Crafts that involve wood, hammer, and nails are always (always) a hit around here. So I am always on the lookout for fun and creative woodworking crafts for my kids.
I was browsing through Pinterest when I saw these cute woodworking hedgehogs by Vszell – simple and perfect for little hands. I popped over to the website and saw it was just a photo so I thought I would write a post about how we made these cuties.
My boys thought they looked more like porcupines, and so we decided to go with that.
Here is how we made our porcupine woodworking craft for kids:
We started this craft by taking a short piece of 2×4 and cutting it corner to corner to make two triangular shapes. Then, we sanded and sanded and sanded until they were nice and smooth.
My boys like to rush through the sanding part, but I find it a very important part of a woodworking project with my kids. Some things in life simply take time in order to do them right. Ah, life lessons while sanding with Mama.Â
After they were sanded smooth we painted on eyes and a nose. A permanent marker would also do the trick.
Finally, we got to hammering! My intent was to head outside to do the hammering, but mother nature decided otherwise. As the rainstorm picked up steam we opted the kitchen table was as good as spot as any for this craft.
Outdoors would really be the most ideal place to do this craft of course. If you have a very nice kitchen table, don’t do this craft on top! A piece of plywood would work very well and ensure no hammer or nail marks end up on the table. We are not that fussy around these parts.
The boys like to use clothespins or pliers when hammering. This is a great trick for saving little fingers. The clothespin gives a bit more space between those little fingers and the nail head. Most clothespins even have a tiny hole perfect for standing a nail.
My boys found the nails with a bit of a larger head easier to hammer. I was hoping they would use the ones with the tiny heads to look more porcupine quill like, but practical outweighs cute when woodworking with my little ones.
These cute porcupines are more than just adorable too. This craft is full of wonderful learning. Through hammering my boys are learning:
- hand eye coordination
- developing fine motor skills while manipulating the nails
- strengthening finger muscles and hands for writing
- patience and concentration
There you have it! Our latest woodworking craft for kids. I hope you like this craft and it sparks an idea or two for you perfect for your little ones.
Thank you so much for reading friends, happy Monday! I will write to you again in just a few days.
These look very cute and I have been wanting to do a little woodworking project with my class. Do you have any other ideas for 3-4 year old young builders? Thank you for sharing your ideas.
I am so glad you like this idea Donna. You bet I have oodles more! You can find them here: https://www.howweelearn.com/woodworking-projects-for-kids-2/
My grandchildren visited on a rainy day so we decided to make porcupines! They hand sawed the ‘body’ from a 2×4. Then they sanded forever. When attention waned, it was time to start nailing. The 5 year old needed me to start the 2″and 3″common nails. The 7 year old had so much fun banging in nails that I had to invite him to check out Grandma’s button box for eyes. I started the 1/2″ common nail/tack to secure the eyes. Both boys cut their own nose/mouth out of black cloth and glued it on. After 3 1/2 hours of continuous work/play, they took a break for water, a snack, and bathroom! Thanks for the great idea, so appropriate for this age, and for a grandpa that spent his life NOT in a workshop!
Hi David, what lucky Grandchildren you have! It sounds like you all had a wonderful time together and you made some lovely memories as well. Thank you for letting me know.
I really like this project. Unfortunately I was trained as an engineer and I need measurements. Approximately how long and tall is the wedge, Also what size are the nails. My grandson and I will be using a pompom for a node. A black circle sticker will be modified to make a eye patch because this is to be a pirate porcupine . Thank you
Oh goodness, I am not sure you are going to like my answers! The wedge is about 8 inches long and maybe 3 inches tall at the back (?) They were just left over scraps of wood – really any size at all will work. And the nails were whatever we had in the basement at the time! I love that this will be a pirate porcupine – adorable.
How adorable are these porcupines? Thank you for sharing this age appropriate project.
I am so glad you like them! They are so much fun for little ones to make! xo