24 Beautiful Nature Crafts (2023)

Looking for nature crafts?

I have 24 beautiful nature crafts and activities that are perfect to do in the classroom or at home with your kids!

Let’s get started with these cute nature crafts.

#1: Flower Suncatchers

If you are looking for a nature craft, this is such an easy and beautiful craft to try.

The kids loved walking around our yard to pick out what they wanted to put inside their suncatchers.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

paper plates
acrylic paint
hole punch
twine
contact paper
scissors
nature items (flowers, sticks, leaves, etc.)

B. Set-up

Poke a hole in the center of the paper plate with a pencil and cut out the center with scissors.

Then, choose what color you want to paint your plate, and paint it using acrylic paint.

C. Activity

While you are waiting for the plates to dry, head outside and let your kids pick out what they want to place inside their suncatchers.

Cut a piece of contact paper to fit on the back of the plate and stick it on.

Then, stick all of your nature items on top of the contact paper. This is so fun for kids to watch it stick!

Create a hole at the top of your suncatchers with a hole punch and thread a piece of wine through so it can be hung up by the window.

You can place another piece of contact paper on top of tour nature items to ensure they will stay on, or you can just leave it as is.

#2: Leaf Prints

This is a must-try nature craft for kids this fall season. The prints turn out absolutely beautiful!

Your kids will love searching for leaves outside for this project. Have them look for different shapes and sizes of leaves.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

leaves
washable paint
cardstock paper
art tray
paint tray
paintbrush

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B. Set-up

Grab some leaves from outside! Try to search for leaves that don’t have any holes in them. This will make the prints turn out the best.

C. Activity

The kids will paint the leaves. They can use whatever colors they like. We chose to use rainbow colors!

They will paint the side of the leaf with the ridges so they show up on the paper.

Flip the leaf over and make sure to press down on the entire leaf to make the whole print show up. Slowly lift it up so make sure it doesn’t get smudged.

Check out your amazing leaf prints! This is such a beautiful leaf craft.

RELATED: Leaf Crafts for Kids

#3: Painting Rocks

My kids LOVE painting rocks. It’s something fun and different for them to create.

Painting rocks is a great nature craft that kids can place outside as decoration!

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

rocks
acrylic paint
paintbrushes
googly eyes
glue

B. Set-up

Head outside and grab the rocks you want to paint! Try to find large flat rocks!

C. Activity

Use acrylic paint to paint the rocks any way you’d like! I have a few fun suggestions that are easy for kids in the photo.

Paint the first layer on and wait for it to dry. Then, you can paint your design or you can even fingerprint your designs.

#4: Flower Pot Crafts

In my opinion, this is my favorite nature craft for kids! The kids loved creating these flower pots and they get to see them outside all spring and summer.

This also makes a great gift for Mother’s Day, teachers, or someone special. It’s the perfect spring craft for kids to make.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

flower pots
flowers
acrylic paint
acrylic paint markers
clear sealer

B. Set-up

Do the first layer of paint on your flower pots with acrylic paint. We made a watermelon and ladybug pot, and we did a drip paint activity. So we painted one pink and two of them white.

I also added a green at the top of the watermelon pot and red on the ladybug pot.

Wait for your flower pots to dry (this will take about 30 minutes to dry completely).

C. Activity

For the watermelon flower pot, have the kids make black fingerprints around it.

To create the ladybug flower pot, the kids will make fingerprints using red paint. Then, once those are dry, use a black acrylic paint marker to create a head, legs, antenna, and dots on each ladybug.

Lastly, to create the dip paint flower pot, have the kids squeeze acrylic paint all over the pot. They can use a bunch of different colors to make it look really cool! There’s no wrong way to do this one!

Let these dry completely- the drip paint one takes a few hours.

Once they are dry, spray them with an acrylic paint-clear sealer. Do this outside because it can smell bad.

Then, you have your beautiful flower pots that will stay all spring and summer long!

