1st week: paper airplane
There are many diagrams for paper airplanes but I usually use the classic dart. For younger kids, I allow them to make 2 paper airplanes of the same type. This allows them to try again and reinforce what they learned from the first folding.
For older kids, I allow them to make modifications in the second airplane and then test which airplane flies better. A typical variation is to fold the nose of the airplane over so the nose is heavier than the rest of the airplane. You can attach paper clips to make the plane heavier. You can fold the airplane using different sizes or weights of paper. You can also cut & fold back notches at the tail of the airplane and see if that makes it fly different.
- instructions for classic dart paper airplane
- instructions for a simple variation
- see more paper airplanes here
2nd week: Halloween pop-up card
I love pop-up cards and kids love them too. It is truly amazing how a simple cut here and a fold there can give you such an amazing 3D effect. For the first pop-up card, I always make the most simple one. To give this pop-up card a Halloween theme, I glue on a clipart image (or use a Halloween sticker). Lastly, I get the kids to write a few words in the card. If the students are old enough, I encourage them to use proper punctuation (capitalization, positioning of commas, indentation, proper closing etc.)
- instructions to make a basic pop-up card
- find Halloween clip art here
3rd week: Magic Wand
Depending on how the days of the month fall, I usually do 2 or 3 Halloween themed paper projects. The Princess and Wizard wand is adapted from Florence Temko’s Made with Paper. (By the way, I love this book since it gives lots of fun and doable projects.) This project requires the most prep work and materials but kids love it! Almost everyone becomes Harry Potter or Hermione Granger!
- instructions to make Magic Wand
4th week: Halloween Bat
October projects are not complete without some origami bats. What’s Halloween without cats and bats? Unfortunately, most origami cats are too complex for grade school children. There are many diagrams for origami bats but my all time favorite is the bat from “Making Origami Animals” by Michael LaFosse. If you can’t get this book, Nick Robinson’s bat is pretty good too.
top photos: Michael LaFosse’s Origami Bat
bottom photos: Nick Robinson’s Origami Bat
5th week: Kirigami Spider Web
If there happens to be 5 October projects, I teach the kirigami spider web. This paper craft is very easy to make and it has a lot of “wow” value. Kids love it, though, depending on their skill with scissors, their spider webs may look more or less refined. Please take care that students are careful: the folded paper can get thick and may be difficult to cut.
- instructions to make kirigami spider web
