If you take the shredded paper from your shredder, or run newspaper through it, and tightly fill an empty milk jug with them (with the top portion cut off.) Add just enough water to it to lightly dampen the paper, and tossing the shreds to let the water soak in. Add a 2oz bottle of white school glue and let the kids mix it up well with their hands. You can shape this like clay... We made little bowls out of this, stuck rocks in the side and sealed it with cheap bottle of Delta's Creamcoat Varnish. The kids LOVED making them and if you do several layers of varnish, the bowls are water proof. We used them as plant saucers. The newspaper looks like cement when dry. The colored flecks in the bowl in the picture is from using cartoon. The slick advertisement paper does not work well.
You can make animal shapes with these, and when they are fully dried, you can even paint and seal them.
To make the bowls, wrap a bowl on the outside with aluminum foil. Turn it upside down and add the newspaper to the bottom and up the sides. Let it dry for 3 days, take it off and let the inside keep drying. If you set them near a wood stove, they may dry even quicker. The smaller the piece, the quicker they will dry ofcourse. Little yougurt cups work well, for smaller bowl shapes.
I get the school glue 2/$1 at the Dollar Tree