RELATED: Flower Crafts for Kids

#5: Ice Cream Cone Bird Feeders

Your kids are absolutely going to love this nature craft because they can make their own bird feeders!

This is a simple craft that everyone in the family will love.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

sugar ice cream cones
peanut butter
bird seed
twine
plastic knife

B. Set-up

Cut the tip off the top of the ice cream cone. Then, thread a piece of twine through the top of the hole and make a knot (I made a few) so it won’t go through the cone.

C. Activity

Thread Cheerios on the top (optional), but leave some space so it can be hung up.

Have the kids spread peanut butter around the entire cone. Then, sprinkle birdseed all over the cone so it sticks to the peanut butter.

Hang up outside and watch the birds hang out at your DIY bird feeder.

Want to learn more about bird feeding? My husband’s an expert; check out his page below.

RELATED: Birdwatching HQ

#6: Cardboard Rainbow

Scavenger hunts are the best outdoor activities! Kids just love being the first to find something!

This nature craft and scavenger hunt is a perfect spring craft for kids.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

cardboard
paint/markers
clothespins
paintbrush

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B. Set-up

Create a rainbow shape from cardboard and paint it the colors of the rainbow or the colors of the objects that you’ll see outside. We don’t have anything blue in our yard, so I added pink and brown instead.

C. Activity

Go outside and start searching for some different colors! Have the kids clip the items that they find in the matching color strip on the rainbow!

If you don’t have colorful items in your yard, you can always have the kids look around at the park!

RELATED: Outdoor Activities for Kids

#7: Weather Letter Craft

This is a great nature craft for kids because it’s a great way to talk about all the different kinds of weather that can happen.

Creating letter crafts is also a fun way to learn the alphabet!

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

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B. Set-up

Create a bubble letter W on a piece of white paper. Paste it to a piece of blue paper!

Create a few clouds using white and black paper to be the lightning cloud, rain, and wind cloud! I colored two of them gray! Also, create the lightning blots from yellow paper.

C. Activity

Talk about the different kinds of weather with your little one! See if they can name a few types of weather before you teach them.

For the sun, grab some yellow paint and have them dip a wine cork in it to create a few suns! Use a yellow marker to create the rays.

To make the rain, have the kids use Q-tips to make raindrops underneath one of the clouds.

Glue some cotton balls on for cloudy weather, and use snow confetti for snowy weather!

Lastly, create windy weather by curling up some pipe cleaners and gluing them down next to a cloud!

Grab my FREE Letter collage book and check out all my other letter crafts in the link below.

RELATED: Letter Crafts for Kids

#8: Pinecone Trees

Have you ever tried to craft with pine cones? You won’t regret trying this fun nature craft for Christmas.

Pine cones make the perfect little Christmas trees! I love these can work for decor around the house as well!

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

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B. Set-up

Use acrylic paint to paint the pine cones! We did some green ones and a white one!

C. Activity

Hot glue the pine cone to a wood ornament once the paint is dry!

Add on buttons, poms, or glitter! I just used regular glue to add on the glitter and buttons! You can just stick in the poms, and they will stay there!

This is such a fun Christmas activity for kids! Such a simple and a fun way to use objects in nature to craft!

RELATED: Christmas Crafts for Kids

#9: Leaf Rubbings

This nature craft is fun, colorful, and magical! Kids will love watching the leaves pop up while they are painting.

Checking out the prints, too, is super cool. I love seeing all the markings of the leaves.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

white paper
watercolors
paintbrush
water
art tray
white crayon
leaves
masking tape

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B. Set-up

Head outside to grab a bunch of leaves. Have the kids search for different sizes and shapes of leaves.

C. Activity

Use masking tape to tape the leaves down on a white sheet of paper. Make sure to have the smooth part of the leaf facing down on the paper so the markings will show up.

Place another piece of paper on top of the leaves. Then, use a white crayon to trace over the leaves. Press down pretty hard on the crayon to make sure it’s bold enough to show through when the kids paint.

