Make A Modern DIY Cardboard Shape Puzzle

Geometric shapes – the love of my life! While playing around with some basic shapes this week, I stumbled upon the idea for this hip (and incredibly simple!) cardboard DIY shape puzzle.

Wooden board puzzles and standard jigsaw puzzles are wonderful learning toys, but honestly, I typically feel like they don’t get enough use. In my opinion, they tend to fit into a class of items I call “unitaskers” – a toy (or any kind of item) with only one purpose or very limited use.

As swoon-worthy, beautifully built, or durable as these modern puzzles are, the interest seems to wane quickly. They’re often left sitting on the shelf after only a couple of playing sessions.

When playing around with my shapes this week, I realized I had all the basics for a board puzzle sitting right in front of me. Better yet, most of the materials were recycled and recyclable. This cardboard puzzle DIY was quick and easy, and it looks so darn cute when finished!

Watch the video below to make a cardboard puzzle along with us!

So grab some cardboard, save your juice bottle caps, and say goodbye to the guilt of a limited-use toy purchase! Watch the DIY, then continue reading for the complete material list, link to our printable puzzle shape pack, and more details!

Interested in more shape activities? This kinetic paper shape art is a perfect way for kids who are a bit older to experiment with simple shapes in motion! And artists of all ages will enjoy our scrap paper quick collages that encourage exploring basic shapes and composition.

These shapes are so simple that you don’t necessarily need our template – you can use cookie cutters or other household items to trace your geometric shapes.

However, if you’re like me and enjoy everything perfectly sized and want a little extra challenge and interest, then our printable geometric puzzle shape templates will definitely make the process easier.

P.S.: The pack also includes shape cards in 3 different styles for memory games, flashcards, or other learning tools!

DIY Cardboard Shape Puzzle Instructions:

Print our patterned shape templates or draw your own.

Print out the desired pages of our printable shape templates and cut out all the shapes. We used two copies – one for each side of our puzzle pieces, but you don’t have to put it together exactly as we did.

Trace shapes onto cardboard.

Using a pencil or marker, trace around all your shapes. I took photos with our shapes facing pattern-side up so you could see I used the printable cut shapes for tracing, but I’d recommend placing them pattern-side down. This will keep you from getting ink or marks on the “nice” side.

Carefully cut the shapes out of the cardboard.

Using an X-Acto knife or utility blade, carefully (and slowly!) cut along the traced marks. You’ll be using both the shapes AND the board with the cutouts, so you don’t want to overshoot your lines or use scissors to cut pieces away. This is the most tedious part of the process, but once you’re done, it’s smooth sailing!

I found it easiest to make all my cuts on the back, then flip the board over and go over all the lines before pushing out the pieces – just to ensure I didn’t tear away any bits when pushing out the pieces.

Smooth edges of shapes.

The fit of the pieces will be extremely snug, so if you’d like to make it a little easier for your toddler, I recommend pushing the sides of the cutout shapes a bit with your finger, stripping a little extra away with an X-Acto knife, or using a small piece of sandpaper to make the cutouts just a tiny bit wider.

Glue the cutout board onto a solid piece of cardboard the same size.

Using craft glue or a hot glue gun, glue your cutout board onto your second (same-sized) solid piece of cardboard. Voila – you have your board! Set aside to let dry completely.

Glue the patterned paper front onto each shape puzzle piece.

Glue the patterned shapes onto your cardboard puzzle pieces (fronts only, or front and back as we did). We just used a glue stick, and it worked great, but if you’d like a little extra protection from small hands (and mouths!), you can add a layer of Mod Podge over each one.

Add plastic bottle cap knobs to each puzzle piece.

To finish off your puzzle pieces, add some knobs! This will make grabbing the pieces out of the board much more manageable. Grab your bottlecaps, and glue a “knob” to the top and middle of each puzzle piece using craft glue or a glue gun.

I tried both and have to say, the glue gun worked better as far as durability (and is dry within seconds – can’t beat that!)

Try it out!

Before passing this on to your little one, be sure to put in all the puzzle pieces to ensure they fit correctly – nothing’s more frustrating than puzzle pieces that don’t fit into place!

If any feel too tight, you can shave away some of the cardboard using an X-Acto knife so they quickly pop into place.

Five Ways to Use Your DIY Shape Puzzle for Learning and Play with Preschoolers

There are so many variations you can make on this cardboard puzzle craft to help toddlers and preschoolers use the concept to learn more about shapes, colors, and patterns. Here are some of our favorite ideas…

1. Use your DIY cardboard puzzle to introduce patterns or color-matching.

We left the cutout shapes on our cardboard backing plain to keep it simple, but you can fill them in with solid colors that match the puzzle pieces, or print a second set of patterned shapes and glue them into the cutouts. Practice saying and repeating the names of the colors with your kids as they match up the puzzle pieces to the cutout shape.

2. Practice shape recognition with your homemade puzzle.

Use your puzzle as a prompt, asking your toddler to put in the circle puzzle piece, then the star, etc. Begin by pointing to each shape on the board and saying the name, then ask your kiddo to find the matching shape in their puzzle pieces. You can even write the names of each shape in the cutout. While little ones might not be able to read the shape name independently, it provides valuable visual word recognition and vocabulary reinforcement.

3. Add numbers to your DIY puzzle.

For number practice, randomly number the cutout spaces from one to nine. Starting at one, ask your child to find the number on the board, then find the corresponding shape among their puzzle pieces, giving guidance and direction as needed.

4. Use your cardboard puzzle to practice fine motor skills.

Put your puzzle pieces aside to turn your cutout shape board into a fine motor skill activity. Use colored rice (we have a DIY for that!) along with a spoon, small scoop, or something similar to fill the shapes. Use a marker to color the shape cutouts and make it a color-matching game.

5. Turn your puzzle into a hide-and-seek game.

Use your puzzle pieces for a shape or color-hunting and matching game. This is a wonderful alternative to sitting at a table or on a rug and working that you can use to get multiple kids involved and on their feet actively searching.

Love a good upcycled toy DIY? Be sure to check out the DIY modern dollhouse we made from scrap wood, this awesome DIY writeable kids’ tablet, and our collection of cool cardboard crafts.