Fun & Easy Crab Crafts for Kids (Perfect for an Ocean Unit)

Published:
February 13, 2023

Contributor:
Sara Dennis

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Are you looking for fun crab crafts for your kids to do? You’ve come to the right place! You’ll be able to find the perfect crab craft to make with your kids when you’re studying sea creatures or simply need a fun activity for a rainy day.

crab crafts

Crab Crafts

Doing an easy ocean craft is a great way to help kids learn all about ocean habitats for kids. These crab crafts require that children look carefully at a crab to notice the different parts of a crab’s body. Kids will need to put together different body parts, such as the legs, a crab’s claws, and the eyes.

Many crabs are tide pool animals, did you know that? 

Crab Craft For Kids

An easy crab craft also gives kids the chance to work on their fine motor skills. Children need to draw, cut, and glue to assemble these cute crafts. These are fun activities for little hands!

Craft Supplies

Before you jump into making fun crafts, it helps to make sure you have the necessary supplies on hand. Here’s a quick list to get you started!

  • Glue gun
  • Glue stick
  • Black marker
  • Pipe cleaners
  • Wooden eggs
  • Paper bowl
  • White paper
  • Cupcake liners
  • Paper cups
  • Styrofoam Cups
  • Coffee filter
  • Acrylic paint
  • Egg carton
  • Construction paper
  • Marker pens
  • Craft paper

Whether you are making your crab crafts using ocean animal printables or by using craft supplies, your kids will have a blast! If easy crafts is your jam, be sure to take a peek at these paper plate ocean crafts

paper plate ocean crafts for kids

Easy Crab Craft Ideas For Kids

These easy crab craft ideas are the perfect activity to do when you are leanring about the ocean zones for kids. They’re also fun to complete when you’re heading to the beach in the summer. Kids can learn about crabs, sea turtles, and other types of sea life they may find while exploring the sand.

The craft ideas include making a paper plate crab craft, a hermit crab craft, and a handprint craft. 

Paper Circle Crab Craft

If you’re looking for simple crafts that use a circle, then you’ll want to check out this 3D crab craft for kids.

3D Crab Craft for Kids – You’ll create a circle for the back of the crab and then weave paper to make the shell. Don’t forget to download the crab template!

paper circle crab craft

Easy Crab Craft For Kids

This easy craft involves using an apple to stamp red crabs on a piece of paper.

Easy Apple Stamped Crab – Add some crab legs and claws, and you have an adorable crab craft to hang on your refrigerator.

easy crab craft

Paper Plate Crab Craft

This cute crab craft involves using a paper plate to create crabs to hang around your house.

Paper Plate Crab – This is a great idea when you’re looking for fun activities for little hands. Preschool children and young elementary kids will have lots of fun putting this crab together. 

paper plate crab craft

Toilet Paper Roll Crab

What could be better than having little crabs crawling around your house? These simple crafts use toilet paper rolls and pipe cleaner legs to create a fun crab shape.

Crab Toilet Paper Roll – Be sure to pull out this paint so that kids can paint the toilet paper rolls in different colors to create a bunch of colorful crabs.

Toilet Paper Roll Crabs – You will use paper to give these little crabs their color. It’s the perfect way to learn all about a crab’s body.

Recommended Resource: Ocean Notebook

Follow along with Ocean Anatomy by Julia Rothman using this best-selling Notebook Companion™!

Ocean Notebook

Shell Crab Magnet Craft

The next time you’re at the beach, send the kids out to explore and find some shells. The shells can be turned into crab magnets to hang on your refrigerator when you get home.

Crab Fridge Magnets – Make little green sea turtles and red crabs using shells, magnets, paper, and pipe cleaners. Don’t forget to glue googly eyes on the shells to give the crabs some personality.

Crab Magnets – This fun activity turns the shell into the crab’s body. Be sure to paint the shells before you begin so you can have some yellow, red, and blue crabs to display.

Paper Bag Crab Puppet

Puppets are a fun way to spend a rainy afternoon. Not only do you have a fun craft to create the puppet, but then you can send the kids to create a puppet show.

Crab Paper Bag Puppet – This ocean theme puppet includes a crab template to make putting together your paper bag puppet super easy.

paper bag crab craft

Coffee Filter Crab

Most families have coffee filters laying around the house, so a fun way to use up the filters is to put together a coffee filter crab with your kids. 

Easy Crab Activity – Use the coffee filter to create the crab’s body and then use crayons and construction paper to create the claws. 

Ocean Animal Sun Catcher – Another fun activity is to put together an ocean animal sun catcher. This sun catcher includes a whale, dolphin, shark, and fish. You can also add a crab shape to the sun catcher as well by making a circle and adding claws to it. It will look incredible hanging in your window this summer!

Cupcake Liner Crab

The next time you’re at the store, pick up some extra cupcake liners. Fold them in half, and they’re an easy crab project to complete with your kids.

Cupcake Liner Crab – Carolinne at Heart Crafty Things has a great idea for creating ocean crafts with your kids. Use red cupcake liners to create an ocean scene featuring red crabs.

