A Holiday Party with Coocoolo

When on a plane or car ride (like over the holiday), we prepare books and activities for the kids, but towards the end, the iPad is a handy tool to have, isn’t it!?   The kids recently tried Coocoolo’s (who we connected with on Instagram) app and had a lot of fun with it!  The app extends digital play into real, imaginative play which always appeals to us- to use technology in ways that are creative to make it a meaningful experience.  So they created some characters for their own New Year’s celebration!

*This is not a sponsored post*

Materials

• Cardboard Tubes
• Scissors
• Glue gun/glue
• Tweezers
• Paint brushes
• Paint (we went with acrylic)
• Beads
• Foam
• Felt
• Marker
• Ribbon/ cord
• Painter’s tape
• Felt or fabric or any other materials you may like!

We always find these items helpful too:

• Smock
• Craft tray

Directions

• First we played the app to get inspiration for creating figures and creatures from a cardboard tube:

Here is their info:

http://www.coocoolo.com/start/

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/coocoolo-roll/id1034734283?mt=8

***

• Sketch out your ideas on your cardboard tubes.

• Don your smock.

• Cover the areas that you don’t want painted with painter’s tape and paint the other sections.  Peel the tape off carefully while the paint is still wet.  Allow to dry overnight.

• Once dry, cover the sections that you already painted with painter’s tape and then paint the remaining parts.

• Add any additional painted details that you may like.  Allow to dry overnight.

• We then added embellishments of foam hair and hands, beads for eyes and earrings and drawn components.  Use whatever materials that you may have on hand.  For tiny beads, we find tweezers are helpful for placing in the glue.

• Once your creations are dry, enjoy playing with them!

Want to learn more about the app?  Here is another review:

http://www.hellowonderful.co/post/THE-COOCOOLO-ROLL-APP-COMBINES-DIGITAL-PLUS-PHYSICAL-PLAY-WITH-FUN-TOILET-PAPER-TUBE-CRAFTS

Purpose

• Re-imagining recyclables.
• Developing one’s fine motor skills.
• Learning how tape can form a resist.

Safety Notes

• We suggest that you wear a smock and use a craft tray to protect your clothing and surfaces.
• Use scissors and a glue gun with care and direct, adult supervision.
• Cord, yarn etc. can be a strangulation hazard, therefore be sure to use with direct supervision and for its intended purpose.
• Beads can be a choking hazard therefore be sure to keep them out of the reach of children ages 0-3 years of age or those that tend to put things into their mouths.