Early years activity: Mother’s Day
Mother’s Day can be a wonderful opportunity to celebrate mothers and other special people in a child’s life.
This early years Mother’s Day activity will support children to discuss acts of kindness and care, and identify their emotions.
Learning aims
- Identify own needs and emotions
- Celebrate people who are special to them
- Share experiences with others
- Discuss acts of kindness and care.
Resources you’ll need
- Quiet, comfortable space
- Paper/card, pencil crayons or paints/brushes
- Pens.
Early years Mother’s Day activity guide
- Talk to children about the upcoming Mother’s Day celebration of mummys and other important people that may be in a ‘mother’ role – this could be step parents, aunties and uncles, grandparents, same sex parents, foster parents etc. Understanding the range of family dynamics of your nursery community will enable you to ensure the celebration of Mother’s Day is inclusive as possible to all children and families
- Ask children about what kind of things they do on Mother’s Day and how they celebrate, encouraging children to share their experiences
- Ask children to share the things their mothers/mother figures do for them each day and encourage them to share examples. Talk about the many different things that they do to help them grow, be healthy and keep safe. Talk about what they are thankful for, give an example, “I am thankful for the cuddles I get from my mum”
- Go around the group inviting responses for what they are thankful for
- Offer children a range of media options to create a picture of their mum/mother figure on paper or card
- Once complete, scribe the child’s ideas about what they are thankful for: “Thank you for………”
How can you extend this early years Mother’s Day activity?
Bake some biscuits and invite the children’s mothers/mother figures into the setting for a story time and snack session. Offer visitors the opportunity to bring in their favourite storybook to share or to tell their own family stories.
Disclaimer: Activities with children must always be risk assessed, including for allergies or choking. Children must always have adequate supervision. Resources and materials must always be appropriate for children’s age and stage of development.
