Craft a Tissue Paper Christmas Tree

'Tis the season to go crazy over Christmas trees. For many, these bright, grand evergreens are the ultimate symbol of the holiday season. If you're looking for a quick afternoon craft for winter break, this festive tissue paper tree is just right.

What You Need:

• Newspaper
• Liquid starch
• Containers
• 9” x 12” wax paper
• Paintbrushes
• 1” squares of tissue paper in shades of green and blue
• Pens
• Scissors
• Gold metallic paint
• Pencils with erasers (or very small, circular sponge pieces)

What to Do: 

1. Cover the entire work surface with old newspaper. You and your child will be working with materials that could damage your home!
2. Pour liquid starch into containers and give your child a 9” x 12” piece of waxed paper that is positioned vertically.
3. Ask your child to paint half the paper with liquid starch. Show her how to place pieces of tissue onto the starch, overlapping the different colored squares.
4. Repeat this method with the second half, encouraging your child to fill in enough squares of blue and green to create a large vertical triangle like a Christmas tree. Let the project dry before continuing.
5. When the starch has dried, ask your child to use pens to draw a large tree shape on the waxed paper. Make sure the tree outline is large enough to fit most of her tissue triangle.
6. Have your child to cut out the finished tree along the outline she drew.
7. Pour small amounts of gold paint into shallow containers. Show your child how to dip the eraser of a pencil into the gold paint and make randomly-spaced gold embellishments on the tree to resemble ornaments.
8. It's time for your child's tissue paper Christmas tree to dry! Cover it with a heavy book overnight if it needs to flatten out.