Winter is the perfect time to cozy up indoors and let creativity flow with some hands-on crafting. Winter tree crafts are a fantastic way to celebrate the season while keeping toddlers and preschoolers engaged in meaningful activities. These crafts not only inspire creativity but also help develop fine motor skills, sensory exploration, and imaginative thinking.
In this post, we’ll share 10 exciting winter tree crafts for kids, toddlers, and preschoolers. Each idea includes a list of materials, setup instructions, and reasons why you’ll love it. Let’s dive in!
By the way you can grab my free winter tree printable at the end of this post. Pro tip: these crafts looks amazing when you print the winter tree on blue construction paper.
Winter Tree Crafts for Kids
1. Puffy Paint Winter Tree
What You’ll Need:
- Tree printable (available for free below) or brown construction paper
- Blue or white construction paper
- Shaving cream
- White glue
- Bowl
- Paintbrushes
Setup:
Mix equal parts shaving cream and glue to create puffy paint. Print out the tree printable below on to blue construction paper or cut a tree trunk and branches shape out of brown construction paper. Glue it to a sheet of blue construction paper. Have your child paint fluffy “snow” on the branches using the puffy paint.
Why You’ll Love It:
This craft combines sensory play with artistic expression, creating a tactile and fun experience. Plus, the puffy texture dries into a unique 3D effect that kids will love.
2. Sensory Rice Winter Tree
What You’ll Need:
- Cardboard
- Tree printable (available for free below) or brown construction paper
- Blue construction paper
- White rice
- Glue
- Paint brush
Setup:
Print out the tree printable below on to blue construction paper or cut a tree trunk and branches shape out of brown construction paper or cardboard and glue it to a sheet of blue construction paper. Spread glue across the tree branches and have your child sprinkle rice on the branches and at the base to resemble snow.
Why You’ll Love It:
This activity engages your child’s senses while strengthening hand-eye coordination. The textured rice makes for a visually appealing and tactile project.
3. Tissue Paper Winter Tree
What You’ll Need:
- Tree printable (available for free below) or brown construction paper
- Blue or white construction paper
- White tissue paper
- Glue stick
Setup:
Print out the tree printable below on to blue construction paper or cut a tree trunk and branches shape out of brown construction paper or draw a tree trunk and branches on blue construction paper. Have your child crumple pieces of white tissue paper and glue them onto the branches to mimic snow.
Why You’ll Love It:
This craft is simple and perfect for toddlers. It encourages fine motor skill development through tearing and crumpling tissue paper.
4. Duplo Lego Printed Winter Tree
What You’ll Need:
- Tree printable (available for free below) or brown construction paper
- White or blue cardstock
- White washable paint
- Duplo Lego bricks
Setup:
Dip the side with the studs of Duplo bricks into white paint and stamp them on the paper to create the snow on the tree.
Why You’ll Love It:
This creative idea uses everyday toys for crafting, making it an exciting and familiar activity for kids.
5. Sponge Painted Winter Tree
What You’ll Need:
- Tree printable (available for free below) or brown construction paper
- Sponges
- White washable paint
- Construction paper
Setup:
Cut sponges into small square shapes. Dip them into paint and let your child stamp snow and tree trunks onto the paper.
Why You’ll Love It:
Sponge painting is easy, fun, and mess-free with proper preparation. Kids love the freedom of stamping their designs onto the page.
6. Paper Plate Winter Tree
What You’ll Need:
- Paper plate
- Blue paint
- Paint brushes
- Cotton balls
- Glue
- Brown construction paper
Setup:
Paint the paper plate blue. Set aside to dry. Cut a tree trunk and branches shape out of brown construction paper. Glue to the paper plate. Have your child glue cotton balls onto the tree branches to create fluffy snow.
Why You’ll Love It:
This craft is affordable and easy to set up, making it ideal for toddlers and preschoolers alike.
7. Q-Tip Painted Winter Tree
What You’ll Need:
- Tree printable (available for free below) or brown construction paper
- Q-tips
- White paint
- Construction paper
Setup:
Print out the tree printable below on to blue construction paper or cut a tree trunk and branches shape out of brown construction paper and glue it to another sheet of construction paper. Let your child dip Q-tips into white paint and dot the branches to create snow.
Why You’ll Love It:
This activity helps toddlers practice precision and fine motor skills, and the finished product is beautiful.
8. Sticky Wall Winter Tree
What You’ll Need:
- Clear contact paper
- Brown construction paper
- Cotton balls
Setup:
Stick a piece of contact paper, sticky side out, to a wall or window. Cut out a tree trunk and branches from brown paper and stick them to the contact paper. Let your child add cotton balls to represent snow.
Why You’ll Love It:
This vertical activity gets kids moving while keeping the mess to a minimum. It’s great for building gross motor skills.