Simple Cupcake Liner Crab– This simple crab craft is a blast to put together with your children. Use googly eyes for the crabs eyes and a piece of card stock. Your children will soon have their own crab craft to display in their bedrooms.

Rock Crabs

Many children’s favorite crab crafts involve rocks. First, they can head outside in the summer time to search for the perfect rock and then use the rock in a craft.

Crab Rock Painting Craft – Make some favorite vacation memories while creating a crab rock painting. Kids will love searching for the perfect rock on which to paint a small crab.

rock crab craft

Crab Paper Hats

Crab hats aren’t just a great craft for a rainy afternoon, they’re also so much fun to create while you’re on vacation. You won’t lose your kids while they’re styling one of these fashionable hats!

Paper Plate Crab Hat – Follow these simple directions to create an adorable paper crab hat for your children to wear. Make sure you have googly eyes to give the crabs personality.

Cute and Fun Crab Hat – Your kids will love wearing this fun hat while playing on the beach. You have two options: carefully draw your own crab template or use the paid crab craft template that’s available in the shop.

Orange Peels Crab 

If you’ve ever wondered what to do with the orange peels left over from snack time, here’s your answer. Put together some cute crabs using orange peels and simple craft supplies.

Crab Craft With Orange Peels – This crab craft is a great option when you’re studying crabs or the ocean. Kids will love hanging this crab on the refrigerator.

orange peel crab craft

Ocean Crab Craft

Nothing is better than putting together an ocean crab craft when you’re studying the ocean. These crafts use either wooden eggs or bottle caps to create the tiny creatures.

Easy Ocean Crab – Pick up a wooden or paper mache egg to form the body of the crab. It’s an easy project to complete with children as it comes with a free printable template.

Bottle Cap Crabs – Use colored paper and bottle caps to create an ocean scene that features an adorable crab. You can use a red bottle cap for a red crab or a blue one for a blue crab.

Handprint Crab Craft

Handprint crafts are a favorite with parents and grandparents. Little hands don’t stay tiny very long, so it’s lovely to have a cute craft that features small handprints.

Handprint Crab – Cut out your child’s handprint on cardstock and follow the instructions to create a crab to hang on the front door.

Simple Handprint Art – This simple craft uses paint and your child’s hands to create crab art to display in your home.

Paper Cup Crab Craft

If you have leftover paper cups from a party, use them to create a crab as part of a study of the ocean.

Paper Cup Crab for Kids – You’ll only need some red paper cups, red paper, and a black pen to create this fun craft with your children.

Make a Paper Cup Crab – Use googly eyes, red cardstock, and paper cuts to make small crab statues to display in your home.

Styrofoam Cup Crabs

Use up those styrofoam cups in your house by making colorful crab art with your children. You’ll use pipe cleaners to create the crab claws and craft paint to paint the crabs different colors.

Sea Crabs Craft with a Styrofoam Cup – Each child can choose their favorite color to craft a small army of crabs. Be sure to take the crabs outside to give your kids a chance to play with the crabs in the sandbox.

styrofoam cup crab craft

Styrofoam Bowl Crab

Did you know that bowls make perfect shells for various crab arts and crafts projects? Kids can paint the bowls and glue paper legs to the side of the crab.

Styrofoam Bowl Crab – You’ll want to stock up on styrofoam bowls to create these cute crabs. Kids can paint the bowls their favorite colors to create the perfect crab.

Bowl Crab – This crab project combines handprints with bowls to create a crab. While the instructions say to use a paper bowl, you can easily substitute a styrofoam bowl.

Hermit Crab Craft

If you’re studying crabs, you can’t forget to include hermit crabs. Hermit crabs don’t grow their own shells. Instead, they search for a new shell when they outgrow their old shell. They’re a fabulous type of crab to craft with your kids.

Handprint Hermit Crab – Use your child’s hand to create a handprint hermit crab. This craft will be fun to save and pull out the next time you study the ocean.

Free Printable Hermit Crab – Are you looking for a free printable art project to put together with your kids? Then this hermit crab might be just what you’re looking for! All you need is the template, paper, scissors, and glue.

How do you make a crab handprint?

One of the easiest ways to make a crab handprint is to paint both of your child’s hands with red paint. Then carefully push the hands onto a piece of paper with the back of the palms together and the fingers splayed out. The palms become the back or shell of the craft, while the fingers are the legs. Be sure to add eyes to your crab when the paint has dried.

How do you make a crab out of a paper plate?

A paper plate craft crab is fun and easy to make with children. Fold the paper plate in half to create a half-circle. Glue two googly eyes on top of short chenille stems. Then, glue or staple them to the center of the flat side of the half-circle.

Afterward, cut a chenille stem into eight small pieces to form the legs and claws. Glue or staple the pieces to the outside of the crab.

How do you make a crab out of cardboard?

The easiest way to make a crab out of cardboard is to trace a large circle onto the cardboard for the body and two small circles for the eyes. Add stems to the eyes. Then carefully draw two claws and six legs coming from the large circle. You will want the eyes and stems to stick out of the top of the large circle. The claws on the outside of the eyes and the legs on each side of the circle.

Once you’ve created the pieces, you can cut the crab out of the cardboard and paint the pieces before gluing them together.