This paper strip fish craft for kids is super easy to make and perfect for Chinese New Year or for a unit on sea life or the ocean! You can use the free printable template, or cut your own paper strips for the kids to use.
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We had so much fun making paper strip angels last month, we just had to create something new using the same easy crafting method. Because the Chinese New Year is quickly approaching, we thought it’d be fun to create some red fish using paper strips! These paper fish are simple enough to do in kindergarten and still fun for older kids too. If you’re making the fish for other themes like a unit on ocean life, you can make the fish in any color you’d like!
Paper Strip Fish Craft for Kids
Materials for Paper Strip Fish Craft
Scissors or paper cutter Glue stick (I like these extra strong glue sticks.) Yarn, twine, or string for hanging Optional: Gold marker Construction paper or cardstock cut into strips:
- For the fish body: One strip of paper 3/4 inch x 9 inches
- For the tail: One strip 3/4 inch x 7 inches
Or you can print out our free template right onto cardstock and have children cut out their own strips. (If you’re making red fish for Chinese New Year, print the template out right onto red cardstock, and you’re all set!)
Directions for Paper Strip Fish Craft
1. Optional: Use a gold marker to decorate your red paper strips with designs for the Chinese New Year. I tried out 4 different brands of gold marker. Gold Sharpies and gold oil-based Sharpies worked okay, but the Sargent Art Metallic Markers and the Faber-Castell Metallic PITT Artist Pen stood out the most on the red paper.
2. Place some glue on one end of your 9 inch paper strip, and press the other end of the strip down on it, forming a fish body shape. Hold firmly in place until the paper doesn’t come apart.
3. To make the fish tail, fold the 7 inch paper strip into thirds. Then glue the two ends together forming a triangle. Hold in place firmly.
4. Glue the triangle tail onto the fish body.
5. Add some string to hang your fish!
Tips and Ideas
- When gluing your paper together, you’ll need to press and hold the paper securely for a few seconds before moving onto the next step. We didn’t have much trouble with our glue sticks, but if you do, you can always use a paperclip to hold your paper in place while it dries. You can also use glue dots instead of glue sticks.
- Try making fish in different colors or use markers to add various details to your fish.
- Make different sizes of fish by changing the length of the paper strips. You can make a whole family of fish!