Creating a koala habitat with kids is a fun way to learn about Australian wildlife while getting crafty and learning about ecosystems. Since koalas aren’t native to the UK, this will be a creative, educational project rather than a real habitat. Here’s how to make it engaging:

Create a koala habitat diorama 

Have you ever heard of a diorama before? This is a three-dimensional miniature scene that recreates a specific environment, event or concept - often with incredible detail and storytelling flair. You could create your own koala habitat diorama by researching where koalas live and decorating a shoebox or a cardboard tray to look like where a koala might hang out. Crafty ideas might include:

1. Decorating the shoe box

Koalas live in the eucalyptus forests of eastern and southeastern Australia in states such as Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. Koalas spend most of their time high up in the trees as this keeps them away from predators and as safe as possible. As koalas only eat eucalyptus leaves, they’re more than happy in this environment. 

So, the first thing you’ll need to do when creating your own koala habitat is to decorate your shoebox like a forest. You could do this using different coloured paints or you might want to cut out leaf shapes from various shades of green paper and stick these all over your box. A glue gun will help keep your leaves in place, but make sure children are supervised at all times as glue guns can get very hot and hazardous. 
 

2. Making your own eucalyptus trees 

Many books on koalas will have lots of pictures of koalas sitting in eucalyptus trees, so you could use these for inspiration. Visit your local library or look online to see what eucalyptus trees look like. From there, you can craft your own. There are many ways to go about this but one of  the simplest and most fun is to use toilet roll tubes and egg boxes. This is also a great way to recycle and make use of odd bits in your house. 

Start by painting the toilet roll tube brown. This will be your trunk. When it’s dry, make small cuts around the bottom that are roughly one-inch in length. This will allow you to glue the cut edges and stick the trunk easily to your shoebox. Next, cut out each section of the egg box and paint green. Use a glue gun to attach these sections to the trunk. If you don’t want to use an egg box you can also get leaf shapes out of paper, card, felt or other materials and attach. 
 

3. Craft a koala 

To create your own koala bear story and to use the koala scene for some interactive play, it would be great to make your own koala. You can do this using playdough or felt pieces, or you can even buy a small model koala to hang out in the trees you’ve created. You can then play with your scene and imagine what life would be like among the eucalyptus trees of the Australian forests.

If you’ve read a cuddly koala book called The Koala Who Could, you’ll be delighted to know it can now be enjoyed live on stage. This child-friendly show is currently touring the UK, so book your tickets today and join in the excitement.