Penguin Print

Make an adorable penguin print that's really hands-on!

Skill Level: Easy

Time Needed: 45 minutes

Age(s): 9 to 9

Appropriate For: Memorial Day

Supplies Needed:

Project Rating:

Mix black paint with a small amount of Elmer's Washable School Glue™.
Cup your hand so that it makes a "c" shape. Press your hand into the paint mixture, pinky finger down.
Press your cupped hand onto the foam board, placing the heel of your hand at the top of the board and your pinky finger at the bottom.
Repeat steps two and three using your opposite hand. Press the heels of your hands together on the foam board so that they are almost touching. This will form the penguin's wings.
Paint a beak and feet on your penguin.
Glue a pair of Jiggly Eyes above the beak.
Let the paint and the glue dry completely on your penguin print.
You can also make penguin wrapping paper! Use white wrapping paper or large sheets of white paper. Make "penguin prints" all over the paper. Use the penguin-print paper to wrap special gifts for others.

Teaching Tips:

Discuss penguins with your students. Introduce interesting facts about them, such as they are birds that do not fly, and their skin coloring acts as camouflage when they are swimming in water. Talk about the largest type of penguin, the Emperor Penguin, which stands about 3 feet 7 inches tall—almost as tall as a student!
Have students write acrostic poems using the word penguin. The first word in each line of poetry should begin with the letters in the word penguin. For example: Pretty birds Eat fish Never fly Great swimmers Uniquely different from other birds Interesting to watch Native to Southern Hemisphere.
Talk about penguin habitats. Use a classroom map to point out the Southern Hemisphere, where penguins live. Discuss how penguins live in cold climates, such as Antarctica, and in warmer climates, such as Galapagos Island. Help students find these locations on the map.