How do I run a cardboard-animal craft station?
Quick answer: Before the party, make and test one sample of each animal you plan to offer. Then adults cut the corrugated bodies, preparing one per guest plus two spares. On the day, set up a build table where guests attach parts with masking tape and a decorating table where they add flat details with white glue. Keep a drying space and an adult repair corner nearby. In the example plan for eight children aged 4 to 10, guests aged 7 and up cut cereal-box ears, tails and spots with blunt scissors, while guests under 6 get animals that are already put together plus stickers. The craft takes about 45 minutes and ends with a standing check and pictures.
Six animal poses for the photo booth
Print these pose suggestions for the photo wall. Guests can copy their animal's pose or choose another.
Draw one when the room is ready
Elephant: raise one arm like a trunk for an elephant salute.
Animal photo poses
Hold the finished animal for a picture against a blank wall in plain light.
- Elephant: raise one arm like a trunk for an elephant salute.
- Lion: make a lion-roar face.
- Giraffe: stretch upward like a tall giraffe.
- Rabbit: hold a bunny-hop pose for the picture.
- Cat: crouch like a cat.
- Owl: spread your arms like an owl's wings.
How the cardboard animal craft works
Each guest picks a lion, elephant, giraffe, rabbit, cat or owl. Adults prepare the animal body ahead of time, and guests add ears, tails and decorations. The example plan is for eight children aged 4 to 10, with two craft tables and ten animal bodies, two of them spares. If your group is a different size or age range, use the same steps and change the numbers.
Make a sample before you cut the whole batch. The measurements below are notes for drawing your own pieces. There are no downloadable cutting templates. Check that your sample stands up and that you can pack it for the trip home without damaging the decorations. Do both checks before preparing everyone's kit.
Once your sample works, plan the rest of the station: workspace, shared tools, the pieces that need adult help and who will help. See how to organize a craft station for a children's party.
If the samples turn out to need more preparation than you have time for, choose a different main craft. Untested bodies are likely to cause problems at the party.
Draw and test the six animal designs
Use 4 mm corrugated shipping cardboard for the main bodies. The lion, elephant, giraffe, rabbit and cat start from a side-view outline with four legs, about 5 by 8 inches. The owl has a round body 6 inches across and a wide 3-inch base foot instead of legs.
These measurements describe the pieces but don't include a full drawing of a standing base. A flat animal outline may need more support than small foot pads can give it. Put together and test one sample of each design you plan to offer. Only trace copies of versions that stand up when made from your own cardboard.
| Animal | Pieces to prepare |
|---|---|
| Lion | Four-legged body; mane ring cut from a 4-inch circle with scalloped edges; 2-inch tail; two ears |
| Elephant | Four-legged body; curved trunk cut from a 1-by-4-inch piece; two ears, each 3 inches across |
| Giraffe | Four-legged body; 6-inch neck-and-head piece; two 1-inch horn knobs |
| Rabbit | Four-legged body; two ears, each 4 inches tall; one cotton-ball tail |
| Cat | Four-legged body; two pointed ears; one curled tail strip, 1 by 5 inches |
| Owl | 6-inch round body; wide 3-inch base foot; two wings; one triangular beak |
Why does my cardboard animal tip over?
Quick answer: First check whether one foot is short or the whole body leans to one side. Taping a 1/2-inch cardboard pad under a short foot may fix a foot that lifts. If the whole animal tips sideways, it needs a different kind of support.
Stand each finished sample on a flat table for ten seconds. If one foot lifts but the animal otherwise balances, tape a 1/2-inch cardboard pad under that foot and test it again. If the whole animal falls sideways, padding one foot won't help, because the flat body itself needs more support. The piece lists don't include a full drawing for that support, so change your sample and test it again before using it as your pattern.
Decorations can change how an animal balances, so do the ten-second test again once the animal is decorated. Don't cut ten copies of a design that still falls over.
How many bodies and supplies to prepare
Use the list below as a starting point for eight guests, then adjust it once you have made your samples. Box sizes vary, so check that your boxes give you enough usable cardboard for the bodies and the spare foot pads.
When you count guests, include everyone who will make an animal. That includes the birthday child and any siblings or other children at home who will join in. Don't count adults unless they are making an animal too.
If siblings are welcome, ask families on the invitation whether they'll come and join in. Then confirm before you cut the kits. See birthday invitation wording when siblings are welcome.
- Two large shipping boxes of 4 mm corrugated cardboard, with enough material for ten bodies and foot pads
- Four cereal boxes for ears, tails and other pieces children can cut
- Three rolls of 1-inch masking tape and two tape dispensers
- Four bottles of white glue, plus cotton swabs (such as Q-tips) for spreading
- 100 googly eyes and 60 paper spots cut out in advance
- Sixteen pieces of yarn, each 2 yards long
- Eight adoption cards or index cards, and eight markers
- Four pairs of blunt children's scissors
- One utility knife and cutting mat, for adults to cut the corrugated pieces
- One low-temperature glue gun for the adult repair corner
- Cotton balls for rabbit tails, and sticker sheets for the younger guests' trays
- Separate bins for ears, tails and spots, plus containers for yarn and eyes
- One shoe-box scrap bin for each table
- Six photo-pose cards, a phone tripod if you use one, and cardboard sheets for packing
How many animal bodies should I prepare?
