Create a bright and fun paper fish with this easy origami craft for kids! This project comes with free PDF printable templates, including colorful square templates and printable fish eyes. The craft is simple to make and perfect for children at home, in the classroom, or during summer and ocean-themed activities.
What You Need
Free PDF printable templates
White paper
Colored double-sided paper
Scissors
Glue (optional)
Get your free printables at the bottom of this post
How to Make an Origami Fish
First, print the free templates. Print the eye template on white paper and the square template on any colored double-sided paper. Carefully cut out the squares and the number of eyes you need. Each fish uses one eye.
Now it’s time to fold your origami fish!
Take one square and fold it in half to make a triangle.
Open the triangle and fold the square in half again, this time connecting the opposite corners.
Open the paper again. You should now have a square with two diagonal fold lines.
Fold the square in the opposite direction to form a rectangle.
Open the rectangle.
Using the fold lines as guides, carefully collapse the paper into a 3D shape made from two triangles.
Fold one of the triangle sections outward to create the fish tail.
Your fish shape is now complete! If you want, you can secure the folds with a little glue.
Finally, glue on the eye.
Your easy origami fish craft is ready!
Benefits of This Craft
Making this origami fish is not only fun but also educational for children. Folding paper helps improve fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, concentration, and patience. Kids also practice following step-by-step instructions and develop spatial thinking while creating the fish shape.
This craft encourages creativity as children can choose different paper colors and create an entire school of colorful fish.
Fun Ways to Use the Origami Fish
These cute paper fish can be used in many creative ways:
Decorate a classroom or bedroom wall with an ocean theme
Create an underwater bulletin board display
Use them for pretend play and storytelling
Make a mobile or hanging decoration
Add them to greeting cards or scrapbook pages
Use them during summer camp or preschool activities
Create a colorful aquarium scene with many fish
This simple origami fish craft is a wonderful activity for kids of different ages and a great way to combine creativity with learning.
