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Field card 152

Paper-plate fish and the running-away talk

Kids talk more with busy hands. While a paper-plate fish dries, trade stories about wanting to run from something hard and what happened when you didn't.

Dad Field Manual editors · Drafted with AI help · Published Oct 15, 2026

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Time
40 min
Cost
$0
Ages
4 to 9
Where
Kitchen table

01What you need

  • Two paper plates per personHave
  • Kid scissors with rounded tipsHave
  • Glue stick or tapeHave
  • Markers or crayons, plus scraps of colored paper or tissue for scalesHave
  • A pencil for the back of the fishHave

Where: A table you can cover with newspaper, side by side rather than across from each other.

Before you start

  • Small bits stay up high if anyone under 3 is around: googly eyes, sequins, buttons and caps go back in a closed box out of reach when you're done.
  • Rounded-tip kid scissors for kids. You cut anything thick, and the plate stays flat on the table while anyone cuts.
  • Glue sticks over hot glue. If you want hot glue, that's a grown-up-only job.

02Steps

  1. Cut the mouth and tail

    Dad showsKid copiesCut a pie-slice wedge out of one side of the plate. That gap is the fish's open mouth. Glue or tape the wedge on the opposite side, point in, for the tail.

  2. Decorate while you talk

    TogetherDraw an eye and scales, or tear paper scraps and glue them on. Sit side by side. While you both work, say: "Ever had something so hard you just wanted to run away from it?" Keep coloring. Don't stare them down waiting.

  3. Tell one of yours

    DadGo first if they're quiet. Pick a true, kid-sized one: "When I was ten, I hid in the bathroom so I didn't have to read out loud," or "At work last week I put off a hard phone call for three days." Say how it felt, and what happened when you finally faced it.

  4. Listen to theirs

    KidLet them tell theirs, even if it's small: a test, a new kid, a mess they didn't want to own up to. Say back what you heard: "So you wanted to hide because you thought you'd get in trouble." No lecture, no fixing yet.

  5. Write a turn-around on the back

    TogetherFlip the fish over. Each of you writes or draws one hard thing you've been avoiding and one small first step toward it. Little ones can tell you and you write it. "Hard thing: telling my teacher. First step: ask Dad to help me practice."

  6. Hang them up and check back

    TogetherTape both fish on the fridge. Pick a day this week to ask, "How did the first step go?" Go first again, and tell them how yours went.

03If it stalls

  • If they say "nothing" is hard, try a specific one: "Is there anything at school you'd skip if you could?"
  • If they get upset telling it, put the fish down and just listen. The craft can wait.
  • If they only want to do the craft, let the fish be the whole thing today and tell your story at bedtime.
  • If the worry they share won't let go and starts getting in the way of everyday life, talk to their doctor.

04Variations

Ages 4–5

You cut, they decorate. Keep the talk to one question: "What's something that feels too hard right now?" Draw the first step instead of writing it.

Ages 6–7

The full plan. Let them cut the wedge themselves with kid scissors.

Ages 8–9

Make a whole school of fish, one for each hard thing in your family this month, and hang them in a line. Cross one off when someone takes the first step.

Tried this? Tell us how it went

2 minutes
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1 = it flopped · 5 = we'd do it again

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05Optional story

Jonah runs the other wayJonah 1–3 · 5 min

God asked a man named Jonah to go to the big city of Nineveh and tell the people there to stop doing wrong. Jonah didn't want to go. So he went the other way.

"But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD…" Jonah 1:3 (KJV)

He got on a ship sailing far away. A huge storm came up, and the sailors were afraid the ship would break apart. Jonah told them the storm was his fault, and they threw him into the sea. Then a great fish swallowed him, and Jonah was inside the fish for three days and three nights. He prayed in there, and the fish spat him out onto dry land.

God asked Jonah a second time. This time "Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh" (Jonah 3:3). The people listened and changed their ways, and God showed them mercy.

Ask while the glue dries: Jonah ran, and God still gave him a second chance. What would a second try look like for your hard thing?

Plain-language retelling. Quotes from the King James Version (public domain).

06Sources

  • Art, play and social-emotional skills. The AAP says activities that involve music and art support cognitive, social-emotional and multisensory skills, and that play can improve children's abilities to get along with others and regulate emotions. American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org) Checked Oct 15, 2026
  • Talking about fears and worries. The AAP advises talking with your child about their anxieties and being sympathetic, not belittling the fear and not pressuring them to be brave, and says it takes time to gradually move beyond anxieties. Fears that persist and interfere with daily life may need a child psychologist or psychiatrist. American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org) Checked Oct 15, 2026
  • Small objects and young children. The AAP advises avoiding toys with small or detachable parts for young children and keeping small items such as coins, marbles and pen caps away from infants and children. American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org) Checked Oct 15, 2026

Filed under: Emotions & Hard Conversations · Indoor & Rainy Day · Faith (optional)

Dad Field Manual · Field card 152 · Emotions & Hard Conversations

Paper-plate fish and the running-away talk

Kids talk more with busy hands. While a paper-plate fish dries, trade stories about wanting to run from something hard and what happened when you didn't.

Time
40 min
Cost
$0
Ages
4 to 9
Where
Kitchen table

What you need

  • Two paper plates per person
  • Kid scissors with rounded tips
  • Glue stick or tape
  • Markers or crayons, plus scraps of colored paper or tissue for scales
  • A pencil for the back of the fish

Before you start

  • Small bits stay up high if anyone under 3 is around: googly eyes, sequins, buttons and caps go back in a closed box out of reach when you're done.
  • Rounded-tip kid scissors for kids. You cut anything thick, and the plate stays flat on the table while anyone cuts.
  • Glue sticks over hot glue. If you want hot glue, that's a grown-up-only job.

Steps

  1. Cut the mouth and tail. Cut a pie-slice wedge from the plate for the mouth. Glue the wedge on the opposite side as the tail.
  2. Decorate while you talk. Add an eye and scales. While you work, ask if they've ever wanted to run from something hard.
  3. Tell one of yours. Share a true, kid-sized time you wanted to run from something hard, how it felt and what happened.
  4. Listen to theirs. Let them tell one. Say back what you heard without lecturing or fixing.
  5. Write a turn-around on the back. On the back, each of you writes one hard thing you're avoiding and one small first step.
  6. Hang them up and check back. Hang both fish up. Pick a day this week to check how each first step went.

If it stalls

  • If they say "nothing" is hard, try a specific one: "Is there anything at school you'd skip if you could?"
  • If they get upset telling it, put the fish down and just listen. The craft can wait.
First steps taken this week
Signed off: can do this.Signed by Date

dadfieldmanual.com/plans/running-away-talk-and-fish-craft · Sources: American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org)