For New Year’s! A collection of fun origami ideas to make, decorate, and play with in childcare
Where do you start when preparing to welcome the New Year at a daycare or kindergarten? In this article, we’ve gathered origami ideas for the New Year that children can enjoy together.
From classic motifs like daruma dolls, lion dances, and kagami mochi to crafts that lead to play—such as playing fukuwarai with an otafuku mask or writing wishes on ema plaques—these are all projects that extend the fun after folding! There are no difficult steps, and we focus on activities that small hands can try with an adult’s help.
Once finished, use them as wall decorations or display them in the classroom to boost the New Year atmosphere!
- Enjoy in January! Origami ideas for kids
- [Easy] Let’s make a snake with origami! A toy you can play with and a zodiac decoration
- [For Seniors] Recommended Origami for January
- [For Seniors] Let’s Make New Year Decorations by Hand! A Collection of Easy Ideas Using Everyday Materials
- [Nursery/Kindergarten] New Year Craft Ideas: A Collection of Projects You Can Enjoy Even After Making Them
- Origami to Enjoy January and Winter! A Collection of Simple Ideas to Use in Childcare
- A collection of handmade ema ideas: easy crafts perfect for New Year’s
- Christmas crafts for adults: stylish project ideas you'll want to display
- [Childcare] Ideas for January wall decorations
- Simple: A roundup of origami ideas perfect for Christmas
- [For Seniors] Recommended Wall Decorations and Crafts for January
- [April] Spring Origami for Kids: A Collection of Simple and Cute Ideas
- Simple yet amazing! Handmade New Year’s card ideas that will delight
For New Year’s! A collection of fun origami ideas for childcare to make, display, and play with (31–40)
Quick and easy! Origami kagami mochi
During the New Year, we display kagami mochi to welcome the Toshigami deity.
Let’s make that kagami mochi using orange origami.
First, place the white side of the paper facing up, fold it into a triangle, crease, and open.
Next, fold up the bottom corner slightly into a small triangle, then roll-fold once more to form the mandarin orange.
Turn the paper over, fold both side edges of the mandarin to meet the first crease, then flip the paper top-to-bottom and fold up the remaining corners.
From here, use step folds to create the kagami mochi shape, tuck in the corners to round it out, and you’re done.
Instructions for making the sanpō stand and gohei paper streamers are also included, so make them together as a set.
Perfect for New Year’s! Origami chopstick holders
Let’s make chopstick sleeves perfect for New Year’s using Japanese-patterned paper and gold origami.
Fold the gold origami in half twice to make a triangle, then trim about 1 cm off the base.
Unfold the downsized gold paper and layer it on top of the Japanese-patterned origami, placing the white side facing up.
From here, the real folding begins.
First, fold all four corners toward the center, then flip the paper over.
Next, fold the top and bottom edges as if making thirds so they overlap, and tuck the corner of the overlapped top section into the gap of the lower triangle.
This will securely lock the tri-fold in place.
Your chopstick sleeve is now complete—slide your chopsticks into the opening of the tri-fold and enjoy!
For the New Year! Origami Kadomatsu
Let’s make a kadomatsu—an essential New Year’s decoration—out of origami.
We’ll make three parts: bamboo, a fan, and plum blossoms.
The bamboo starts with steps similar to making a “trick boat.” After folding each left/right and top/bottom edge to the center in sequence to form a square, open the top and bottom pockets into a boat shape.
Use the corners on both sides of the boat to form the bamboo; since the steps are intricate, proceed carefully, folding each part neatly.
The fan is made by accordion-folding a small rectangular sheet of origami paper.
The plum blossom can be made from a single sheet, and you’ll draw the flower’s center with a white pen.
Once all parts are finished, attach them to the base in a well-balanced arrangement to complete your piece.
New Year mini wreath
Here’s an idea for a wreath made by connecting simple, easy-to-fold parts.
Prepare sixteen 7.5 cm square sheets of origami paper.
Changing the color every four sheets or incorporating traditional Japanese patterned paper will give it a festive look.
First, let’s make the parts: fold the top left and right corners of the paper in to meet at the center.
Next, fold the bottom edge up to align with the base of the triangle you just made, then roll-fold once more to create a crease.
Open the section you just creased, and fold the bottom portion of the paper up to align with the third crease from the bottom.
Flip the paper over, and fold the two corners that stick out from the triangle inward.
Finally, fold the bottom edge up along the crease, then fold the paper in half by bringing the left and right sides together to complete one part.
Fold the remaining 15 sheets the same way, and connect them to form a circular wreath.
Cute horse origami
Let’s make an origami horse for the New Year zodiac.
Prepare two sheets of origami paper and create the head and body separately.
For the head, fold into a triangle twice, then shape the horse’s face along the crease lines.
The key point is to fold the ear tips straight so they become nicely pointed.
For the body, after making the crease lines, inflate the paper slightly and fold along the creases, gently opening it as you go.
Once you form the tips of the legs, fold the piece in half to finish.
Glue the head and body together, and your horse is complete.
Give it a try!
For the New Year! A collection of fun origami ideas for childcare—make, decorate, and play (41–50)
Shimenawa wreath origami
Here’s an idea for a shimenawa wreath made by connecting separate parts.
First, fold a 7.5 cm square sheet of origami paper into a triangle.
Next, fold the left corner of the triangle up to meet the top corner.
Up to this point, you’re just making creases, so unfold the paper back to its original shape.
Now, fold the top and bottom corners in toward the center.
Fold the paper in half along the first horizontal crease you made, then fold the left corner up along the diagonal crease to complete one part.
Make eight of these parts and connect them to form the wreath.
When connecting them, slightly offset each piece and fold the corners to express the rounded look of the rope—that’s the key.
Also create the bundled rope section and decorative pieces to finish the wreath with a festive touch.
Auspicious! Sea bream origami
When it comes to auspicious fish eaten at New Year’s in Japan, sea bream (tai) is the classic choice.
So during our January craft time, let’s make a sea bream out of origami.
In this idea, we’ll use a 15 cm sheet for the head and a 7.5 cm sheet for the tail fin, then combine them to complete the fish.
For the head, first fold the paper into a triangle, then fold both bottom corners up to meet the top corner.
Next, fold the raised section back outward, and on the right side only, open that folded-back section and squash it flat.
This part becomes the dorsal fin, the side you didn’t fold becomes the pectoral fin, and the remaining top corner forms the mouth.
From here, you’ll be making precise adjustments—cutting small slits with scissors and tucking in corners—so proceed carefully.
The tail fin is finished in seven folds.