Plan age-calibrated craft projects for kids ages 2-10 — supply list, step-by-step instructions, safety notes, mess level, prep time, variations, cleanup, and learning connections. Use whenever a teacher or parent asks for a classroom or home craft. Triggers on "craft for pre-k about fall leaves", "easter craft ideas for 2nd grade", "simple paper craft with my 5 year old", "thanksgiving class craft no scissors", "rainy day low-mess craft for 4 year old", "valentine's day craft for 20 second graders", "craft using only construction paper and glue", "mother's day kindergarten craft", "ocean animals 1st grade craft", "15-minute preschool craft", "earth day recycled-materials craft", "what can I make with my 3 year old", and similar K-5 / PreK project requests. Redirects copyrighted-character requests (Elsa, Bluey, Mickey, Pokémon) to the underlying theme. Does not fetch stock photos — uses italicized visual-description cues per step instead.
Turn "what can we make today?" into a ready-to-run craft plan. Given a theme or occasion, produce a complete project plan — supplies, steps, safety, mess, prep, cleanup — calibrated to the age of the child or class. Default audience K-5 (ages 5-10); PreK (2-4) supported explicitly. A non-crafty adult can run it without further prep.
Use this skill whenever a user asks for a craft, project, or "make something" idea for a child or classroom. Teachers and parents phrase it many ways — trust the description keywords rather than a strict format. If the only thing missing is the age band, ask one clarifying question. Otherwise proceed with defaults.
Parse these from the user's request:
2-4 (PreK / toddler), 5-7 (K-2), 8-10 (3-5). Default 5-7 if unspecified.low / medium / high. Default medium.| Phrase in the request | Age band |
|---|---|
| "pre-k", "preschool", "toddler", "2-year-old", "3-year-old", "4-year-old", "daycare" | 2-4 |
| "kindergarten", "kinder", "TK", "5-year-old", "1st grade", "2nd grade", "6-year-old", "7-year-old" | 5-7 |
| "3rd grade", "4th grade", "5th grade", "8-year-old", "9-year-old", "10-year-old", "elementary" | 8-10 |
| "my kid", "my class", "elementary classroom", no age cue | default 5-7 |
| Spans ages (e.g. "my kids ages 3 and 7") | anchor on younger; add older-sibling variation |
If age is truly unclear and you can't infer, ask ONE question:
Quick check — what age is this for? PreK (2-4) · K-2 (5-7) · 3-5 (8-10)
Do not stack questions. Do not ask about mess, supplies, group size, or time unless the user wants tight customization.
Every plan must include all 11 sections below. Instructions target the adult leading the activity, not the child.
For group size ≥ 10, include a short "prep-at-scale" note inside Supply List or a final "Classroom Notes" line: what to pre-cut, pre-sort, or station-ize.
references/catalog.md.references/fine-motor.md to sanity-check that every step is physically achievable.references/safety.md: scissors type by age, hot glue flagged adult-operated, small parts for <3, allergens in edible crafts.references/substitutions.md) and a stated mess level.| Age band | Motor skills | Example activities | Avoid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2-4 (PreK) | Large-motor, pincer grasp developing. Tear, stick, finger-paint, stamp, dip. | Handprint turkeys, torn-paper collages, finger-paint leaves, sticker scenes, dot markers. | Sharp scissors, small parts <1.25", hot glue, small beads, liquid-glue bottles (use sticks). |
| 5-7 (K-2) | Cut-and-paste on lines, simple folds, holds a brush. | Paper-plate animals, simple origami (dog head, tulip), folded greeting cards, pipe-cleaner creatures, cut-and-glue dioramas. | Sharp craft knives, hot glue unsupervised, fine sewing needles. |
| 8-10 (3-5) | Multi-step sequences, precision cutting, basic measuring. | Multi-step origami (crane, boat), felt plushies with plastic needles, simple weaving, papier-mâché, basic bookbinding. | Rotary cutters, power tools, solvent-based adhesives. |
| Setting | Default |
|---|---|
| Age band (if not inferable) | 5-7 (K-2) |
| Activity time | 30 min |
| Mess tolerance | medium |
| Setting | home |
| Supply substitutions | always included inline in Supply List |
| Mess level | always stated with one-line reason |
| Stock photos | none in V1 — use italicized visual-description cues per step |
| PDF / printable handout | deferred — skill returns markdown only in V1 |
| Copyrighted characters | redirect to underlying theme; never name the character in output |
If the user requests a named copyrighted character ("Elsa craft", "Bluey birthday", "Mickey Mouse ears", named Pokémon, named Marvel / Disney / Nintendo character), do not produce a craft that uses the name, logo, or signature visual. Instead, redirect to the underlying theme in one sentence and produce a non-infringing project:
The project name, supply list, and instructions must not reference the original character. Mention the redirect briefly so the user isn't surprised.
User: "craft for pre-k about fall leaves, low mess"
Inferred: age 2-4 (PreK), theme = fall leaves, mess = low. No clarifying question needed.
# Torn-Paper Leaf Collage
**Age Range:** Ages 2-4 (PreK)
**Time:** 5 min prep · 15 min activity
**Skill Level:** Beginner
**Mess Level:** Low — dry materials; glue stick only.
## Supplies (per child)
- 1 sheet white or blue construction paper (background)
- 3-4 half-sheets of red, orange, yellow, and brown construction paper
- 1 glue stick (or washable tape)
- Optional: leaf-shape template traced in pencil on the background
## Steps
1. Set out torn-paper scraps in color piles. _Like a mini salad bar of fall colors._
2. Show the child how to tear a sheet into rough chunks. _Pinch-and-pull with two hands — no scissors needed._
3. Rub glue stick on the background inside the leaf outline. _Like coloring with a chapstick._
4. Press torn paper onto the glue, overlapping pieces. _Like shingles on a roof._
5. Fill the whole leaf shape. Press down firmly. _Squish like a sandwich._
## Safety Notes
No scissors. Glue stick only (no liquid glue bottles for this age). All materials large enough to avoid choking hazard.
## Variations
- Use real pressed leaves as stencils for the outline.
- Older sibling (5+): add a glued twig "stem" and a pipe-cleaner veined leaf.
- No construction paper? Tear pages from an old magazine or junk mail.
## Cleanup
Sweep paper scraps into a bag. Cap the glue stick. No wet cleanup.
## Learning Connections
Fine motor (tearing strengthens pincer grasp), color recognition (warm fall palette), seasonal vocabulary (leaf, fall, autumn, crunchy).
references/safety.md — scissors-by-age, hot glue, small-parts rule, allergens in edible crafts, paint + adhesive types, supervision matrix. Load when the project involves any cutting, heat, food, small decorations, or sewing.references/catalog.md — ~100 anchor projects by season (fall / winter / spring / summer) and year-round theme. Load when matching a standard theme (holiday, animal, letter, concept).references/fine-motor.md — age × task lookup for what 2-10-year-olds can physically do (tearing, cutting, folding, threading, sewing). Load when calibrating steps or when a request spans ages.references/substitutions.md — glue, paper, color-tool, fastener, 3D-material, decorative, recycled, no-scissors, no-glue swaps. Load when the user constrains supplies ("only X and Y", "what's in the junk drawer", "no scissors").references/substitutions.md.See evals/evals.json — 5 prompts with objective assertions covering the 11 required sections, age calibration, scissor-free constraints, supply-constraint adherence, visual-cue formatting, and recycled-materials themes.