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Dinosaur Arts & Crafts Ideas
Textured Dinosaur Skin
Take small bubble wrap and paint it different colors and place
a dinosaur cut
out on top and get a great textured skin.
Dinosaur Eggs
Let children cut out dinosaur egg shapes and
decorate them to put on bulletin board display.
Dino Skin
Put out different types of art media and let the children create
dinosaur
skin, i.e., bugles, cheerios, sandpaper pieces, etc.
Dinosaur Spikes
Use egg cartons for the spikes on the back of the dinosaur cutout,
or make a
sock puppet using the egg carton on the back of the sock.
Stegosaurus
Green
construction paper cut into a stegosaurus shape,
Yellow construction paper cut into triangles, "plates"
Children glue on the plates to the dinosaur's back
Dinosaur Headbands
Purple
construction paper head band... Lime green construction paper
cut into a dinosaur shape, write child's name, attach to front of
headband.
Dinosaur Crowns
Cut sponges
into the shape of T-rex footprints. Fold paper towels in half
and place them in shallow containers. Pour a small amount of brown
tempera paint on each towel. Give the children crowns cut from
construction paper. Let the children cover their crowns with dinosaur
footprints by pressing the sponge stamps first onto the paint and then
onto their papers. When the paint has dried, write
"Tyrannosaurus (child's name)" on the front of each crown.
Dinosaur Mask
White paper
plate painted the child's favorite dinosaur color, two circles cut
out for eyes, large craft stick, glued to bottom of plate. Have
materials
available to decorate dinosaurs: construction paper cut into horns, spots,
teeth, markers, stickers, whatever you can think of that resembles a
dinosaur!
Paper-Mache Dinosaur Egg
Paper Mache' Dino Egg as it is
drying.
(Photo
submitted by Shell)
Paper-Mache can be bought at craft stores (just
follow directions on bag)
or you can make your own paper-mache by tearing old
newspapers or
white tissue paper into one inch wide (25 mm) strips. Then
dip them in
a mixture of equal parts of flour and water or dilute glue with
water. Blow
up a balloon and tie the end in a knot. Wrap the strips
around the balloon.
Smooth it by dipping fingers in mixture.
Continue until the balloon is covered.
Tie a piece of yarn or string to
the knotted end of the balloon and hang it up
until dry. When it is dry,
pop the balloon with a needle or it can be cut as
though it has been cracked
open. Let the children paint it. A dinosaur
can be placed
inside. This could become a guessing game. You can
put a dinosaur
inside and the children can guess which dinosaur is inside.
Dinosaur Rubbing
Using a dino
pattern, make a template out of plastic coffee can lid and cut
out the shape. Put the dinosaur under a piece of paper. Peel
the paper
off of old crayons. Lay the crayons flat and rub over the pattern.
Dinosaur Finger Painting
Cut dinosaur shapes out of finger paint, and put
a spoonful of green
and a spoonful of brown one each shape. Let
children finger paint
with mixture and then hang the dinosaurs from the
ceiling.
Fake Fossils
Materials Needed:
Modeling clay such as plasticine
Freshly mixed Plaster of Paris
Paper moulds for craft -fossils
Fine Sand - Paper
Procedure:
1. Use some modeling clay to make a design like an ancient
animal or plant. Then
make a paper mould out of it.
2. Use a paper mould to create the fossil by filling it with the plaster.
3. When dry, peel off the paper mould and sand it with some
fine sand-paper to
make the outside of the fossil smooth.
Dinosaur Egg
To make the eggs you can use your favorite clay. Roll the balls into
an egg
shape, let dry. Paint them with your favorite natural colors.
You can also use plastic Easter eggs & let the children
paint the eggs using
small sponges dipped in paint.
After the eggs are dry you can place a small plastic dinosaur into the egg
and
the children can have fun watching the dinosaur hatch from the egg.
Nest Craft
The eggs need a nest. Scrunch small pieces of brown & yellow tissue paper
into balls. Stick them all over the outside of a small container like a
margarine tub. Put some real leaves into the nest.
Hats off to Dinosaurs
Create
dinosaur hats for the children to use in dramatic
play situations or in music
and movement activities.
Tyrannosaurus
Rex:
Make a crown to honor this "king" of the
dinosaurs. Cut out tagboard
or construction paper crowns to fit your
students' heads. Give the
children sponges or potato halves cut into the
shape of a Tyrannosaurus
footprint. Let them dip the sponges or potatoes
into a shallow tray with
a thin layer of paint in it, or have them press them
onto an ink pad.
