Origami Crane Instructions

Origami is the Japanese art of paper folding, well-known for centuries for its elegant and beautiful paper models. The term origami is derived from the Japanese words 'Ori' and 'Kami', meaning folding and paper, respectively. Although, origami is a popular Japanese art, it originated in China in the first or second century and later spread to Japan sometime during the sixth century. In Japan, the crane is considered a sacred or mystical bird, believed to have a lifespan of thousand years. Like other holy creatures such as dragons and tortoises, the crane has become one of the traditional origami model which has been made for hundreds of years. The crane symbolizes long life and good luck and according to an ancient Japanese legend, if you fold 1000 cranes, you will be granted a wish!

Well, this was just a brief insight into the history of origami. Nowadays, origami is a popular arts and crafts activity enjoyed by most kids. Since kids are inquisitive and fast learners, introducing them to such creative skills will help them explore their hidden artistic talents. Instead of wasting hours and hours watching TV, making these origami models will help kids to focus on something more productive and useful. Therefore, here are easy ideas that will help them make their own beautiful origami cranes.

Instructions on How to Make an Origami Crane

Following are step-by-step instructions that will help you make the crane with ease.

• Take a square piece of paper and fold the top corner of the paper in such a way that it touches the bottom corner. Crease and open again, and fold the paper in half, sideways.
• Turn the paper around and fold the paper in half. Crease well and open. Fold the paper again in the opposite direction.
• With the help of the crease generated, bring the top three corners of the model down to the bottom corner and flatten the model.
• Now fold the top triangular flaps into the middle of the paper and unfold. Similarly fold top of model downwards, crease well and again unfold it.
• Open the uppermost flap of the model, take it upwards and simultaneously press the sides of the model inwards; flatten it down and crease well.
• Turn the model over and repeat the last two steps on the opposite side. Now fold the top flaps to meet the center and repeat the procedure on the opposite side as well.
• Fold both the legs of the model upwards, crease very well and then unfold them. Towards the inner side, reverse fold the legs along the creases formed and reverse fold one side to create the head and then fold down to make the wings.
• Carefully pull the head out and up so that it is not parallel to the neck.
• Finally draw the wings straight out from the body so that the body inflates and you are able to blow through a hole in the underside. Your origami crane is ready.

These were some simple origami crane instructions that are easy to understand and follow. I hope these instructions will help you learn how to make origami crane, effortlessly and in less time, as all you need is to follow the aforementioned steps carefully. So, encourage your kids to participate in such creative activities and help them if they get stuck in between. I am sure once your child completes making the origami crane, the feeling of happiness and accomplishment he/she experiences will be unbeatable. Have fun!