Creating a Dragon: Kid's Handpainting Craft

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I love having our kids create crafts that will provide a remembrance of just how little they were at one time. Making a craft using their handprints provides such an opportunity. For my dungeon master husband's birthday, our kids made dragon cards using construction paper and paint.

Materials

• Construction paper
• Washable paint
• Scissors
• Glue
• Tape (if needed) 
• Pens, markers, or crayons 
• Wipes 

Steps

1. Gather materials.

2. Prepare paper, choose colors, and have wipes nearby to clean hands.

3. You can cut out the pieces for the dragon face before or after you paint the body with hand prints. I looked through books and online to find inspiration for the dragon face. You or your children can design it however you want.

4. Paint your child's hands. Let them paint their handprints on the white paper.

5. Once your handprints are dry, you can attach the dragon head. 

Rolling Up a Character 

If your children are interested in playing Dungeons & Dragons with you and the rest of the family, there are many different options that will help you get them started on the journey of pen-and-paper role playing. My husband began playing role-playing games (RPGs) around 1981. After 30+ years of administrating and playing RPGs, he recommends folks try rules-light games that are either free or low-cost. The fastest (to learn) and cheapest games he recommends are Basic Fantasy RPG (based on the 1981-1983 iteration of the Dungeons & Dragons rules he learned from, also known as the Moldvay [or more correctly Moldvay/Marsh/Cook] version) and Swords & Wizardry Light (a very streamlined version of the original [1974-1979] Dungeons & Dragons rules). Swords & Wizardry Light can be played "as is" or later graduated from—into Swords & Wizardry Continual Light or the more thorough Swords & Wizardry Complete, which is currently free in its PDF form.

Playing games with your family is a fantastic way to spend time! You can even incorporate games into your homeschooling day if you wish. From simple games for preschoolers like Koala Capers to more complicated logic games like Cats Crimes, you can teach your children many different skills while having fun.