Tips For Making Animal Habitat Dioramas For Kids

Did your child recently come home and tell you that they needed to make a diorama? Get our tips for how you can make a classic animal habitat diorama that is sure to impress!

wolf animal habitat diorama in a shoe box with fake trees and wolf figurine.

Animal habitats are a classic elementary school project. From creative ocean dioramas to forest scenes, these habitat projects are always a lot of fun. Get creative with our tips and ideas for making an animal habitat project (especially this cool wolf habitat diorama).

Why We Love Dioramas

KID FRIENDLY – With a little adult assistance, even the youngest children can make an animal diorama.
EASILY CHANGE THE HABITAT– You can use these ideas and modify the habitat for an animal of your choice.
CAN MODIFY SUPPLIES – The only main supply you need is a shoebox; you can modify the other materials depending on what you have on hand.

Supplies You’ll Need

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Shoe Box With Lid
Blue Shiny Cloth
Construction Paper
Animal Figurine
Green Felt
Model Magic
Fake Trees
Glue and Scissors
Optional: Flameless Battery-Powered Tea Light

wolf diorama project with labels for supplies used.

Tips For Making A Shoe Box Animal Habitat

Tip #1: Use A Box With A Lid

Using a box with an attached lid gives you more space to design your habitat diorama.

shoe box with packing tape with text overlay.

You can tape it open with packing tape so that the lid stays out.
Reinforce the box fold if it seems flimsy. You could do this with extra tape, adding a ruler or paint stick where the fold is.

Tip #2: Cover The Box First With Construction Paper

You can use larger pieces of paper for a background color. For an easy natural look, consider adding ripped paper inside the ground and on the outside of the box.

ripped green and brown construction paper.

Tip #3: Use Felt For Extra Texture

Fringe cut a strip of felt for a 3-D look. Add hot glue to the bottom of the felt only. You may need to prop the felt up with other items.

Tip #4: Use Dollar Store Items

We were lucky that this habitat diorama needed to be completed in the Winter. You can score fake trees for a very low price. The shiny blue fabric was also found in the craft section.

Tip #5: Use A Flameless Candle For Light

Cut or poke a small hole in the back of your shoe box, then tape a cheap battery-powered candle inside to use for sunlight or moonlight.

small battery powered light taped to shoe box.

Tip #6: Buy An Animal Figurine

Here is the wolf figurine that we bought for our diorama. You can search for all sorts of animal figures online or at different craft stores.

Tip #7 Use Model Magic

If you need extra details or 3-D rocks, you can mold them out of Model Magic. This is one of our favorite no-mess modeling clays.

Tip #8: Make Sure Your Child Does Most Of The Work

As a parent, it can be easy to try to want to do it for your child. However, it is important that you act as their assistant rather than do it for them. For example, our main job here was to help set the box and use the hot glue gun.

wolf animal habitat diorama in a shoe box.

Other Ways To Add To Your Diorama

Use sand, small pebbles, real sticks or sea glass to add more details.
Crumbled-up tissue paper can create a fun texture.
Printing a picture would work if you don’t want to purchase a figurine. To make it look more 3-dimensional, fold the bottom and tape or glue it to make the animal appear to be standing.
Consider hanging things through the top of the box with a clear fishing line.

More Fun Craft Ideas

No matter what habitat you are creating, you can adapt these ideas to suit your animal. Have fun making memories with your family while working on these diorama projects.