Our ladybug unit has been one of our favorites (especially with our project of growing ladybugs)! Here’s one more ladybug activity with a free printable for kids who are working on their scissor cutting skills. The free ladybug cutting strips are an instant download with a page of traditional cutting strips and a page of ladybug cutting strips for a variety of levels.
Disclosure: This post contains some affiliate links (at no cost to you).
Montessori-Inspired Printables at Living Montessori Now
My daughter, Christina (a former Montessori child), and I are partnering to bring you a series of Montessori-inspired printables. (Note: Christina has some sweet, themed kids’ fitness printables that are great for homes or classrooms!)
The printables are typically themed and use a number of Montessori principles (although you don’t need to be a Montessori teacher or homeschooler to use them). The cutting strips typically use photographs or realistic images to emphasize reality. The photographs on the first page simply show a variety of cute ladybug photos. I typically use four photos, but I couldn’t choose. So I’m using seven cute ladybug photos!
Preschoolers love to learn proper terminology, so I typically tell you the name of the objects or animals featured whenever I can. I’m just using the general ladybug (or “ladybird” if you prefer) term for these strips.
Free Ladybug Cutting Strips
To download, click here and then click on the file image in the upper right corner of the PDF to save to your computer (just choose where you want it saved).
More Insect Activities and Resources
Montessori-Inspired Ladybug Unit with Free Printables and Activities
- Free Ladybug Printables and Montessori-Inspired Ladybug Activities
- Ladybug Life Cycle: The Joy of Growing Ladybugs
- Free Ladybug Do-a-Dot Activity (Montessori-Inspired Instant Download)
- The Best Ladybug Books for Kids
- Montessori-Inspired Insect Unit
- Montessori-Inspired Caterpillar-Butterfly Unit,
- Montessori-Inspired Life Cycle Activities
- Free Butterfly Printables and Montessori-Inspired Butterfly Activities
- Free Butterfly Cutting Strips (Montessori-Inspired Instant Download)
- Butterfly Sensory Bin with Scavenger Hunt and Life Cycle Activities {Free Printables}
- Montessori-Inspired Spring Activities with Spielgaben {Free Printables}
- Free Butterfly Do-a-Dot Printable (Montessori-Inspired Instant Download)
- Free Ant Printables and Montessori-Inspired Ant Activities
- Free Ant Do-a-Dot Printable (Montessori-Inspired Instant Download
- Free Ant Cutting Strips (Montessori-Inspired Instant Download)
- Ant Sensory Bin with Scavenger Hunt and Life Cycle Activities
- The Best Ant Books for Kids
- Ants on a Log Fun Food Preparation for Preschoolers
- Free Invertebrate Cards and Presentations, Including Bug Activities from KHT Montessori
- Free Bee Printables and Montessori-Inspired Bee Activities
- The Best Bee Books for Kids
- Free Honeybee Do-a-Dot Printable (Montessori-Inspired Instant Download)
- Free Honeybee Cutting Strips (Montessori-Inspired Instant Downl
Montessori-Inspired Activities Using the Ladybug Cutting Strips
Ladybug Cutting Strips with Basket
Cutting skills are so important for preschoolers. Two year olds can begin working on them, too. When children are first working on cutting skills, they’ll have an easier time cutting cardstock than paper. So, in the beginning, I recommend printing the strips on cardstock. Printer paper is fine for children with more advanced cutting skills.
I’m not sure where I got the basket, although the small Multicraft tray would work, too. I’ve always used Fiskar scissors for kids, which are sharp enough to cut paper easily. For interest, I added a ladybug from the Safari Ltd. Good Luck Minis Garden Fun Pack. Zoey loves the objects from this pack, and we’ve used them for a variety of activities.
For home use with the cutting work, I like to have a small container to catch the paper scraps. I used a small wooden box we had, although you could use any small container. For younger children, I recommend keeping the basket or tray up out of reach when it’s not being used.
For classroom use, you might want to use Ziplock bags to catch the scraps. Children have fun taking their scraps home in a bag … or saving them to paste onto a collage.
Special Activities with the Ladybug Cutting Strips
Cutting a little ladybug to the big ladybug.
The first activity isn’t my creation. I saw a brilliant DIY cutting activity by @evokulu on Instagram using DIY cutting strips with a soccer ball cutting toward a soccer net. I adapted it for our golf cutting strips.
If you have the Montessori-inspired ladybug pack (subscriber freebie, you could cut out one of the ladybugs from the cover (maybe from the letter “l” font cards) and attach it to the top of the scissors with reusable adhesive. As the child cuts the path of a cutting strip from page 2, the ladybug will move closer and closer to the big ladybug photo on the cutting strip.
I think it’s even more fun if you have the ladybug from the Safari Ltd. Good Luck Minis Garden Fun Pack. You could attach the mini ladybug to the top of the scissors with reusable adhesive. As the child cuts the path of a cutting strips from page 2, the Safari Ltd. mini ladybug will move closer and closer to the big ladybug photo on the cutting strip.
