Mother's Day gifts

Hi friends,
As you know, I LOVE to craft, so I share a little of my love with my kiddos at school. These are the projects my 3rd graders are making for Mother's Day. It's 5 projects in all. (Being a Mom, I do have a little bias towards this special day!) So let me give you the deets:

First up is a mom notebook:I bought these notebooks for 15 for $1- a steal. We covered them with themed scrapbook paper. (I only used 1 sheet of each for all 20 students). I punched the flowers out (had them layer them & glue). We did add little strips of ribbon along the wire coils. I did this project whole class, walking them through it.

Second, is the flower pen to go with the notebook:
They taped the stem to the pen & wrapped the pen with florist tape. I worked with them on this in a small group. I bought the flowers at the Dollar Tree- 3 bushes were enough for my whole class.

Third, is a clear magnet
It is made with "acrylic stones" used for filling vases. The image came from a vellum sheet. I punched it out along with a piece of red card stock. We adhered them together & used clear glue to adhere it to the stone ( I did this part). There's a round magnet on the back. It really holds papers on the fridge well! I worked with a small group on this project.

Fourth project is a paper bead bracelet:

This is made out of paper. I learned to make these when I was a little girl. You cut triangular strips of scrapbook paper, spread modge-podge on them & roll them into a little bead. Put them on a toothpick & let dry. Once dry, you thread elastic string through with beads scattered throughout, tie a secure knot. Done. The beauty of these beads is that you can use your least favorite scrapbook paper & it will not matter- the bracelet will look good. I worked on this project with a small group.

#5 is a keychain fob: These are some of my students' finished products. They are made with Shrinky Dink paper (Frosted). They draw the outline with a permanent marker on the slick side. Flip to the back & color in the image with regular colored pencils. Punch a hole in the corner not too close to the corner or it will break off. I like to round the corners. Then, put them in a toaster oven & watch them shrink. The kids LOVED watching them shrink! They thought it was the coolest, magical thing! It shrinks & thickens a lot! (Thanks for sharing your samples kids :)

Next, is the card of course! What's Mother's Day without a card, right?
The kids trace the pattern onto construction paper & cut it out. They decorate it however they want. I punch out a flower & add a gold bead to the middle. The handle is made by punching with a small & larger oval punch. They write their message inside.

Here's what the pattern looks like:

Finally is the way everything comes packaged!It's a white lunch bag the kids decorate as their house. The "roof" is a topper that also serves as a closure for the house bag. This one was created by my student Doris. cute :)

I try to punch everything myself & have it ready to go. I really let them do as much of the projects themselves. I help only if they absolutely can't do it. (poor small motor skills). But they feel very proud of themselves for creating their projects themselves. This is a way for them to create and have an appreciation for handmade gifts.

Well, that's all folks! Thanks for peeking in today. We're finally done with State Testing. YAHOOO!!! I'm off to take a nap.