Home

How to Make a Paper Kindergarten Graduation Cap

In the olden days, when men' shirts were sent to the laundry every week, they came back folded around a piece of stiff cardboard and that was the greatest craft tool. And free too. Those days are gone and now the cardboard of choice for making crafts like a paper graduation cap for kindergarten graduates is poster board AKA oak tag.

The cardboard had its advantages. It was strong and stiff. The poster board is lighter and that is an advantage too. Young children do not like to have something heavy on their heads, not even their paper graduation cap. The poster board also comes in many colors, so that takes out a step. Pick the color you want for your paper graduation cap . I find it easy to straighten out the poster board by putting it between a mattress and box spring for a few days.

Since the poster board is not that stiff, cut out two 8 inch squares and glue them together to form the mortar board part of the cap. That should make it stiff enough, but the poster board is too stiff for the cap part of a paper graduation cap that goes around the head. Construction paper is better here. Measure the child's head and cut a piece of construction paper in half the long way, attache the two ends together to make a long strip using brass paper fasteners. They are strong and can penetrate the stiff poster board as well as the construction paper. Construction paper comes in 9 by 12 inch sheets, so you will have a piece that is 9 inches high and about 23 inches long, allowing for the overlap where you attached the two ends. Now cut them to fit the child's head and attach the other ends in the same way.

The 9 inches you have gives you plenty of leeway to fold over a few inches on the top of the paper graduation cap to attach to the mortar board. Again use the brass clips.

You cannot have a graduation cap without a tassel. These are not made to last and the tassel will be the part that you will keep for memories. Use yarn, baby yarn, 2 ply is perfect. If you have made a tassel, you know how to do this. Wind the yarn around a 6 in piece of cardboard about 6 times. Cut one end of the yarn and keep it folded in half. At the uncut end, wind a piece of the yarn around about 3 three times, leaving a loop of the folded yarn at the top. Use glue to secure it in place and let it dry well before the next step. Cut a long piece of yarn, twist it around to make a cord. Attach the top of the cord where there is a loop to the middle of the mortar board with one of the brass paper tacks. Tie the open end through the loop at the top of the tassel. You can cut the cord if the tassel is too long.

Attach the paper graduation cap to the child's head with large hair pins and your graduate is ready to make his or her first graduation appearance. If you need to more information click here Jittery Monks