Animal crafts are a great way to keep kids entertained on rainy days or during the school holidays. If you haven’t checked out our blog on how to make a koala stuffed animal, you can head over and get step-by-step instructions, or you can stay here and discover some other adorable koala crafts. Whatever their age, kids will enjoy getting creative (and a little bit messy!) with these fun ideas. 

Newspaper koala picture

This super-simple craft is great for preschoolers and can be popped on their bedroom wall once dry. Let your child choose some coloured A4 paper for the background, then help them to cut out three circles from newspaper - two smaller ones and a large one. The large one will be the head and the small ones will be the ears. Stick them onto the A4 paper, then cut out an oval of black paper and stick it on to make the nose. Finish off with two googly eyes.

Koala finger puppet

Another easy craft for young children, these puppets are fun to make and can be used as characters next time you read a koala bedtime story together. Help your child cut four circles of grey card - a large one for the body, a medium one for the head and two small ones for the ears. 

Glue these together, then help your child to add googly eyes, draw a nose and add some tufts on the ears. Next, draw arms at each side of the body. Finally, help your little one cut two finger-sized holes at the bottom of the body. They can then poke their fingers through to bring the puppet to life. 

Koala crown

If your child likes to play at being an animal, why not let them be a koala for the afternoon with this cute koala crown? You’ll only need some grey card, glue, a stapler and a black crayon. First, take some grey card for the headband and measure it to fit your child’s head. Staple it at the right size. Next, help your child cut a circle of grey card to be the koala’s face, and two smaller circles to be its ears. 

Let your child draw a face on their koala. They can copy it from a picture in a koala bear story book or use a photo from the internet. Then help them glue the ears on. Once dry, the face can be glued or stapled to the headband to create the crown. 

Make it educational

Why not chat to your child about koalas while you are crafting together? You can teach them some fun facts like:

1. Koalas have a unique diet consisting of eucalyptus leaves that are toxic to most other animals.

2. Koalas are marsupials, meaning their babies grow in a special pouch.

3. Koalas can sleep for up to 18 hours a day.

Take a koala themed theatre trip

If your child enjoys reading Rachel Bright and Jim Field’s koala bear book, The Koala Who Could, why not take them to see it live on stage? This enchanting production is touring the UK, bringing the story to life with song, dance and puppetry. Book your tickets today at your local theatre.