Simple Stick Boat Craft for Kids

We love nature crafts that are also outdoor activities for children. Next time you are visiting somewhere with a stream or river, why not make your own simple raft following this easy stick boat craft? Not only will your kids enjoy building this stick boat, but they’ll also have lots of fun floating the boat in a river or stream. This works particularly well if you know a shallow stream that you can walk in so that you can float the boat again and again.

Building a stick boat is such a fun and simple activity. You just need to take a few simple supplies with you on a walk or day out. You’ll also need to collect some sticks which is always a great activity to go on a family hike. My kids love collecting sticks and I have discovered lots of fun things to do with sticks over the years including this simple stick boat craft.

Make Your Stick Boat

Pile of sticks and some twine ready to make stick boat

Start by asking your children to collect some sticks. To make one like the one pictured, you’ll need at least 7 sticks but you could try making a larger boat too. Five sticks need to be the same length (about 8-10 cm works well) and two sticks need to be the same length for the cross supports (ours were slightly longer than the other five).

Sticks laid out in a frame with one corner already woven together

Next lay 4 sticks out to form the frame. We used 2 slightly longer sticks horizontally across the bottom followed by 2 of the 5 slightly shorter sticks forming the other two sides. Use some string or yarn to tie the corners together. We found the best way to do this was to tie the yarn to one stick and then wrap the yarn around the two sticks in all directions until secure and then tie off.

Repeat on all 4 corners until you have the frame of the boat.

Hands folding a stick raft together as yarn is wrapped around to tie it together

Lay out the remaining 3 sticks across the center, equally spaced. Tie the sticks to the frame on both sides of the frame.

Your finished boat is now ready to sail down the river. This is a great craft for teaching children to tie knots but equally younger children will enjoy collecting the sticks, watching you make the raft and of course floating the boat.

Playing with the Stick Boat

Once you have your stick boat, you’re ready to have fun sailing it. My children love paddling in shallow, slow-flowing streams and floating their boats. They can then pick them up and float them again. You can also drop them in fast-flowing rivers and watch them float away. On a rainy day, you can even float them in large puddles or even a bowl of water in your garden.