10 Engaging Self Portrait Activities for Preschool

| Last Updated: September 17, 2022

As a parent or teacher of young children, it’s important to provide opportunities for self-expression and creativity. Here are ten engaging self-portrait activities that your preschoolers will love! These activities are not only fun, but they also help promote fine motor skills, cognitive development, and self-esteem. So get those cameras ready and let the creativity flow!

Great Self-Portrait Activities for Preschool

Self-portraits are a fun and easy way for preschoolers to express themselves. These ten engaging activities will encourage your child to create their self-portrait. With these activities, your child will explore their identity, learn about new materials and mediums, and have a blast doing it! So get ready to see the world through your child’s eyes. Let’s get started!

Fine Motor Skills | Anatomy | Self-exploration

1. Mirror Self Portrait

This is a great activity to help preschoolers develop their fine motor skills and learn more about human anatomy. It’s also fun to get them to engage in self-exploration. So break out the mirror, the dry erase markers, and baby wipes and give it a try!

Get your preschooler to think critically and creatively by challenging them to draw what they see in the reflection.

Ask them questions such as, “How many eyes do you have?” and  “How many ears do you see in the mirror?” or “What else would you like to include in your self-portrait?”

Your little one is sure to have a blast. And when they’re done, be sure to take a quick photo to preserve their masterpiece. Then simply use a baby wipe to clean up any stray marks. Voila! You’ve now got a beautiful piece of art, and happy kiddo. Enjoy!

Do you find it interesting? Visit Preschoolsteam.com for more details about this activity.

Fine Motor Skills | Color | Shape Recognition

2. Construction Paper Portrait

Photo credit: keeptoddlersbusy.com

Construction paper portraits are a great way to help your child develop fine motor skills, learn about different colors and shades, and have fun!

Materials: 

  • construction paper
  • markers
  • glue

Instruction: 

First, cut out some shapes for the different parts of the face – eyes, nose, mouth, and hair. You can also provide different skin tones for learning and fun.

Next, help your child form the self-portrait by gluing the pieces onto the paper.

Finally, add some marker shading to give the portrait some dimension.

Your child will love seeing their own face in their creation! And you’ll be amazed at how much they learn in the process. Try it today!

Did you try making a construction paper portrait with your child? We’d love to see it! Share it with us on Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag #CPPportraits.

It’s a fun activity to do with your preschooler. So, check out Keeptoddlersbusy.com for this idea.

Fine Motor Skills | Art | Observation Skills

3. Keepsake Self Portrait

Making a keepsake self-portrait is a fun activity you can do with your preschooler to help them develop their fine motor, art, and observation skills.

You only need some card stock, sharpies, canvases, paint, brushes, and Mod Podge (or another sealant). You can also use non-breakable mirrors if you want.

To start, have your students draw a self-portrait on the cardstock with a sharpie. Then, cut it out. Next, paint a canvas with acrylic or tempera paint. Once the paint is dry, glue the cut-out self-portrait to the dried canvas and then coat it with Mod Podge or another clear sealant. Let it dry, following the directions on the sealant.

Your preschooler will love seeing their own face on a canvas, and you’ll love knowing that you’re helping them develop important skills!

See more information at Play to Learn Preschool.

Color Recognition | Fine Motor | Hand-eye Coordination

4. Stick Portrait

Photo credit: hellowonderful.co

This is a fun activity that can help develop your child’s fine motor skills, color recognition, and hand-eye coordination. It’s also a great way to teach them about self-portraits! 

To make a stick portrait: 

  • construction paper 
  • colored pencils or crayons 
  • a popsicle stick
  • a scissor

Instructions:

First, help your child draw a portrait of themselves on the construction paper. They can use whatever colors they like! Once they’re finished, encourage them to color their portrait.

Next, it’s time to cut out the portrait. Help your child if needed. Once it’s cut out, tape or glue the popsicle stick to the back of the portrait.

And that’s it! Your child now has their very own self-portrait on a stick. They can use it as a puppet or simply display it proudly.

It’s a creative craft to try. You can also check this at Hellowonderful.co for more details.

Fine Motor Skills | Problem-Solving | Love for Nature

5. Nature Face Self Portrait

This activity is an excellent way for kids to develop their fine motor skills, creative problem-solving skills, and learn about nature. It’s also a fun way to spend some time outdoors! Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Cardboard
  • Natural items like grasses, flowers, leaves, buds, and maple keys
  • Glue
  • Scissors

Cut an oval face from the cardboard. Let your kids choose which items they want to use for their self-portrait body parts such as eyes, nose, hair, ears, and mouth. They’ll have to use their fine motor skills to glue everything in place, and their creative problem-solving skills to figure out how to best use the materials they have. This activity is also a great opportunity for them to learn about nature and appreciate all the beauty around them!

You may see more of this nature-tripping for a self-portrait at Fantasticfunandlearning.com.

