C is for Crafts: Gold Coins of Appreciation for Kids
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Earlier this week as I was sitting at my kitchen table admiring a St. Patrick’s Day project that Ava made at preschool last year, the idea for this project just popped into my head. I loved the darling rainbow paper chain attached to a simple black pot that Ava created at school as soon as she brought it home. I hung it in the kitchen window and then packed it away with the St. Patrick’s Day decorations. It is back in the kitchen window again this year and the sunlight glints off from the glitter on the simple gold paper coins on the “pot o’ gold”. I started thinking about how those little coins could be used as a form of praise or appreciation to boost the self esteem of my own young children. Plus it has added a little more sparkle to our St. Patrick’s Day celebration this year. I hope you enjoy this simple craft as much as we have. Are you ready to learn how to make your own gold coins of appreciation? Here we go:
Supplies
Scissors
Free downloadable coin template (click on the image below to download)
Gold Coins of Appreciation
Gold Coins – Blank
Instructions
Begin by gathering your supplies.
Print out a sheet of free printable coins on a piece of yellow cardstock. If you would like to write your own words, use the blank template and add your personalized words with a black pen or marker.
Using your scissors, cut out each gold coin just outside the black outline. Don’t be too fussy about your cutting. Cutting just outside the outline gives the appearance of the edge of the coin.
Apply the glue stick all around the words and sprinkle with gold glitter. Let dry thoroughly. Tap off any excess glitter and you are ready to use your gold coins of appreciation.
Ava loved helping me with this project. We talked about what each word means as she used the glue stick and applied the glitter. It gave us a nice opportunity to talk about what each of these qualities look like and why they are important. She surprised me with how accurately she could describe many of these words.
There are a few ways to use these gold coins of appreciation:
- As a craft and teachable moment in the way I described above.
- Hand them out when you catch your child “in the act” of one of these qualities. Create a reward system where the coins can be cashed in for stickers, prizes or treats.
- Create a simple black pot out of construction paper for each child or family member and glue on a new gold coin of appreciation each day to count down to St. Patrick’s Day.
- Give the coins to your child and help them hand them out to others who they see meeting these qualities.
As you can see from the photo above, Ava is quite proud of her gold coins. How will you use these simple gold coins? What other words of appreciation might you write on your coins? I would love to hear from you in the comments. Wishing you a St. Patrick’s Day full of love and luck! Happy crafting, my friends. Xoxo, -Cristina
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