Celebrating Moms in Our Classrooms

By Leah | April 15, 2015

The end of the school year is right around the corner, and that means we teachers have the perfect opportunity to help our students celebrate one of the most important educators in their lives: Moms! We understand that with all the busyness that the end of the school year brings, teachers are looking for easy, adorable ideas to help their students celebrate their mothers. We at Super Teacher Worksheets tried our hand at three simple and sweet Mother's Day crafts for elementary students and want to share them with you below. 

Handing You My Heart 

We loved this simple, yet precious craft for young students! The brilliance of this craft is how few materials are needed for students to do this creative hand-tracing project. And it's virtually mess free! All you need is one piece of construction paper per student, one pair of safety scissors per student, a pencil for hand-tracing, and crayons or markers to write a sweet note to Mom. Here are the steps:

1. Fold a piece of construction paper in half, width-wise. Then have your students trace their left hand if they are right-handed or their right hand if they are left-handed. When they trace, have them angle their hand so that the pointer finger and thumb touch the folded edge of the paper.
2. Assist your students as they cut out the shape of their hand with safety scissors, cutting while the paper is still folded in half.
3. Have your students open the folded paper to reveal the heart inside their hands. You may want to encourage them to write a note to their mothers across the hands, such as "Happy Mother's Day!" or "Mommy, I'm handing you my heart!"

Mom, You Are the Elements of the Earth, Poem for Mothers 

 This creative project allows your students to give the gift of words to Mom this Mother's Day. It's a great creative writing project for older students because it allows them to practice composing poetry using the literary device, metaphors. For this Mother's Day project, your students will need the following: a blank piece of computer paper or construction paper; markers; and a creative mind. (Optional: you can purchase an 8''x 11'' frame for each student from a dollar value store to make the finished product easily displayable.) Your students will use the four elements of nature: fire; earth; air; and water to make metaphorical comparisons to their mothers. Here's how it works:

1. Students use a red marker to write a sentence that compares their mother to fire, using a metaphor. (Example: My mother's heart is fire, blazing with the warmth of her love.)
2. Students use a green marker to write a sentence that compares their mother to earth, using a metaphor. (Example: My mother is the earth beneath my feet, steady and firm.)
3. Students use a purple marker to write a sentence that compares their mother to the air, using a metaphor. (Example: My mother is the air all around me, her love is with me wherever I go.)
4. Students use a blue marker to write a sentence that compares their mother to water, using a metaphor. (Example: My mother is water, bringing life to our home and family.)
5. Have your students write their completed poem on the construction paper. Encourage them to decorate the white space around the poem with the elements they wrote about. Mom is sure to be touched by their creativity!

A Blooming Bouquet for You

Flowers always make a lovely Mother's Day gift, but how about flowers that won't ever wilt? We just loved these easy tissue paper flower bouquets! You only need a couple of items for this Mother's Day project: tissue paper (preferably pinks, reds, yellows, etc.); beads; and pipe cleaners (preferably green). Here's what to do:

1. Cut three circles (petals) from tissue paper (about 4 inches in diameter). Also cut a small square (flower center) from tissue paper (about 1''x 1'').
2. Stack the three tissue paper circles and the square on top of each other and poke one end of a pipe cleaner through the middle (square should be on top).
3. Poke the end of the pipe cleaner back through the tissue paper to secure everything in place.
4. Crinkle each individual circle and square of tissue paper to create a textured effect that "pops".
5. Repeat Steps 1-5 for as many flowers as you would like each student to have in his or her bouquet. What a cheerful springtime surprise for Mom!

We think these Mother's Day craft ideas are perfect activities for your elementary students - simple, creative, and adorable! Please share your own ideas and feedback in the comments section below!