How to Make an Origami Pencil

To make your origami pencil, use standard 6 inch x 6 inch origami paper that is a solid color on one side and white on the other.

Fold the paper in half, then unfold. Cut along the crease so you have two paper rectangles each measuring 6 inches x 3 inches. Give one strip of paper to your child and fold the second strip yourself so he or she can see how to complete the project.

Fold your rectangular paper strip in half with the colored side of the paper facing in. Then, unfold and fold the left edge about 1/2 inch to the right. When you're finished, your origami pencil should look like the photo to the left.

Turn the model over. Fold the top and bottom left corners to the horizontal crease in the middle of the paper. When you're finished, your origami pencil should look like the photo to the left.

To make the pointed top of the pencil, fold the top and bottom left corners once more to the horizontal midline. When you're finished, your origami pencil should look like the photo to the left.

Flip your paper over. Fold the left edge to the right.

Turn your model over. Fold the top and bottom edges of the paper to meet at the horizontal crease in the middle of the paper. This creates the base of your pencil.

Flip your paper one final time. Adjust the side folds if needed to make sure the base of the pencil is proportional to the slope and tip.

Use a fine tipped black pen to add details to your pencil if desired.

Make a set of personalized note cards for your child's teacher by gluing origami crayons to the front of a blank card and adding the additional embellishments of your choice. Fold simple envelopes for the cards by following the instructions in our Easy Origami Envelope tutorial.

You can also use this project to decorate boxes for storing crayons, pencils, pens, and other school supplies. The About Origami Easy Origami Box tutorial works well for this purpose. You can either use a single pencil as a label for the contents of the box or create a border of multi colored pencils around the perimeter of the box. Tape several boxes together if your child would like to make a customized desk organizer.