I loved Valentine’s Day when I was little, and there was one big reason for this: We were allowed to create our own Valentine’s Day card holders from our imagination. We would all bring a small box from home and then we would just go to town with glue, crayons, markers, scissors, and construction paper. This was the way it was done every year throughout elementary school. I was not the child that was brilliant or a good athlete or a social butterfly, but I was creative. So activities like a DIY Valentine’s Day box helped build my self esteem.
I’ll let you in on a secret: I’m not a huge fan of the cookie cutter style card holders. Yes, they can be adorable. But there’s far more creativity with an empty box and a few supplies. So that’s my suggestion for you this year. Let children create card holders and see what they come up with. Creativity is an important skill that frequently gets shoved off to the side in our world of excessive testing.
Looking for more Valentine’s Day creativity? Check out this activity!
Valentine Safari
Gather an assortment of art supplies, glue, construction paper, and several sizes of heart-shaped tracers. To make the project, trace and cut out one or more hearts. Glue it (them) to contrasting colors of construction paper. Use a marker or crayons to convert the heart(s) into a wild animal. The more you use your imagination, the wilder your animals will be!
Love it! When my son was in grade school, he made his box to look like a frog. He added “HOPPY Valentine’s Day.” His classmates placed their Valentine cards into the mouth. I thought it looked so cute and tied into his love for frogs.
I love this idea! I, like many other preschool teachers, am a collector of containers and other things; so I certainly can bring enough of them fo this great project!