Our talented ten year old neighbor, Gia, is the best mother’s and babysitter!  She brings toys and thinks of new activities to do with my four year old while I’m working or teaching.  Last week, after writing class, I wandered over to the dining room table to see what they’d been doing.  I found them playing with a homemade paper doll and doll outfits.  The girls were pretending, imagining, and engaged.  I couldn’t wait to write a post about this fun and easy idea.

The basic paper doll

Gia drew a girl, decorated her and cut her out.

Clothes

She turned the doll over, drew the outline, removed the doll, designed clothes in that size, and cut out the  clothes with tabs.  Simple.  Brilliant.

Later on, my seven year old took to the project with gusto, creating a paper doll city, with dolls of all shapes, sizes and colors, rooms and houses. (See above)  She even made a daddy paper doll for daddy when he played with her.

Younger children can draw basic people with a circle head, rectangle or triangle body, and lines for legs and arms.  Help them cut out the shape so they, too, can make their own paper doll.

Thanks, Gia!

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Tag(s): art, at home, pretend play