Quick answer: One per guest plus two spares. For example, eight guests need ten bodies.
Here is how the example works out: 8 guests plus 2 spares makes 10 bodies. Share those ten among the six designs according to the choices you want to offer. For example, you could make two lions and two cats among the extras, or ask the birthday child which animals to double up.
The younger guests' ready-made animals are part of the guest count, so don't add them a second time. If two of the eight guests are under 6, you prepare two ready-made animals and six kits for older guests, plus the two spares, for ten bodies in total. Keep the spares nearby instead of putting them in guests' kits.
Decide who cuts what and pack each kit
Adults cut every corrugated body with a utility knife on a cutting mat before the party. Pack a kit for each guest with one body, one sheet of cereal-box cardboard for the trim pieces, two 8-inch strips of masking tape and an adoption card.
If your guests would rather decorate buildings, a standing collage house could replace the animals. It works the same way, with adult-cut pieces and a tray for each child. Choose one craft, not both. See how to make cardboard collage houses with party guests.
For guests under 6, put the animal together beforehand and give them a tray with stickers only, without scissors or glue bottles. Keep that tray away from the cutting seats. These guests can name and decorate their animals alongside everyone else without doing the same building steps.
Which parts can children cut?
Quick answer: In this plan, adults cut all the corrugated bodies, guests aged 7 and up cut cereal-box ears, tails and spots with blunt scissors, and guests under 6 get ready-made animals and stickers.
The plan has no separate cutting rule for six-year-olds. Prepare their kit based on how much help each child needs, and have a ready-made animal available if that suits them better. Don't assume every six-year-old should do every cutting step.
Before the party, ask caregivers whether their child needs help with cutting or handling, or would prefer a ready-made animal, and whether anyone will come with them. See how to ask parents about party accommodations.
These age guidelines belong to this example plan. They don't guarantee that every child of a given age can safely use scissors. You know the children attending, so adjust their kits to match.
Set up the build table, decorating table and repair corner
Put four seats at the build table, with the kits, trim trays and two tape dispensers within reach. Set up the second table for decorating, with separate bins for ears, tails and spots. Keep the yarn and googly eyes in their own containers, and give each pair of guests one glue bottle to share.
With only two tape dispensers and one glue bottle for each pair of guests, decide how children will take turns and who refills supplies. See how to plan shared materials without constant arguments.
With eight guests and four build seats, split the children into two groups of four. While one group attaches parts, the other names their animals and fills in adoption cards. Swap when the first group is ready to decorate. Younger guests with ready-made animals can start on their stickers without waiting for a turn at the build table.
Put the repair corner next to the tables, staffed by an adult with spare foot pads and the low-temperature glue gun. Use masking tape for any repair it can handle. Open the corner during decorating and keep the line to three guests or fewer. If an animal needs a longer repair, it can stay in the corner with its name card while its owner goes back to the table.
For pictures, choose a blank wall with plain light and put the printed pose cards at the children's eye level. A savanna backdrop made from kraft paper is optional: two guests at a time could sponge-paint it with tempera and three sponges, taking turns of about five minutes. Skip it if it would take attention away from the main craft.
Take a test photo from where the photographer will stand to check the light and the background. Decide where the next children will wait. Taking photos should be optional. Here are more photo booth activities.
Should I use tape or glue?
Quick answer: Use masking tape to attach parts and white glue for flat decorations.
Use tape to attach ears, trunks and tails, and use glue for paper spots, yarn details and googly eyes. Keep all glue work at the decorating table and set up a flat drying area next to it. Having building and wet glue at separate tables gives children somewhere to set their animals down while the decorations dry.
Follow the instructions on your glue. Don't assume every glued piece will be ready to move after ten minutes. Use your sample to see how long your glue and decorations actually take to dry.
Example: a 45-minute session for eight guests
This example assumes the bodies are tested and the kits are ready before guests sit down. The four time blocks add up to 45 minutes: 10, 15, 15 and 5. Slow the pace if children need more help or the decorations take longer to dry.
Schedule this craft block, plus time for decorations to dry, before food and pickup. Add up the minutes and check them against your invitation times. See the party-day timeline.
- Minutes 0 to 10: Choose an animal and name it. Hand out the kits and adoption cards, show an assembled sample, and explain which parts attach with tape.
- Minutes 10 to 25: Cut and attach the parts. The two groups take turns at the build table while the other works on adoption cards. Younger guests decorate their ready-made animals with stickers.
- Minutes 25 to 40: Decorate and set the animals aside to dry. Guests use the paper, yarn and eyes at the second table, and the repair corner opens. If your sample showed that the glue needs extra drying time, add the wet decorations early in this block.
- Minutes 40 to 45: Check that the animals stand and take pictures. Repeat the ten-second standing test, fix any quick wobbles, parade past the food table and move to the photo wall. Allow more time for pictures if five minutes is too short for your group.
