Hey moms! What's the best Mother's Day gift you've received from a grade-4 (-ish) child?
May 3, 2011 8:36 PM Subscribe
Hey moms! What's the best Mother's Day gift you've received from a grade-4 (-ish) child?
I'm a new teacher with a grade 4 class. I'd really like to have something especially awesome for students to make for their moms. We have a fairly limited art supply, but I don't mind spending a bit of my own money if someone suggests something really great.
And if hugs are the best gift, what's second best?
I'm a new teacher with a grade 4 class. I'd really like to have something especially awesome for students to make for their moms. We have a fairly limited art supply, but I don't mind spending a bit of my own money if someone suggests something really great.
And if hugs are the best gift, what's second best?
I'm actually still using it, and it has been twenty years or so. It is a cap from a spray paint can, filled with plaster to hold a 12 inch painted stick. Glued to the top of the stick there is a clothespin. Glued randomly there are some silk flowers (Mine are yellow, to match the can cap).
Its purpose? To hold recipes cards while cooking.
A spectacularly ugly object, and yet I have been unable to part from it.
posted by francesca too at 8:52 PM on May 3, 2011 [8 favorites]
Its purpose? To hold recipes cards while cooking.
A spectacularly ugly object, and yet I have been unable to part from it.
posted by francesca too at 8:52 PM on May 3, 2011 [8 favorites]
I think This is a good idea. For additional awesomeness, you could have the kids cut out 4 or 5 green paper leaf petals and have them write one thing they are thankful for about their mother. Then glue the leaves onto the stem of the flower. (It can be things like: kiss me goodnight! love my everyday! makes me mac and cheese! is super fun to play with! etc) Then get a disposable, sturdy cup and some old newspapers. Scrunch up the news papers and fill the cup full of them. Poke the bottom of the stems of the flowers into the news papers. Write on the cup "I am thankful for my mom because..." Ta-dah! Awesome, cute, and loving mother's day gift.
(also be aware if some of your children don't have a mom or have two moms. have them do the same project but have them write grandpa, uncle, dad, older brother, etc. so they don't feel sad or left out. have kids with two moms (ie a lesbian couple or a biological mom and stepmother, etc.) make two!)
posted by fuzzysoft at 8:56 PM on May 3, 2011 [1 favorite]
(also be aware if some of your children don't have a mom or have two moms. have them do the same project but have them write grandpa, uncle, dad, older brother, etc. so they don't feel sad or left out. have kids with two moms (ie a lesbian couple or a biological mom and stepmother, etc.) make two!)
posted by fuzzysoft at 8:56 PM on May 3, 2011 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: fuzzy: thanks for the reminder, but I've thought of that. it's a touchier issue with dads in my class (one deceased, others not so much in the picture).
posted by iftheaccidentwill at 8:59 PM on May 3, 2011
posted by iftheaccidentwill at 8:59 PM on May 3, 2011
I write, and one of my favorite gifts was when my son made me a pen and holder in his class.
It doesn't sound like much, but here's what they did: Kids took a cheap fake flower and floral tape and wrapped up a cheap pen so that it was covered with the floral tape and the flower was at the top of the pen making it look all fancy. Then, the pen holder was a some kind of cement stuff they had each of kids press their handprints into for their Moms! His name and the date were on the underside of the holder.
And I loved it. The pen ran out of ink, but while it lasted, I would smile every time I jotted something down with that frou-frou pen and put it back in the holder. It felt indulgent and frivolous, that flower pen, and Moms don't often indulge themselves when their kids are young.
And so today I am left with this wonderful Mother's Day souvenir with my son's little handprint from back when he was in grade schol right there in it. And he's going to college this year, and now I am absurdly tearing up, thinking about that.
So, yeah. Do that.
posted by misha at 9:01 PM on May 3, 2011 [3 favorites]
It doesn't sound like much, but here's what they did: Kids took a cheap fake flower and floral tape and wrapped up a cheap pen so that it was covered with the floral tape and the flower was at the top of the pen making it look all fancy. Then, the pen holder was a some kind of cement stuff they had each of kids press their handprints into for their Moms! His name and the date were on the underside of the holder.
And I loved it. The pen ran out of ink, but while it lasted, I would smile every time I jotted something down with that frou-frou pen and put it back in the holder. It felt indulgent and frivolous, that flower pen, and Moms don't often indulge themselves when their kids are young.
And so today I am left with this wonderful Mother's Day souvenir with my son's little handprint from back when he was in grade schol right there in it. And he's going to college this year, and now I am absurdly tearing up, thinking about that.
So, yeah. Do that.
posted by misha at 9:01 PM on May 3, 2011 [3 favorites]
In first grade the teacher had the children color a magnetic picture frame. Then she took a polaroid of each child for him to put in his frame. He is 24 now and it is still on my fridge.
posted by SLC Mom at 9:21 PM on May 3, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by SLC Mom at 9:21 PM on May 3, 2011 [1 favorite]
IAM, IANYM (is that how you do it?)
