Happy Earth Day! On Instagram we shared Maïa Chä’s amazing cardboard sun and since Jasper is obsessed with anything in the sky (sun, moon, planes, helicopters!), I knew he’d love his own. Spoiler alert: he does! PLUS, the symbol of the sun is such a beautiful reminder during this crazy times.

Our last eco-friendly craft was such a hit (remember these egg carton vases?) that we wanted to do another and this fits the bill! Since we’ve been staying in, we’ve been collecting a LOT of cardboard boxes from all of our deliveries and I’m trying to think of more and more ways to use them in a stay-at-home manner.

Earth Day Recycled cardboard project

Social distancing has brought a damper to everyone’s lives, but as springtime sets in, we thought that it was time to create some sunshine! These fun cardboard suns are eco-friendly, since they utilize a reusable material. What a fun idea for a kid craft in quarantine, especially on Earth Day! We imagined that many have a ton of cardboard cluttering up space while we all try to order things online to keep social distancing. Delivery boxes can be reused and transformed to make something that will brighten up everyone’s day. Plus, any kind of crafting gets the hands moving and the mind creating, and since you can design your sun any way you like (depending on how much cardboard you have!). Frankly, we just think crafting is good for you, and this is an easy craft that we think anyone will enjoy doing. You might want to create a handful of little suns to scatter sunshine around your house, or maybe try to create a huge sun to hang in your favorite place!

Whatever you plan to do, we are sure that this sustainable, eco-friendly craft is a fun way to spend your Earth Day! If you’re looking for an easy kid craft during quarantine that teaches both creativity AND the importance of recycling, this is the one for you! Hey, maybe you could even take it a step further and turn craft time into a science lesson while teaching from home. The sun’s the limit! And who could fail to smile when the sun’s smiling back at them!

How to make a cardboard sun

For the design, we referenced Alexander Girard’s famous suns, but made it our own. You can find the templates here.

Instructions:

1. Print out the template and cut out the pieces.
2. Trace the patterns onto your desired location and cut out.
3. Assemble together with glue or strong tape.

Easy squeezy!

Sun puzzle

You could even turn the sun into a puzzle by having the child arrange the pieces on the sun shape. Jasper LOVED doing that!

Sun art

OR, hang it up as artwork! You could even put it up as a wreath on your door or in your window for all to see.

Show us what you’re making for Earth Day by tagging us with #LarsMakes or #LarsQuarantineCreativity.