What decorations work well?
Quick answer: Paper spots, drawn stripes, yarn tails and manes, googly eyes and adoption cards. Let guests choose a few rather than asking them to use everything.
To make a yarn tail or mane, wrap one of the pre-cut pieces around three fingers, slide the loop off and tape it where the tail attaches or around the lion's mane. Cutting the yarn in advance means guests don't have to measure it at the table. Add googly eyes near the end of decorating, spreading the glue with a cotton swab. Guests with a sticker tray can use sticker eyes instead.
On the adoption card, guests write the animal's name, its habitat, its favorite snack and one skill. The card can also mark their seat at the cake table. If children want ideas for names, you could post a few examples, such as Sunny, Pip, Pebble, Clover, Scout or Ziggy. Children who finish early can keep drawing or work on their adoption cards.
For children who finish early, keep paper and crayons at a quiet table with a few optional animal drawing ideas. Children can draw or leave the table. See our craft party ideas.
Prepare ahead, clean up and send the animals home
Keep a shoe-box scrap bin at each table. While guests take pictures, a helper can clear the tables if another adult is free to stay with the group. Keep each adoption card with its animal. The animal can be the take-home item on its own.
One way to pack the animals is to put two cardboard sheets around a flat stack and tape one bundle for each family. Try this with your sample first, because ears, a giraffe's neck or the owl's base may stop a finished animal from lying flat. Only pack animals flat if they fold or come apart without being damaged, and keep glued details away from the packing sheets until they are dry enough to move.
Set up a pickup table with space for finished animals and each family's name. Keep wet decorations away from bags and other crafts. See our favor table setup.
How far ahead can I prepare the station?
Quick answer: Make the sample animals about a week ahead if you can, then sort the bins and pack the kits the night before.
Store the bodies that aren't put together flat, either in a taped stack or in a pizza box. On the day of the party, setting out the tape and glue caddies takes about ten minutes. Allow extra time to arrange the tables, the drying space and the photo wall.
As you set up, name who is responsible for the build table, decorating table, drying space and photo wall. One adult may cover more than one only if the activities running at the same time and the children's support needs allow it, not just because both areas are in view. Decide who stays with the children while another adult tidies or makes repairs. See how adults should share supervision at a children's party.
Preparation checklist and animal planner
Work through the list, then fill in the planner below for your own group. Write in how many bodies of each animal you will cut, how many of those need to be put together for guests under 6, and whether your sample of that design passed the standing test.
Guests attending: __________ Younger guests needing assembled animals: __________
Total bodies: __________ Guest kits: __________ Spare bodies: __________
- Draw and test the sample animals about a week ahead, if possible.
- Make sure each sample stands for ten seconds, and fix any that tip before tracing copies.
- Count the guests making animals, then cut that many bodies plus two spares.
- Put together the animals for guests under 6.
- Pack the named kits the night before.
- Sort the ears, tails, spots, yarn and eyes into separate containers.
- Set up the build seats, the decorating table, the drying space and the repair corner, and decide which adult will handle each job.
- Put up the photo-pose cards and set out the scrap bins and packing sheets.
| Animal | Bodies to prepare | Assembled kits needed | Sample stands? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lion | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Elephant | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Giraffe | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Rabbit | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Cat | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Owl | __________ | __________ | __________ |
Fill in your helpers, supplies and adoption card
Use these lines to decide who does each job before the party.
Adult preparing bodies: __________ Adult helping at the tables: __________
Adult handling repairs: __________ Photo and packing helper: __________
Drying space: ____________________ Packing method tested: ____________________
Adoption card to copy onto an index card: Child's name: ____________________ Animal's name: ____________________ Habitat: ____________________ Favorite snack: ____________________ One skill: ____________________
| Item or job | Quantity or detail | Who will prepare it? | Ready? |
|---|---|---|---|
| __________________ | __________________ | __________________ | __________ |
| __________________ | __________________ | __________________ | __________ |
| __________________ | __________________ | __________________ | __________ |
| __________________ | __________________ | __________________ | __________ |
| Animal | Bodies to prepare | Assembled kits needed | Sample stands? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lion | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Elephant | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Giraffe | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Rabbit | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Cat | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Owl | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Item or job | Quantity or detail | Who will prepare it? | Ready? |
|---|---|---|---|
| __________________ | __________________ | __________________ | __________ |
| __________________ | __________________ | __________________ | __________ |
| __________________ | __________________ | __________________ | __________ |
| __________________ | __________________ | __________________ | __________ |
Guests attending: __________ Younger guests needing assembled animals: __________
Adult preparing bodies: __________ Adult helping at the tables: __________
Adult handling repairs: __________ Photo and packing helper: __________
Total bodies: __________ Guest kits: __________ Spare bodies: __________
Child’s name: ____________________
Animal’s name: ____________________
Habitat: ____________________
Favorite snack: ____________________
One skill: ____________________
Drying space: ____________________ Packing method tested: ____________________