Some of my favorite craft projects involve tearing, ripping, and manipulating paper! I’ve found that children love the process and the results often add whimsy and uniqueness to a craft project. The process of tearing paper adds action to art while also aiding fine motor skill development. It’s also a wonderful way to engage children in music and movement while creating art. My students love to sing “rip it, rip it good” as they’re tearing away!
Today we’ll use the torn paper technique to create cute penguins in the snow and ice. This playful collage will expose your child to a variety of art materials including paper and paint while also introducing a few nontraditional items such as bubble wrap and Styrofoam into the art world, and it ties in perfectly with a penguin theme or winter activities.
Torn Paper Penguin Craft
GET A FULL WEEK OF PENGUIN THEME ACTIVITIES IN OUR PRESCHOOL PENGUIN LESSON PLANS
Ugh! The paper won’t rip!
Ripping paper can be challenging for young learners. Many children have difficulty ripping the paper and often get frustrated or upset. Let’s set them up for success by prepping the paper beforehand!
Cut the paper into strips and make small snips down one side of each strip. This creates a starting point for each rip and in essence begins the tearing process. I’ve found that this is a game-changer and frustration and stress are eliminated. Give it a try!
Types of Penguins
Show your child a variety of penguin photos and let him or her decide which one to make. With almost 20 different types of penguins in the wild this craft project can produce diverse results.
Penguins can be basic or more complex based on the artist’s ability level and age. Each individual penguin’s unique characteristics can be explored and highlighted. Some favorites include the Emperor Penguins (the big guy!), the Macaroni Penguin (most fun to say!), the King Penguin (he rules!), and the Rockhopper Penguin (craziest hair winner!).
National Geographic Kids has a nice nonfiction book that includes photos of a variety of penguins and is a nice companion book to this craft. In addition, the book Penguin Book for Kids by Andrea Winters includes fun penguin facts and photographs as well.
Materials for Torn Paper Penguin Craft:
- Construction Paper
- Scissors
- Pencil
- Masking Tape
- Old Sponge Tool
- Glue
- Tempera Paint
- Bubble wrap
- Styrofoam
Step by Step Directions:
1. Paint it!
Wrap a small piece of bubble wrap around a traditional sponge tool. Secure it into place with masking tape. Dip the painting tool into white paint and stamp away onto blue paper. As a result, an array of small dots are formed that resemble snow.
2. Break it!
Save some of the styrofoam from those holiday deliveries and have your child break it into small pieces. Glue the styrofoam pieces to the bottom of the blue paper with white glue to represent ice.
3. Draw it!
Drawing a penguin can be daunting for young learners. To begin the process draw a large number 8 onto the blue paper. This creates the body and head of the penguin. Then draw the wings. Finally, draw the additional penguin details onto construction paper. This includes the eyes, beak, and feet.
4. Rip it!
Begin to tear the black and white strips of paper into small pieces. If your penguin has hair on his or her head cut and curl strips of paper to create a fun hairdo.
5. Glue it!
Glue all of the ripped paper pieces into place as well as the penguin’s eyes, beak, and feet. If you wish, add additional deals including a hair bow or bowtie.
I’d love to see your penguin creations, so please tag @fantasticfunandlearning and @youngschoolartwithmr.g on Instagram.
I hope you and your little ones enjoy this torn paper penguin craft. All of the ripping, breaking, stamping, cutting, and gluing will give little hands and fingers a workout! It’s also a nice way to reuse bubble wrap and styrofoam. Instead of ending up in the trash those shipping materials can be a part of the art-making process.
CONNECT WITH VIN GIANNETTO
Learn more about Vin here on his author bio page. Follow along with him on Facebook at Young School Art with Mr. Giannetto and on Instagram @youngschoolartwithmr.g for art project ideas.
MORE ART AND CRAFT PROJECT IDEAS FROM VIN
Creative Ways to Paint with Carrots
Build a Flower with Air Dry Clay
Decorate a Tree Loose Parts Play
Paper Sculpture Relief Ocean Craft
Recycled Art for Kids: Boats in the Sea
Printing Fall Leaves Art Project for Kids
Halloween Art for Kids: Flip the Painting Process
Tinfoil Process Art Christmas Ornaments
PRINTABLE PENGUIN THEME LESSON PLANS
Save time and get right to the playful learning with our printable lesson plan sets. We have a variety of lesson plan sets that work well as winter themes. Each set includes over 30 playful learning activities related to the theme, and we’ve provided different versions for home preschool families and classroom teachers so all activities are geared directly toward your needs.
This set currently includes active hands-on learning ideas and the following printables:
- Fish Pattern Cards (in color and b/w)
- Iceberg Shape Mats and Iceberg Penguin Shape Matching Game (in color and b/w)
- If We Were Penguins Class Book Covers and Page Templates
- Penguin Color Matching Mats and Color Fish to Sort (in color and b/w)
- Uppercase Adult Penguin and Lowercase Chick Letter Matching Set (in color and b/w)
- Iceberg Penguin Name Hop Activity with Editable Penguin Name Plates (in color and b/w)
- Build an Iceberg Counting Activity Number Cube (in color and b/w)
- Penguin Ten-Frames Pre-Filled with 1-10 (in color and b/w)
- Blank 10 and 20 Frames (in color and b/w)
- Penguin Numbers 1-20 (in color and b/w)
- Penguin Vocabulary Cards (in color and b/w)
- Penguin Science Journal (in color and b/w)
- Real Penguin Photos
GET YOUR LESSON PLANS
Also available on Teachers Pay Teachers.
Kelly Klawitter
Cute penguin project!! Do you have templates for the bows and eyes, and feet??
Shaunna Evans
So glad you like the project! We don’t have templates…it’s so much more fun to let the kids get creative as they draw and cut their own!