9. Pom-Pom Painted Winter Tree
What You’ll Need:
- Tree printable (available for free below) or brown construction paper
- Clothespins
- Pom-poms
- White paint
- Construction paper
Setup:
Attach pom-poms to the ends of clothespins to create “paintbrushes.” Let your child dip them into white paint and stamp snow onto a drawn or cut-out tree shape.
Why You’ll Love It:
This is a no-mess painting activity with tools that are easy for small hands to grip.
10. Broccoli Printed Winter Tree
What You’ll Need:
- Tree printable (available for free below) or brown construction paper
- Faded broccoli florets
- White paint
- Construction paper
Setup:
Use the broccoli as a stamp. Dip it into white paint to add snowy accents.
Why You’ll Love It:
This unique painting technique introduces kids to different textures while creating a stunning effect.
Tips for Winter Tree Crafts Success
- Prepare the Space: Use a tablecloth or crafting mat to keep surfaces clean.
- Encourage Creativity: Let kids make their trees unique; there’s no right or wrong way to craft!
- Supervise Young Kids: Always supervise toddlers when using small materials like pom-poms or rice.
- Involve the Family: These crafts are great for family bonding during the winter months.
Have a favorite winter tree craft? Share your ideas and experiences in the comments below—we’d love to hear from you!
Play2Learn Toddler & Preschool Programs for Curious Toddlers
There is no limit to your toddler’s energy and curiosity. That energy and curiosity although a joy can be challenging at times. Their interest in just about everything around them is what makes them great learners. One and two year olds can soak up so much just from their senses!
But as a teacher or parent that thirst for learning can be exhausting. That is why I created this toddler and preschooler program. To help you get the most out of this time with your curious toddler without having to come up with creative ways to play and interact with them.
Play2Learn for Toddlers includes 20 Units for toddlers. Each 2-week toddler unit has 20 super easy to set up and engaging activities for toddlers 18 months to 3 years.
Play2Learn Preschool which includes 20 Units for preschoolers. Each 2-week preschoolers unit has 20 unique and easy to set up and engaging activities for preschoolers 3 years to 5 years. That’s over 800 learning activities for your toddler and preschooler at your fingertips! So many ideas you and your child will never be bored again!
These toddler and preschool lesson plans and activities will definitely keep you and your toddler and preschooler busy playing and learning!
Click here for more information: Play2Learn
Book: Exciting Sensory Bins for Curious Kids
Did you know I wrote a book of sensory bins? Click here for more information Exciting Sensory Bin for Curious Kids. Or grab your copy at Amazon.
Boring afternoons are made exciting with awesome animal-based bins, like Salty Shark Bay or Yarn Farm. Pretend play bins like Birthday Cake Sensory Play or Bubble Tea Party encourage creativity and imagination. And your kids will have so much fun they won’t even know they’re getting smarter with STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) activities like Sink or Float Soup, Magnetic Letter Hunt or Ice Cream Scoop and Count.
Designed for toddlers 18 months and up.
Book: Super STEAM Activity Book for Kids
Learning all about science, technology, engineering, art, and math sets kids up for scholastic success―and it can be so much fun! Watch kids enjoy building STEAM skills as they color friendly fish, help water find its way to tree roots, solve math problems with mazes, and more.
Find out more and grab your copy here.
Designed for preschoolers 3 years old and up.
Book: Big Book of Riddles for Kids
Riddle me this: What’s an exciting way to practice critical thinking while having a blast? The Big Riddle Book for Kids, of course! From hilarious puns to tough brain teasers, kids can build problem-solving skills with hundreds of riddles tha. t show them how to think outside the box.
- 350 riddles for kids—Have hours of fun with riddles, puns and jokes, and math and logic puzzles that’ll get their wheels turning!
- Level up their skills—Riddles get trickier as kids progress through the book, challenging them as they get better at solving puzzles!
- Double-check their work—Kids can check their answers in the back of the book with a handy answer key.
Help children expand their minds while having fun with this puzzle book for kids!
Designed for kids ages 6 years old and up.
TV Show: Curious Crafting
I’m so excited to share my crafting TV show Curious Crafting which launched in July 2022 on TVOkids and TVOkids YouTube! Season 2 aired in August 2023! My show was also nominated in 2023 for Best Live Action Preschool Series by the Youth Media Alliance Awards of Excellence.
Curious Crafting Season 1 is also now airing in Australia on ABC! Watch it here!
Set in the ultimate crafting space, Curious Crafting is a short form pre-school age series about the joy of making crafts. I lead a rotating cast of adorable little preschoolers (including my own) making magic out of common household objects.
In each episode we transform recycled items into magical crafts like a milk carton school bus, paper bag puppet or cotton pad turtle. The crafters learn and laugh their way through each activity while demonstrating what their young imaginations can create.
Curious Crafting shares the adventure and joy of making art with takeaway lessons for creating crafts at home.
This show designed for toddlers and preschoolers 2.5 years old and up.
