Rainy Day Projects

Fold-and-Tear Paper Animal Faces

This activity uses nothing but paper and a glue stick — no scissors, no mess, no prep beyond pulling out some scrap sheets. Tearing paper is genuinely satisfying for small hands, and the irregular edges make surprisingly charming animal faces. You end up with something the child will want to show off, made entirely from what you already have.

Ages
3–5
Time
20 min
Adult help
Adult alongside
Mess
No mess

Before you start

Before you call the child over, tear a few paper shapes yourself to show what is possible: a big circle for a face, two triangles for ears, small ovals for eyes. Use whatever paper is around — old envelopes, newspaper, the back of junk mail, construction paper if you have it. The activity tends to stall when the child cannot picture what animal to make; keep two or three simple options in mind to suggest (a cat, a bear, a bunny) and let them choose rather than presenting a blank canvas. Gluing is often the favorite part, so let it take as long as it takes. Wind down naturally when the face feels finished to them, not when it looks finished to you.

You will need

  • Scrap paper or old newspaperAny paper on hand; a mix of colors helps
  • Plain white or light-colored paperOne sheet per child, as the backing
  • Glue stickOne per child; white school glue works too but is slower to dry
  • Washable markersFor adding details like noses or whiskers
  • Old magazines or catalogsoptionalGood source of colored paper to tear; optional

Steps

  1. 1

    Set out the paper

    Place one backing sheet in front of the child and a small pile of scrap paper nearby. Tear a large rough circle yourself and put it in the center of the backing sheet. Say something like, 'That could be an animal's face — what animal do you want to make?'

  2. 2

    Tear the ear shapes together

    Show the child how to fold a scrap piece in half and tear through both layers to get two matching shapes. For a cat, two small triangles; for a bear or bunny, two rounded humps. Guide their hands if the tearing is tricky, but let them do the pulling.

    Tip: Folding first gives rough symmetry without any measuring.

  3. 3

    Build the face piece by piece

    Tear small pieces for eyes, a nose, and any other features. Keep suggesting one thing at a time — 'What does a bear have right in the middle of its face?' — rather than listing everything at once. Let the child place each piece before gluing.

    Tip: If a torn shape looks wrong to the child, just tear another. There is no waste here.

  4. 4

    Glue everything down

    Let the child run the glue stick under each piece and press it down. Once the torn paper pieces are fixed, offer the washable markers so they can add whiskers, a mouth, or spots. Step back and let them decide when it is done.

Try it another way

  • Older children in the house can challenge themselves to make a whole animal body, not just the face, tearing shapes for legs, a tail, and fur markings.
  • If you have two children, each tears shapes for the other's animal and they swap partway through, finishing each other's creature.
  • For a quieter version, skip the animal theme entirely and let the child make an abstract collage, tearing and layering colors without any goal.

Keep in mind

  • Newspaper ink can transfer to hands; it washes off easily with soap and water.

What they get out of it

Children practice controlling their hands for a precise task and learn that a flat piece of paper can become something recognizable when you change its shape.

Take it to the table

Materials checklist, the steps and the variations on one Letter page.

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