How to Fold an Origami Jumping Frog

Start with your square sheet, color side down. Fold it in half to make one straight crease down the middle, then open it back up. You are only marking the paper here, not building anything yet. Line the edges up carefully so the crease sits dead center. A clean first fold makes every fold after it easier.

Now fold the corners across to make diagonal creases, then unfold each one. You want an X of creases meeting the straight line you already made. Repeat the same set of folds on the bottom half of the paper. When you finish, both ends of the sheet should have a matching star of creases ready to collapse.

Here is where it turns 3D. Push the two side creases inward and let the top edge drop down. The paper folds in on itself and flattens into a triangle, which origami folks call a waterbomb base. Do the same move on the bottom. You end up with a diamond made of two stacked triangles.

Look at the top triangle. Take the loose flaps and valley-fold them up toward the point, one on each side. These little raised flaps are going to be the frog's front legs. Keep them even so the frog sits square later. You should start to see the shape looking less like a diamond and more like a body with arms.

Fold the side corners in toward the center, then lift the lower flaps out to make the back legs. Now the model has four points sticking out, two up top and two below. This is the moment it starts reading as a frog. Splay the legs a little so they look like they are ready to spring.

Flip the whole thing over. Valley-fold the bottom corner up, then fold the left and right sides in toward the middle. This narrows the body and tucks in the loose paper underneath. Take it slow here, since these folds set how the frog balances. When you turn it back, the body should look tidy and compact.

This fold is what makes it jump. Make a mountain-fold across the lower back, then a valley-fold just below it. Together they form a small accordion pleat, like a tiny spring. Press it flat to lock the creases in. That pleat stores the energy when you push down, and releases it to send the frog hopping.

Your frog is done. To launch it, set it on a flat surface, press down firmly on the back near the pleat, then slide your finger off the edge and let go. The spring snaps and the frog leaps forward. It takes a couple of tries to find the sweet spot. Race a few of them and see whose frog jumps farthest.