Easy Paper Snail Craft for Kids (FREE Printable)
This easy paper snail craft is so much fun to make that you’re going to want to make several. When finished you can play with them and have a great time creating stories or attach them to a piece of paper and draw a slimy trail. This craft is perfect for kids of all ages. And you already know that making crafts is a great way to practice fine motor skills.
I bet you’ve never heard of craft flashcards…Of course you haven’t…because I totally made it up 🙂 As a pediatric Occupational Therapist, I’ve witnessed kids struggle to complete multi-step activities. So, I came up with this brilliant (if I do say myself) way to break down crafts into bite-sized pieces in the form of flashcards.
These are especially perfect for those kiddos who have limited attention spans.
Crafts are such a great developmental tool for kids (improves motor planning, attention span, executive functioning, fine motor skills, language development and more), and using flashcards makes planning crafts for your kids to enjoy even easier.
Just print out a few of your favorites onto cardstock, cut them into the cards with a hole in the corner and place them on a keyring that you can connect to your craft supply bag (which you can fill using our master list of supplies that we stick to for every single one of the projects in the flashcard collection). It’s so simple.
And the best part is that there’s not a screen in sight. Technology is such a great thing, but it’s also nice to take a break from it once in awhile and let the brain explore in other ways. Click the image to learn more about our collection of 100 Craft Flashcards for Kids.
Fun Facts About Snails
- There are over 60,000 species of snails in the world
- Wild snails lives for 3 to 7 years
- Snails can sleep for up to 3 years
- Garden snails are nocturnal
- The difference between snails and slugs is the existence of a shell
- Snails can lay up to 100 eggs at once
For more information about snails, check out this article from Cool Kid Facts.
Save this easy snail craft for later. Pin it to your favorite Pinterest board…
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How to make a Paper Snail Craft
Who doesn’t love an adorable little snail. There are literally movies where a cute snail is the star of the show. From young children to adults, this is a great activity for everyone. Craft together as a family for some amazing quality time. What a fun activity for the next rainy day.
SUPPLIES FROM THE BAG
- Scissors
- Glue stick
- Black Sharpie marker
- Crayons or markers
- Paint (about 3 colors of your choice)
- Newspaper
- Construction paper or cardstock
- Store card or something like it that is a stiff straight edge to use as a squeegy
- Snail template
Life is hectic, but taking some time to craft with your kids is totally worth it. And it doesn’t need to take loads of prep time or leave a big mess for you to clean up. We stick to a list of basic craft supplies that fit into one bag. A few simple supplies go a long way. All of the crafts you see here are made from that list to make crafting with your kids actually do-able. Now fill your bag and go craft some memories!
Check Out the Video Tutorial:
Instructions:
Step 1: Use the Printable Template
- Print the free snail template.
- You can print directly onto card stock or construction paper or use it as a template to cut out the 2 parts each out of the back of the paper plate.
- Color the body of your snail using crayons or markers.
- We added a little “blush” to the snail’s head.
Step 2: Cut Out the Snail’s Body
- Cut the snail shell and snail body apart.
- Then cut out the snail’s body and set it aside.
For younger children, you can precut the body of the snail, but leave the circle intact until after the squeegy painting.
Step 3: Squeegy Paint the Snail Shell
- Lay out some newspaper on your crafting surfce and place the circle on top.
- Squeeze out 3 small dots of paint (I had the best results when I chose a bright color pallette) onto the snail’s shell.
- Now it’s time to squeegy the paint your colorful snail craft using a card or other straight surface.
- Pull the paint around in a circular motion on the shell until you’re happy with the look. The different colors will blend together in a unique way.
- Set it aside to let the paint dry and go get a snack. It won’t take long.
Step 4: Make a Swirl
- Once the paint has dried, use a black marker to make a spiral shape on the shell.
Step 5: Cut Out the Shell for Your Cute Snail
- Take your spiral shell and cut it out.
Step 6: Put Together Your Simple Snail Craft
- Now attach the snail’s shell to the top of the body using your glue stick. White glue will also work but may cause the paper to warp.
Step 7: Make Him a Happy Snail
- Create the snail’s face using a black marker. We gave our snail a smiley face.
- You can choose to place a googly eyes instead.
This paper snail craft idea and these instructions are only meant to be a starting place. I made this snail craft more than once, and each time it turned out completely different. That’s the beauty of the squeegy painting technique. You pick the colors and then give it swirl, each time with a different result.
Save this paper craft for later. Pin it to your favorite Pinterest board…
Do I Have to Use Paint?
If you just don’t want to mess with paint, you don’t have to. Instead just color the shell with crayons or markers. Make it a silly shell by drawing various shapes all over the shell. Or you can use washi tape to decorate the shell, this is especially a good option for younger children who are practicing their fine motor skills. Put the sticky tape on the shell however you like. You could even glue small pompoms or beads all over the shell.
Make Even More Fun Snail Crafts
Popsicle Stick Snail
Newspaper Snail Craft
Make even more Bug Crafts
