Support fine motor skills and pretend play with this playdough birds preschool craft. This open-ended activity is fun for your spring theme, and can easily be included in a lesson plan about birds.
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Making birds with playdough and feathers is an easy activity to set up for your preschooler. And it’s practically mess-free! The activity invites hands-on engagement with materials that have different colors and textures, providing sensory experiences as kids play.
Include this craft in a themed unit introducing birds and their habitats to your preschoolers. This lesson plan about birds has ideas for activities, books and crafts, and includes a prepared weekly plan (free printable).
Support fine motor skills and creative play with this playdough-and-feathers bird craft.
Playdough bird with feathers craft
This is a child-led activity, meaning kids will proceed in their own ways to create as they play. The instructions and illustrations are meant to be a guideline.
Results will differ according to how kids squeeze and shape the clay and add finishes. Allow time for kids to explore the materials without an expected outcome.
Materials
Playdough – store bought (aff. link) – This bundle of small containers provides lots of different colors.
Playdough – homemade – This post has two easy recipes.
Small colorful feathers (aff. link)
Small brown feathers (aff. link) – These are similar to the ones I purchased at our local craft store.
Small fork
Build a bird with playdough
Step 1. Roll clay around between your hands to make a smooth ball for the body. Make a smaller ball for the head.
Demonstrate techniques such as rolling clay in your hands according to kids individual interest and skill levels.
Step 2. Place a small piece of broken crayon between the head and the body to hold the head in place.
Step 3. Make a beak by pinching a small piece of playdough between thumb and finger.
Step 4. Create toes by pressing the fork into pieces of playdough OR by pinching small sections of playdough between finger and thumb.
Step 5. Set your playdough bird on the feet. Press down gently to secure the body onto the feet. You can also add a short piece of crayon between the body and the feet as you did with the head and body in step 2.
Step 6. Add two tiny playdough eyes and beak to the head.
Step 7. Push feathers into the side and/or tail.
Kids can get creative with their choices of colors and types of feathers, as well as the placement of the feathers.
Build-a-bird playdough craft
Kids will make the playdough birds in their own ways. Guide the play by engaging in conversation and offering suggestions as kids welcome your input.
Display your playdough birds in a simple nest made with shredded paper. This can also extend the activity into small world play.
Browse other options for building nests in this roundup of bird nest crafts.
MORE BIRD THEME RESOURCES
