Easy Paper Plate Jellyfish Craft for Summer

More Summer Crafts for Kids

I love easy paper plate crafts for summer. There are so many adorable crafts to make with your kids. Here are some more of my favorite summer themed craft ideas to make with your toddlers and preschoolers.

1. Summer sunset art for kids
2. Pineapple craft for summer
3. Paper Plate Turtle Craft
4. Paper Plate Sea Horses
5. Paper Bag Whale Craft

For more ideas, take a look at these 40 Summer Crafts for Kids, or 42 Sea Animal Crafts for Kids.

Materials Needed

• Paper plates
• Paint
• Scissors
• Sharpies
• Straws
• String

How to Make a Paper Plate Jellyfish Craft

Make the Jellyfish’s body

1. The first step in this easy kids craft is to cut the paper plate in half.

You can then either use the paper plate as is, or you can draw a design on the cardboard. Teachers who are prepping this activity for whole classes may want to just cut the plates in half, to make the prep time shorter.

I used a black marker to make an oval shape with a wavy line at the bottom of the plate. Although older kids will have so much fun drawing their own jellyfish creation, it’s not actually necessary for this craft idea.

2. Decorate the jellyfish body.

Paint, glitter, pens. Decorate your cute jellyfish whichever way you like. This is a fun way to experiment with various colors and have lots of fun.

Make the Tentacles

3. Cut some string or a piece of yarn into pieces (approximately 10 inches long)

4. Cut some straws into 1-inch lengths.

5. Thread the straws onto the string.

To make threading easier for younger kids, you can create a custom-made needle using a piece of pipe cleaner and attaching it to the end of the string. This is a great way to do threading activities with your kids at no extra cost.

Put them Together

6. Attach the tentacles to the back of the paper plate using sticky tape.

You can also punch a small hole into the bottom of the paper plate using a hole punch, and then attach the tentacles by tying them to the holes.

Hang these Jellyfish up in your classroom as part of a wonderful underwater scene.

What You’re Learning

Creativity

Let your kids’ imaginations grow by making their own unique jellyfish craft. This is a great way to encourage them to think creatively and then express the ideas in their heads, in a way others can see.

Planning and Organization

This jellyfish has several steps that need to be done in a specific order for this craft to work. For example, if you attach the tentacle first, and then try cutting out the head, you’ll most likely end up cutting off the tentacles.

Organizing the required materials beforehand, as well as planning out each step before you do it, is a great way for kids to strengthen their executive functioning skills.

Fine Motor Skills

Fine motor skills refer to the small muscles in the hand and fingers. Developing these skills are important in being able to write when the kids go to school, as well as being able to complete tasks independently. (For example, dressing and feeding themselves)

There are a lot of different fine motor skills involved in this fun activity. Threading the tentacles, as well as painting and cutting the jellyfish head are all going to help young kids develop:

1. Pincer or tripod grip
2. Hand-eye coordination
3. Hand strength
4. Dexterity.

Science

This fun jellyfish craft is the perfect opportunity to talk to your kids about these ocean animals. Use this great activity to have a mini science lesson by discussing things like:

1. Where do jellyfish live?
2. How do they eat?
3. What do they eat?
4. How do they move?
5. What are the different kinds of jellyfish?