In two weeks, we will be having Grandparents day in our school. It is a really special day where we honor our Grandparents (or a special Friend for children who do not have grandparents. We make books for them, gift them a gift of a silhouette cut by yours truly, and then have a  ceremony complete with a red carpet and podium. We use a microphone and each child gets to come up and read "I love my grandparents because....."! One year a little girl got up to the microphone, looked out at the audience and said "I don't want to do it with people here! Can they leave? She was the exception though as most can't wait to get up and introduce the audience to their beloved grandparents or special friend! We always have a big crowd and parents video the presentation.



 



This is the book we make for each grandmother. As you can see below, grandmothers range in age from 32 to 90 as far as the children are concerned!



Here is our grandfather book that we make! There is a wide range in age for grandfathers as well!



Here are two samples of silhouettes that I made. I trace each child's face on an overhead, shrink the copy down and then cut the silhouette out of canson paper before I back it on cardstock. We also give one to the parents at the end of the year. Parents really like it and come back and ask us to do older siblings.  Each silhouette is matted individually. I cut these last night.



45 comments

  1. mrs. c // April 26, 2010 at 6:28 PM  

    love the books, love the red carpet and love that the kids get to talk with the microphone! The silhouettes but I have never heard of canson paper...what is that? Love to have more details on how to do them!

  2. Yellow House Knits // April 26, 2010 at 7:12 PM  

    I think Grandparents' Day is such a nice idea. When I was little, my brother and I went to different schools. His school had Grandparents' Day, and mine didn't. I was always so jealous of him. It was like mutual admiration day--he was so proud of our grandparents, and they were so proud of him. What fun for your students (and their grandparents, or special friends).

  3. Kyrstin // April 26, 2010 at 7:15 PM  

    What special keepsakes for grandparents and parents. The silhouettes are wonderful - I have been thinking of doing this with my son!

  4. Anonymous // April 26, 2010 at 7:31 PM  

    Wow I love the silhouettes. I remember doing that at school. We have Grandparent Day here as well. Very special. :o) I love the ages! My two little ones tell everyone I'm twenty two hehe

  5. Teachinfourth // April 26, 2010 at 8:00 PM  

    What a wonderful way to honor those who've volunteered in your class. I know that these individuals must absolutely love it.

  6. Andrea // April 26, 2010 at 8:25 PM  

    What a special time for the kids and the grandparents...beautiful memories in the making.
    Blessings, hugs, and prayers,
    andrea

  7. One Photo // April 26, 2010 at 8:49 PM  

    Well you know, those age ranges are definitely possible!! If my daughter makes me wait as long as I made my mother wait to see her first born's grandchild then I will be 86!!!

  8. Heather // April 26, 2010 at 8:58 PM  

    Aww! How great! Makes me miss my grandparents :(

    I remember my teacher doing the silhouette when I was in kindergarten. I think it is SO awesome. Wish I still had mine :(

    You're such a great teacher :)

  9. Frugal Vicki // April 26, 2010 at 9:06 PM  

    I love those silhouettes. They would make a great gift I think!
    My little guy is having his first graduation for his first session of preschool and Grandpa is coming. I am soo excited. Even though he will have three, lol

  10. Theresa Milstein // April 26, 2010 at 9:33 PM  

    You're so thoughtful! Those silhouettes are the best.

    I love the idea of a grandparents' day. The kids are fun with the age-range. Until my daughter turned seven, she always cut ten years off my age. Loved that!

  11. Anne // April 26, 2010 at 9:58 PM  

    This post brought back memories of my son's preschool days. Since his Grandparents lived in another state, they wrote a letter to him and it was read on the day of the celebration. I will never forget the smile on his face because it was a surprise.

  12. Karen Blados // April 26, 2010 at 10:20 PM  

    You just made my day! NOW I know what I'm doing for a couple people for Mother's Day ... they are going to LOVE the silhouettes!

  13. Marlene // April 26, 2010 at 11:21 PM  

    Those silhouettes look great!!! Wow...why couldn't I have had a kindergarten teacher like you when I was a kid? The one I had was nasty. She used to smack all of us kids with a yardstick on a regular basis. Not even kidding.