Have the children "stomp" gently all over the
crowns.
When they are dry, an adult can staple them to fit.
Stegosaurus:
Make a hat in the shape of this "roof lizard." Trace onto a
12" x 18"
sheet of construction paper a pattern of a
stegosaurus. Put a second
sheet of paper behind the first, and cut two
identical shapes.
Older or more experienced children can do this step
themselves
if you clip the sheets of paper together. Help the children
staple
together the outer edge, leaving the bottom open for their heads.
Have the children decorate their hats with crayons or markers.
Or provide
shades of green and brown paint and pieces of sponge
attached to spring-type
clothespins, and have the children
stipple the paint on the Stegosaurus shape to
create scales.
Another Stegosaurus Hat Idea
Materials
Needed:
4 paper plates per child,
a stapler,
yarn or string
and bingo dotters.
Procedure:
Fold 3 of the 4 plates in half and staple. These will be the plates
of the stegosaurus.
String the yarn through the last plate make
a hat which will tie under the chin. Staple
the 3 folded plates
together (vertically), one on top of the other. Attach the line
of
stegosaurus "plates" to the top hat plate.
Decorate with bingo dotters or anything
colorful.
Dinosaur Footprints
In
advance, gather a variety of plastic toy dinosaurs with feet large enough
to
make a distinctive print. Set the dinosaurs on the art table along with
shallow pans of paint. Invite each child to dip a dinosaur's feet in paint
and then use the dinosaur to make tracks on a sheet of paper
. Encourage
your youngsters to fill their sheets of paper with
a variety of prints in
different colors.
Ahh, the pitter-patter of prehistoric feet!
Paper Bag Dinosaurs
Trace
simple outlines of a dinosaur on brown paper bags,
one per child, and have
children cut them out. Children
can decorate their dinosaurs as they
wish. Staple
around the edges leaving an opening. Have children
stuff newspaper into the dinosaur and staple the opening.
Dreamed-Up Dinosaurs
Many
dinosaurs are, as yet, undiscovered. Paleontologists make
new discoveries
every year. Nearly 100 new kinds of dinosaurs have
been found in the last
20 years. Some haven't even been named yet.
Children will enjoy
dreaming up their own dinosaur creatures. Cut a
variety of fanciful
dinosaur parts - bodies, heads, tails, legs, wings,
horns - from construction
paper. Provide glue and paper for the
background. Encourage the
children to create their own imaginary
dinosaurs. Their discoveries can
have several heads, tails, legs,
etc. Give the children the scientific
honor of naming their discoveries.
If they wish they can dictate something
about their dinosaurs, such
as what they ate, how they protected themselves, or
where they lived.
Dino Pasta Collage
Put out scraps of color paper and glue and dinosaur shaped
pasta and have the children make a
dinosaur scene or collage.
Volcano Eruption
Cut
the shape of a volcano from white construction paper. Mix glue
still in
the bottle with red food coloring. Children squeeze this
"hot
lava" onto the paper volcano. Try standing the volcano
upright
on an easel so the lava runs down the paper.
Dinosaur Place Mats
Cut
large dinosaur shapes from colored paper. Each child chooses
a dinosaur
and colors it with crayons or markers. Write each child's
name on his or
her dinosaur and laminate it or cover with clear contact
paper. During
Dinosaur week, let children use these
placemats while eating their lunches and
snacks.
Dinosaur Fossils
Press
plastic dinosaurs into clay to make fossil prints
of their heads, bodies, and
feet.
Dinosaur Printing
Collect
different dinosaur cookie cutters and pass them out to the children
who dip them
into pans of paint and make dinosaur prints on white paper.
Water Color Dinosaur
Cut
out an outline of a Brachiosaurus from construction paper
(one for each
child). Children paint their dinosaurs with water
that has been colored
with food coloring. After the paint dries,
they can glue their
Brachiosaurus figures onto pieces of blue construction
paper. Children add
water and foliage to their pictures using markers.
Paper Plate Dinosaurs
Tell children to make one cut into the outside border of a paper plate
and then cut out the round center. The center will be the body of the
apatosaurus. Have the children cut two two small pieces from the border.
