Ask Ollie
Hidden Tape Shapes
Here's one to try together!
Stick it, color it, peel it, and watch secret shapes pop out of your page!
Reviewed by our team.
Safety first
- Young children may put crayons, markers, or tape pieces in their mouths
- Peeling tape too fast can tear the paper
- Markers may stain clothes or surfaces
What you need
- Painter's tape, 6 to 8 strips
- Paper, 1 sheet
- Crayons or markers, a handful
- Crayons or markers, a few markers (optional)
How to do it
Grown-up prep: Tear a few strips of painter's tape and stick them along the edge of the table so they're ready to grab. Keep an eye on little ones so crayons and tape bits stay out of mouths.
- Set your paper flat on a table with tape and crayons close by.
- Stick tape strips onto your paper to make a design.
- Rub down every tape edge with your finger.
- Color over the whole page, right across the tape. Ask: What do you think will happen to the paper under the tape?
- Take a pause and look at your colorful page.
- Peel the tape off very slowly. Ask: What do you see underneath?
- Look at the clean shapes left behind.
- Now show your friends, or make more! What secret shape will you hide next? Ask: Can you make a page that hides a whole picture?
Play it again
- Secret letter: hide the first letter of someone's name, then let them guess it.
- Layer magic: color a page, add more tape, color again with new colors, then peel for two-color shapes.
- Shape hunt: make a design, then have a friend guess what is hiding before you peel.
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