Kids can make these candy corn and pumpkin decorations by tearing and gluing colored paper.

Make a fall decoration – and enhance fine motor skills

Are you looking to help your child enhance their fine motor skills? Believe it or not, tearing paper is an easy way to help them build and refine the muscles in their hands! Join Olivia (4) and Logan (2) as we make a fun fall craft that includes paper tearing. This activity is for all ages, too – I have my third graders do this every year, and it is surprising to see how many find it challenging to tear paper into small pieces.

Materials for the project include colored paper, glue sticks and scissors. Logan and Olivia are seated at the table, ready to start!

 

What you will need:

  • Candy corn or pumpkin outline on white cardstock
  • Construction paper (yellow, white, orange, green, black)
  • Glue
  • Scissors (to cut the outline at the end)

 

Steps:

  1. Print out an outline of a candy corn or pumpkin (or both!) You can also just draw one for your child on cardstock.
  2. If your child is doing a candy corn, give them a piece of yellow, white, and orange construction paper.
  3. If your child is doing a pumpkin, give them a piece of orange, black, and green construction paper.
  4. Model how to tear the construction paper into small pieces (but not too tiny!).
  5. Show your child how to glue each piece of torn paper onto their outline. Glue sticks are less messy to use! Make sure to tell your child to position each piece close together so there are not any white spaces in between.
  6. Continue to glue pieces down until every section is filled with the appropriate color. If you choose to make a pumpkin, your child can use the black construction paper to give it a face and make it a jack-o-lantern!
  7. Finally, cut out the outline. What a neat craft to display during the fall season!
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About the author

headshot of woman smiling with brown hair wearing a green lace blouse.Marissa Will is the mother of two toddlers, Olivia (4) and Logan (2). Writing was her first passion: she’s a freelance writer and a Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication alumna. Will is currently educating the future leaders of tomorrow: She has spent the past eight years teaching third grade with a master’s degree in elementary education from Northern Arizona University-Yuma.
 

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