4 Monkey Crafts for Preschoolers (Easy Ideas)

Start here: three monkey crafts that always work

Paper plate monkeyPaint, glue a face, done in ten minutesHandprint monkeyOne handprint and a vineFive little monkeys stick puppetsCount down with the rhyme afterward

4 monkey crafts for preschoolers, with pictures

1. Paper plate monkey

The child paints a paper plate brown and glues on a tan face, round ears and a smile.

You need: 1 white paper plate, brown poster paint, tan paper, brown paper, 2 googly eyes, black marker, glue

How to make it

1. Your child paints the plate brown. Let it dry.
2. You cut a large tan oval. Glue it across the lower half of the plate as the muzzle.
3. Cut 2 brown circles and 2 small tan circles. Glue a small tan circle on each brown circle, then glue them at the sides of the plate as ears.
4. Glue the 2 googly eyes above the muzzle.
5. Draw 2 nostril dots and a wide smile on the muzzle with the marker.

2. Handprint monkey

The child prints a brown hand as the monkey's body and adds a face, tail and a vine to hang from.

You need: white paper, green paper, brown poster paint, black marker, glue

How to make it

1. You cut a long green strip and 2 small leaves. Glue the strip across the top of the paper as a vine, with the leaves on it.
2. Paint your child's hand brown and press it below the vine with the fingers pointing up so the fingertips touch the vine.
3. When the paint is dry, draw 2 dot eyes and a smile on the palm with the marker.
4. Draw a curly tail from the bottom of the palm.

3. Paper bag monkey puppet

The child glues a face, ears and tummy onto a brown paper bag to make a monkey hand puppet.

You need: 1 brown paper lunch bag, brown paper, tan paper, 2 googly eyes, black marker, glue

How to make it

1. Lay the bag flat with the folded bottom flap at the top as the head.
2. You cut 2 tan ovals, 2 brown circles and 2 small tan circles.
3. Glue one tan oval on the lower part of the flap as the muzzle and the eyes above it.
4. Glue a small tan circle on each brown circle. Glue them on the sides of the flap as ears.
5. Glue the other tan oval below the flap as the tummy. Draw 2 nostril dots and a smile.

4. Five little monkeys stick puppets

The child colours five monkeys, sticks each to a craft stick and uses them to act out the counting rhyme.

You need: brown paper, tan paper, 5 craft sticks, black marker, glue

How to make it

1. You cut 5 brown monkey heads, each a round face with 2 round ears, and 5 tan ovals.
2. Your child glues a tan oval on each face as the face patch.
3. Your child draws dot eyes and a smile on each monkey.
4. Glue each head on the top of a craft stick.

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Monkey crafts, puppets and the counting rhyme

Brown paint goes a long way. Pour a coin-sized amount on a plate lid and use a wide brush, so the paper plate monkey is done in a few strokes.

For the handprint monkey, brush paint onto the palm and fingers rather than dipping the hand. Press, lift straight up, and wash before the face goes on.

The paper bag puppet and the five little monkeys on sticks are the ones to make if you want something to play with afterward. Sing the rhyme and let your child tip one monkey off the bed each verse.

Face parts are the fiddly bit. Cut the tan face and ears for a three year old. A four or five year old can cut circles from a drawn outline.

More crafts for preschoolers

• Zoo crafts for preschoolers
• Jungle and giraffe crafts for preschoolers
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• All crafts for preschoolers, by theme, holiday and letter

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