Train Craft Preschool Activities You Can Do With Your Little

Train crafts are a great way to engage kids in an interesting activity that is not only fun but also helps in their developmental skills. You might be surprised by just how many different benefits come with train crafts. Because it involves various skills of the kids, many of their developmental skills are exercised during this activity.

Train crafts not only improve the kids’ imagination but also build their interest in transportation, machinery, and history. Train crafts are easy, educational, and can be very easily included in a fun class activity. There are many ways to include train crafts in-class activities; where you can include them in a separate playtime, make it a competition between two teams, or even give them homework on creative train crafts. Train crafts make it easier for little ones to understand the concepts of shapes, colors, and counting, making it one of the most amazing and fun learning activities.

What Are Train Crafts For Preschoolers?

Train crafts for kids are age-appropriate activities, games, or part projects based on trains. These crafts can prove to be both educational and entertaining. Train crafts can help with the development of fine motor skills, creativity, and cognitive abilities in preschoolers. When the child designs his/her own train, he/she trains the imagination. Cutting, gluing, and pasting things together makes their fine motor skills work, and working together with other students increases their collaboration, social and team-working skills.

What Are Some Easy Train Craft Ideas For Preschoolers?

Here are some fun and creative train crafts for preschoolers:

Cardboard or Tissue Boxes Train Engine

This is one of the simplest train craft. Preschoolers can use large cardboard boxes and decorate them into train engines. They can use paint, markers, and colored paper to add wheels, windows, and other necessary details.

Train Tracks Painting

Railroad track painting is an easy and creative craft train idea for preschoolers. You just need to set up a large piece of paper or a canvas. Preschoolers can then dip toy train wheels into paint and roll them along the paper to create colorful train tracks. They can choose different colors, different patterns, and different sizes to make many different tracks.

Train Puppets

Preschoolers can also, with a little bit of help from the teachers, try to make train puppets. Give them paper bags, markers, and craft materials like googly eyes, yarn, and colored paper. The children can decorate the paper bags to look like train characters, adding details like wheels and smokestacks. They can then use these puppets to play trains or do some train-themed activities.

Train Whistle

Using toilet paper roll craft or plastic bottles, the kids can make their own train whistles. They can decorate them with stickers, paint, or markers and then have fun making train sounds.

Train Binoculars

Give the kids empty toilet paper rolls and help them decorate them with train-themed stickers, markers, or colored tape. They can then pretend to be train conductors and look through their binoculars to spot different objects.

Train Collage

If making trains from boxes seems like a little too much, there is always an option for a nice collage. Give the kids various train-themed pictures from magazines, colored paper scraps, and glue sticks. They can create their own train collages by cutting out and gluing different train-related images on their notebooks or a chart.

Train T-Shirts

Give the kids plain white t-shirts and fabric markers or fabric paint. They can draw or paint train designs on the shirts. Making their own little engine crafts on the shirts.

Train Magnets

Give the kids small wooden or foam train shapes, magnet strips, and glue. The kids can decorate the train shapes with paint, markers, or stickers and then attach a magnet strip to the back. They can use these magnets to decorate the refrigerator or a magnetic board.

Train Tracks Play Dough

Help the kids make their own train tracks using play dough. They can shape the dough into curved or straight tracks and use small train toys to play.

Train Snack Craft

If you think the fun train crafts mentioned above are not your favorites, you can always try to get the kids into creating tracks or trains with snacks, giving play time an interesting twist. Use snacks like crackers, cheese sticks, and round fruits like blueberries or grapes. The kids can assemble their own train snacks by arranging the crackers as the train tracks, using the cheese sticks as the train cars, and adding the fruits as wheels.

How To Make A Train Craft?

To make a train craft, you will need a few materials that can be easily bought from an arts and crafts store. Here’s a list of materials you may need:

Making a Train Craft Step-By-Step

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to make a train craft:

1. Collect the required materials

Collect all the necessary materials before starting the training activities. You will need cardboard or chart paper, scissors, a glue stick, markers or crayons, and any extra decoration materials you plan to use, such as stickers or googly eyes.

