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Craft

Accordion fish craft

Craft settings

Fish shape

The head, the tail, and the pattern along the body.

Fold size

Eight, twelve or eighteen panels along the strip.

Finish

Add fins prints the fish in colour with two fins to glue on.

Advanced settings

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CUT · FOLD · GLUEAccordion fishFold a strip into a fan, then add the head and the tail1Cut out the piecesCut out every piece along its solidline.2Make the foldsFold the strip forwards andbackwards on every dashed line,like a fan.3Add the headGlue the head’s grey tab to one endof the folded strip.4Add the tailGlue the tail’s grey tab to the otherend.5Open it outGently pull the head and the tailapart so the body opens like a fan.6You’re done!Your accordion fish is ready toswim!Adult help with the scissors and the glue.Well done! You made an accordion fish!Created with Print Joey — printjoey.com
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Fish templateCut out every piece along its solid line. Fold the strip on the dashed lines, and put glue on the grey tabs.Cut lineFold lineGlue tabTip: colour the back of the strip too, because the folds show both sides.Created with Print Joey — printjoey.com
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Quick guide

How it works

Fold a printed strip back and forth like a fan, glue a head to one end and a tail to the other, and gently pull it open: a fish whose body concertinas as it swims. The template prints the strip with every fold marked and the head and tail with their glue tabs shaded, and the steps show each part as a picture.

Choose the fish, the fold size and the finish, then download.

  1. Choose a round, long or tropical fish.

  2. Choose easy, medium or tiny folds.

  3. Choose full colour, colour-in, or colour with fins.

  4. Download and print on A4 or US Letter paper.

Teaching tip

Using these worksheets in teaching

Folding a concertina is a rhythm a child can feel: forwards, backwards, forwards again, each fold lined up on a printed mark. It builds the finger control that cutting and writing need, turns a pattern into a movement, and shows how one flat strip can become a shape that stretches and squashes.

Frequently asked questions

  • What do we need?

    Scissors, a glue stick and the printed sheet. Printer paper folds best; card is too stiff for the small folds.

  • Which fold size is right for my child?

    Easy folds are wide, with eight panels, and suit children of four or five. Tiny folds make eighteen narrow panels and a finer fan, which needs more careful fingers.

  • Why fold forwards and backwards?

    Folding in alternate directions is what makes a concertina: the strip opens and closes like a fan, so the fish can stretch out and squash up. Folding every line the same way would only roll it up.

  • What does Add fins change?

    It prints the fish in colour with two extra fin pieces, and step five says where to glue them: one near the top of a middle fold and one near the bottom.

  • Can we colour it ourselves?

    Yes. Colour-in prints every piece as an outline. Colour the back of the strip too, because once it is folded both sides show.

Related tools

Last reviewed: July 2026. Worksheet content is generated by deterministic algorithms and covered by automated correctness tests — no AI-generated answers.