This autumn, inspire children to incorporate seasonal symbols such as leaves, apples, pumpkins, and ghosts into their craft projects.

Lovely leaf collages help smooth the transition from lazy outdoor summer days to life among the ABCs.

Kids will have a ball painting stripes on these butternut squash bowling pins. Afterward, they can bowl right on the lawn.

With the start of the new school year, the secret to overcoming writers' block is a pencil so marvelous that kids can't help but pick it up and start scribbling.

Feathered friends will flock to this seasonal supplement to your normal bird feeder.

These clever trick-or-treat bags are simple to construct and make young candy-seekers easier to spot in the dark.

Little football fans can create their own fluffy pom-poms out of tissue paper.

Young hands can experiment with different shapes and colors of leaves to make pretty wreaths.

Apples aren't just for eating. The cut side of an apple half, dipped in candy-colored paint, can be stamped onto everything from canvas tote bags to book covers.

What to do with leftover pumpkin seeds? String them into a pretty necklace.

It's a big moment when a kid gets his first textbook. Help your child design custom covers with heavy construction paper, road maps, or even wrapping paper. They're just as good at protecting books from bumps, scratches, or drippy servings of cheese fries.

Kids will love creating seasonal sculptures in the image of their own families.

Craft a ghostly necklace using simple supplies.

Tree rubbings can be done directly in a field notebook using the side of a colored pencil or a crayon. Bark results in textured patterns, while leaves reveal distinctive vein structures. The rubbings can be displayed at home in small frames.

To make these simple treat bags, embellish a plain brown paper bag with full moons and swooping bats.

Kids can use leaf-shaped punches to decorate a family tree, then a matching accordion-fold card bearing their school picture.

Felt turkeys and pilgrim hats placed atop candy sticks will keep kids entertained long after the meal ends.

A feather dresses up a simple twill-tape napkin wrap, which doubles as a headdress during -- and after -- the Thanksgiving feast. Cut a small hole in the center of a 27-inch-long piece of twill tape. Insert a clean feather (available from florists' shops) in the hole, and stitch to secure. Center the feather on the front of a folded napkin, and tie the tape loosely at the napkin's back.