Cheetah Paper Plate Craft
Got a kid who’s got energy for days and a love for all things wild? Same. That’s why this cheetah paper plate craft is a lifesaver. It’s quick to set up, fun to make, and leaves you with a goofy little jungle cat that your kid will be obsessed with.
You don’t need a ton of fancy stuff, just a paper plate, some paint, and the patience to let them go wild with glue. It’s the perfect mix of “Yay, I'm learning!” and “Oops, I got marker on the dog.”
Let’s make a cheetah, yeah?
Materials Needed for This Paper Plate Cheetah Craft
- Paper plate
- Yellow paint
- Paintbrush
- Scissors (grown-up supervision if your kid thinks they’re a ninja)
- Glue stick
- Printable cheetah template
- Black marker
- Optional: googly eyes, because everything’s better with wiggle eyes
No yellow paint? Mix orange and white. Or just let them use crayons, markers, finger paint, whatever they find first.
No printer? Freehand some ears, eyes, and spots. Your cheetah might end up with uneven ears, but honestly, same.
How to Make This Cheetah Paper Plate Craft
Ready to get crafting? Find the instructions below!
Cheetah Paper Plate Craft
Get ready to zoom into creativity with this paper plate cheetah craft! Perfect for preschoolers learning about wild animals, with a printable template included.
Materials
- Printable cheetah template
- Paper plate
- Yellow paint
- Glue stick
- Black marker
Tools
- Paintbrush
- Scissors
Instructions
- Gather your supplies.
- Paint the paper plate yellow and let it dry completely.
- Cut out the large yellow ears and the smaller brown inner ear shapes from the template.
- Glue the brown inner ears on top of the yellow ears.
- Glue both ears behind the top of the painted plate.
- Cut out the large white eyes and black pupils.
- Glue the pupils onto the white eyes.
- Attach both finished eyes to the front of the plate.
- Cut out brown spots.
- Add the brown cheetah spots around the face.
- Cut out the black nose shape and brown eyebrows.
- Add the nose and eyebrows to the cheetah's face.
- Use a black marker to draw a curved mouth under the nose.
- Add little dots around the mouth to suggest whiskers.
- Let everything dry and get ready to show off your speedy cheetah!
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Want to Make It Extra?
Oh, we’ve got ideas. Want a pink cheetah? Go for it. Rainbow spots? Absolutely. Cheetah wearing a bow tie? I support you. Use pom-poms, yarn, felt, glitter (if you’re brave), or anything else your child grabs while you're distracted.
And if you’re hooked on animal crafts now (been there), check out these zoo animal paper plate crafts. They're cute, chaotic, and excellent fridge filler.
Sneaky Learning? Oh Yeah.
This cheetah craft is more than just adorable chaos. It’s doing a whole lot of behind-the-scenes magic, too.
- Little hands are building fine motor skills with all the cutting, gluing, and poking stuff where it doesn’t go.
- All those shapes and colors? That’s early math and visual learning.
- Following steps? Even when out of order? That’s listening and sequencing, baby.
- And don’t forget creative expression, because every cheetah deserves a glitter eyebrow.
So yeah. It’s basically a preschool masterclass disguised as a spotted jungle cat.
Cool Cheetah Facts to Drop While Crafting
Because your kid is gonna ask why it has those weird black lines on its face anyway.
- Cheetahs are the fastest animals on land. They can run faster than your kid sprints toward an open snack drawer.
- Those black lines on their face? They’re like built-in sunglasses, blocking glare.
- Every cheetah’s spot pattern is one-of-a-kind, like a fingerprint!
- And weird but true: cheetahs don’t roar. They chirp. Yes, really. Look it up.
Ask your kid what noise their cheetah makes. Then immediately regret asking.
And once the chaos dies down? Go ahead and make another. Try a hippo. A baboon. A whole jungle full of weird, wobbly paper plate animals. And when you’re ready for something a little more barnyard and a little less jungle, you can head over to the farm animal paper plate crafts and get your moo on.
Paint. Cut. Glue. Laugh. Repeat.
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