Last summer, we celebrated National Zoo and Aquarium Month, recognized every June, on Good Day Acadiana as we featured a cute and easy summertime craft you can do with the kids. We created Fish Tank Paper Plates and thought these would be a great way to bring the aquarium to the kids at home.
 Image by Tracie Ysaguire |
It is always a fun-filled morning in the studio with News 15 and I truly enjoy preparing for the show each week. Check out the photos below from fishy fun morning on our Facebook page:
I purposely pick crafts that are designed to create special one-on-one time with the kids and let them be as creative as they like. The next few steps will bring your paper plates from ordinary to fish-tastic!
 Image by Tracie Ysaguire |  Image by Tracie Ysaguire |
Fish Tank Paper Plates
What you need:
- Paper or Styrofoam plates
- Paint and paintbrushes
- Glitter glue pens or loose glitter
- Pipe Cleaners and/or pom-pom balls
- Stickers or other small craft items like noodles, beans, sequins, or small rocks
- Scissors
- Plastic sheet protectors or plastic wrap
- Glue and tape
- Construction Paper
- Clean up supplies
Instructions:
Get two paper plates from the pantry. It doesn't matter if it is paper or styrofoam, although I recommend styrofoam since it will offer a little more stability after they are completely painted and decorated. You will use one plate as your tank and the other as a cover for your fish tank.
Once you have your plates, begin painting one. You can make the water of the fish tank the top half of the plate and then create a sandy shore or grass on the bottom of the plate. While painting I placed a blue piece of painter's tape across the middle while painting. One reason was to have a spot to hold while the paint was still wet and the other was to try and give the water some dimension from the sandy bottom.
I used different colored blues, greens, and some white paint for my water. For my sandy bottom, I used a blend of browns, and yellows. You can use whatever colors you like best!
Now put your plate aside and let it dry completely. Take your other plate and cut out the center so you just have the rim of the paper plate. This will be your fish tank cover. While your other plate is drying, you can paint your rim. We decided to paint it the same colors as the main plate, but you can decide if you want to change your colors.
 Image by Mia Barletto |
This is where you get creative and make your fish tank! I started with the bigger pieces of the tank and then continued to glue in smaller items. We made seagrass from the sparkly pom-pom balls we have in our craft box. We also used beans with a coat of glitter glue for rocks, pipe cleaners as plants, and made some origami fish for our bowl. There are no rules here!
I think my favorite thing to create was the macaroni noodle shrimp. We just painted them orange, added a few white stripes, and added a googly eye and Voila ... we have shrimp!
Once you have all your items in place, let your fish tank plate dry. Next, take your rim of the other plate and grab your plastic sheet protector. If you don't have a plastic sheet protector, you can always use plastic wrap. You will only need a piece of the sheet protector to make the "glass" of the fish tank. Cut the sheet protector in half so you have one side to use.
Turn your paper plate rim upside down, and glue the plastic sheet protector to it. It takes a little pressing on the sides to get it to hold in place while it dries. You can even place a book or magazine on top to hold it in place while it dries and attaches to the plate.
Now that both plates are dry, glue your fish tank top, (the one with the plastic sheet cover) on top of the fish tank plate. Again, you may want to use a book or magazine to lightly hold the plates in place while they dry.
We hope you and your kids enjoy making these crafts this summer! If you make your own Fish Tank Paper Plate, please share your creations with us.
We would love to see them!
|  Image Created by Tracie Ysaguire via CanvaPro |
