5 Fine Motor Mother's Day Crafts

There are a lot of debates about whether to include Mother’s Day and Father’s Day into preschool classroom lesson plans. One of the arguments is that this excludes children who have families that don’t fit into the traditional nuclear family. Another argument against including these special days into your classroom is that there is no benefit to these activities, which is not true. Creating things for other people teaches children about generosity. It gives children time to consider what the recipient likes. Plus, it encourages children who are developmentally wired to think of themselves first to think of others. These five Mother’s Day crafts also help develop fine motor skills, which helps children do things like zipping their jacket, write their name, and using a fork and knife. Beneficial right? Definitely.

I promote diversity and inclusion in early childhood education, but I can’t sit here and say my classroom avoids Mother’s Day because we celebrate it. Every year I consider my students, I ask about their families, and I communicate. Part of providing your students with a developmentally appropriate education is looking at each student individually and adjusting the education you provide them individually as well as a group. For me at this school, with the students I have that means we include Mother’s Day. Will it always? I don’t know, I take each group as a blank slate and adjust as needed.

Here are four fine motor Mother’s Day Crafts that you can feel like your students are doing something beneficial while creating something for their mom: