My three year old and I made these little cardboard tube monsters for Halloween. We’ve been meaning to make some tube creatures for a while and Halloween seemed the perfect time.
I like these because you can go as wild as you like–any colors, any embellishments, and construction! These are not only great for Halloween but would also make good alien lifeforms or new specimens for your own Seuss-inspired Zoo.
My biggest question was how to cover the tubes. Construction paper seemed too neat. I was going to go with paint and then I thought tissue paper would add some fun texture and allow my preschooler to use glue–one of his favorites.
Just before we started the project, I also received an unsolicited package of Halloween-color chenille stems (pipe cleaners), pom poms, and more from CraftProjectIdeas.com (thanks!).
Materials:
- cardboard tube (I know some people cannot use toilet paper tubes but you can also use paper towel or gift wrap tubes)
- chenille stems/pipe cleaners
- pom poms of various sizes
- googly eyes of various sizes
- tissue paper squares
Directions:
1. Paste tissue paper squares on the cardboard tube (I used a Halloween purple and orange combo but my preschooler went for blue, green and red). You can fold down the top of the tube to form ears or leave as is.
2. Thin glue with some water and paint a layer over the tissue paper.
3. Stick on eyes and other embellishments. (Tip: If regular paste isn’t strong enough, “glue dots” are a great kid-friendly solution.)
4. Add limbs with chenille stems. We cut a slit up either side of the tube but you can also poke holes through.
Educational Connections:
- Math: How many limbs does your monster have? How many eyes? How many legs do real animals have? What kinds of eyes do real animals have?
- Art: Introduce the term decoupage. Notice how colors change when tissue paper squares overlap.
- Language Arts: Write or tell a story about your monster. What’s your monster’s name? Where is he from? What does she like to eat? What does he do for fun?