Fine Motor Skills | Creative Thinking | Self-awareness

6. Sensory Self Portrait

Sensory self-portraits are a great activity for developing fine motor skills, creative thinking, and self-awareness. Plus, they’re just plain fun! Here’s what you’ll need:

  • A handheld mirror or printed picture of yourself
  • Play dough
  • Miscellaneous craft materials such as beads, buttons, pom poms, ribbon, and pipe cleaners.

To make your sensory self-portrait, start by rolling a ball of play dough and flattening it into a disc. Next, use the craft parts to decorate your portrait however you like. You can add eyes, a nose, a mouth, hair, earrings, a necklace – anything you can imagine! Once you’re satisfied with your creation, set it aside to dry.

Sensory self-portraits are a great way to explore your creativity and get to know yourself a little bit better. So have fun, and be sure to share your finished product!

If you can’t wait to see their creations, visit Fantasticfunandlearning.com for more details.

Self-expression | Color | Shape Recognition

7. Paper Plate Portrait

Making a paper plate portrait is a great way to help your child develop fine motor skills, learn about colors and shapes, and practice self-expression. Plus, it’s a lot of fun! Here’s what you’ll need:

  • A paper plate
  • Colored paper or other materials to match your child’s skin color and hair
  • Buttons, markers, or other materials to decorate the portrait

Here’s how to do it:

  1. The kids can start to draw their self-portraits using pencil as a guide or they can already start cutting small pieces of colored paper or other materials to glue onto their portraits. They can use these to create their features, hair, and clothes.
  2. Encourage your child to be creative and have fun with it!
  3. Once they’re finished, display their paper plate portrait proudly.

Drop by at Happy Toddler Playtime if you want to see the full description.

Fine Motor Skills | Color Recognition | Creative Thinking

8. Cheerio Self Portrait

Photo credit: happyhooligans.ca

This is a great activity for developing fine motor skills, color recognition, and creative thinking. Plus, it’s just plain fun! So gather up your supplies and let’s get started.

To make your own Cheerio self-portrait, you’ll need cardboard, school glue, colored cheerios, and a pencil. First, have your child sketch a portrait of themselves on the cardboard with a pencil. Then set out bowls of different colored cheerios and let them glue away!

Your child can use as many or as few colors as they like, and can even mix the cheerios to create new colors. Encourage them to be creative and have fun! When they’re finished, you can display their artwork for all to see.

If you want to try this activity with your child, you can visit at Happy Hooligans.

Fine Motor Skills | Visual Perception | Self-Esteem Skills

9. Button Self Portrait Craft

This button self-portrait craft is a great activity for preschoolers to do! Not only is it a fun and creative way for them to express themselves, but it also helps them to develop important fine motor, visual perception, and self-esteem skills.

To make this craft, you will need a paper plate, buttons of various sizes and colors, crayons, and glue.

Instructions:

Have your child color the paper plate to represent their skin tone. Then help them choose different buttons to use for their self-portraits, such as their hair, nose, eyes, mouth, and ears. They can then glue these onto the paper plate.

So have fun with it and see what unique self-portraits your child comes up with! You may check out this at Notimeforflashcards.com.

Fine Motor Skills | Color Recognition | Creativity

10. All About Me Self Portrait Collage

This is a fun activity for kids to do to learn more about themselves and also practice some fine motor skills. It’s simple enough that even younger kids can do it with a little help.

To get started, you’ll need construction paper or cardstock in assorted colors, small paper plates, yarn in assorted hair colors, crayons, glue, a stapler, and personal photos or cutouts from magazines. You’ll also need googly eyes (optional) and a hand-held mirror (optional).

To begin, make a pattern for the shirt. A typical-sized piece of colored construction paper may be used to create a simple triangle for the collar. Each student can select their favorite color to show off their t-shirt.

You’ll also need to cut long rectangles for the arms, which you can do ahead of time. We made two-inch strips beforehand. Trace the one-hand print and reverse it to create a two-hand print. Students may use colored crayons to draw their features and begin decorating their paper plate faces.

Encourage youngsters to use the proper color crayon to depict their eyes. Googly eyes may also be attached with glue. Stapling the paper plate face onto the t-shirt offered a strong method of attachment as opposed to glueing it directly on the collage. Students will add yarn to represent their hair color in this project. Each student will paste favorite photos or magazine images on his or her own once they’ve been collected. Family and pet pictures, favorite meals, and even mythical creatures were among ours!

Once they’re finished, they can hang up their self-portrait collage and admire their work! This is a great activity for kids to do to learn more about themselves and also practice some fine motor skills. It’s simple enough that even younger kids can do it with a little help. So gather up the supplies and get started!

If you think this will be a fun activity for your preschoolers, you may check it out at Fantasticfunandlearning.com.

Conclusion 

These are just a few of the many activities you can do to encourage your preschoolers to engage with their self-portraits. Remember to have fun and be creative! The sky is the limit when it comes to these types of activities. Encourage your little ones to think outside the box and explore their creativity. Who knows, you may just end up with a future Picasso on your hands!



Hi, I'm Amanda! Welcome to Education Outside! Im passionate about educating young minds and helping parents/teachers by providing easy and effective teaching resources. Check out all of my teaching resources on my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

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