Tissue Paper Christmas Wreath Craft for Toddlers

Tissue paper wreath ornaments: a fine-motor Christmas craft for toddlers and preschoolers…

These colourful tissue paper wreath ornaments are great to make with toddlers and preschoolers.  Kids love the colours and texture that tissue paper offers, and I love how versatile it is.  We used to make many seasonal and holiday wreaths here in my daycare.

The hooligans love the “crumple and glue method”.  It’s a great fine-motor activity, and squeezing and crushing the tissue paper helps to develop those little hand muscles.  And best of all, as you can see here, the vibrant colours make even the simplest project look fabulous.

The supply list for these wreath ornaments is really basic.  Don’t you love that?

Tissue paper wreath supplies:

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• tissue paper cut into 2 or 3 inch squares
• cereal box or similar weight cardboard
• green paint (we used several shades)
• ribbon
• white glue
• stapler
• hanging thread

How to make your wreath ornament:

We started by painting a big piece of cardboard that we had on hand.  It was a collaborative effort.  The hooligans got busy with their brushes and paint, and before long, someone discovered that sliding their fingers through the paint was pretty fun, so it morphed into a finger painting project.

Soon after that, someone else discovered that pressing their hand into the paint was kind of neat, and that led to them actually painting their hands, and THAT prompted me to grab a large sheet of paper so they could make handprints, and well…. let’s just say by the time the cardboard was painted, they’d had quite a bit of fun.  

While the hooligans washed up, I gave the cardboard a blast with the hairdryer to speed up the drying process.

Trace around a CD for a mini wreath:

A CD is the perfect template for a wreath ornament.  Trace a few of those onto your cardboard and cut them out.

Now have your little one crumple their squares of tissue paper and glue them all over their wreath.  Using a paintbrush to apply glue to a project is easier for toddlers than squeezing a bottle of glue.

Every child will crumple his tissue paper in his own way.  Some children really compact their pieces.  Others lightly crush it, and some won’t crumple it at all, preferring to simply glue the colourful squares to their project.

You can demonstrate how to give the tissue square a quick crunch with your hand, but don’t pressure them to do it “your way”.  Allow your child to explore and experiment with the materials that you’ve provided.  Let him express his creative side in a way that works for him.

When all the wreaths were decorated, the children selected a ribbon, which I tied in a bow.

Then in a joint effort with each hooligan, we wrangled the bow and wreath into the stapler and fastened them together.

And there you have it.  Simple, sweet wreath ornaments.  A great Christmas craft for young children to make!

Check out the larger version of this craft, if you’re looking for a wreath that your kids can make to hang in a window or on a door.

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Jackie Currie

Jackie is a mom, wife, home daycare provider, and the creative spirit behind Happy Hooligans. She specializes in kids’ crafts and activities, easy recipes, and parenting. She began blogging in 2011, and today, Happy Hooligans inspires more than 2 million parents, caregivers and Early Years Professionals all over the globe.