6 Awesome Animal Cell Project Ideas
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I love teaching with hands-on activities whenever possible. Thankfully, it is pretty easy to create hands-on learning opportunities. This is especially true for science class! An animal cell project is a great way to learn because students need to choose objects to represent the cell organelles. This forces them to really think about the organelles more than if they were just filling in a worksheet.
These animal cell project ideas are an excellent addition to your cell unit study or biology lesson plans. I suggest you have an animal cell diagram available to reference while you are completing the project.
Animal cells are generally taught in middle school and high school biology classes. Students might as well memorize the parts of the cell early since it will show up in every biology class. These cell model ideas will make learning fun.
Note: Label cards with T pins are great if you want to label each cell organelle. Another option is to do the project with your student and let them identify cell parts as they construct their project.
Animal Cell Project Ideas
1. Animal Cell Cake
The first animal cell project my family ever tried was an animal cell cake. I’m pretty sure my kids learn through their stomachs! My kids are almost always excited anytime their homeschool lesson includes baking and eating cake.
To make an animal cell cake you will need:
- Round cake (baked ahead of time, or purchased)
- Yellow icing (cytoplasm)
- Red Vines (cell wall)
- Pull ‘n’ Peel Twizzlers, orange (golgi complex)
- Pull ‘n’ Peel Twizzlers, red (endoplasmic reticula)
- Peanut butter cup (nucleus)
- Circle sprinkles (ribosome)
- Sweet Tarts (lysosome)
- Mike and Ike (mitochondrion)
- Jelly beans (vacuoles)
Assemble the cake according to these step-by-step cell cake directions.
2. Animal Cell Play Dough Model
To make an animal cell model with play dough you will need play dough in a variety of colors. You will need one color for each of the following parts of a cell:
- Cytoplasm
- Cell wall
- Golgi complex
- Endoplasmic reticula
- Nucleus
- Ribosome
- Lysosome
- Mitochondria
- Vacuoles
Make each cell part individually and then just put them together to complete the cell project.
Modeling clay can be substituted for the play dough. I personally find play dough easier to work with but it is softer than clay. If you want this animal cell project to last a while, clay might be a better choice.
3. Styrofoam Cell Model
To make a styrofoam cell model you will need:
- Foam sphere
- Knife
- Multiple colors of paint
- Paint brushes
Cut 1/4 out of the foam sphere. This can be messy, so I recommend doing it outside or over a trash bag.
Then just paint the organelles on the sphere. The outer edge of the foam will be the cell wall. I recommend painting the cytoplasm before painting the other organelles since they will be layered on top.
4. Poster Board Display
To make a poster board animal cell project you only need:
- Poster board
- Pencil
- Markers
This is a project that seems easy on the surface but can be tough for perfectionist kids who are not artists. However, it is a reasonably inexpensive project because you probably already have everything except the poster board.
Students will consult their cell diagram and draw it on the poster board. I highly recommend using a pencil and a light touch to draw it in case they want to erase and redraw it. Once they are happy with the cell drawing, they will fill it in with colorful markers.
They can either label the cell parts by writing the name within the part or by creating a color-coded key at the bottom of the poster.
5. Animal Cell Pizza
I think just about any kid would be excited to make an animal cell pizza! Creating a model of a cell can be quite tasty.
To construct an animal cell pizza you will need a food item to represent each organelle. Have fun and get creative, but here are a few ideas to get you started:
- A round pizza crust (the crust will be the cell membrane)
- Cheese (cytoplasm)
- Bacon bits (ribosomes)
- Pepperoni (nucleous)
- Canadian Bacon (nucleus)
- Pepper strips (golgi apparatus)
- Olives (lysome)
- Sliced cherry tomato (vacuole)
- Red onion slices (endoplasmic reticula)
- Mushrooms (mitocondria)
- EARLY BIOLOGY SCIENCE EDUCATION – Our early biology set included with plant and animal cell model, felt material design, soft of touch, hands-on placement…
- FUN WAY TO LEARN CELL – Science should be kept fun, simple and engaging. We provide the instructions and biology knowledge guidance, kids can easily learn…
- EASY STORAGE – Package included with 2 Cell boards, 36 Organelle pieces, 50 Dot tapes, 1 Guide poster, and a durable jute bag, which bag can well store all…
Last update on 2026-09-16 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Sometimes you just need an easy hands-on activity. This animal cell project couldn’t be easier. Just buy it at the beginning of your biology lessons and it will be ready to go when you get to the cell unit.
Students create this model by attaching the cell organelle pieces to the appropriate plant or animal cell with the included reusable dot tape.
These animal cell project ideas are a great option, but don’t be afraid to let your student design their own cell model. It can be a creative project for artistic and scientific students.
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