• Farm animals are the inspiration for these masks.pig baby image by Maria Bell from Fotolia.com
  
  As a year-round project, farm animal masks can go along with a lesson plan about agriculture, a book about farm animals or a trip to a farm. They can also be used as Halloween masks, especially for children too young to participate in the scary side of the holiday. If you plan an activity where the children will wear the masks, allow time for the glue to dry.
  
  

Paper Plate Mask

• For each paper plate mask, use two plates: one for the face and one for cutting out details such as ears, horns or snouts. Hold the plate up to the face and mark the location of the eyes with crayon to determine where to cut the eyes. For a pig mask, add glue on two triangular ears and a round snout. To make the snout 3-D, take a 2-inch strip of paper and fold it three times like an accordion. Glue one end to the mask and the other to the back of the snout piece. Decorate with paint or crayons. Cut holes on each side with a hole punch. To complete the project, tie string or ribbon to the holes.
  
  

Foam Cow Mask

• Embellish a plastic "raccoon eyes" plastic mask with cut sheets of craft foam. To make a cow foam mask, cut brown or white craft foam into an oval to cover the face area. Glue foam to the plastic mask with craft glue. Cut brown ears, small black horns and a smaller pink oval for the nose out of craft foam. Glue in place, along with plastic googly eyes. Add spots and other details with markers to complete the mask.
  
  

Mask on a Stick

• Purchase inexpensive blank Mardi-Gras-style masks on a stick or cut flat masks out of cardboard and glue a craft stick on one side. To make a hen or rooster, glue feathers and a beak out of a folded triangle of yellow construction paper to the mask. For a lamb, glue cotton balls to suggest wool. Decorate with crayons or markers.
  
  

Egg Carton Pig Mask

• Make pig snout by cutting a segment out of the bottom half of a egg carton. Apply a coat of pink tempera paint and dry. Add painted nostrils to make it look like a pig's snout. Punch a hole on each side and tie elastic string to each hole. Place the snout over the nose and tie at the back of the head. The snout can be worn alone or with face paint. Add ears by taping pink construction paper triangles onto a plastic headband.