When I was working on a photo project this morning, my son said that he wanted a picture puzzle of himself. Since I had my camera close by, I snapped a picture of him (but not before he grabbed several of his favorite objects- all balls- to be in the photo with him).
After I uploaded the photo, I printed off two copies onto white cardstock. One copy was in color, one copy was in black and white.
Then I added puzzle lines with a black Sharpie.
Next, I cut out the pieces. If I'd wanted the project to be more durable, I would've laminated it or mounted the cardstock onto thicker cardboard (but since my son's attention span is so short, I didn't feel like taking the extra time).
Once I cut the puzzle pieces out, we sat together and put the puzzle back together! He did a pretty good job with some prompts to remind him where corners go. The puzzle pieces moved around a little bit, but he wasn't really that frustrated about that. If your child gets frustrated with the pieces not staying in the exact correct place, just make it a gluing project or use velcro to put the puzzle pieces on the right spots.
He liked doing this again and again while checking out his favorite objects and silly face. Having only a few distinct objects in the picture made it easy for him to know where each puzzle piece went.
I thought this was a really fun way for him to showcase his current favorite things. Creating a new puzzle every few months or once a year would be a cool way to see how your child's interests change and mature.
I know there are tons of ways out there to do kid-themed puzzles. I'd love to hear how you've done something like this before!
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