Did you know that raccoons can make or 50 different noises? How fascinating! If you are studying forest animals or looking for a craft that uses simple shapes for young children, this adorable paper raccoon craft is for you! Not only is this craft a great way to practice identifying shapes, but the raccoon shape craft also strengthens fine motor skills as the children work with scissors and glue.
Have you ever read the sweet story “The Kissing Hand” by Audrey Penn? It is one of our favorite books to read together, especially before the first day of school. This raccoon craft is a great addition to your day after you read the book.
Materials
- Grey paper or grey paint
- Black paper or black paint
- White paper or white paint
- scissors
- glue stick
- raccoon pattern (personal use only)
- googly eyes (optional)
Directions
Print the raccoon template onto card stock. Cut it out and trace the shapes onto different colored paper. Then, cut them out.
If you have colored paper, you could print directly onto it. Another option is to print it onto white card stock, cut and paste the raccoon, and then use paint to finish it.
In this craft, the raccoon body is made from a large rectangle. A large triangle is used to make the raccoon’s head. Two small triangles become the raccoon’s ears and a tall, skinny triangle is used for the tail.
On the face, we used a black rectangle behind the eyes and a circle for the raccoon’s nose. Pick up a pack of googly eyes from the craft store or you can cut out circles from the paper for the eyes.
With the tail, position the thin point of the triangle at the top and glue the larger end to the body. Then, cut thin rectangle strips for the stripes on the tail.
For younger children, you can have each unfinished craft shape cut out and ready for the child to put it together with a glue stick.
For older children who can benefit from extra scissors practice, invite them to cut out their shapes on their own. Card stock is the easiest paper to cut for beginners just starting to work with scissors.
With so many different shapes and sizes of triangles, this is a great time to talk about how triangles can be different. They can be skinny or fat. Triangles can be long or short. It is a great thing to point out in this activity.
Raccoon Puzzle
Turn the raccoon shapes into a bath time puzzle! Cut the shapes out of craft foam for your child. When craft foam gets wet, it can stick to a window or the walls of the bathtub. Paint water on the window to stick the raccoon shapes to it. Or watch the pieces float in the bath tub and stick them to the wall to complete the puzzle.
Whether woodland animals are a theme for your classroom this school year or you are using this craft with “The Kissing Hand”, your students will have so much fun creating a cute cartoon forest animal. This racoon craft will look great on a bulletin board too.
Raccoon Books
Did you know that raccoons are very skillful and actually have a high IQ. They can learn from their past mistakes and can problem solve if they get into a tricky situation.
Here are a few books about raccoons for kids to read and enjoy. (affiliate links)
Fiction Raccoon Books for Kids
Raccoon on His Own by Jim Arnosky
Chester Raccoon and the Acorn Full of Memories by Audrey Penn
Marty the Raccoon: Little Treasure Hunter by Romana Radvanska
Nonfiction Raccoon Books for Kids
Exploring the World of Raccoons by Tracy Reed
Facts about the Raccoon by Lisa Strattin
These books about shapes go great with this craft too!