Following a Ladybug Path
Children who are too young to cut the strips on page 2 might want to take the ladybug from the Safari Ltd. Good Luck Minis Garden Fun Pack and move it along the lines on page 2 to reach each of the ladybug photos.
The Best Way to Begin Working on Scissor Cutting Skills
Even before using cutting strips, I recommend using an easier object to cut, such as strings of beads. You’ll find lots of tips and ideas for teaching scissor skills in my post on developing scissor cutting skills with Montessori-inspired activities.
More Montessori-Inspired Paper Cutting Activities
You’ll find ideas for home and classroom setups in my post on Montessori-inspired paper cutting activities.
You can see my entire list of free cutting strips here. The follow printables are the free cutting strips published before this set.
These free golf cutting strips are fun for summer!
These free seasons of an apple tree cutting strips are perfect for a tree theme, apple theme, or seasons theme.
These free duckling cutting strips are perfect for a duckling theme, Make Way for Ducklings theme, farm unit, or bird unit.
These free nest cutting strips are perfect for a bird or nest theme with images of different types of nests with baby birds.
These free panda cutting strips are great for a panda theme, bear theme, Asia theme, Chinese New Year theme, or study of China.
These free winter sports cutting strips are perfect for a winter sports and/or Winter Olympics unit.
These free bear cutting strips can be used with a bear literature-based theme, hibernation theme, or bear unit.
These free moon cutting strips can be used for a variety of astronomy themes.
These free owl cutting strips are great for a fall or bird theme.
These free magnet cutting strips can be used for cutting practice and to encourage magnet exploration.
These free alligator cutting strips have two pages with a variety of skill levels on the second page.
These free honeybee cutting strips are a good way to help children learn more about bees and become less afraid of them..
These free zoo animal cutting strips show 8 African animals and can be used for a special animals of Africa cut-and-paste activity.
These free turtle cutting strips are great for a turtle-, pond-, or ocean unit.
These free eat-a-rainbow cutting strips are a good way to encourage healthy eating.
These free lamb cutting strips are great for a March, farm, or “Mary Had a Little Lamb” theme.
These free penguin cutting strips are perfect for a penguin- or Antarctica unit.
Free Arctic Animal Cutting Strips
These cutting strips focus on animals from the Arctic rather than Antarctica and other parts of the Southern Hemisphere.
Here are some free cutting strips for a holiday bell theme.
These free dinosaur cutting strips are perfect for a dinosaur theme. They include two dinosaurs and their skeletons.
These free spiderweb cutting strips are perfect for a spider unit or Halloween. Because of the beauty of the spiderwebs, they’re also great for children who are afraid of spiders.
These free raccoon cutting strips can be used for a forest unit at any time or a Kissing Hand unit at the beginning of the school year.
Many young children either love ants or are frightened of them. These free ant cutting strips can be helpful and high interest in either instance.
Snails are fascinating creatures for many young children, and I have a post with free snail cutting strips.
Cars are a popular topic with many young children … and I have a post with free car cutting strips.
I have a post with free recycling cutting strips … a great way to focus interest on recycling!
I have a post with free butterfly cutting strips … perfect for spring and summer activities!
I also have a post with free frog cutting strips.
Again, you can see all our free cutting strips as we publish them here.
Zoey loves using the cutting strips to develop her scissor cutting skills. I hope your child (or students) enjoys using the cutting strips, too. 🙂
Montessori-Inspired Packs – Subscriber Freebies
Don’t miss our subscriber freebie ladybug pack, subscriber freebie golf pack, subscriber freebie tree pack, subscriber freebie duckling pack, subscriber freebie nest pack, subscriber freebie panda pack, subscriber freebie winter sports pack, subscriber freebie bear pack, subscriber freebie moon pack, subscriber freebie owl pack, subscriber freebie magnet pack, subscriber freebie alligator pack, subscriber freebie bee pack, subscriber freebie zoo pack, subscriber freebie turtle pack, subscriber freebie eat-a-rainbow pack, subscriber freebie lamb pack, subscriber freebie penguin pack, subscriber freebie polar bear pack, subscriber freebie bell pack, subscriber freebie dinosaur pack, subscriber freebie spider pack, subscriber freebie raccoon pack, subscriber freebie ant pack, subscriber freebie snail pack, subscriber freebie car pack, subscriber freebie frog pack, subscriber freebie butterfly pack, and subscriber freebie recycling pack! You’ll get a monthly freebie with link and password if you subscribe to the Living Montessori Now weekly newsletter. There are now 29 Montessori-inspired packs in our Living Montessori Now library for subscribers!
Learn more about my eBook Montessori at Home or School: How to. Teach Grace and Courtesy! I’m also one of the coauthors of the book Learn with Play – 150+ Activities for Year-round Fun & Learning!
The Montessori at Home! eBook and Montessori at Home! eBook and Materials Bundle are AMAZING resources! You can learn more about them here. Buy them in the Living Montessori Now shop.
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