Jumping Spider

A round purple spider with big eyes hangs on an elastic. Its eight legs are accordion-folded: tug the elastic and the spider jumps while the legs spring and dangle.

• Easy
• 5 pieces
• 1 Letter sheet
• 8 spring legs

Make it with your phone cameraLesson code: 1258

On VanGami the template appears over your sheet through your phone camera — no printer needed. Trace it, cut, fold and glue. Below are all the steps in text.

What you’ll need

• Letter sheet — office paper, 80 gsm (20 lb)
• Markers
• Pencil — and eraser
• Scissors — small
• Glue stick — or PVA glue
• Tape — clear, wide
• Thin elastic cord or thread — 15½–23½ in: bead elastic or a cut-up office rubber band
• Glass — phone stand

Steps

Trace

1. Legs: outlines. Trace four strips with a solid line — you’ll cut along them. There are no fold lines on the template: you’ll fold the accordion into little squares later.
2. Body: outline. Trace the circle with a tuft of three little hairs — you’ll cut along it.
3. Body: drawing. Copy the eyes, the smile with fangs, the cheeks and three spots by the tuft — with thin lines.

Color

4. Black. Color the areas that match this color. Move the marker in one direction — you’ll get fewer streaks.
5. Color the body. Body in purple, spots in orange, cheeks in pink, pupils in black. Leave the whites of the eyes, the glints and the fangs white.

Cut

6. Cut out: leg — 4 pcs. Cut out four strips — along a ruler or exactly along the lines.
7. Cut out: body. Cut out the circle along the outline; at the tuft, cut into the corners from both sides.

Fold

8. Accordion-fold the legs. Fold each black end accordion-style: the first fold goes along the edge of the white middle, then the links are little squares — as long as the strip is wide. Away from you, toward you, away from you — do this at both ends.

Glue

9. Crossed legs. Lay the strips black side up crisscross, as in the picture: middles on top of each other, ends fanned out to the left and right. Put glue on each middle and press down.
10. Body on top. Put glue on the middle of the cross and lay the body on top, drawing side up — exactly on the middle. Press for 20 seconds.
11. Elastic on the back. Turn the spider over, back side up. Lay the end of the elastic on the back up to the middle, toward the tuft, and press it down with a strip of tape ¾ × ⅝ in.

Play

12. Make it jump. Hold the elastic by the end, with the spider hanging with its face toward you. Jiggle your hand up and down — it jumps and the legs spring.

Done. The spider is done. Hold the elastic by the end and jiggle your hand — it jumps. For a video, lower it into the frame from above, in front of someone.

Make it with your phone camera

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