Help them staple the pieces to the body to make legs. Tell children to cut
the remaining part of the border in 2 equal halves. Help them staple one half
to
the body, curving upward to make a tail. Help them staple the remaining
half of the border to the other side of the body
curving downward to make the neck
and head.
Footstep Dino
Have each child step on one sheet of paper and outline their foot.
Glue
outline to another piece of paper. Let children use markers to
draw a tail onto the end of the body Give each child 10 triangles
and show them how to
glue the triangles on the dinosaurs
back and tail. Use markers to draw other features.
Dinosaur Rubbings
Using poster board or heavy paper, cut out dinosaur shapes. Tape
them to
the table. Have the children put a piece of copy paper
over the dinosaurs ( a lighter paper may rip) The children will discover
the hiding
dinosaurs by rubbing the side of a crayon over their paper firmly.
Swamp Pictures
Squirt brown paint in the middle of
finger paint paper. Let the children
add dirt, grass, and worms to the paint. Let them use their fingers
to mix
the goop up until their paper looks like the kind of
swamp a dinosaur would like to wallow in.
Dinosaur Mural
Attach a large
piece of newsprint to the wall at children's eye level.
Each day, draw or glue a different dinosaurs name and how tall
it was.
Children color the dinosaur and colors it with crayons
and markers attach to a large piece of white paper and laminate.
Stuffed Dinosaurs
For each child, cut two dinosaur shapes out of brown paper bags
or
butcher paper. Have the children hold their shapes together while
you staple
around the sides. Then let them crumple small pieces
of newspaper and stuff
them into their dinosaur shapes.
Variation:
Punch holes around the edges of the pairs of dinosaur
shapes and let children lace them together with yarn.
Kid A Saurus Tracks
After discussing fossils
and dinosaur tracks, let the children make
"kid a saurus tracks" by stepping into tempera paint and walking on paper.
Dinosaur Eggs
Make dinosaur eggs from ceramic dough.
Ceramic dough
Mix 2 cups salt and 2/3 cups of water in a pan. Stir until
mixture is well heated. Remove from heat. Mix cornstarch
and 1/2 cup of cold water together.
Stir quickly into first mixture.
Mixture should be stiff.
(If it does not thicken, reheat and stir for one more minute.)
Plant-Eater Pennant
Discuss
some of the characteristics of plant-eating dinosaurs:
flat teeth, "bellystones,"
meat-eating predator enemies.
Show the children plastic models or pictures
of plant
eaters such as Apatosaurus. Go on a walk to collect
bits of plant
materials - small leaves, ferns, and weeds -
or provide the items
yourself. Give each child a 24 inch
length of waxed paper folded in half
widthwise. Provide
a variety of plant-eating dinosaur shapes cut from
construction
paper, peeled crayons in shades of green, pencil sharpeners,
and
stand-up cheese graters or serrated plastic knives.
Have the children each
arrange their dinosaur and bits of
plant material on one half of the waxed
paper, with the fold
at the bottom. Direct them to grate crayon shavings
all over
the same half of the paper. Fold the other half of the waxed
paper
over the shavings. Have an adult place a dish towel over the waxed
paper and gently press it with a warm iron. The crayons will melt,
fusing
the layers of paper together. The children can then staple a strip
of
construction paper at the top and add a piece of yarn for hanging.
Dino Skeleton
Provide the children with an outline of a
dino. Then have them
glue on macaroni to resemble the dinosaurs skeleton.
Pipe Cleaner Dinosaur Fossils
Materials
Needed:
bulk of pipe cleaners,
scissors,
pictures or models of dinosaur fossils (optional)
Procedure:
This is a great activity as a follow-up to studying families of dinosaurs.
Encourage your child to select a specific type of dinosaur he/she would
like to build. Ask them what things they will need to include in their
model. For example, Triceratops had three horns on its head, so this
is a feature your child would need to include.
Once they plan the type
of dinosaur and features to include, offer a selection of pipe cleaners.
Keep scissors handy to trim unwanted lengths
from the pipe cleaner.
For extra support and stability of the model, your child may need to
intertwine two pipe cleaners for the backbone and tail.
Start with
the spine, and allow your child to add features; legs,
tails, arms, etc, but winding the pipe cleaners together.
Pre-K Fun Theme Pages are
for educational reference only!
No copyright infringement is intended.
I do not claim any of these as my own ideas.
They are shared from friends and fellow group
members.
Thanks for sharing all your great ideas!
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