  14. Hills N Valleys // April 26, 2010 at 11:29 PM  

    What a wonderful thing to do for grandparents! I so wish we had gparents nearby. Thankfully they send letters/sprizes and love when the kids send them letters or pages from the writing they do.

  15. Hills N Valleys // April 26, 2010 at 11:31 PM  

    What a wonderful thing to do for grandparents! I so wish we had gparents nearby. Thankfully they send letters/sprizes and love when the kids send them letters or pages from the writing they do.

  16. Tree // April 27, 2010 at 1:29 AM  

    Such fun! I've always loved the special books and gifts the kids have made for me for "Muffins with Mom" day (Mother's day). I can't wait for my granddaughters to join in the celebration to celebrate US as grandparents. So cool!! Love the silhouettes too. This reminds me of something my twin, Anthony, wrote about his family...I will have to dig it out and post it too. LOL

  17. Jessica // April 27, 2010 at 8:50 AM  

    This is such a cute project for the kids! Love the silhouettes!

  18. Lauri // April 27, 2010 at 9:47 AM  

    Awesome!! I love the silhouettes. I wish I had something like that from my daughter when she was that age. Sounds like you are a great teacher because you love what you do.

  19. Capricorn Soap Company // April 27, 2010 at 11:00 AM  

    Thanks for following my blog!

    I'm your latest follower here.

    http://www.capricornsoapco.blogspot.com

  20. Kyrstin // April 27, 2010 at 11:56 AM  

    I will let you know if I need help with the silhouettes - thanks! They do reverse their b's and d's. They just recently started to do this - I think they are thinking about it too hard!! Anything would help :)

  21. Amber at The Musings of ALMYBNENR // April 27, 2010 at 12:44 PM  

    What a great idea!

  22. Stacey // April 27, 2010 at 2:15 PM  

    What an awesome idea! I blogged about my children's grandma today. Today was her birthday! Our children do need to know how we felt about them and I just pray everybody has a mother-in-law like I had, she was incredible!!

  23. Adrienne // April 27, 2010 at 2:52 PM  

    Buggy's grand parents live so far away so I know this is special for the kids that do have one that can come...

  24. Unknown // April 27, 2010 at 3:48 PM  

    I love this post because I am one of those grandparents....Olivia was always thrilled to have me come to her classroom....I was her art docent in first and second grade and she just loved it.....Andrew who is four asked me the other day, "why dont you look like a maga? (what they call me)? I asked him what he meant and he said, "you know with old hair and wrinkles...." We come in all ages, all shapes and sizes...it is love that unites us all......

  25. Alexandra // April 27, 2010 at 4:26 PM  

    Adorable! Working with children does keep you young. You can't help but become that way...

  26. Teresa @ ♥ Too Many Heartbeats ♥ // April 27, 2010 at 6:18 PM  

    I {heart} the silhouettes! They are awesome. Unfortunately, over the years, I only ended up with one made of one of our three daughters. :0( I really wish I had one of each of them. My mom has one of each of my siblings and me from when we were in Kindergarten and she has them displayed above her bed. I think they look amazing.

    I think it is incredible that you are taking the time to help your students make their grandparents feel special. That is going to be a wonderful day for the students AND the grandparents. Oh, and FYI, I became a Mimi at the ripe old age of 34. (I refuse to be called anything that sounds like Grandma! :0)

    Thanks SO much for stopping by and reading my blog today. It truly made my day to see you there!! Thanks, too, for all of your very sweet and encouraging comments you left. I really appreciate them more than you know. I hope you will stop back by again really soon. You are definitely welcome any time!

    BTW, I would love to read your uncle's book about JOY. Can you tell me where I can purchase it?

    Well, I hope and pray you are enjoying a wonderfully blessed week. Take care and keep looking up!

    Love in Christ~

    Teresa <><

  27. Willa // April 27, 2010 at 7:24 PM  

    those are all very touching notes.

  28. T.J. // April 27, 2010 at 10:15 PM  

    I just love how children assign age to their parents/grandparents- whatever their favorite number is at the time, it's bound to be assigned to someone's age :)

    Such a cute idea- love the red carpet detail!

