Easy DIY Origami Hopping Frogs Craft
I have no clue how long paper hopping frogs has been a thing, but as long as origami has been around I’d think quite some time. I remember tearing out a piece of notebook paper and folding it to get a square shape. And if you didn’t have scissors your next step was to run your tongue along the folds so that the paper would tear right apart. So gross! So handy!
The goal was to have the frog that would hop the highest. I found that the best hoppers were ones made out of paper that were a bit stiffer. They were far more difficult to fold but dang if they didn’t win just about every bout!
If your kiddos don’t know the joy that is an easy origami hopping frog, here is a refresher so that you can share it with them!
For this project you will need:
- origami paper
, or other square pieces of paper
, or other 
Turn your paper pretty side down and to where it looks like a square.
Fold the paper up in half and unfold. Flip 90 degrees and fold up half again. When done there will be a plus sign shaped fold right in the center of the paper.
Keeping the pretty side down, fold each of the corners inward to the intersection of your two folds.
Fold all corners inward and you’ll have a smaller square shape. Turn it 45 degrees so it is the shape of a diamond instead of a square.
Take the right corner and fold so that the side runs even with the centerline.
Continue for the left side. Your shape should be like this at this point.
Fold the bottom portion up to form a triangle. Keep the triangle’s edge as even with the line created by the two folds above.
Take the bottom right corner and fold it into the center.
And again for the other side. See how the left and right sides are triangles? And how the top points if connected across would make a line at the bottom of an upper triangle?
Fold the bottom up to that line at the bottom of the upper triangle.
Fold the piece back on itself to the bottom.
This creates a springboard shape that will cause frogs to hop.
Not all frogs have to be green! The kids can fold out of any color and just about any paper, though really stiff paper tends to be hard to fold and construction paper tends to crack when folded. You can use printer paper, notebook paper or origami papers you can purchase at the hobby store. The frogs can also be decorated with markers or glitter or googly eyes!
Help the kids make a whole army. Literally! A group of frogs is called an army – fun fact for today! And you can take them anywhere. These guys were whipped out in a waiting room. One lucky little boy got his first-ever hopping paper frog and the smile he gave me was awesome!
A crafter since her earliest years, Allison spends a little time every day making something. She crafts, sews, paints, glues things onto other things, and is a firm believer that a life spent creating is a life worth living. Visit Allison’s blog, Dream {a Little} BIGGER.