Mother's Day Nursery Activities: Creative Ideas for Early Years Learning

Mother's Day gives nurseries a beautiful opportunity to help young children express love and gratitude while building essential early years skills. These activities go beyond simple craft time. They support emotional development, fine motor skills, and creative expression in ways that align perfectly with the Early Years Foundation Stage framework.

Planning mother's day nursery activities requires thoughtful consideration of diverse family structures and individual needs. Some children may celebrate with grandmothers, aunties, foster carers, or other special adults in their lives. The best activities create space for every child to participate meaningfully while developing skills across all seven areas of the EYFS curriculum.

Why Mother's Day Activities Matter in Early Years Settings

Young children thrive when given opportunities to express emotions and build relationships. Mother's day nursery activities provide a natural context for developing empathy, gratitude, and social skills. When a three-year-old carefully paints a card or plants a seed, they're doing more than creating a gift. They're learning about caring for others, following instructions, and taking pride in their work.

At Little Mowgli Nursery, the focus on nature-inspired learning and individual development makes seasonal celebrations particularly meaningful. Children explore their creativity while building confidence in a nurturing environment that respects each child's unique way of expressing themselves.

Research consistently shows that children benefit from activities that combine multiple learning areas. A simple card-making session develops fine motor control through cutting and gluing, supports literacy through mark-making and writing messages, and builds social-emotional skills as children think about what makes their special person happy. These interconnected benefits make mother's day nursery activities valuable teaching opportunities rather than just festive fun.

1. Handprint and Footprint Art Activities

Handprint art remains popular because it captures a moment in time while being accessible to children at different developmental stages. Younger children can press painted hands onto paper to create flowers, butterflies, or abstract designs. Older preschoolers might add stems, leaves, and backgrounds to transform their prints into complete artworks.

Here's what makes handprint activities work well:

• For babies and toddlers: Use non-toxic, washable paint in spring colours. Press their hands onto thick card and let them explore the sensation. Adults can add simple elements like "You help me grow" messages later.
• For preschool children: Encourage them to arrange multiple handprints into flowers, trees, or gardens. They can add details with crayons or collage materials once the paint dries.
• Educational benefits: These activities strengthen hand-eye coordination, introduce colour mixing concepts, and help children understand how their bodies create shapes. They also produce keepsakes that families treasure for years.

Consider turning footprints into flowers with handprints as leaves, or creating a "growing together" theme with prints in different sizes. The key is giving children ownership over their creations while providing enough structure that they feel successful.

2. Making Personalised Mother's Day Cards

Card-making lets children practice early writing skills and creative decision-making. Set up a card-making station with folded card stock, crayons, stickers, glitter glue, and collage materials. Let children choose their colours and designs rather than working from templates.

Simple card ideas that work:

Children can draw portraits of their special person, focusing on favourite details like hair colour, glasses, or a beloved outfit. This observation practice builds visual literacy and attention to detail.

Create cards with heart-shaped cut-outs where children fill the space with tissue paper pieces, creating textured mosaics. This develops fine motor precision as they tear, scrunch, and glue small pieces.

Make cascading cards where hearts or flowers unfold to reveal messages inside. Older children can practice writing simple phrases like "I love you" or their names, while younger ones make marks that represent writing.

The process matters more than perfection. When a child at Little Mowgli Nursery works intently on their card, they're developing concentration, planning skills, and the satisfaction of completing a project.

3. Planting Activities for Mother's Day Gifts

Growing plants teaches responsibility and patience while creating living gifts. Small terracotta pots work perfectly for this activity, allowing children to personalise them before planting.

Step-by-step planting activity:

Children decorate clean pots with acrylic paint, stickers, or permanent markers. Simple patterns, fingerprint flowers, or their names make pots special without requiring advanced skills.

Fill pots with compost, letting children scoop and pat the soil. This sensory experience builds understanding of textures and introduces concepts about what plants need to grow.

Plant fast-growing seeds like sunflowers, cress, or herbs. Children press seeds into the soil and water gently, learning about caring for living things.

Add care instructions on a wooden stick or card so families can continue the growing project at home. This extends the learning beyond the nursery environment.

Planting activities connect perfectly with nature-inspired approaches like those at Little Mowgli Nursery, where outdoor exploration and environmental awareness form part of daily learning. Children see the results of their care over coming weeks, building understanding of growth and responsibility.

4. Tea Party Role Play Activities

Hosting a pretend tea party helps children practice social skills, turn-taking, and imaginative play. Set up a quiet corner with toy tea sets, pretend cakes, and fancy table settings.

Children can take turns being the host, learning to offer refreshments and make conversation. This role play develops language skills as they practice polite phrases and storytelling. They might discuss what they'd serve their special person or describe a favourite memory.

