” the glue by covering it with pieces of the potpourri. Make a pretty bow from the ribbon and glue it onto the heart. Let the frame dry for at least 24 hours. Attach a photo of your child to the back of the frame.

Valentine Animals

You’ll need:
Construction paper
Scissors
Glue

Cut out lots of hearts in different sizes from the construction paper. Give your child a piece of construction paper and show him how to make animals using the hearts. For example, one big heart for the body, one medium heart for the head and many smaller hearts for the eyes, nose, mouth, ears, hands and feet. Once dry, let him use markers or crayons and add more details to his animals. Let him be creative and come up with all sorts of strange animals.

Hanging Heart

You’ll need:
Red and pink pipe cleaners
Ribbon scraps
Thread

Take a red and a pink pipe cleaner and twist them around each other from top to bottom. When done, form it into the shape of a heart. Tie different pieces of ribbon to the heart so they hang down. Attach a piece of thread to the top for hanging. Let your child make lots of these hearts and tie them to a wooden dowel or a small tree branch to make a heart mobile.

Friendship Stick

You’ll need:
An unsharpened pencil
Yarn
Glue
Ribbon, feathers, beads and other small items for decoration

Take a piece of yarn and tie it to the end of the pencil. Add a dab of glue to secure. Carefully wrap the yarn around the pencil until the whole pencil is covered. Tie a knot at the other end and secure with a dab of glue. Attach feathers, beads, ribbons or other charms to the pencil to create a Friendship Stick. Let your child give it to a friend. Make sure he tells them that it brings good luck to the one who receives it and to the one who made it.

Want to see more?

• Crafts from Trash
• Understand Toddlers’ Drawings
• Get Out of the House and Make Each Day an Adventure!
• Talk about it!