Make Mom Smile with this FREE Mother’s Day Craft – video tutorial
You and Mom will both smile about this easy, low-prep Mother’s Day Craft. It’s perfect for elementary grades – even kindergarten! This FREE resource includes two versions – a simple low-prep option for younger students and a more in depth version for older students. Either way, it won’t take much of your time and it’s sure to be a hit with Mom!
Click the links to find out more!
- What Does this Mother's Day Craft Include?
- Check Out this How-To Video
- Tips for Making this Mother's Day Craft in Your Classroom
- Prep Steps and Materials
- More Simple Solutions for Your Classroom
- What's New?
What Does this Mother’s Day Craft Include?
This Mother’s Day Craft includes everything you need to make a charming card with the text, “My Love for You Grows…. and Grows…. and Grows!” The text is spaced along several folds so that a flower grows as the text is revealed! I get rave reviews about this card every year, and you will too! I’ve used it with upper-grade elementary students and I’ve used it for the past several years in my kindergarten classrooms. It really is that versatile!
The FREE resource (which you can download from Ms. Cotton’s Corner on TPT) includes directions and templates for a simple version that I have used with my kindergarten students. It ALSO includes directions for a more difficult, and more personalized version, that I have used with my upper grade students.
With the FREE download of this Mother’s Day Craft, you get:
- Detailed Prep Steps
- Directions, with screen shots – perfect for showing to the kids!
- Printable flower pots, leaves and flowers – two versions means choices for you!
Check Out this How-To Video
Check out this video to preview the lesson and learn how-to make this darling card!
Tips for Making this Mother’s Day Craft in Your Classroom
Crafts can be a time of quiet, focused productivity, or a time of great chaos! I’ve been teaching for a loooooong time, so here are a few tips that I find help me get to the calm, not the chaos.
Give Kids Structured Choices
Choice is an important motivator for kids, and it’s especially important when they are making something as a gift. This is such a great moment to help kids get outside of themselves and think about others. BUT, too many choices causes chaos.
So, when I use this craft, with my kindergarten students OR with my older kids, I offer choices, but not too many. In this photo, you can see how I spread the different flower colors out on a table for my kindergarten students to choose from. I sent them to the table, three at a time, and told them to think about which flower their mom would like best. Choosing the flowers took about 2 minutes, but the choice helped the kids feel invested in the craft, and helped them think about someone besides themselves for a moment.
Never do something for a kid that they can do themselves…
Folding this Mother’s Day card correctly is what makes it so charming. Be sure to check out the video tutorial if you haven’t already! That said, I folded the cards for my kindergarteners in advance and then checked them all at the end to make sure they were folded correctly. I knew that folding the card would be a HUGE challenge for my kinders. They are not great at lining up corners or creasing, or folding with precision. And, I wanted them to put their focus and attention on gluing the card together precisely. That was enough of a challenge to keep them engaged, but not overwhelmed.
With upper-grade students, I did NOT fold the cards. I cut the paper and then showed the kids how to fold. For some, that was a good challenge. It’s all about knowing your students, and your professional judgement is what you should rely on here. Ask yourself, “Can my kids fold this without feeling frustrated? Will folding this Mother’s Day Craft engage them, or overwhelm them?” If they can do it themselves, they should. It’s not about perfection, it’s about growing. Trust me, even if the card is lopsided, Mom will love it!
Prep Steps and Materials
Once you download the FREE resource from TPT, you will want to print the pages. You will need these supplies to complete the project:
- Half of a 12×18 piece of construction paper for each student (cut the long way)
- Copies (I prefer bright cardstock, but any colored paper will work.)
- Flowers – there are 4 per page, so 6-8 copies for a class.
- Flower pots – there are 6 per page, so 4-5 copies for a class.
- Leaves – each project needs 3 leaves, so there are enough for 5-6 students per page.
- One 1-inch strip of green construction paper per student for the stem of the flower.
The FREE Mother’s Day Craft resouce on TPT includes linked directions. Just read through, choose the version that fits your students, and click to jump right to the pages that you need.
More Simple Solutions for Your Classroom
I am a big fan of low, or no-prep classroom options, and I’ve collected a lot of ideas over my many years of teaching. Be sure to check out these blog posts for more ideas that will save you time and help your students learn! Click the image to check them out!
Do you have 15 minutes to hook kids on books? Engage students with a simple Reading Strategy – Book Pass! This blog post gives clear directions for using this no-prep strategy.
This blog post includes a video tutorial and directions for how to make a Spiral Thinking Strip – a versatile foldable that is great for summarizing, recording math facts, and more!
What’s New?
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