Extend the activity by having children create menus with drawings or early writing. They might design placemats using paintings or collage. Some nurseries bake simple biscuits with the children, incorporating measuring and following recipes as mathematical and literacy activities.

The social-emotional benefits shine here. Children learn about hospitality, sharing, and thinking about what others enjoy. These skills transfer to real family celebrations and everyday interactions.

5. Songs and Poetry for Mother's Day

Music and rhymes support language development while creating opportunities for performance and confidence-building. Teaching children a simple Mother's Day song gives them something to share at home or during a nursery celebration.

Create movements to accompany songs, helping children connect words with actions. Simple verses about love, helping, or special people work well. Children might contribute ideas about what rhymes or what actions to include, giving them ownership of the performance.

Alternatively, help children create short poems. Even young children can contribute lines about their special person. An adult scribes while children share thoughts like "My mum gives big hugs" or "Grandma makes nice dinners." Reading these back gives children pride in their words and supports early literacy.

Recording performances on video creates another gift option. Children often love seeing themselves perform, and families appreciate these digital keepsakes.

6. Collage and Texture Portraits

Portrait-making encourages careful observation and creative expression. Rather than aiming for realistic accuracy, focus on capturing feelings and favourite details.

Provide various materials: different papers, fabrics, wool for hair, buttons for eyes, and natural items like twigs or leaves. Children select textures and colours that remind them of their special person.

Talk with children as they work. "What colour are Grandma's eyes?" "What does Mummy like to wear?" These conversations build vocabulary and help children articulate their observations and feelings.

Some children create abstract portraits, focusing on colours their person likes rather than physical features. This approach is equally valid and often more developmentally appropriate for younger children. The conversation and thought process matter more than the final appearance.

Collage work develops fine motor control as children manipulate small pieces, make gluing decisions, and arrange elements. These skills prepare hands and minds for later writing tasks.

7. Memory Jar Activities

Memory jars help children think about specific moments and qualities they appreciate. Provide small jars, strips of paper, and writing materials. Children draw or dictate memories and kind words to fill their jars.

Younger children might draw pictures of activities they enjoy with their special person. Slightly older children can attempt writing words or phrases with adult support. Each strip gets rolled and placed in the jar, creating a collection of positive thoughts.

Decorate jar lids with fabric, ribbon, or painted designs. Add a tag explaining that the recipient can pull out notes whenever they need cheering up.

This activity supports emotional literacy as children identify and articulate positive experiences. They practice gratitude, a skill linked to wellbeing throughout life. The process also builds understanding that thoughtful gifts don't require money or elaborate preparation.

8. Cooking Activities for Mother's Day

Simple cooking projects teach following instructions, measuring, and working together. Choose no-bake recipes or very simple baking that children can genuinely participate in rather than just watching adults work.

Easy options include:

No-bake biscuit decorating where children spread icing and arrange toppings on shop-bought biscuits. They practice fine motor control and creative decision-making while creating edible gifts.

Fruit arrangements where children wash, arrange, and perhaps skewer soft fruits to create simple displays. This introduces healthy food conversations and builds confidence with food preparation.

Simple biscuit recipes where children measure, mix, and shape dough. Even very young children can roll dough or press cookie cutters with support.

Cooking activities incorporate mathematics through measuring, science through observing changes, and literacy through reading recipes. They also build practical life skills and cultural awareness as you might explore treats from different traditions.

Safety remains paramount. Ensure proper handwashing, supervision near heat, and awareness of any allergies. These practical considerations teach children about kitchen safety alongside cooking skills.

9. Nature Walks and Collection Activities

Taking children outdoors to collect natural materials combines physical activity with creative planning. They might gather flowers, interesting leaves, smooth stones, or small twigs to use in gifts or displays.

Talk about what different natural items might symbolise or represent. Smooth stones could show steadiness, flowers show beauty, and so on. This metaphorical thinking supports language development and abstract reasoning.

Back at the nursery, children can arrange their collections in decorated boxes, create nature collages, or press flowers between paper. These activities extend the outdoor experience and produce thoughtful gifts.

Nature activities align beautifully with outdoor learning approaches. Children at settings like Little Mowgli Nursery, where outdoor exploration features prominently, already understand the value of connecting with the natural world. Using nature to express feelings adds another dimension to this understanding.

10. Display Board Ideas That Celebrate Diversity

Creating displays around mother's day nursery activities helps children see their work valued while building a sense of community. Photograph activities in progress, display finished crafts, and include children's words about their special people.

Ensure displays reflect diverse family structures. Include images and language that acknowledge different caregivers. This inclusion helps every child feel represented and teaches about the variety of loving families.

Add learning objectives to displays so parents understand the educational value behind activities. A note explaining how card-making develops fine motor skills or how planting teaches responsibility helps families see nursery work as purposeful learning.

Interactive displays where children can add new thoughts or drawings throughout the week keep engagement high. Perhaps a large tree outline where children add handprint leaves with qualities they appreciate in their special people.