  29. A. Segal // April 27, 2010 at 10:52 PM  

    We have grandparents day in my son's kindergarten coming up very soon, and my mother is so excited she's beside herself!

  30. Debby@Just Breathe // April 27, 2010 at 11:12 PM  

    Those are so precious. Hope it's a great day.

  31. Velvet Over Steel // April 27, 2010 at 11:25 PM  

    That is such a nice idea and I Love the cut outs you do! Great idea and keepsake for them!! What a fantastic teacher and person you are!!! :-)
    Hugs,
    Coreen

  32. Veronica Lee // April 28, 2010 at 12:21 AM  

    What a wonderful idea! I totally love the silhouettes. I know I've said this many times before but you are such an awesome teacher.


    Have a nice day!

  33. Gina F. // April 28, 2010 at 1:27 AM  

    My daughter has Grandparents Day at her school too. She really looks forward to that day. She absolutely loves her Grandparents. Those would be fond memories for the child and Grandparents too. I really love the Silhouette idea. HAVE A BLESS DAY!!!

    Gina
    motherof1princessand2princes.blogspot.com

  34. Holly Lefevre // April 28, 2010 at 3:23 AM  

    Sweet...I am so sad we do not live by any grandparents anymore, so they cannot participate in these activities. Love the silhouettes.

  35. Stacy Uncorked // April 28, 2010 at 9:43 AM  

    That is so cool! I'm still chuckling over the little girl who asked if everyone could leave first. Priceless! And I LOVE the books and the silhouettes - I remember having my silhouette done when I was a kid. I think my mom still has those! :) You sound like an awesome teacher! :)

  36. Kyrstin // April 28, 2010 at 4:13 PM  

    Here is my email address
    kyrsting@hotmail.com
    Thanks sooo much! Have a great day!
    Kyrstin

  37. The Mother // April 28, 2010 at 5:50 PM  

    You would probably hate me in real life.

    I'm the mom who never shows up for anything. I hate "facetime" at school. I have tons of facetime with my kids after school.

    The grandparents, though, can still be seduced. I'll send them your way.

  38. Anonymous // April 28, 2010 at 6:04 PM  

    This is such a great idea!! None of the schools here have Grandparents Day, which is sad!

  39. VKT // April 28, 2010 at 6:45 PM  

    I wouldn't hate you Mother. Facetime is for the children. It isn't for me. Some parents just like to show their support for the school. Sorry if you interpreted it that way.

  40. Unknown // April 28, 2010 at 7:26 PM  

    Love this idea and had a good chuckle over the ages of the grandparents. I bet the grandparents had a good chuckle, too!

    Thanks for the visit to my blog. The book series I reviewed, London Confidential, would be perfect for a Christian school library. The first book in the series referenced many Bible verses and the main character lives her life as I would hope my teen daugher would.

    Lisa @ All That and a Box of Rocks
    http://lisaschaffer.blogspot.com

  41. jayayceeblog // April 28, 2010 at 8:34 PM  

    What a wonderful treasure those books must be for the grandparents. Lots of laughs and tears mixed in for sure. Sounds like a very nice thing you do for them!

  42. Shannon // April 28, 2010 at 9:50 PM  

    Oh my goodness! From one teacher to another you do such great things for Grandparents! Those silhouettes are beautiful and will definitely be treasured! I can only imagine the time it takes to do all of this. I am sure it will be very appreciated!

  43. Jackie // April 29, 2010 at 12:26 AM  

    I love the books, i still have a poster with my silhouette as a kindergartner, is that crazy or what? It was a present for mothers day, aww i can't wait for my son to start kindergarten
    -Jackie

  44. Unknown // April 30, 2010 at 2:30 PM  

    Oh how my daughter and mother loved grandparent's day! But alas, she's now in middle school and the admin doesn't do it for the kids many of whom could benefit from having their cherished elder loved ones drop by. It's such a wonderful way to connect generations.

    Avery

  45. Christa @ Little Us // May 1, 2010 at 8:34 PM  

    ooh I wish I was crafty! I would love to make a silhouette of Mase and the other kids!! Very Cool. We don't really celebrate grandparents day around here (at home or in school) But I think we should start!