How to Build an Easy Rainforest Diorama

Create This Ecosystem Diorama From a Shoe Box

© Linda Hatton

Oct 5, 2009

A popular elementary school project is the ecosystem diorama. While many designs utilize store-bought objects, it is possible to build a creative diorama without the expense of plastic toys and plants. Create this inexpensive diorama using recycled products, items commonly found in craft cupboards, or items that can easily be made, such as homemade clay.

Rainforest Diorama

Items Needed:

• Shoe box
• Printer
• Copy paper
• Crayons
• Glue
• Non-Hardening modeling clay in brown, blue, white, and dark gray or black
• Cardboard or thin manila folders
• Scissors
• Toothpicks, cut into 1/2 inch sections
• Miniature shells

Directions:

1. Stand the bottom of the box upright inside the lid and glue into place. The lid will become the ground and the box will become the background and surrounding ecosystem.
2. Visit a free stock photo site to find rainforest photos, such as pictures of trees, animals, and plants.
3. Print enough full-sized rainforest photos on regular copy paper to cover the entire box. For the inside back, use a photograph of a view overlooking the entire ecosystem.
4. Print photographs of ferns or other large plants found in a rainforest ecosystem.
5. Print photographs of elk and birds such as sea-gulls, found in the Olympic Peninsula rainforest. Also, print photos of seals and starfish.
6. Glue background photograph into place on inside back of box.
7. Glue tree photographs into place on inside sides.
8. Glue understory photo onto the lid, to create the forest floor.
9. Draw pictures of trees on plain paper. Glue drawings onto cardboard, let dry, and then color and cut them out.
10. Place pieces of brown clay around on the bottom of box to hold the cardboard trees. Push trees into clay to stand upright.
11. Glue elk photos onto manila folders and cut out, leaving a flap on the bottom.
12. Fold flap over and glue to box to make the elk stand upright.
13. Cut out the fern photos and then shape them around pieces of clay for a 3-D affect. Attach to bottom of the box using random placement.
14. Roll small pieces of white clay into balls. Push one section of toothpick into ball and cover with additional white clay to create mushrooms. Push mushrooms into clay at base of trees.
15. In the front corner of the box, flatten a piece of blue clay and press into box to represent water.
16. Push dark gray or black clay into one end of the blue clay to represent the shore; next push miniature shells into the shore.
17. Glue seal and starfish photos onto manila folder. Cut out both photos leaving a flap on the seal cut-out to stick into clay. Place a small chunk of clay under the middle of starfish and push into blue clay.
18. Cut out and glue bird photographs onto the inside back of box.
19. Glue tree photographs around the outside of the box.
20. Create a descriptive label of the diorama and glue onto top of box.

To conclude, making a rainforest diorama can be easily accomplished using these or other items commonly found around the home.

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