Have the kids use watercolors to paint over the white crayon marks you made! They can use one color or different colors like you see how we did above.

They will love revealing the leaf shapes!

#10:Leaf Ghosts

This adorable nature craft is great for Halloween!

Making ghosts out of leaves is REALLY easy, and they turn out so cool.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

leaves
acrylic paint
black Sharpie
white chalk marker

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B. Set-up

Head outside and have the kids pick some leaves! We chose to pick maple leaves because they are big and look more like ghosts, but you can use any sort of leaf for this project.

C. Activity

Have the kids paint the leaves using acrylic paint! We used white, orange, black, and purple for Halloween colors.

Let the leaves dry! This will take about 20 minutes.

Then, the kids will use a black marker to create the ghost’s face. If you decide to make a black leaf, they will use a white chalk marker to make the face!

You can even create decor using these leaves by using a hole puncher to punch a hole at the top of the leaves and string a string through it. Hang it up on the mantel!

RELATED: Halloween Crafts for Kids

#11: Flower Prints

Using flowers to make prints is fun, and it turns out beautiful!

We used daisies to create rainbow prints. These turned out so pretty.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

flowers
washable paint
paint brushes
cardstock paper

B. Set-up

Have the kids head outside to grab some flowers. It can be daisies, or you could collect a bunch of different kinds to see the different prints.

C. Activity

Paint the flowers with washable paint and flip them down to make prints on paper. Press on the flower gently all over to make sure the print shows up.

Then, slowly lift it up to reveal your flower prints! You can create rainbow colors like we did, or you can make your own.

RELATED: Spring Crafts

#12: DIY Rock Photo Frames

Father’s Day is in the summer, and this is a great nature craft for your kids to do for dad!

The kids loved collecting rocks for this Father’s Day craft.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

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B. Set-up

Have the kids paint the picture frame using acrylic paint. We chose the color brown to go along with the colors of the rocks, but you can use whatever color you would like.

While you are waiting for it to dry, they can go search for some rocks! You can also buy craft rocks instead if you don’t have rocks around your house (I have linked some above).

C. Activity

The adult will do this part of the project. You will hot glue the rocks they have found to the sides of the picture frame.

Then, the kids can write “my daddy rocks” on the frame using an acrylic paint marker. These markers show up great, especially on dark colors!

Add a special picture of the kids and their dad! He will love adding this to his office or around the house.

RELATED: Father’s Day Crafts

#13: Leaf Turkey Craft

This turkey nature craft for kids is just adorable. I love the color of the leaves that we found to do this craft.

It’s so cool that you can use nature to create such fun crafts with the kids. This is a must try craft for Thanksgiving time.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

B. Set-up

Paint a paper plate brown and let it dry.

Create a turkey face out of construction paper. Glue on the beak, the snood, and googly eyes!

C. Activity

Take the kids outside and have them search for some colored leaves! This time of year around Ohio, we have some beautifully colored leaves.

Don’t have colored leaves? You can paint them! Use acrylic paint to paint the leaves.

Have the kids paste the leaves to the paper plate all around. Then, they will glue the turkey’s face on top of the leaves!

RELATED: Turkey Crafts for Kids

#14: Leaf Printed Tree

Here’s another leaf nature craft that will be a huge hit! The kids will love trying this craft because they can use leaves to make their own tree.

The kids love going to collect the leaves. They also love revealing the prints.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

paper
marker
washable paint
leaves

B. Set-up

Draw a tree trunk using a brown marker and fill it in. Then, go collect leaves from outside. Try to choose the same kind of leaves for this activity so it looks the same.

C. Activity

Have the kids paint the leaves and make prints around the tree trunk. I suggest starting from the bottom to make the prints and work your way up around the tree.

We used washable paint for this activity, but you can also use acrylic paint.

The kids will love seeing the prints that the leaves make on the paper. This is such a simple and fun fall craft!

