Umbrella Craft Ideas by Age Group: Perfect for Rainy-Season Childcare
How about incorporating umbrella crafts at daycare centers and kindergartens during the rainy season? Umbrellas are familiar to children and have a cute shape, so there are many ways to arrange and decorate them.
Here, we’ll introduce umbrella craft ideas by age group.
There are lots of ideas, so please use them as a reference.
The umbrellas children make can also be enjoyed as decorations on walls and other displays.
Make fun umbrellas together with the children and enjoy the rainy season! Because the items the children make are treated as works (artworks), the term used in the text is “制作 (seisaku)” rather than “製作 (seisaku).”
Umbrella Craft Ideas by Age Group: Perfect for Rainy-Season Childcare (1–10)
[Age 3] Umbrella decoration made with paper plates and paint
![[Age 3] Umbrella decoration made with paper plates and paint](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/2JPN58jxZF8/sddefault.jpg)
Let’s make colorful, pop-style umbrellas using paper plates.
The process is super simple! Start by painting the paper plate with your favorite colors.
Try incorporating techniques like finger painting, resist painting, or stamping—whatever you like.
Once you’ve painted it, cut the paper plate in half.
You can leave the edge as is, but it’s also fun to cut the rim into zigzags or wavy shapes.
Finally, roll each cut half into a cone shape, and insert a pipe cleaner—bent into an umbrella handle—through the center to finish.
A nice bonus is that one paper plate makes two umbrellas.
Display your lively, unique umbrella creations by the window or around the room to brighten up your space!
[Age 5] Hanging Umbrellas
An essential companion you can’t do without during the rainy season: the umbrella.
Rainy days can make the sky dark and gloomy, but seeing a lot of colorful umbrellas opened up can really lift your spirits.
Here’s a craft idea for a hanging decoration with an umbrella theme.
Since it’s a hanging piece, making it three-dimensional will give it a striking presence.
Try layering several sheets of construction paper to achieve a 3D finish! It’s also great to hang them from the ceiling like a mobile, or string them in a horizontal line like a garland.
Rain Umbrella Made with Origami (Age 5)
Here’s an origami umbrella idea we’d love five-year-olds to try.
The canopy is made from origami paper, and the handle is made from a straw.
First, fold the origami paper in half into a square twice.
Then open the pocketed sections and squash-fold them to make two triangles.
Crease the center of each triangle, and next, open all four pocketed corners and squash them flat.
When you turn the paper over, you’ll see white triangular sections—cut along those areas.
Trim a little off the pointed tip, thread a straw through, and secure it to finish.
Prepare several kinds of origami paper and straws so children can choose their favorite colors and patterns.
[Age 3] Torn-paper umbrella and snail
![[Age 3] Torn-paper umbrella and snail](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/OK_tuknpWic/sddefault.jpg)
Here’s a cute craft idea that looks like a snail taking shelter from the rain under an umbrella.
Fold a sheet of construction paper in half and cut the top layer into the shape of an umbrella.
Let the children tear origami paper however they like.
Paste the torn origami pieces onto the inside of the bottom sheet.
Finish by attaching a snail and an umbrella handle made from separate sheets of paper.
By changing the construction paper and origami, you can create umbrellas with all sorts of different looks, so let the children choose their favorites.
This is also an idea that’s easy to display on a wall.
[Age 4] Colorful Umbrella Ornament
![[Age 4] Colorful Umbrella Ornament](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/HTLf0AnTKfU/sddefault.jpg)
Let’s make a three-dimensional umbrella out of origami—an essential item for rainy days! The steps are very simple.
Prepare 10 sheets of origami paper, all cut into circles of the same size.
Fold each one into quarters.
Once you’ve folded all 10, glue them together one by one, stacking them up.
Finally, take a pipe cleaner, bend it into a curved shape to resemble the umbrella handle, and tape it to the center of the stacked origami.
You’re done! If you hang everyone’s creations from the ceiling, even rainy days will feel cheerful.
Try using different colors and patterns of origami to make your very own favorite umbrella.
[For ages 4] 3D umbrellas made from construction paper
Let’s make a 3D umbrella using construction paper and a straw.
If you connect them with string, they could also work as a mobile or garland.
First, prepare construction paper cut into circles.
Fold each circle in half, then fold it in half again.
Make seven of these in different colors.
Align the directions and glue six of them together, then attach a straw at the center and glue on the last piece.
Bend the accordion section of the straw to form the handle, and your umbrella is complete.
You can also make this idea with origami paper and chenille stems (pipe cleaners), which is recommended if you want a lighter umbrella.
[Age 2] Umbrella and Frogs with Marbling
![[Age 2] Umbrella and Frogs with Marbling](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/-YR4hVt3svc/sddefault.jpg)
Let me share an idea for making “Umbrellas and Frogs” with marbling.
Marbling is a technique where you drip paint onto water to create patterns, then transfer them onto paper.
Fill a tray with water, then drip marbling paints onto it as you like.
Use a toothpick or skewer to create a pattern, and gently lay the paper on top.
Lift the paper, and if the pattern has transferred, let it dry.
Cut the marbled paper into an umbrella shape, glue it onto a backing sheet, and draw the umbrella handle and raindrops with a pen.
Finally, add an origami frog, and you’re done.
It’s a fun project that makes you excited to see what kind of umbrella pattern you’ll get, so give it a try in June!