Brrr… it’s cold out there! Rumor has it that increased snow is predicted this Winter (some of us at OWLS Therapy are excited about this!). Chilly weather outside calls for some warm hot chocolate and a low-mess, stress-free indoor craft! We were inspired by One Little Project’s Beaded Pipe Cleaner Snowflakes, found here. Bundle up and keep reading for how to create a snowflake while working on speech and language skills.
The following includes OWLS Therapy Amazon Affiliate links.
Materials Needed:
These will need to be cut in half for the craft! 3 half pipe cleaners are needed for one snowflake craft.
Instructions:
Shape the Pipe Cleaners
Twist the pipe cleaners together. First, make a “plus” sign with 2 pipe cleaners, crossing them at their midpoints.
Twist the two pipe cleaners together, securing them in place. Then, twist and secure a third pipe cleaner onto this shape.
The pipe cleaners should have equal space between each point. The finished shape should begin to look like a snowflake.
Add the Beads
Begin sliding the pony beads onto each pipe cleaner. Be sure to push the beads all the way to the center, or where the notch is. Each pipe cleaner should have about 6 or 7 Pony Beads. Get creative with your design- you can use one bead color, create patterns, or use random colors! Next, add the Snowflake Beads to the ends!
Secure the Beads
Secure the beads by bending the ends of each pipe cleaner. Then, poke the end of each pipe cleaner into the middle of the Snowflake bead. This will hold all of the beads into place. The final result should look like a little loop at the end of each pipe cleaner!
Decorate!
Add a rhinestone sticker to the middle of the Snowflake (where the pipe cleaners cross). If it doesn’t stick, you can use glue to adhere the sticker to the design!
Bonus- these low-mess Snowflakes can be used as holiday gifts from your little ones! These can easily be turned into ornaments or window decorations and passed to loved ones in your children’s lives!
5 Ways to Work on Speech and Language:
Sounds and Syllable Counting
Before stringing the pony beads onto a pipe cleaner, work on counting sounds or syllables! Have your child lay 6 beads together on the table. Then, ask them to move the beads as they count how many sounds or syllables are in a word. If counting syllables, each bead would represent one syllable. For example, say the word “banana” aloud and ask how many syllables are in the word. Your child should move 3 beads, indicating 3 syllables. If counting sounds, each bead would represent one sound. For example, with the word “plant”, 5 beads should be moved.
Pattern Work
As your child chooses their bead colors, work on creating patterns for their snowflake! For example, if they want to use 3 colors of beads, they can follow an ABCABC (i.e. yellow, blue, orange, yellow, blue, orange) pattern. Give them a starting pattern of beads and see if they’re able to complete it independently!
Spatial Concepts
Once your child’s snowflake creation is complete, you can use it to work on spatial concepts! Spatial concepts include words like behind, next to, under, above, on top, etc. Take turns “hiding” the snowflake around the room. When the snowflake is found, the person has to describe where they found it! This can lend itself to many vocabulary words.
Answering Questions
Once the snowflake is complete, ask your child open-ended questions about the craft. Avoid questions with one-word answers, such as “Do you like your snowflake?” or “Did you have fun?”. Rather, ask questions like “Tell me about your favorite part of the snowflake” or “What was the hardest part of making the craft?”. These types of questions encourage descriptive language skills and lead to deeper and more robust conversations with your child.
Get Creative!
Foster creativity by encouraging your child to make multiple snowflakes to give as gifts to loved ones! How many different colors or patterns of beads can they use? Can they think of another holiday item to create with the beads and pipe cleaners, such as a candy cane or a tree?
Be sure to tag us at @owlstherapy on Instagram so we can see your creations.
OWLS Therapy wishes you and yours a joyous holiday season!