Following are some of the more popular alternatives. They work just as well for healthy kids as the sick ones admitted to Children's Mercy. On the sandpaper, have the children paint whatever design they'd like to transfer onto their T-shirt. Be sure to tell them that any words they write must be written backwards if they want them to appear frontwards on the T-shirt. Once the sandpaper has been decorated, turn it over onto the T-shirt and cover it with a hot iron.
Kids really like to design their own T-shirts.
A variation of the T-shirt theme includes the use of tulip paint and sponges. The sponges can be cut into whatever shape the child desires and then dipped in paint to make a design on the shirt. You'll need numerous strips, as they will become the beads of the bracelets. Take one strip at a time, beginning with the wider end of the strip, and wrap it around the toothpick or pencil, whichever thickness you prefer. Repeat the process until you have wrapped all of the strips.