A festive paper poinsettia craft for kids to make during Christmas. Learn about the legend of poinsettia and enjoy a beautiful and easy craft that can be used as a holiday decoration.
This paper poinsettia craft is perfect to create with preschoolers, kindergartners and older kids around Christmas. It makes a nice decoration for home as well as the classroom or school hallway.
Use the poinsettia paper craft template and follow the step by step instructions.
The history of poinsettias
Poinsettias are native plants to Central America, particularly southern Mexico. They were introduced into the United States by the first American ambassador to Mexico. His name was Joel Roberts Poinsett – hence the name of the plant.
I found it interesting to discover the history of poinsettias and how they became so popular. They are now the highest selling potter plants in the United States and people love to use them to decorate for the holidays.
Why are poinsettias associated with Christmas?
The reason poinsettias and Christmas go hand is hand comes from an old Mexican legend.
A little girl named Pepita was too poor to bring any gift to baby Jesus at Christmas Eve services. Her cousin tried to cheer her up and told her that Jesus would love any small present. So she picked a few weeds and made them into a bouquet.
She left the weeds at the bottom of the nativity scene. All of a sudden they turned into beautiful and bright red flowers. Everyone thought it was a miracle.
We made our poinsettia entirely from paper. We love crafting with paper and if you’re looking for more ideas, we have a nice collection of Christmas paper crafts for kids.
If you plan on using the poinsettia craft to decorate your home or classroom, I can suggest to mix it up with a Christmas present craft and this paper stocking craft.
Paper poinsettia craft
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Supplies:
- Poinsettia template
- Cardstock paper: red, green and yellow
- Scissors
- Glue
How to make a paper poinsettia craft
The poinsettia template comes with two versions:
- Option 1 – print the pattern directly on colored paper and cut them out.
2. Option 2 – cut out the patterns and trace them on corresponding colored paper.
This way you can easily craft with just one or two kids as well as with a classroom full of students.
Step by step instructions
Start by gluing the middle flower petals on top of the leaves. Rotate the two so you can see all the leaves behind the petals.
Glue the top flower petals on top of the middle flower petals. Rotate the top petals so you can see the petals underneath.
Glue the flower center in the middle of the flower.
Glue the flower on top of the stem.
Add the other end of the stem in the middle of the pot.
Glue the pot band onto the pot.
