1-2-3 Come Make A Father’s Day Card With Me!

Since Father’s Day is in June, daddies often get jipped out of a homemade card that their child made in school, so I always made time to do this as a center during the last week of school.

I set up a table with all of the “ingredients” and while I was working on assessments or all of those other end-of-the-year jobs teachers need to get done, my little ones enjoyed making something special for their papa.

Now a days you need to be sensitive to children who don’t have a dad. 

Even though their father might not live with them, they still might have contact, so you don’t want to leave them out. 

Children who didn’t, I asked if they wanted to make a card for their grandfather or someone else special in their life.

I’ve included 2 different blank puzzle piece templates for this purpose. 

You can write in the word, or the person’s name for them, so they can glue their torn paper pieces on top of the letters.

You could also use the blank template for Mother’s Day, Secretary’s Day, or to thank a special volunteer  as well.

To make the cards, run off the puzzle piece template on a variety of colored construction paper.
Students choose one and cut it out.

To make this more of a keepsake, print your class composite and cut students’ pictures into ovals, so they can glue them somewhere on their card.

Cut 1/8th inch wide strips of a variety of colors of construction paper.

Students choose a color, and rip and tear their strips into a pile.

I chose rip and tear, not only because the mosaic effect looks cool, but because it is an outstanding fine motor activity for strengthening finger muscles.

Have children "trace" one letter at a time, with a glue stick, and then place the torn pieces of paper on it, one piece at a time.

Children sign “I love you” along with their name.  

I told my students to save the card for Father’s Day, but I doubt they did.  Little ones are always so excited to share whatever they’ve made as soon as they get home.

Click on the link to view/download the "I Love My Dad To Pieces" Father's Day Card.

Thanks for visiting today. Feel free to PIN anything you think is helpful. My "Pin it" button is at the top of the page.

"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." -William Butler Yeats

1-2-3 Come Make A Graduation Memory Book With Me

If you teach preschool or kindergarten and your kiddos are graduating, you might enjoy making this adorable Graduation Memory book, that's sure to become a cherished keepsake.

Here's How: Run off the mortarboard (graduation cap) pieces on a variety of colors, or give just 2 school color choices to your students.

They cut and glue together to make the back cover. Another cap makes the front cover.

Students could choose both of your school colors to make their cover.  One color for the back and the other one for the front.

To add a bit of 3D pizzazz, poke a hole in the center, insert a brass brad and tie with a yarn tassel.

If you have the budget, there are many companies that you can buy real tassels from that include a year charm.

Choose which master pages you want to include in your booklets; run off the pages on white copy paper and distribute one at a time to them.

Students complete their pages, cut them out, collate in whatever order you want them to, and then add their cover. 

Make sure you make a sample and then display each page on the board in the order you want them to assemble them.

Staple the pages together at the top point, so the booklet flips up.

To expedite things, for the "classmate" autograph page, have each student sign one page the day before, and then run it off. 

Do the same thing with the "special" autograph page, by having the principal, secretary, librarian etc. sign one page.

For the "High five's!" page, you can paint your students' hand and then press it on their page, or have a room helper trace their hand on a sheet of construction paper and cut them out, so students can glue it to their page or have students choose a partner and have them trace each other's hand.  When they are done, they can color their print.

I think the self-portrait page, as well as including a graduation photograph, will make this booklet even more special.

The last page is a short graduation poem, that was inspired by over a dozen others, that I found while Pinning away.

I hope you enjoy my version, and have as much fun making these memory books, as I did designing them.  I wish you a wonderful graduation day.

Click on the link to view/download the Kindergarten/Preschool Graduation Memory Booklet.

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN away.  There's a "Pin it" button at the top.

"Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty.  Anyone who keeps learning stays young." -Henry Ford

1-2-3 Come Make Student Gifts With Me

Are you looking for something quick and easy to make your students, for the last week of school, that won't break the bank? You've stopped at the right blog.

I always sent my students home with a little something as a good-bye gift, but when you have 2 classes of Y5's with 20 in each class, that often got a bit expensive.

The "Wishing a "kool" kid a very kool summer" treat, is a breeze to put together. A box of 48 Kool-Aide packages sells for around $13 Dollars. 

If you don't have that many students, perhaps another teacher will split the cost with you.

I bought the Curly Straws at The Dollar Store. (6 in a package.)

Here’s how to make them:

Cut toilet paper rolls in half.

Run off the owl template on a variety of colors of construction paper, or simply light brown to look more realistic.

If you want to add a bit more pizzazz, color in the beak and feet and add wiggle eyes with a glue dot.

Staple or tape the owl to the toilet paper tube.

Run off the teacher and student notes + bookmark(s).

I’ve included black and white bookmarks for students to color, or colored bookmarks if you want. You can tuck in one of each if you choose.

On the teacher paper, write a note to each one of your students telling them why they are a “Kool” kid and then sign them.

Roll them up and insert into the toilet paper tube. They will unwind and fit snug.

Bend a package of Kool-Aid so that it fits and tuck that in along with the bookmark(s) and a Curly straw.

Give directions and model the lesson. Pass out the student “You rule” papers to each student.

I included this writing extension because it is a real self-esteem builder for kids and puts the icing on the cake.

Have them write their name on the top and then pass it to another student close by.

Students complete the thought: “I think you’re a really “Kool” kid because…”

When they are done writing their sentence they sign their name at the end and pass it to another child.

Continue passing papers ‘til everyone has written a compliment on all of the papers.

Children will be really excited to read their classmates comments, but tell your students they will get to read them later, and quickly collect the papers.

Roll them and insert them into your note.

Make sure you can see the students’ names, so that you can put the correct one on their desk the last week of school.

I don’t save things ‘til the last day, as some students might be absent.

Click on the link to view/download the Kool Kid Owl Miss You packet.

I hope your students enjoy this activity. I wish you a wonderful last week of school.

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN anything you think others might find useful.

"Life is a great big canvas. You should throw all the paint you can on it." -Danny Kaye