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Printable moon phases craft for students to see the moon phases. Designed by draw calm.

Moon Phases Craft: a Project to get Kids Excited About Science

Paper Crafts

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This is a printable moon phases craft that can be added to your moon phases lesson plans, as part of a unit on the night sky, or to make an adorable decoration and have fun learning a bit of science at the same time. 

Printable moon phases craft for students to see the moon phases. Designed by draw calm.
Adorable moon phases craft to learn about lunar cycle.

Teaching Moon Phases

If you are teaching moon phases, this cut and paste moon phase activity could be integrated into a lesson on the moon phases. It is a simple enough moon phases craft activity that it could be used as a moon phases lesson plan 1st grade, or as a moon phases worksheet 5th grade. 

Prepping your Moon Phases Craft

To complete this lesson on moon phases, you will need:

  1. Moon Phases Worksheet pdf
  2. Scissors
  3. Gluestick
  4. String or Yarn

To prep the moon phases craft, first print out the 8 moons using the moon phases worksheet pdf. If possible it is great to print the moon phases activity out onto thicker cardstock paper or watercolor paper if you plan on painting them. For this example I used regular printer paper.

Now you are ready to complete your cut and paste moon phases activity.

Printable moon phases craft showing 8 lunar phases on a garland. Craft designed by draw calm.

Moon Phases Craft Instructions

Each moon phase has a section that is blank and a part that shows the texture of the moon. Start by coloring all the blank sections black. This will help students keep track of which part of the moon to color, and which part is not visible. 

Next, color the visible shapes on the moon on each moon phase. 

Tip: If students will be painting the background after coloring, it works well if you pick a darker shade of the color you will be painting with. It can also be helpful to color with a wax crayon. I used pencil crayons and that works too as long as the paint you are using is thin. 

For this video example I did 3 different options:

  1. For one moon phases craft garland I colored it with dark yellow and then painted light yellow on top. The back of the circle (where the names of the moon phases go) can be colored with pencil crayons or painted. For the yellow garland I colored the back with pencil crayons
  1. The second I colored gray and left the background white.
  1. The third I colored dark blue and then did a water color wash of light blue on top. I also chose to paint the back of the blue moon garland.
Lesson on moon phases that is a printable pdf file showing the 8 phases of the moon cycle. Designed by draw calm.
Lesson on Moon Phases that is beautiful to display!

Painting the Moon Phases

To paint the moon phases craft, do a test section first to make sure that the colored pencil will show through the paint. The test can be done on scrap paper or on the side of the page that will be cut off at the end once the moon circles are cut out.

I used a light watercolor wash and painted over the whole section and the darker colored segments that were already colored remain visible.

If using regular printer paper the paper may buckle a little. The moon phases activity can always be pressed under a book once dry to help it flatten out again. 

Next, when painting the back of the moons where the names are, I taped over the titles with washi tape, and then painted on top. This helps the titles stand out and be easily readable. 

Tip: If doing this technique, make sure to remove the tape once the paint is dry.

Student Partner Moon Phases Lesson Plans

As part of a review lesson on moon phases, Students can quiz each other by holding up the moon phases garland and look at the names while their partner names the phases that they see.

Assembling the Cut and Paste Moon Phases Activity

To assemble the moon phases garland, start by folding the page along the dotted line. It is helpful to hold the moon phases craft activity up to a light to ensure the two sides match up before cutting out the moons.

Then, cut out all 8 printable moon phases. Keep the moons attached along the top by the dotted line. This will make assembly easier. If they accidentally get detached that’s okay, simply tape or staple them back together.

Next, it is helpful to number the printable moon phases to remember the correct order when placing them in on the string. 

Lesson on Lunar Phases:

This can be a great time to have students explore the names and images. Additionally, they can see if they can figure out the order using observations. After the class has reviewed the moon phases and are confident with the order they are ready to number them. Have students write tiny numbers on the moons to remember.

Gluing the Moon Phases Activity Together

Attaching this moon phases activity together is simple. Start by cutting a piece of string and then folding it in half to find the middle. 

Next, start from the middle and work your way to the outside, then repeat on the other side. This helps ensure that the circles are centered on the string.

Additionally, if the moons are overlapping they can always be slid carefully along the string after they are glued. This will space them out more.

Lastly, find a place to display your moon phases garland! Whether using this as part of a lesson on moon phases, or just for some afternoon coloring fun, I hope you had fun!

Other Garland Crafts

I am obsessed with making paper garlands at the moment, and if you enjoyed this and are looking for more garland crafts with some learning blended in check out the Citrus Fractions Garland, and the Easter Carrot Garland

Read about how to make the carrot garland on the blog: Easter Carrot Garland A Cute Math Fraction Craft

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