Need a quick, easy, and cheap kid-made gift for a holiday or celebration like Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, or a classroom event like Muffins in the Morning? Check out my top kid-made gifts that won’t cost you a ton. I get most of the supplies at the Dollar Tree, so each craft is very affordable! I’m sharing some management tips and tricks to help make creating these gorgeous gifts less stressful too.
If you need printables and help with a Muffins with Mom/Muffins in the Morning, Donuts with Dad/Donut Date (this will be updated very soon to make it more inclusive), or Grandparent’s Day, check out the Family Event bundle in my TpT store HERE.
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A Few Management Tricks
My first trick is to set up a table for two or four students to make the gifts with me. This allows me to help them as needed. Usually, we are using acrylic paint, which stains. It’s a good idea to have wet wipes at the table. I like to have name cards as well, so students can use them for support when they are writing their names. Have the supplies set up on a tray, so you have everything you need in one place. Make sure you have also cleaned and set up a place to put things that need to dry.
Canvas Portraits! Students can draw ANY person they want for any event. They could draw their mom, dad, grandma, aunt, or any special person in their life. Grab a stack of canvases from Michaels when they are on sale or use a coupon, acrylic paint, and sharpies.
How to Make Canvas Portraits: Have the student draw the person on the canvas with a Sharpie or a pencil. I have found that the pencil erases a little bit but not all the way. If you have the students draw with a pencil, trace their drawing with a Sharpie. Then have them write their name on the canvas. Lastly, PAINT with acrylic paint.
Handprint or Footprint Towels or Potholders! Pick your favorite handprint or footprint design like this flower for students to create on the towel. You will need bar kitchen towels or potholders from the Dollar Tree, acrylic paint, paintbrushes, a Sharpie, ribbon (optional), and cardstock (to place inside the towel, so the paint doesn’t go through). You can see step-by-step how I make Turkey handprint towels HERE or how I make Christmas Tree Handprint Towels HERE.
Painted Glass Vases! These are my favorite gift to make because look how beautiful they turn out. Best of all, any child at any level can make them. Grab some vases from the Dollar Tree, acrylic paint, and paintbrushes. Check out how to make them HERE. You can make these for any occasion just by using paint colors to match the holiday. For example, if you want to make them for Christmas gifts, use red and green paint.
Kid Painted Pots! You will need small clay pots (from the Dollar Tree, Lowe’s, or Walmart), a bag of dirt, and some small flowers. Write the name of the student on the bottom of the pot first, then have them paint their pot with acrylic paint. You can coat it with Mod Podge if you want. Once the pots are dry, have the students plant a flower in the pot!
3D Paper Flowers! These make cute centerpieces for classroom events too! Prep and cut colored paper into thirds (lengthwise), green paper to the desired size for the stems, and some green paper scraps for students to cut the leaves from. To make the flowers, students snip along the top of a colored paper strip. Then roll the green paper to create a stem and tape the ends down. The flower will need leaves, so cut small leaves in a triangular or rounded shape and tape them to the stem. Lastly, roll the snipped paper and tape it on the inside of the stem.
Painted Glass Magnets! Again, hop over to the Dollar Tree and buy a few bags of the large glass gems in the floral section. You will also need acrylic paint, paintbrushes, Sharpie, and magnets. I like to put the paint in a plastic cupcake bin, so I can cover it with plastic wrap. This is super helpful if we need to work on it for multiple days. Plus, you can just throw it away once you are finished. Write the name on the back of their gem BEFORE they paint. Students paint one or a few gems as they wish. Once dry, stick a magnet to the back and coat it with Mod Podge.
Wooden Magnets! Dollar Tree again for the win! Buy a few bags of any wooden shapes from the craft section. You will also need acrylic paint, paintbrushes, Sharpie, and magnets. I like to put the paint in a plastic cupcake bin so that I can cover it with plastic wrap. This is helpful if we need to work on it for multiple days. Plus, you can just throw it away once you are finished. Write the name on the back of their wooden shape BEFORE they paint. Once dry, just stick a magnet to the back!
Thumbprint Magnets! You will need oven-bake clay to create these like magnets. This brand from Amazon or this one from Michaels are great choices. Each student will roll a clay ball and then make their thumbprint in the clay. Bake as directed on the box of clay. Once completely cooled, cover the front with Mod Podge and glitter (optional) and secure a magnet to the back.
Kid Made Cards! As a parent, these melt my heart when I get one from a child because THEY made it. Place stickers, blank cards (colored paper folded in half), markers, and word cards on a tray. Each student uses the supplies and word cards to create a card for their special person. You can grab a FREE set of Family and Holiday Word Cards HERE.
Kid-Made Bags! Don’t buy fancy gift bags because you can have the students make them. Give each student a paper lunch bag to decorate with markers, dot markers, or stickers.
Making gifts in the classroom can be stressful and expensive. However, hopefully, I have given you some quick and easy gifts you can do that won’t make you pull your hair out and won’t break the bank. Remember, it’s the thought that counts, so make what you think your students can do and have fun with it!
If you want to check out how I plan and execute Muffins in the Morning in my classroom, check out this post.
If you need printables and help with a Muffins with Mom/Muffins in the Morning, Donuts with Dad/Donut Date (this will be updated very soon to make it more inclusive), or Grandparent’s Day, check out the Family Event bundle in my TpT store HERE.
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