RELATED: Fall Crafts

#15: Leaf Hedgehogs

Here is a really fun nature craft for kids! I love getting the kids outside to grab some leaves to create art with.

We did this one a little before the leaves started to turn colors, so we painted some. You can paint them or wait till the leaves turn colors and use them just the way they are.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

leaves
paint(optional)
construction paper
googly eyes
markers
pencil

B. Set-up

Head outside and have the kids grab some leaves. Then, draw and cut out a hedgehog shape on construction paper.

C. Activity

If you are painting the leaves, have the kids start to paint them! We used acrylic paint so they would dry quickly.

Once the leaves are dry, have the kids use school glue to paste the leaves onto the hedgehog’s back for the spikes!

This is a great craft for an animal-themed fall activity.

#16: Nature Paintbrushes

Painting with different types of materials in nature will be exciting for your kids.

It’s such a cool way to explore the textures of nature while painting!

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

paper (I prefer easel paper since it’s longer)
washable kids paint
nature items (leaves, sticks, cattails, flowers, pinecones etc.)

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B. Set-up

Gather all the materials you want in nature. Try to grab a variety of textures, sizes, and patterns.

Tape down the piece of paper on a flat surface outdoors. Put some paint on the paper or in a paint tray.

C. Activity

Let your little ones go to work! First, let them explore the objects you gathered, dip them in paint and use them to mark the paper. Then, talk about the textures of the objects (smooth, rough, bumpy, etc.).

RELATED: Outdoor Games for Kids

#17: Snow Painting

Do you live somewhere where it snows? Bring the snow inside and paint it!

This is a wonderful nature craft to do with the kids in the winter! They will love bringing the snow inside

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

snow
droppers
paintbrushes
food coloring
water

B. Set-up

Grab some snow using a cup and bring it inside and put it in a container. It can be any container if you don’t have a sensory table! It doesn’t have to be fancy.

C. Activity

You can do this in a few different ways. We like to use our droppers for this activity. Add food coloring and water into cups.

Then, the kids can suck up the colored liquid and squirt it onto the snow!

You can also use watercolors and a paintbrush the paint the snow! No matter how you do this activity, it’ll be a huge hit.

RELATED: Winter Crafts for Kids

#18: Butterfly Wing Nature Craft

My daughter absolutely loved this nature craft because she could wear her own butterfly wings!

This is such a beautiful craft! She loved pretending to be a butterfly.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

cardboard
box cutter
contact paper
scissors
nature items
hole punch
twine

B. Set-up

Create an outline of butterfly wings on cardboard and cut it out using a box cutter.

C. Activity

Roll out some contact paper and stick it onto the cardboard. Use scissors to cut it down to fit the butterfly wings you created on the cardboard.

Head outside and grab some flowers, leaves, or sticks.

Stick them onto the contact paper! Then, place another piece of contact paper over the items you just put on to keep them from falling off.

I used a hole punch to poke two holes at the top of the butterfly wings. Then, thread some twine through the holes and tie them so they can be worn as wings!

#19: Bird Paper Craft

Creating animal nature crafts is a great way for kids to learn about animals!

My kids are fascinated by how birds make their nests. This was a great lesson, along with the craft.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

cardstock colored paper
googly eyes
paper plate
glue
scissors
brown pipe cleaners
feathers

B. Set-up

Create a nest by cutting a paper plate in half and paint it brown! We used acrylic paint because it dries faster and covers more of the plate.

C. Activity

Draw two circles to make the birds. The head should be slightly smaller than the body. Then, paste these two together for each bird you want to make.

Create a face for each bird by adding eyes and a beak.

Then, glue craft feathers for the bird’s wings. Glue the birds onto the nest using a glue stick.

Lastly, have the kids cut up pieces of brown pipe cleaner or grab actual sticks outside and glue them to the nest you created.

You have the cutest little baby birds in a nest!

