Paper Plate Rainbow Craft

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Are you looking for a fun new craft to do this spring? You’re going to love this paper plate rainbow craft! It’s perfect for preschool, kindergarten, and early elementary graders.

This simple paper plate craft is perfect when paired with your favorite rainbow books and activities for kids.

With a short list of craft products you’ve likely got in your craft stash already, you’ll be set to complete this craft with your students in no time!

When you pair a simple craft like this one with a picture book or two, you’ve got the beginnings of a great book-based lesson plan!

Keep reading to discover how to make this simple paper plate craft, books that you can pair with this craft, and what you can teach with this rainbow craft!

What you’ll need to make a rainbow craft

It doesn’t take any special supplies to make this paper plate craft. You probably have most of these items in your craft stash already.

• paper plate
• cotton balls
• construction paper
• liquid glue
• glue stick

While I will include related activities and books below, this craft is also good for a one-off activity.

It’s perfect for a rainy day, St. Patrick’s Day, or as part of your weather unit.

rainbow craft

Use a ruler and pencil to measure 1-inch wide strips of construction paper in each of the rainbow colors. Cut out the strips.

NOTE: I like to use a paper cutter to make my strips straight. This is the one I use.

Cut the paper plate in half. Set the other half aside, you will only need one half for this project.

Line up the construction paper strips in rainbow order. This is a great time to reinforce that concept if you have younger children.

Pour a little glue at the end of each strip. For this step, I prefer to use a glue stick so the glue doesn’t seep out.

Cover the plate with glue. On this step, I find it easier to use liquid glue. It’s best to work from the top of the plate to the bottom so that your child doesn’t accidentally put their hand in the glue.

Glue the cotton balls on the paper plate half. Continue this until the paper plate half is covered. Allow glue to dry.

Now, let the glue dry on both the front and back of the craft.

Display the rainbow!

related content

If your kids enjoy this paper plate rainbow craft, they’ll love the activities below. Use them to supplement your book-based lessons.

• A Rainbow of My Own Book Buddy
• Rainbow Sugar Cookies
• R is for Rainbow Find the Letter Worksheets
• Rainbow Card Craft for Kids
• How to Grow a Crystal Rainbow

Books about rainbows

As I mentioned above, you can pair this paper rainbow craft with any of your favorite books about rainbows. Here are a few of our favorites:

 

• Rainbow – What is that colorful arc in the sky? It is a rainbow. Rainbows are always pretty to look at, but where do they come from?

The answer is at your fingertips. Just open this book and read about the wonders of rainbows…

• Curious George Discovers the Rainbow –  When a light rain casts a stunning rainbow in the sky, George is introduced to all the beautiful colors of the spectrum!

Come along as he chases the rainbow for his pot of gold and learns all about how rainbows occur and even how to create his own. 

• Did You Know? The Rainbow Edition – This engaging picture book shows how and why rainbows are formed in an age-appropriate approach.

It also teaches what colors are part of a rainbow; shares fun facts about the colors – red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet; and provides fun facts about the beautiful, visible colors of the rainbow. 

TEACHING RESOURCES

This wooden rainbow sewing kit is a great way to to have older preschoolers work on their fine motor skills.

Toddlers and younger preschoolers will strengthen hand-eye coordination with this wooden rainbow stacking toy.