Easy Mother’s Day Gifts for Kids to Make

April 28, 2023 by Sarah White Leave a Comment

Of course it’s impossible to generalize what moms want for Mother’s Day (I have always said I wanted a nap), but I think it’s fair to say most moms would like getting a gift that their kid had a hand in making. Here are some easy Mother’s Day gifts that kids can make or help with, that can be made one kid or a group of kids at a time.

We’ve already covered the cuteness of handprint and fingerprint crafts for parents, but this fingerprint heart necklace from Rhythms of Play is another sweet take on that theme. You might not have these supplies on hand if you’re not a big jewelry maker but it should be pretty easy to find them at a big box craft store or online.

Another cute idea for a necklace or keychain is to have kids draw on shrink plastic and make that into a pendant or a keychain loop. This is a pretty quick and easy project and the drawing can have to do with Mother’s Day or not, it would still be special for a mom or grandparent. Get the instructions from Kindergarten Chaos.

Print a special photo and give mom a place to display it with this easy painted rock photo holder from Buggy and Buddy. Little kids can paint the rock and thread the beads while an adult assembles the holder, or older kids can do this whole project themselves.

How about an upcycled planter? These painted can plant holders from the Best Ideas for Kids are easy to make — just make sure the can doesn’t have any sharp bits before you give it to a kiddo to paint. (Of course an adult will need to drill the drain holes as well.)

Or how about a pretty painted Mason jar? Moms can always find a use for a jar. I have one my daughter painted with a handprint on it, or you can make this use jar votive holder from I Heart Arts and Crafts. The heart shape is super cute but you can do stripes or any other simple shape you like.

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Fall Sensory Ideas for Kids

A few years ago I shared some pumpkin themed sensory activities for kids, but I wanted to get a little more general and do some fall sensory ideas that can take you from Halloween al the way to Thanksgiving.

Playdough is a classic sensory activity, especially if kids can help make it, too. These playdough recipes from The Montessori Twin Mama are fall colored and scented with cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and apple pie spice (I honestly don’t know what the difference is!). Or try this fun maple playdough from Happy Toddler Playtime.

Throw together some cookie cutters, googly eyes and other fun things to make an easy fall playdough tray (similar to what I did on this Halloween playdough activity).

How about some fall themed slime? Natural Beach Living gave a basic slime recipe a fall twist with food coloring and glitter. Leaf shaped sequins make it even more fun. Little Bins for Little Hands also has a cinnamon slime, which is great for fall but can also carry you all the way through Christmas.

Raising Wild Things Sensory has some great easy to make fall themed sensory bottles, which you can add fall things to, or pompoms or whatever kind of I spy items you might want to include. They also have a fun apple moon sand sensory bin that has me wondering if you could add something scented to moon sand (I always hated the smell!).

And of course there are all kinds of sensory bins you can make for fall. I like this apple picking one from Happy Toddler Playtime that uses fake leaves and little apple toys. It has the added challenge of trying to pick the apples up through a mesh of branches — kind of like a low-tech game of Operation!

You can also do a short-lived sensory bin with real leaves, or use any kind of beans, brown rice, oats or lentils to make your base. Some more great ideas can be found at Fab Everyday. Their post includes some specific Halloween and Thanksgiving themed sensory bins, too.

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