Disguise a Gingerbread Man: free idea generator and printable templates

It is a family craft many elementary schools send home in December, often after the class reads a gingerbread man story. Your child gets a paper gingerbread man and has to disguise him as something else, so he is not caught and eaten. Kids bring him back to class, and the gingerbread men usually go up on the wall or a bulletin board.

Type what your child is into, for example Santa, a unicorn or a football player. You get a printable black-and-white page of a gingerbread man in that disguise to color, cut out and decorate. There are also 56 ready-made disguises and blank gingerbread man templates.

Yes. No sign-up, no email. To keep it free for everyone there is a daily limit on new pictures; the ready-made disguises and the templates never run out.

Most teachers want the child to do the decorating. A good way to use these: print the page, let your child color it, then glue on real materials like felt, cotton balls, foil or yarn. If the school sent home its own gingerbread man, use our picture as the plan and build the disguise on the school's cutout.

Construction paper, felt, cotton balls, pipe cleaners, googly eyes, tissue paper, aluminum foil, yarn, buttons, stickers and glue. Each ready-made idea page lists what fits that disguise.

Schools usually send the gingerbread man home right after Thanksgiving and ask for him back a week or two later, before winter break. Check the note from your teacher.