Easy Paper Plate Boat Craft for Kids

Do you have a boat lover at home? This Paper Plate Boat is a great craft for kids of all ages. Use it as part of a Summer or Transportation themed lesson plan in your toddler or preschool classroom.

Disclosure: Adult supervision is required for all activities at all times.

The Summer break can be tough on parents who aren’t used to having their kids home every day. If you’re trying to get ready for this Summer, then start with these Summer activities for kids. Or invest in the Summer Activity Pack, which is filled with educational ideas for young kids.

Materials Needed

• Small paper plate
• Paint
• Scissors
• Glue
• Blue construction paper, both light and dark blue
• Jumbo popsicle sticks

How to Make a Paper Plate Boat Craft

1. Draw a line down the center of the paper plate.

Half of your paper plate will be the hull of the boat and the other half will be turned into the boats sail.

2. On one side of the plate draw a triangle

I made two sides of the triangle curved. I did this so that it looks like the wind is making the sail billow out. However, if you’re doing this simple craft with young children, like preschoolers or kindergarteners, then just let them make a simple triangle in whichever way works best for them.

3. Cut along the lines.

Use a pair of scissors to cut out the sail and the hull. Cutting is a great way to help young kids develop their fine motor skills (the small muscles in their hands and fingers).

4. Paint the boat.

I kept this step simple. But this is a great way to let your kids create without constraint. Let them pick their favorite colors and make patterns across the hull of their ships.

5. Tear your dark blue and white paper into strips.

I like to tear the paper strips because I like the way they mimic the waves. However you can also cut out the waves instead, if you want to work on fine motor skills with some scissor practice.

6. Glue down the paper strips in alternate colors, but set aside the last piece of blue paper.

Although I used white and blue strips for the waves. I did this because those were the colors I already had. Try using different shades of blue, or even a little bit of green for a different effect.

Alternatively, you can also experiment with different materials. For example, try using strips of newspaper, paper towels or strips from a tissue paper square instead. Scrunched up blue tissue paper would also add a nice textural element to your ocean.

7. Glue down the semi-circle with the flat side facing upwards.

8. Glue down the last strip of blue paper, overlapping with the bottom of the boat.

If you don’t want to do steps 6 and 7 in this order, you don’t have to. You can always glue the paper plate hull down last and then paint waves over the bottom with blue paint instead.

9. Glue the jumbo craft stick down the center of the page.

Make sure that one end of the wooden sticks is underneath the inside of the paper plate halves. This will act as the mast for your paper plate ships.

10. Glue the sail to the top of the popsicle stick.

I only made one sail for our boats. However, you can also use the same process make two or three smaller sails instead. Just like a schooner which has both back and front sails.

11. As an extra step, use a sharpie to draw on your boat.

Let your kids decorate their sailboat craft however they like. My little girl decided to draw her family inside, while my son had a great time when he turned his picture into a pirate ship.

You can also add a school of rainbow fish in the deep sea or seagulls flying through the sky. If you have fish stickers on hand, this would be a wonderful way to add some extra detail to your paper boat.

Are you going to make this Paper Plate Boat Craft with your kids?
Don’t forget to pin the idea for later.

More Summer Crafts for Kids

Do you love easy crafts? There are so many great ideas to try this Summer. Here are some of my most popular crafts to make with both younger and older kids during the school break.

1. Paper Plate Turtle Craft
2. Paper Plate Starfish Craft
3. Paper Plate Fish Craft
4. Rocking Paper Plate Crabs
5. Summer Paper Plate Masks

For more easy craft ideas, visit 40 Paper Plate Crafts for Summer

Print the Instructions

Paper Plate Boat Craft

Print

Learn how to make a boat craft out of paper plates. This is an easy craft for kids to try this Summer.

Materials

• Small paper plate
• Paint
• Scissors
• Glue
• Blue construction paper, both light and dark blue
• Jumbo popsicle sticks

Instructions

Make the Boat

1. Draw a line down the center of the paper plate.
2. One one side of the plate, draw a triangle.
3. Cut along the lines.
4. Paint the semi-circle in any color you like.

Make the Background

1. Tear dark blue and white paper into strips.
2. Glue the strips along the bottom third of the light-blue background paper. (Save the last strip till step 4)

Put them together

1. Glue the semi-circle to the background
2. Now glue the last strip so that it overlaps with the bottom of the boats hull.
3. Glue the jumbo craft stick to the middle of the page.
4. Glue the sail to the top of the popsicle stick.
5. As an extra step, use a permanent marker to draw people of your ship or birds in the sky.