Rainbow Butterfly Collage Craft

When considering crafts for kids, it is always a good idea to use what you already have on hand. Making toys from recycled materials, rather than purchasing them new, is also a great way to teach kids to use their imagination and to encourage them to recycle.

This month, we used a cardboard box and some contact paper to make a rainbow butterfly collage. This is the perfect activity for toddlers and preschoolers and one that can be used again and again! It is also a great tool for getting in some fine motor practice - a skill that needs to be practiced many times before children can learn to write!

To inspire you to create your own upcycled craft, we used Kid Made Modern’s Deluxe Arts & Crafts Supply Collection  to make our rainbow butterfly collage. In addition to being a fun and educational activity at home, this is a versatile craft that can be used in any early childhood setting as well!

Materials Needed:

• Kid Made Modern Deluxe Arts and Crafts Supply Collection
• Cardboard box lid
• Scissors
• Contact paper
• Pencil

Step 1

Gather your materials. Use a piece of cardboard as the base - you can even use the lid of your Kid Made Modern box!

Step 2

Trace an outline of a butterfly onto the cardboard with pencil. We did a google search to find a butterfly outline. You can also free hand draw your butterfly if you’d prefer.

Once you have your butterfly shape drawn on the cardboard, cut out the butterfly with a good pair of scissors. Children will need an adult’s help with this part as it can be tricky to cut through without damaging the frame. You can also use an exacto knife.

Step 3

Place a piece of contact paper sticky side up onto a flat surface and then put the cardboard butterfly cut out on top.

Step 4

Lay your butterfly out and use the items from Kid Made Modern's Deluxe Arts and Craft Supply Collection to decorate and design your butterfly.

Use craft sticks, fuzzy sticks, felt, pom poms, etc. to enhance your design. Remember to allow your children to use their creativity and imagination when doing this part, as there is absolutely no right or wrong way to complete this.

Step 5

After children have admired their work, since the contact paper makes everything temporary, encourage children to take everything off and create a new design! For this reason, this activity makes it a particularly great one for use within a classroom or homeschool setting.

This upcycled rainbow butterfly collage lets kids create their own butterfly design using various craft materials. Children will tap into their own creativity while making their own butterfly, and once they are done they can repeat the process over and over again! The contact paper involved in this craft makes it easy to remove and replace each butterfly design with a new one. If that isn’t a great way to recycle, I don’t know what is!

About the Author:

Jaclyn Ryan is a mom of four and former teacher. She lives in Connecticut with her family and prefers to engage her children in activities that foster creativity and connection -- and that are also fun!