[Early Childhood Education] Snail Craft Ideas

Last updated:2023/11/19

9 years of experience as a nursery school teacherShibata Risa
I am an active nursery school teacher with 9 years of experience. After graduating from university, I worked at a daycare center. The time I spent happily with children—playing piano, singing songs, and doing finger-play—are priceless memories to me. Currently, while raising three children of my own, I work at an after-school day service, engaging with children and providing individualized developmental support. Drawing on my diverse experiences as a childcare worker and as a mother, I hope to express and convey my thoughts through writing.

Snails that you often see on rainy days.

With their spiral shells and leisurely movements, they’re one of those creatures that spark children’s curiosity.

In this article, we’ll share plenty of craft ideas featuring these charming snails.

We’ve gathered lots of cute snail projects that kids will want to make—from ones perfect for wall displays to three-dimensional designs with fun movements, and even snails you can take for a “walk.”

Try using colorful origami paper and decorating with stickers or drawings to let children enjoy creating while expressing their free imagination.

Let’s brighten up rainy days by decorating with lots of festive snails!

[Early Childhood Education] Snail Craft Ideas (1–10)

Hanging ornament of a snail

Let’s make lots of rain-loving snails and enjoy them as hanging decorations! It’s a craft that helps you spend the rainy season positively.

Cut construction paper to create the snail’s body and spiral shell.

You can use round stickers for the snail’s eyes and mouth and let children stick them on.

Have them freely draw patterns on the shells with colored pencils or crayons, too! Each child’s individuality will shine, resulting in a lively work of art.

Finally, hang them on strings and display them on a wall or by a window to finish!

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Snail Clock

How about a “Snail Clock” that uses the snail’s shell as a clock face? June 10 is Time Day in Japan, so it’s a perfect craft idea for June! Make the snail’s body by cutting a paper plate in half.

For the clock, cut a circle from colored construction paper, then stick on round number stickers and attach the hour and minute hands—that’s it! Kids can help by drawing on the snail with crayons or sticking on the round stickers.

If you place it on a desk, the snail will gently wobble, which might keep your child captivated!

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Spiral snail with a lacing activity

The “Thread-Through Swirly Snail” is perfect for a rainy-day craft when you can’t play outside.

Punch holes in a piece of construction paper shaped like a snail’s shell, then thread yarn through the holes—it’s a fun, sewing-like activity! First, prepare circular colored construction paper with several holes made in advance using a hole punch.

Have your child thread the yarn; wrapping a bit of cellophane tape around the end of the yarn makes it easier to pass through the holes.

It’s totally fine if the yarn doesn’t go through neatly! Adjust the steps to suit your child’s age so they can enjoy the activity.

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Hydrangea Snail

When you think of flowers that suit the rainy season, hydrangeas come to mind.

Here’s a lovely craft that combines hydrangeas and snails! Make the snail’s body by cutting construction paper or similar materials.

Let your child draw the face, and you can decorate the antennae with pom-poms.

For the snail’s spiral shell, crumple tissue paper into small balls and glue them on.

Since tissue paper is very soft, even small children can safely enjoy this craft.

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Capsule Snail

We often end up throwing away the capsules after playing with gacha machines because there’s no use for them, right? Here’s a craft idea for a snail using that familiar scrap material! Roll up two strips of colored construction paper and place them inside the capsule—this will be the snail’s shell.

Next, make the body and eyes out of colored paper, attach pipe cleaners to the eyes, and fix them onto the body.

Finally, glue on the capsule! Changing the colors of the capsule and the paper inside will give each snail its own unique personality.

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Colorful snail

How about cutting and pasting construction paper and origami to make a colorful, one-of-a-kind snail? For the snail’s distinctive shell, glue on circles of paper in various sizes.

Let children choose colors like red, yellow, blue, and orange! Not just solid colors—patterned origami or chiyogami also look great.

An adult (teacher or guardian) can make the snail’s body, and the child can draw the eyes and face.

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3D colorful shell snail

This is a three-dimensional snail you can enjoy as an ornament even after making it! The colorful spiral shell is adorable, making it perfect for a rainy-day craft that can sometimes feel gloomy.

Decorate strips of thick paper with colored pens, attach rolled-up flower paper, then roll it all up to form the shell.

After that, just make the snail’s body with construction paper! Fold a strip of construction paper in half, and curve one side to create a three-dimensional look—give it a try.

Customize it to suit your child’s age and have fun with it!

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