Celebrating Mother's Day with Montessori Activities

God could not be everywhere, so he created mothers. – Jewish Proverb

The history of Mother's Day dates back to ancient Greece, where festivals were held to honor Rhea, the mother of the gods. Later, early Christians honored Mary, the mother of Christ, on the fourth Sunday of Lent. This holiday came to include all mothers and was renamed Mothering Sunday. In 1907, Anna M. Jarvis, a Philadelphia teacher, wanted to honor her mother and began a movement to set aside a national day for mothers. In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the second Sunday in May to be a national holiday to honor and celebrate mothers.

The poet William Makepeace Thackeray said "Mother is the name for god in the lips and hearts of little children". Our mothers love us unconditionally, kiss our hurts away, listen to our stories, mend our broken hearts, and help us grow into capable adults. They kiss us goodbye and love us when we come back home. They are who we call for when we have a nightmare, are scared, or hurt. They are who we call when we have good news. They are, in fact, our best friend.

Enjoy a collection of Mother's Day facts and activities that your students and their mothers will love!

Celebrating Mother's Day with Montessori Activities

Mother in different languages

Young children enjoy learning that familiar words sound different in other languages. It's also interesting to note that 52% of the words for mother have either ma/me/mo or na/ne/no in the root syllable! Here are a few examples:

• French – Maman
• Spanish - Mamá
• German –Mami
• Italian – Madre
• Serbian – Majka
• Hungarian – Anya
• Greek – Màna
• Hawaiian – Makuahine

A Love Story for Mommy

Love notes to mommy become treasured memories. Children of all ages can write and illustrate their own love story for mom. Use acid free paper as the front and back cover and laminate them for a book that will be treasured forever. Children can expand on each of the following topics to create their book:

• You make me laugh when…
• When I'm sad you…
• I have so much fun when we…
• I remember when we…
• If you were a food, you would be… (because…)
• I wish we could…
• The three things I love most about you are…
• Older children can think of their own topics if they wish.

Mother's Day Acrostic Poem

An acrostic poem uses the letters in a topic word to begin each line. All the lines in the poem should relate back to the main topic. Remember, Grandmothers are important in the lives of children, too. "Sometimes our grandmas and grandpas are like grand-angels." ~Lexie Saige

Greatest love of all
Ready to listen to my stories
Always ready with a hug or a kiss
Nap taker
Dreams with me
Maker of cookies
Around when you need to feel special

Priceless Mother's Day Gifts

This is a good activity to do when sitting in circle. Ask the children what they could give their mother for Mother's Day if they had no money to spend. Brainstorm ideas with the children while writing them on the board. Some possible answers might be…

• Breakfast in bed
• A family picnic
• A day at the beach or lake
• Mom's day out of the kitchen
• A clean house or the laundry done
• Washing her car for her
• Spending time together
• Reading or playing a game together
• Quiet time so she can take a nap

When is Mother's Day?

While Mother's Day is celebrated on the second Sunday in May in the United States and Canada, it is celebrated at different times of the year in other parts of the world. Challenge older students to find out other dates for celebrating mothers and motherhood. Create a calendar with all the dates and plan on celebrating Mother's Day all year long!

Whatever you decide to do, you are helping children honor those they love and create happy memories that will last a lifetime.

Ideas for: Mother’s Day crafts

Related NAMC Blogs:

• Montessori Curriculum Ideas for Mother's Day: Herbal Pillows and Tin Punching
• Mother’s Day in the Montessori Classroom

As much as possible, NAMC’s web blog reflects the Montessori curriculum as provided in its teacher training programs. We realize and respect that Montessori schools are unique and may vary their schedules and offerings in accordance with the needs of their individual communities. We hope that our readers will find our articles useful and inspiring as a contribution to the global Montessori community.
© North American Montessori Center - originally posted in its entirety at Montessori Teacher Training on Sunday, May 4, 2008.