This caterpillar craft is SO FUN! Use our free leaf templates (see the link below!) to make this super cute caterpillar craft that really moves!
Move a straw with your hands to watch the caterpillar wriggle up and down the leaf. This craft, made with construction paper and other dollar store supplies, is so easy to make! It’s such a fun interactive craft, perfect for a story time prop or an insect lesson at school.
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How to Make a Moving Caterpillar Craft
Materials:
Check Out The Video Tutorial:
Instructions:
Step 1: Find what you need
- Gather your supplies and materials.
Step 2: Cut out the caterpillar's leaf
- Print off a free leaf template (find the link in the materials list above) and cut out the leaf shape.
- Trace the leaf onto a piece of green construction paper.
- Cut out the construction paper leaf and set aside the rest of the paper for later.
Step 3: Attach the straws to the leaf
- Cut off the top part of the larger straw, above the bend. (The piece should be about 1-1/2 inches long.)Keep the rest of the straw for later.
- Add glue tape to the stem and lower part of the leaf.
- Press the small straw piece onto the glue tape.
- Add several lines of glue tape to the edge of the scrap construction paper. Press your smaller straw onto the glue tape, close to the edge of the paper.
- Roll the straw until it's wrapped in green construction paper and cut off the extra paper.
- Now cut off any extra paper so that it's even with both ends of the straw.
- Slide the wrapped straw inside the larger straw piece that's attached to the leaf.
Step 4: Make the caterpillar
- Cut a piece of tissue paper to about 4-3/4 inches long by 2-3/4 inches wide. Use a coloured marker to draw a caterpillar pattern of ovals and lines along one of the long edges.
- Use a black marker to outline the ovals and draw extra lines in the pattern.
- Add a line of glue tape along the bottom of the tissue paper, just below where you drew the design.
- Wrap the tissue paper loosely around the remainder of the larger straw, eventually connecting the tissue paper to itself with the glue tape.
- Carefully scrunch the caterpillar down, one small bit at a time, and then remove it from the straw.
Step 5: Attach the caterpillar to the movable straw
- Add glue tape to the top of the paper wrapped straw.
- Add more glue tape to the top half of the larger, outside straw.
- Attach the ends of the caterpillar to each glue tape spot.
- To move the caterpillar, hold the short piece of straw with one hand while moving the long, construction paper covered straw in and out with your other hand.Your caterpillar craft is complete!
Helpful Tips:
- Markers might bleed through the tissue paper when you draw your designs, so make sure you place some scrap paper underneath before you draw your caterpillar design.
- Don’t roll the tissue paper too tightly around the straw – you need to be able to pull it off!
Where can I get a leaf template?
We’ve got you covered with 5 different leaf templates that are free to download and print. We used the large size of each of the leaf types (maple, oak, hawthorn, aspen, and basic leaf shape) to make our caterpillar craft.
What type of straws are needed to make this caterpillar craft?
Our larger straw (6 mm diameter) is only a bit over 1 mm larger than the smaller one (5 mm diameter), and even after wrapping the smaller straw in construction paper it fit inside the other straw quite well.
If you can’t find straws that fit inside of each other you can wrap a wooden skewer with construction paper instead of a straw. Or you can buy smoothie straws to go over the regular drinking straw.
How can I decorate my caterpillar craft?
Caterpillars come in all colours, so you can be creative with the design! Look at our pictures for inspiration, or do a Google image search for “caterpillars”.
Most caterpillars have a repeating pattern down their back, usually black with another colour. Use markers to draw your own design with different coloured dots and lines!
This interactive craft is so much fun to make! Choose a leaf type and then use your favourite colours to decorate your crawling caterpillar. It’s such a great paper craft for kids of all ages!
Here’s even more interactive craft ideas:
Our book Low-Mess Crafts for Kids is loaded with 72 fun and simple craft ideas for kids! The projects are fun, easy and most importantly low-mess, so the clean up is simple!
Where to buy:
You can purchase Low-Mess Crafts for Kids from Amazon, or wherever books are sold:
Amazon |  Barnes and Noble | Books-A-Million | Indiebound |  Amazon Canada
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