Torn Paper Rainbow Craft

Looking for a simple craft that will keep the kids busy and develop fine motor skills? This colorful Torn Paper Rainbow Craft activity will brighten up any space and includes a free printable template!

Table of Contents

This activity is great for rainy days, an easy peasy art and crafts project idea, or as a hands-on way for kids to learn the colors of the rainbow. It’s also low prep and requires supplies you likely already have!

Here are more fun rainbow activities for preschoolers.

Benefits of Torn Paper Rainbow Craft

Here are some of the benefits of this colorful and engaging activity:

Develops fine motor skills – This will be useful in improving hand dexterity, hand muscle strength and assisting with pre-writing.
Improves hand-eye coordination
Develops pincer grasp – A pincer grasp is the ability to pick something up with the thumb and index finger. This is a developmental milestone and is important for many activities from buttoning a shirt to holding a pen.
Encourages creativity and sensory exploration – Exploring different textures and materials allows kids to develop their sense of touch.
Improves color recognition – Kids will not only learn what colors make up the rainbow but also improve general color recognition skills.

Let’s learn how to make a DIY rainbow!

Video Demo

Watch this video to see the activity come to life.

Supplies

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Rainbow paper template: Find 2 free printable templates at the bottom of the blog. Print on white cardstock to make it more durable.
Construction paper or tissue paper – 1 piece each of red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple.
Cotton balls
Scissors
Glue stick
Liquid glue– if you have a little one, set the craft up on an activity tray or assist them when this is required.

Directions

Step 1 – Print and Prep

This activity requires minimal prep which can be done ahead of time.

Print out your template. There are 2 printables to choose from. One template has the colors written out and one is blank.

Having the names of the colors of the rainbow on the template provides a helpful guide for younger children to identify which colors should go where. This assists them in understanding and remembering the order of the colors.

For older kids, the blank template is more of a challenge.

Set up the supplies. You can use either precut squares or torn paper pieces depending on the age of your kids and the skills that you want to target.

Cut the different colored paper into strips ahead of time for toddlers and younger kids to tear. Older kids can cut or tear the paper into strips and little squares themselves.

Step 2- Glue the squares in each section

torn paper rainbow craft with red filled in

Place the template on a piece of cardstock to make the craft more durable and easy to work on.

First, glue a section where a particular color of squares is going to be placed.

Then begin sticking the squares– almost in an arch-like pattern to form a rainbow.

torn paper rainbow craft with red and orange filled in

Continue sticking the colored squares until the rainbow is completed. The order is:

Red

Orange

Yellow

Green

Blue

Purple

An easy way to learn the colors of the rainbow is by using the mnemonic ROY-G-BIV.

Step 3- Add cotton balls to the ends of the rainbow

All that’s left to do is add the cotton balls on either side of the rainbow to form clouds.

Use a stronger liquid glue – like Elmer’s – so the cotton sticks to the paper better.

Your rainbow is now complete!

More Rainbow Craft Ideas

While using torn paper has so many benefits, you can use this craft template to channel extra creativity and magic with different materials. Here are some ideas:

Stick colorful pipe cleaners onto the template instead of squares. Simply curve the pipe cleaner to fit each segment of the rainbow.
Fill the template by gluing rainbow rice onto it. This is a sensory activity that is a blast.
Let the kids use rainbow-colored yarn to fill each section. Glue strings of yarn onto the rainbow template in a similar order as described above in the directions.
Make a rainbow with playdough! This hands-on activity is ideal for little hands.