2. Design the train

Let the kids decide the shape of the train. They can make a basic train with an engine and one or more cars. If they want, you can help them create a more complex train with several rectangular cars, steam engines, and complex details., though that might be more suitable for older kids.

3. Cut out the train parts

Using scissors, cut out the different parts of the train from cardboard. Start with the main body of the train, cutting a rectangular shape. Then, cut out additional shapes for the engine, cars, wheels, and any other details the kids want to add. Keep them to a side.

4. Decorate the train

Using markers or crayons, let the kids’ creativity shine as they decorate the train. Try to make them color each part of the train. They can also add patterns and designs or even draw windows and doors on the train. Show them examples of things they can do to make the train look more beautiful.

5. Assemble the train

Once the decoration is done, it’s time to assemble the parts. Use a glue stick to attach the engine to the front of the train body. Then, glue the cars behind the engine. Attach the wheels to the sides of the train using glue. Make sure that everything is in place.

6. Add details

This step is where you can let their creativity shine even more. Try to make the kids use stickers, colored tape, sequins, or googly eyes to add more details to the train. They can decorate the engine with a smokestack or add a face to the front for a more playful touch.

7. Let it dry

Allow the glue to dry completely before playing with the train. This will make sure that the parts stay attached properly and prevent any accidental damage.

8. Play and display

Once the trains are dry, they are ready for play and display. The kids can use it as a toy, pushing it along imaginary tracks, or as a decoration piece for a train-themed room or event.

Remember, throughout the process, it’s important to provide help and assistance, especially when using scissors and glue. Change the steps to suit the age and abilities of the children, allowing them to explore their creativity and make their trains unique. Craft activities like making a train provide an excellent opportunity for preschoolers to develop fine motor skills and problem-solving abilities and express their creative side. Enjoy the crafting process and celebrate the child’s creativity as they create their very own train!

How Can Parents And Teachers Make Train Craft Engaging For Preschoolers?

Parents and teachers can make train crafts engaging for preschoolers by using various strategies that can improve their creativity, increase their curiosity, and motivate them to try more things. Here are some tips to make train crafts more engaging for preschoolers:

Start by introducing a theme or story related to trains. Talk to the preschoolers about different types of trains, such as steam trains, freight trains, or subway trains. Make a storyline around the playtime. Someone could act like a rainy day mum, or the class can pretend to be a sunny day family going for a picnic on the train. Discuss the different parts of a train and how they work together. This background information will pique their interest and make the craft more meaningful.

Then, use visual aids like pictures, diagrams, or real-life examples to create images of trains and spark their imagination. This will help the kids better design trains. You can use books, videos, movies, or cartoons to get them to understand how trains actually look so they can create their own. You can also include different materials related to trains and allow the kids to use their senses to touch and feel the materials. Use different textures like cardboard, foam sheets, or fabric to represent different train parts. When they change these textures into different train parts, they will improve their sensory experience.

Remember to let the kids make their own choices. Let them choose the colors, the decorative material, the shapes, and the overall designs. This will make the entire experience that much more fun for them. Also, add moveable parts like doors or wheels to the making to make the entire experience more engaging.

Try to improve collaboration in the class by making teams and letting everyone work together. This promotes teamwork, social interaction, and communication skills. It also allows them to learn from each other. You can also connect the craft to other learning opportunities. For example, include counting skills by having preschoolers count the number of train cars or wheels. Introduce shape recognition by asking them to identify different shapes used in the training craft. This multidisciplinary approach enhances their cognitive abilities while making the activity more educational and engaging.

Once the kids are done making trains, create a display area to show them off. Use a board, shelf, or a dedicated corner in the class’s corner. Celebrate the work they put into the making. You can try to make the crafts more interesting by bringing in some variations from time to time. For example, one time, focus on a steam train, and another time, create a subway train. Change the materials used, such as using recycled materials for an eco-friendly train craft. This keeps the children curious and excited about what they will create next.

Bottom Line

Remember, the key to engaging preschoolers in training crafts is to provide a balance between structure and creativity. Encourage their imagination, allow room for personalization, and celebrate their unique ideas. Through engaging in train crafts, preschoolers will have not only so much fun but also develop important skills in a hands-on and interactive manner.