Origami Easter Bunny

Put a little Japanese flare into Easter by making an origami bunny

Origami is the Japanese art of folding paper.  Here's a twist on the Origami frog...it's an Origami bunny that the kids will really enjoy making this time of the year.  All it takes is a 3 x 5 card and you're ready to begin the project.  Just follow each of these folding steps and glue on a couple of bunny ears at the end, and you're finished with the project.  Should take just a few minutes to make the bunny!

• Place the card in a "portrait" mode. 

• At the top of the card, take a corner, and fold it down until the top edge and the side edge meet.

• Open card flat

• Repeat with the other corner.  Now you have an "X".

• There should be two creases on the top of your card

• If you did these steps correctly, they should form an "X" at the top of the card.

• Make a crease that runs through the middle of the "X"

• Mountain fold (fold 'back') the top right through the middle of the "X"

• Collapse the paper on the pre-made creases.

• Fold the outer corners of the triangle to the top.

• Fold the sides to the middle.

• Fold the bottom edge to the top

• Fold top edge of the front layer to the bottom edge.

• Turn over

• Glue (or tape) two bunny ears to the top.

To Make Bunny Hop:

Loosen the front and back legs so that the bunny is not flat.  Tap at the back--and the bunny will jump.

This can be made at a classroom party and filled with treats for the children to take home.

This project is rated EASY to do.

What You Need

• 4X6 envelope in pastel shade
• Pencil
• Scissors
• Pink construction paper
• White construction paper, optional for eyes
• Black construction paper, optional for eyes
• Red marker, pen, or crayon
• Wiggle eyes, optional

How To Make It

1. Lick the envelope shut.
2. Turn the envelope up long ways (portrait). Note: Most of the envelope will be ears.
3. Leave about 2 inches to draw on the bunny face. Draw on ears and cut around the ears. Note: This leaves you with a little opening for the grass and eggs.
4. Cut out inner ears out of pink construction paper and glue in place.
5. Glue on wiggle eyes, or cut eyes out of construction paper and glue in place.
6. Glue on pom pom nose, or cut a nose out of construction paper and glue in place.
7. Draw on mouth with red pen.
8. Fill opening with Easter grass and an egg or goodies.

Tips
 
You can make the ears larger and the face smaller if you wish.

Paper Mache Eggs

Paper mache paste

balloon
tape
1-inch pieces newspaper, newsprint or paper toweling
pie tin
paint brushes
colored tissue paper (optional)
shellac

Paper mache recipe

1 cup water
Mix in 1/4 cup flour until thin and runny

Stir this mixture into 5 cups lightly boiling water. Gently boil for 2-3 minutes. Cool until you can dip paper into mixture without burning yourself.

Eggs

Make paper mache paste as above. When cool pour into pie tin. Blow up a balloon and tape to a table. Dip strips of newspaper in paste and place carefully on balloon. Continue overlapping pieces of newspaper on balloon. Cover balloon completely and let dry. It may take overnight to dry, particularly if you've used lots of paste. Once dry decorate the dried balloon with paint or colored tissue in pretty pastel Easter colors. Finish with shellac for a shiny, glazed effect.

Easter Grass

1 large Easter basket
1 lb wheat seed
1 lb vermiculite
plastic wrap or clear plastic bag

Grow a miniature meadow in an Easter basket - it's real simple. A week before Easter line a large Easter basket with plastic wrap and fill with vermiculite (about 2-inches deep). Sprinkle wheat seed on top of the vermiculite. Put the basket in the sink and add water until the seed bed is damp. You shouldn't have to water it again before Easter.

Set the basket in a pan and place in filtered sunlight. Cover loosely with plastic wrap or a clear plastic bag to keep moist. Remove the plastic after two days. The wheat should begin to sprout during the next few days. By Easter morning you would have real Easter grass to hide your eggs in.

Bunny Mask

paper plate
pink construction paper
pink and/or white pipe cleaners
yarn

Using the paper plate, cut out eyes and nose in the plate. Cut out bunny ears from pink paper and glue to the plate. Use pipe cleaners to make whiskers, attach to plate by poking through and knotting at back, or glue on. Use yarn to tie to either side of plate to tie on head.

Chicks in a basket

egg carton
cotton balls
yellow food dye
shredded paper (optional)
bits of orange paper
marker


Dip one large cotton ball in yellow dye diluted with water. Let dry. Cut egg carton so you have one section. Place a bit of shredded paper (color optional) in bottom of section. When yellow cotton ball is dry draw eyes on top to make eyes. Cut out very small triangle of orange paper and glue on yellow cotton ball to make chicks beak. Sit chick in carton section to make the chick in the basket.

Eggshell Mosaic