I was just thinking how much I love having my kids pictures on my keychain. I currently have their 3rd, 5th and 4th,6th grade pictures as keychain tags but then we moved to a new district (and photographer) and I have
none from the past 3 years. If your school photographer doesn't already do this, a pic and creative laminating, holepunch could do the trick.
posted by southeastyetagain at 9:28 PM on May 3, 2011
I was just thinking how much I love having my kids pictures on my keychain. I currently have their 3rd, 5th and 4th,6th grade pictures as keychain tags but then we moved to a new district (and photographer) and I have
none from the past 3 years. If your school photographer doesn't already do this, a pic and creative laminating, holepunch could do the trick.
posted by southeastyetagain at 9:28 PM on May 3, 2011
All these suggestions sound great, but expensive (as someone who used to teach practically owing the school money for school supplies on the first day of school). I suggest asking DonorsChoose to help fund the materials cost. It's free, so you've got nothing to lose.
Market it as helping improve family-school relations on top of meeting art requirements.
posted by smirkette at 9:59 PM on May 3, 2011
Market it as helping improve family-school relations on top of meeting art requirements.
posted by smirkette at 9:59 PM on May 3, 2011
I've had the popsicle stick-framed picture and the flower pens and I loved both. My pens were actually a "bouquet" of four pens. I've also received a bookmark, something like those on this page and a handmade beeswax rolled candle like this.
posted by angiep at 11:13 PM on May 3, 2011
posted by angiep at 11:13 PM on May 3, 2011
My favourite was a laminated bookmark with a self-portrait drawn by the kid in question, closely followed by a cardboard flower glued to a fridge magnet with a photo of the kid as the centre of the flower. (Do you have something like a real estate agency nearby who use magnets printed with a calendar as giveaways? They might happily donate leftover 2011 magnets in exchange for a mention in the school newsletter.)
I was also once given a pro forma card with "I love my mum because..." on the front, and the kids just filled in why they love their mum on the inside. (Apparently I'm popular because I let him have McDonalds sometimes and I dance to music on tv.)
I've received calendars with the kids artwork and photos and handprints, but I prefer something that I can use forever, like bookmarks & fridge magnets.
posted by malibustacey9999 at 11:32 PM on May 3, 2011
I was also once given a pro forma card with "I love my mum because..." on the front, and the kids just filled in why they love their mum on the inside. (Apparently I'm popular because I let him have McDonalds sometimes and I dance to music on tv.)
I've received calendars with the kids artwork and photos and handprints, but I prefer something that I can use forever, like bookmarks & fridge magnets.
posted by malibustacey9999 at 11:32 PM on May 3, 2011
I really enjoyed the cards they made with their heartfelt sentiments "I love you mum bekos you let me play puter." It always seemed to be a non-sequitur and made me laugh. I did not enjoy the noodle art - it seemed to flake off immediately. I would have loved (though I never received one) a can covered with fabric or paper etc for holding pencils, because I always need something like that. I LOVED drawings of our family and home and pets, with the 74 fingered children and the dog the size of the house.
posted by b33j at 12:06 AM on May 4, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by b33j at 12:06 AM on May 4, 2011 [1 favorite]
When my friend was a child he gave his mam an empty shoebox wrapped up in a bow and told her it was a "box of love". If she ever opened the box, his love would escape. To my knowledge she has never opened the box.
posted by distorte at 4:11 AM on May 4, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by distorte at 4:11 AM on May 4, 2011 [1 favorite]
I have zero idea how feasible or appropriate this is, it's probably too spendy/needs to much help from an adult, but I'm throwing it out because it's cool and maybe you can use it one day for something -- DIY terrarium
posted by mrs. taters at 5:53 AM on May 4, 2011
posted by mrs. taters at 5:53 AM on May 4, 2011
I received a tile from a Paint-Your-Own-Pottery Place. Granted, it was from my preschooler, but any child could create something meaningful and useful at one of those places. I put cork pads on the bottom of my tile and I use it as a trivet.
posted by Ostara at 6:51 AM on May 4, 2011
posted by Ostara at 6:51 AM on May 4, 2011
Oh, I should add that when I got my tile from my preschooler, the teacher asked the kids to bring in $3 for a "very special project" to offset the cost and the pottery place came to the classroom to work with the kids.
posted by Ostara at 6:55 AM on May 4, 2011
posted by Ostara at 6:55 AM on May 4, 2011
I love my popsicle stick photo and also some tissue paper flowers that I have on my window sill. And I still laugh at the survey results that my kids provided - favorite place my kids would like to go with me - one answered Paris and one answered tacky arcade/pizza place.
posted by Sukey Says at 12:28 PM on May 4, 2011
posted by Sukey Says at 12:28 PM on May 4, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by lucy.jakobs at 8:47 PM on May 3, 2011