Easy Paper Flamingo Craft for Kids

Looking for an easy flamingo crafting project for kids?  This pink paper flamingo is easy to make and requires only paper, scissors and glue.  To kick up a notch, you can add some pink pom poms or beads to it.  I will show you all the steps you need to make this with your kid.

The idea of a flamingo craft project came from my nephew who lives across the hall from me.  I’ve been giving him art classes every Wednesday at 11 o’clock sharp in the basement parking lot.  Our setup is very simple, we take down his little interactive table and 2 stools, one for him, one for me.  I create his class based on what he’s been interested in.  One week we did a sock puppy of Olaf from Frozen, the other week we did a whale wind chime.  Last week he asked if we could do flamingo, so I got my notepad out to sketch up some ideas.  The criteria for each art class is that the project has to be finished within an hour, keep his hands busy, and the final result needs to look more or less recognizable.  Some weeks are definitely better than others.  This one was definitely a big success!  He really enjoyed rolling the paper rings.

For this paper flamingo, I opted for double tape to make the paper rings because my nephew isn't too fond of glue.  With double tape, he had so much fun rolling up the pink paper strips and pressing the ends together.  We were making paper rings like factory workers.  Luckily I cut out the strips ahead of time so we can focus on making the paper rings.

To make pink paper rings, I cut up one pink construction paper (12x18") my handy paper cutter.  For the flamingo wing area, I decided to use other pink colored paper to make it more interesting.  Since this is a very flexible project, you can use any pink colored paper you have on hand.  As for the beak and feet, I used 9 or 10 black paper rings.  If you have some pink pom poms or beads around the house, feel free to add them in for a more textural look.

The water ripples at the bottom is optional.  It’s made with blue paper strips lightly bended to create the ripple effect.  My nephew really enjoyed making the ripples, he couldn’t get enough of it, even after we made all those paper rings.

1. Sketch a flamingo on a large piece of white paper (I used 12x18").  Print out the flamingo template if you like to use as a reference.
2. Cut pink and black paper into strips of 1/2" wide and 2" long.  (only need 10 strips for black colored paper)
3. Roll paper strips into paper rings and tape or glue the ends together.
4. Apply glue over the flamingo sketch and stick pink paper rings over the entire body except for the beak and feet. You can also add pom poms or beads as accents if you like.
5. For the beak and feet area, glue black paper rings.
6. Draw an eye on a white circle paper and glue the circle over the pink paper rings.
7. Add blue strips (1/2" wide and 11" long) for water ripple (optional)
8. Let everything dry completely.

Here's a PDF of the flamingo outline on 8.5x11".  Feel free to print it out and rough trace it on your own blank paper.  You will need to scale it up by hand if you are also using 12x18" white paper like we did.  Hope you will enjoy this project with your kid and let us know how it goes!