RELATED: Bird Crafts

#20: Caterpillar Sponge Craft

How adorable is this caterpillar craft? It’s the perfect nature craft to teach kids about insects that will see outside!

This is a simple caterpillar craft that’s great for springtime.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

sponges
Sharpie
paint
googly eyes
paper
scissors
glue stick

B. Set-up

Circle circles on sponges using a Sharpie, then cut them out.

C. Activity

Dip the sponges into red and green paint. We used two different colors of green paint.

Make your prints to make the caterpillars!

Then, create little legs and antennae out of brown paper. Paste them on with a glue stick.

Once the paint dries, add googly eyes and a smile with a marker.

Lastly, we made grass out of green paper by cutting a strip of paper off and making small cuts to look like grass.

RELATED: Insect Crafts for Kids

#21: Leaf Lions

Making fun crafts out of leaves is just so fun. There are so many possibilities!

This nature craft is fun to make, and it’s so pretty! Make your own lions out of leaves.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

cardboard
leaves
acrylic paint
tape or hot glue
paint brush
box cutter

B. Set-up

Create a circle shape on cardboard and use a box cutter to cut it out. We just traced a bowl we have to make sure it was a perfect circle shape!

Have the kids head outside to grab some leaves. We collected the same leaves so they all looked the same for the mane.

C. Activity

If you have colored leaves, you can just use those, or you can paint them if they are green! We decided to try both options, and I honestly love both.

When you paint the leaves, use acrylic paint because the color will turn out bolder. It will also dry quickly! While you are waiting for the leaves to dry, you can make the face for the lion.

Then, once the leaves are dry, you can either tape them on the back or an adult can use a hot glue gun to get the leaves to stay.

RELATED: Lion Crafts for Kids

#22: Bee Handprint Craft

I am obsessed with handprint crafts. They make the cutest keepsake crafts.

This bee nature craft is great for talking about the importance of bees to your kids! It may also help them not be so afraid of them.

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

cardstock paper
black marker
scissors
glue stick
googly eyes

B. Set-up

Trace your child’s hand on yellow paper and cut it out.

C. Activity

Have your kids draw black stripes on their handprints.

Create the wings and antenna out of black paper. Cut and paste them into place using a glue stick.

Then, add on googly eyes and a smile. Write a sweet message like “sweet as can bee”.

RELATED: Bee Crafts

#23: Ladybug Paper Plates

I love how simple this insect nature craft is for kids to make. They will love creating these cute ladybugs!

The giant googly eyes make this craft so fun!

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

small paper plates
acrylic paint
circle brush
black paper
scissors
glue
googly eyes

B. Set-up

Paint the small paper plate red!

C. Activity

Create the ladybug’s head by drawing a semi-circle out of black paper. Cut it out and use a glue stick to paste it under the plate.

Then, cut six strips of black paper for the legs and paste three on each side.

When the plate is dry, the kids can use a circle brush to make black dots all around the plate.

Add googly eyes and paper antenna to the head of the ladybug, and you have the cutest insect craft!

RELATED: Ladybug Crafts

#24: Shell Canvas

Shells are an amazing part of nature! Your kids will love this nature craft because they can use a mini canvas.

They will love showing off their creation with their canvas!

How to do this activity

A. Materials you need

small white shells
mini canvas
watercolors
paintbrush
glue

B. Set-up

Have the kids paint their mini canvas using watercolor paints.

C. Activity

While the watercolors are drying on the canvas, the kids will paint their seashells.

The kids can keep the shells white or they can paint them with watercolors.

Then, once everything is dry, the kids can use glue to attach them to the canvas! What a cute little summer decoration!

RELATED: Ocean Crafts for Kids

Final Thoughts and Conclusion

Nature crafts are just way too much fun! It’s a great way to teach the kids about the great outdoors.

I hope you have found some nature crafts that you can do with your kids.

I’d love to hear what your favorite craft/activity was in the article. Let me know in the comments below!

Happy Crafting!

Deena