This pretty flower fan is a lovely craft for a child to make as a gift. In class we made the flowers by folding and cutting paper squares (rather like paper snowflakes). The technique is a bit tricky for little kids and you will need to help them fold and cut, but the look of amazement when they open up their flowers is wonderful! Nonetheless, I have provided some flower templates for kids to cut out if you prefer to keep it simpler (see download box at the end of the post).

My kids chose different colours for the fan base, but to make it really look like a bunch of flowers use green paper for the fan and finish off with a bright ribbon!

Supplies

A4 or letter size coloured paper
Squares of coloured paper (8cm x 8cm)
Squares of yellow tissue paper (8cm x 8cm approx)
Ribbon
Scissors, glue & sticky tape

How to make the Flower Fan Craft:

1. Take the piece of A4 or letter paper and accordion fold it along the length. Pinch one end together, twist it slightly and secure with tape.

2. Take a square of coloured paper and fold it in half. Fold it in half again. Now fold it in half again so it looks like a triangle. With the centre of the paper closest to you, draw a semi-circle shape as in the photo. Draw it as close as possible to the top edge.

3. Cut along the line through all the layers of paper (your child may or may not be able to do this, as there are quite a few layers to cut through). Open up to reveal the flower. Make two or three more flowers in the same way.

4. Cut leaf shapes from green paper and stick one leaf to the back of each flower. Then put more glue on the backs of the flowers and stick them to the top of the fan.

5. Make balls with the yellow tissue paper and stick one into the centre of each flower.

6. Finish off by tying a length of ribbon (about 45cm) in a bow around the “stem”.

Advice for small group classes:

This craft can be completed in under an hour.

Some tips:

Accordion fold: Some children may know how to do this, but others may not. Do it altogether as a group slowly step by step. Make sure they turn the paper over after every fold!
Folded flowers: If you have preschoolers or kindergarteners and plan to do the folded flowers technique, be prepared to give lots of help. I had my kids fold the paper squares in half, and then in half again. I then made the last fold for each of them and drew the semicircle for them to cut. In my groups, the five year-olds managed to do the cutting themselves but the younger ones needed my help.

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