Adapting Activities for Different Age Groups

The same activity often works across age ranges with thoughtful adaptation. Understanding developmental stages helps you pitch activities appropriately.

• For babies and young toddlers: Focus on sensory experiences and adult-supported activities. They might explore paint textures while adults capture handprints, or choose stickers to place on cards with hand-over-hand guidance.
• For two to three-year-olds: Offer more independence with clear structure. They can spread glue, arrange pre-cut shapes, and make simple choices about colours. Keep instructions simple and expectations realistic.
• For three to five-year-olds: Increase complexity and independence. They can use scissors with supervision, write letters or words they know, and make detailed creative decisions. Encourage planning and problem-solving.

All activities should allow personal expression rather than requiring specific outcomes. This approach respects individual development and builds confidence.

Creating Inclusive Mother's Day Experiences

Sensitivity to family circumstances makes activities meaningful for every child. Some children have mothers who are absent, ill, or have died. Others may have two mothers, live primarily with fathers, or be cared for by grandparents or other relatives.

Frame activities as celebrations of special people who care for us rather than exclusively about mothers. Provide options like "someone special," "my carer," or "someone I love" alongside traditional mother-focused language.

Communicate with families beforehand. A note explaining upcoming activities lets parents or carers prepare children who might find the celebration difficult. Some families might prefer their child create something for a different person, which should be readily accommodated.

Watch for children who seem uncomfortable and offer alternatives quietly. Perhaps they'd like to make something for a teacher, create a card for a friend, or work on a different activity entirely. Flexibility shows that you prioritise children's wellbeing over activity completion.

Connecting Activities to EYFS Learning Goals

Mother's day nursery activities naturally support multiple areas of development when planned thoughtfully:

• Personal, Social and Emotional Development: Expressing feelings, building relationships, understanding emotions like love and gratitude.
• Communication and Language: Describing special people, explaining artwork choices, performing songs or poems, engaging in conversations during activities.
• Physical Development: Developing fine motor control through cutting, gluing, painting, and manipulating small objects. Building gross motor skills during outdoor collection walks.
• Literacy: Mark-making on cards, writing names or messages, listening to stories about families and celebrations.
• Mathematics: Measuring ingredients during cooking, counting petals or handprints, understanding positional language when arranging displays.
• Understanding the World: Learning about celebrations, exploring plant growth through planting activities, discussing different family structures.
• Expressive Arts and Design: Making creative choices, exploring different materials and techniques, combining elements in original ways.

Documenting these links helps parents see the learning value in seemingly simple activities. It also ensures you're providing rich educational experiences rather than just keeping children busy.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are good mother's day nursery activities for toddlers?

Toddlers enjoy sensory-based activities with simple outcomes. Handprint or footprint art works beautifully as they can explore paint textures while creating keepsakes. Card decorating with large stickers and pre-cut shapes lets them make creative choices without requiring fine motor precision. Planting seeds in decorated pots combines sensory soil play with nurturing care. Keep activities short, offer plenty of support, and celebrate their unique creations rather than expecting specific results.

How can nurseries make Mother's Day inclusive for all families?

Use broad language like "special person" or "someone who cares for you" alongside mother-specific terms. Provide multiple card options including grandmother, auntie, or blank versions children can personalise. Communicate with families before activities to understand individual situations and sensitivities. Allow children to choose recipients for their gifts. Focus conversations on qualities like kindness and care rather than only on maternal relationships. This approach helps every child participate meaningfully regardless of family structure.

What skills do children develop through Mother's Day activities?

These activities build fine motor control through cutting, gluing, and manipulating materials. Children develop language skills when describing their special person and explaining creative choices. Emotional literacy grows as they consider others' feelings and practice expressing gratitude. Planning and sequencing skills emerge when following craft instructions or cooking recipes. Social skills develop during group activities and performances. The activities also support creativity, confidence, and understanding of celebrations, making them rich learning experiences beyond just making gifts.

When should nurseries start Mother's Day activities?

Begin about two weeks before Mothering Sunday, which falls on the fourth Sunday in Lent, usually in March. This timing allows activities to unfold without rush while keeping the date close enough that children maintain interest. Introduce the theme gradually through stories and circle time discussions before moving to making activities. Spread different projects across several days rather than cramming everything into one session. This pacing helps children process the themes and develop their work thoughtfully.

What are alternatives to typical Mother's Day crafts in nurseries?

Move beyond standard handprint flowers and heart cards by focusing on personalisation and meaningful connection. Memory jars where children share specific moments create more thoughtful gifts than generic crafts. Planting activities result in living gifts that teach ongoing care. Recording children describing why their person is special creates audio keepsakes families treasure. Service projects like helping prepare breakfast or creating coupon books for jobs they'll do teach practical expressions of love beyond material gifts.