3 Little Ducks Went Swimming One Day... Fun Crafts!

Whether you love or hate Nursery Rhymes, this craft is super simple and the singing is completely optional!!

This 3 Little Ducks Paper Plate Craft is perfect for toddlers and preschoolers. It goes lovely with the 3 little ducks rhyme, or it makes a great activity for a duck or pond-themed learning at home or at nursery!

If you like this paper plate craft then scroll to the end to find more paper plate crafts – they’re super simple and can be put together in a matter of minutes 🙂

Making Your 3 Little Ducks

This craft can either be a stand alone activity or you could combine it with the song and use it as a prop.

I find that toddlers respond well when they have some active part in singing rhymes, even if it’s just holding an object or an instrument. This would be a great craft to make and then use in this way.

Supplies needed for your paper plate craft:

2 Coloured Paper Plates – I got these cheap coloured paper plates from ASDA that work well – you need a blue for the water and another contrasting colour. You could use green or a pale blue for the sky, it doesn’t really matter so long as it’s a different colour
Card for Ducks (I used the same paper plates for the card too)
Coffee Stirrers/Popsicle sticks – the thinner these are the more movement you’ll have, so I used coffee stirrers
Scissors – lots of cutting for this craft so be sure to use toddler safe scissors
Marker pen – for adding details
Duck Template – If you’re not too sure of your drawing skills then why not just download the free template here:

3 Little Ducks Craft Template

Trace around these ducks to save time!

How to Make the Ducks for your Pond!

It’s up to you how many ducks you make, but I went with 3 to match the rhyme with one larger one for the mummy duck.

I traced around the template above and cut them out of the yellow card.
I then taped a coffee stirrer to the back of each as shown in the photo.
I gave each duck an eye but you could let your toddler get really creative here 🙂

And now you have your three ducks, it’s time to make the pond.

Making the pond backdrop for your ducks to swim in!

If you don’t have coloured paper plates you can always paint them or colour them in to get the colours you want – I’m always stressing how you don’t need to buy extra, just use what you have!

First, cut your blue plate in half with a wave to it – this is going to sit on top of your other plate.
With your other plate (colour choice up to you) cut a slit in the plate all the way across the middle (make sure this is lower than the blue piece so you can’t see it when you place the blue card on top)
You’re very nearly there (I told you this would be super simple!)

Putting the ducks in the pond!

Now that you have your ducks and your pond, it’s just about putting it all together! Slide your ducks through the slit in the green plate as shown.
Then tape or glue your blue plate on top of that just at the edges so there’s still room for movement.
You should now be able to move the ducks around, making them bob up and down on the water (even disappearing underneath the water!)

And there you have it! If you liked this paper plate craft then you can find others just here, including a pizza craft that is another super easy one: