While the raven and crow are not the same animal, I think their similarities makes it so that this handprint raven craft can work well for making either type of bird. Or, maybe you can have fun making both a raven and crow craft!
Ravens and crows are classic fall animals because they go along perfectly with a scarecrow theme and their dark black color also makes them great for a Halloween craft.
The black handprint feathers add an extra special touch to this easy bird craft. The personalized touch makes it another reason these birds would look stunning hung on display on a classroom bulletin board or art wall at home. Find a list of book recommendations at the bottom of this post to go along with this craft.
Supplies Needed:
This post contains affiliate links to the products mentioned. Read our disclosure policy for more information.
- Raven Craft Template <—– Get the craft pattern in our shop!
- Black and gray (or yellow) cardstock paper
- White cardstock paper
- black paint
- sponge paintbrush
- googly eyes
- scissors
- glue
Instructions:
1. Make your kids handprints
Use your sponge paintbrush to paint your child’s hands with the black paint. Press each painted palm down onto a white piece of cardstock paper to make handprints. You will need three handprints in total. Let the handprints dry completely.
Handprints can get a bit messy so be sure to keep baby wipes close by or do this by a sink.
2. Prepare raven body details
Next you will need to create your raven body, feet and beak. Just in case the task of creating your own pieces seems daunting, I went ahead and created a pattern in my shop you can purchase to make life easier.
Print the template on black and gray cardstock and then cut out each of the pieces from the template. (NOTE: If you printer ink will not show on black cardstock, you may need to print out the template on white paper, cut it out and trace it onto black cardstock with a pencil.)
3. Glue shapes to raven body
Glue the raven beak and legs onto the raven body. Then glue a googly eye on your raven.
4. Cut out & glue handprints to the raven
Cut out each of the handprints once the paint has dried completely. Glue two of them on the body for wings and one at the bottom and back of the raven for tail feathers.