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Indoor activity

Paper Plate Jellyfish

Paint a paper plate, add googly eyes and long tissue-paper tentacles, then hang your wobbly jellyfish up to float in the breeze!

Ages 2-9 0-1 hours Education 4/10

Materials

  • Flat Paintbrush
  • Googly Eyes
  • Paper Plates
  • Poster Paint
  • PVA Glue
  • Scissors
  • String
  • Tape
  • Tissue Paper

Illustrated Steps

1

Paint the Body

Paint one side of a paper plate in jellyfish colours — purples, blues, or pinks. Let dry.

2

Make the Tentacles

Cut tissue paper into long colourful strips and curl them around a pencil for extra wobble.

3

Attach the Tentacles

Tape tissue paper strips evenly along the underside edge of the plate so they dangle freely.

4

Add Face and Hang

Stick on googly eyes, thread string through the top, and hang your jellyfish up to float!

What You’ll Create

An underwater friend that wobbles in the wind! 🪼 Your little marine biologists will transform a paper plate into a colourful jellyfish by painting it, adding googly eyes for personality, and attaching long, curly tissue paper tentacles that sway and dance when you hang it up. A stunning ceiling or doorway decoration!

How to Set It Up

Step 1: Paint the Body

Take a paper plate and paint one side with poster paint — purples, blues, and pinks work beautifully for a jellyfish! Cover the whole surface and let it dry completely. This will be the rounded dome of your jellyfish body. 🎨

Step 2: Make the Tentacles

While the paint dries, cut tissue paper into long strips (about 2–3 cm wide and 20–30 cm long). Cut 8–12 strips in different colours. For extra wobble, gently twist or curl each strip by wrapping it around a pencil. 🌊

Step 3: Attach the Tentacles

Flip the dry painted plate over so the painted side faces up (dome shape). Use tape to stick the tissue paper strips along the flat (unpainted) underside edge of the plate, spacing them evenly around the bottom half. The tentacles should dangle down freely. 🪼

Step 4: Add Face and Hang

Stick two googly eyes onto the painted dome with PVA glue. Poke a small hole in the top of the plate and thread a piece of string through to make a hanger. Tie a knot and hang your jellyfish from the ceiling — watch the tentacles dance! 🎉

Have fun!

  • 🌊 Make a whole school of jellyfish in different colours and sizes!
  • ✨ Add glitter to the wet paint for a sparkly ocean effect!
  • 🐙 Add extra-long tentacles and short ones mixed together for a realistic look!
  • 📖 Learn about real jellyfish — they have no brain, no heart, and are 95% water!

Why It’s Amazing

  • Marine Biology: Creating jellyfish introduces ocean life, invertebrate anatomy, and how tentacles work for catching food. 🌊

  • Fine Motor Skills: Cutting long thin strips, twisting tissue paper, and threading string all build hand dexterity and control. ✋

  • Colour Mixing: Layering translucent tissue paper and painting with wet media teaches how colours blend and layer. 🎨

  • Cause and Effect: Hanging the jellyfish and watching tentacles move in air currents demonstrates how air movement creates motion. 💨

Pro Tips

For ages 3–5: Pre-cut the tissue paper strips. Let them paint the plate and stick on eyes and tentacles. The goopier the glue, the better — they’ll love it!

For ages 5–8: Let them cut their own strips and experiment with curling techniques. Try mixing paint colours directly on the plate for a marbled jellyfish effect.

For ages 8–12: Challenge them to create anatomically inspired jellyfish — research different species (moon jelly, lion’s mane, box jelly) and recreate their distinctive shapes and tentacle patterns. Add a bell-shaped dome by stapling the plate into a gentle curve.

Secret Pro Move: Fold the paper plate in half (painted side out) before attaching tentacles — this creates a natural dome shape that looks much more like a real jellyfish bell than a flat plate! 🎯