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Friday, May 25, 2012

The Art of Appreciation



Twice a week I volunteer in a classroom at a community Pre-K program.  There are 17 children, most from non-English speaking families.  The teacher is amazing.  She is patient, kind, cares about each child, and is preparing them for success in Kindergarten next year.   Without this program, these children would start kindergarten way behind their peers.  It's hard to believe our school district has plans to cut the program next year.  But that's not what this post is about.

Teacher Appreciation Week comes and goes.  There aren't room parents for this class.  So I decided to help the students show their love for their teacher with this project.  It's simple enough, but goes a l-o-n-g way in showing their appreciation.  

I brought punched scalloped and plain circles, mini letter rubber stamps and a black ink pad to school one day.  Each child chose their color combination of their "flower" and stamped their name on it.  So it was also a lesson in ABC's.  Then I glued a coffee stirrer stick between the flower and another scalloped circle   to create the flowers.

I painted a terra cotta pot and saucer using yellow acrylic and chalkboard paint.  Two coats of each fully covered the pot.  I also painted a tag with the same yellow paint and stamped the teacher's name on it.
I embellished the top rim of the pot with a yellow measuring tape.  Because the rim is larger at the top than the bottom of the rim, I cut the measuring tape every two inches or so, and glued them separately to compensate for the angle.  When glued, you cannot even tell the measuring tape was cut.  I used Mod Podge for the glue, and again for a final glossy coat (but not on the chalkboard paint).




 All that was left was to pot the plant and stick the "flowers" in the pot.


 A coordinating tag that reads "Thank You for helping us to grow."






The teacher was so touched to receive the gift.  
And the students were anxious to find the flower with their name.

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10 comments:

  1. Oh Doreen! What a wonderful idea and what a truly great thing to do with the kids. I'm sure they had fun making the project.

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  2. I love this idea!
    Not only for teachers :) I think it's simply a great gift

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  3. How cute!! This is a wonderful gift for teacher appreciation week, heck any time really. Thank you for the idea!

    http://farmerswiferambles.com

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  4. Doreen, what a cute idea! Adding the ruler tape around the pot is perfect... very clever. Thanks so much for sharing at Project Inspire{d} this week!

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  5. Great teacher gift (this coming from a teacher's wife)! Any teacher would love it! Thanks for sharing at the Shady Porch! Happy Friday! Blessings,D

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  6. Your site is wonderful! Thank you for sharing your post on BeBetsy BRAG ABOUT IT Linky Party - hope to see you again! http://bebetsy.com

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  7. Super cute! :)

    Thanks again for joining the Link Up this week!

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  8. Such a cute gift idea!! Thanks for linking up at Romance on a dime!!

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  9. What a perfect teacher gift! LOVE it! Thanks so much for linking it up at Get Your DIY On!

    ~Abby =)

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