Cup-Painting Caterpillar

First of all, this wasn’t my idea. The amazing Deborah from Teach Preschool came up with this awesome activity. And we just had to do it since we have some caterpillars of our very own!

Here’s what you’ll need:  2 sheets of cardstock or white construction paper, paint of various colors, foam/plastic cups, and a fork.

1. Glue the 2 pieces of cardstock (or construction paper) together.

2. Squirt various colors of paint into bowls.

3. Wiggle the cups around in the paint so that the rim of the cup is completely covered with paint.

4. Start making a caterpillar!

5. After your caterpillar has been made, use a plastic fork dipped in green paint to make grass.

We’re getting ready to paint our kitchen yellow…so we have LOTS of different yellows painted on the walls.

And since Little Brother has officially dropped his morning nap (most days), he now gets to participate in the fun. I still don’t trust him with paint, so he got to color. Or rather, he enjoyed chewing on the crayons! 

6. Add some glue and cotton balls for clouds.

Add a face and the antennae and you have a beautiful caterpillar to proudly display!

Literature Link

The Very Hungry Caterpillar


If you don’t have this book, you should! It is a wonderful story that is a teaching tool in 3 ways. First of all, it teaches the life cycle of a butterfly. Egg > Caterpillar > Chrysalis > Butterfly. Secondly, it teaches the days of the week. And finally, it teaches healthy foods vs. unhealthy foods. Both of my boys absolutely love our board book version!

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14 Comments

    1. For some reason the link doesn’t work, says Error 404, with a little extra time I’m glad I found this activity!

  1. I have to laugh – and bookmark! I'm doing a (very simple) Very Hungry Caterpillar birthday party for my to-be-2-year-old in a couple of weeks and I think we'll do this activity. Thanks for passing it on!

  2. I'm with Kristy, this would be perfect for a birthday party! Cups and forks are already at the party. I wanted to do this theme (having every food in the book plus a butterfly cake) for her birthday, but she'll just be two this year. I think that's too young, so I'll wait until her third (or fourth) birthday.

  3. That is awesome!! I love it! We're going to have to try it, too!

    Do you still have caterpillars? Or are they butterflies?!!

  4. I did this with my kids and they loved it!! They were so proud of their art projects!! It took very little time to make and it occupied them 100%, which allowed my husband to focus on some things in the kitchen without a fuss. Thanks for such a wonderful idea!!

  5. We had a BLAST doing this. I used yogurt cups that i tend to hoard for paint cups. Never thought to use them like a stamp! You should see my craft cabinet full of them! We also stamped our Christmas wrapping paper this way as well. Thanks for a fun, cheap, super cute idea!

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