How To Build Fairy Houses with Children Article From July 2009 Issue of Parent and Grandparent Planner
A Deluxe Fairy House
How To Build Fairy Houses
By Angela Antonelli
The magical summers of childhood are far too few. How can we get children to chase fireflies instead of video villains? Watch more clouds, and less television? Challenge them to climb trees instead of computer game levels? Encourage them to speak face to face instead of text to text? We must resort to extreme measures. We must use pixie dust!
One enchanting way to spend time outdoors is building fairy houses. Once your child gets started with this project, don’t be surprised if he or she spends more time hanging out at the fairy house than at home. Get started with these tips, and before you know it, ideas will be flowing, and your child will be the Frank Lloyd Wright of fairyland.
Location:
As with human-sized homes, location is critical. Try to avoid areas that get a lot of foot traffic, or that might get flooded when it rains (or else your next project may be to build a FFEMA headquarters). It will be helpful to have something to build upon, rather than starting with a bare patch of land, so choose a spot with a good foundation. A few good places to start building are:
- Near a tree stump
- In a rock pile
- Below a tree with thick, exposed roots
- In a flower garden.
- Near a stream
For some great fairy house ideas you can check out our fairy house photos from a recent fairy house event.
Materials:
Once you have selected your site, begin by collecting materials. Look for branches and leaves that have already fallen to the ground, rather than taking them from living trees. Search for things like mushrooms, flowers, feathers, pebbles, pieces of bark, berries, moss, dried grasses, acorns, shells, pinecones, and so on.
Construction:
The next step depends upon whether your child leans toward kinesthetic/tactile learning or visual/planning learning. If your child generates ideas more easily by jumping into a project, start building. If your child prefers to plan first, get to work on those tiny blueprints. Ask your child how many rooms there should be. What about the style of the home? What kinds of things do should be in each room? Moss carpets in the living room? Crushed shell countertops for a high-end kitchen? How about furnishings? A flower umbrella might be just the thing for a patio set...you get the idea. Don’t forget to keep the dwelling free of artificial substances such as glue and tape.
Ideas for extending this activity:
Delight others by making a fairy houses for people to find (at a park, near a bike path, and so on)
Decorate your dwellings for seasons/ holidays Name your fairy houses
Get neighborhood friends involved, and building a fairy village. (Some fun ideas: schoolhouse, amusement park/ playground, dancing pavilion, boats/marina, bug farm, community pool)
Practical pointers:
If fairy housing does not appeal to your child, present the project idea as dwellings for bugs, toads, mice, or chipmunks.
Take pictures of your fairy house after it has been completed. Wild critters other than fairies may take a liking to the house, and do some redecorating.
Teach your child how to identify and avoid poison ivy.
Remind your child that she should never eat anything that she finds growing outside (mushrooms, berries, etc.).
Keep an eye out for anthills and beehives.
Do a check for wood ticks when you're finished.