We thought we’d put some free printable Mother’s Day cards together for those of you who need them. In keeping with the rest of our site, we designed them to be gentle, cute, and magical—the kind of thing children love. We’ve created heart-warming scenes both from the animal kingdom and other, more magical worlds. From baby foxes and koalas to enchanting fairies, each card is designed to capture the special bond between mothers and their little ones.
You should be able to see all the cards we have so far below, just pick one and click or tap on it to get the PDF. So, dive in and select a card (or two!) that speaks to you. Print them out and prepare to make this Mother’s Day not just special, but magical. Because every mother deserves a touch of magic on her special day.
First up we have cute caterpillars and hedgehogs:
Caterpillar Mother’s Day Card
Hedgehog Mother’s Day Card
Next, we have a cards depicting a beautiful mother and baby fox and a bright, sunny scene with mother duck and her duckling:
Fox Mother’s Day Card
Duck & Duckling Mother’s Day Card
Cats and mice may seem very different but they both make lovely Mother’s Day cards:
Cat & Kitten Mother’s Day Card
Mouse Mother’s Day Card
Down at the bottom of the garden, bumblebees and frogs are also celebrating Mother’s Day in these beautiful cards:
Bumblebee Mother’s Day Card
Frog Mother’s Day Card
Looking for animals from warmer climes? Mother Parrot and Mother Koala receive cards from their little ones below:
Parrot Mother’s Day Card
Koala Mother’s Day Card
And now for a bit of magic! Here’s Mother’s Day for dragons and fairies… perfect for your own magical mum:
Cute Dragon Mother’s Day Card
Fairy Mother’s Day Card
Whether you’re a parent looking to craft a memorable Mother’s Day with your child, or a teacher seeking resources for a classroom activity, these cards offer a perfect way to express love and appreciation. They’re all designed with children in mind and we hope you find the perfect match for your little one’s Mother’s Day celebration.
Print onto card and cut out
We recommend you print them onto cardstock rather than paper, so that they are sturdy enough to stand up properly. The images are large so you may need to fit them to the page if you don’t have software that does this for you. You will also need a sharp pair of scissors to cut off the excess around the edges. Inside, there should be plenty of space for children to add their own message, doodle, or signature, making each greeting not just a card, but a keepsake. x
A Bit about the History of Mother’s Day
Have you ever wondered where Mother’s Day came from? Well, in Europe its origins are sad to be very old, perhaps dating back to ancient Rome and Greece. Beyond Europe, some people argue that setting aside a day to celebrate mothers goes even further back – perhaps even to ancient Egypt and the time of the pharaohs.
In the United Kingdom, it is more traditionally known as “Mothering Sunday” and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It takes place on the fourth Sunday of Lent, because on that day people used to return to their hometowns and churches, and therefore their mothers. They would often bring gifts and so over time, this evolved into Mother’s Day.
The American history of Mother’s Day is considered slightly differently, because in 1908 a woman called Anna Jarvis started the tradition by organising the first official Mother’s Day. The celebrations took place in West Virginia and Philadelphia on the second Sunday in May, which Anna chose in memory of her own mother who had died a year earlier. The American president of the time, Woodrow Wilson, made Mother’s Day a legal holiday in 1914. Interestingly, Anna hated the commercialisation of Mother’s Day.
Are you making jams, jellies or preserves? We’ve added these pretty labels to our pantry label range, and you’re welcome to download and print them for free. We’ve only put the name of the fruit on each label, so that they’ll do for jam or jelly or anything of that kind. Hope you find them useful, and good luck with your jam-making project! x
We’re always adding extra colouring in pages here and there throughout our site, so we try to keep this post updated with the latest ones, all in one place:
This printable fruit garland is a great way to decorate your house for summer parties, barbecues or just because you want to freshen up your child’s bedroom. All you need is a printer, a pair of scissors, some wool/string and (optionally) some glue.
We know you can probably make this garland without instructions, but we’ve added some steps below, just to help out. We hope you (and your children) have as much fun making it as we did!
How to Make Your Fruit Garland:
STEP 1
Print the slices of fruit you want to include in your garland by clicking on the pictures below. (Each one will take you to a pdf file of that fruit.)
Lime Slice
Watermelon Slice
Tomato Slice
Pineapple Slice
Orange Slice
Cucumber Slice
Honeydew Melon Slice
Kiwi Fruit Slice
lemon Slice
STEP 2
Carefully cut out your fruit slices and fold them in half. Each one is a perfect circle, to make this easy.
STEP 3
Hang the folded fruit slices over a piece of string or wool. TIP: If you are making a long garland and you find the fruit slices are sliding about, tie knots in the string in between each one, to keep them in place. Alternatively, stretch the string straight (like a washing line) and smear/brush some glue along it, then place the fruit slices where you want them before leaving to dry. Once dry, they should stay in place.
STEP 4
Hang it somewhere in your home! We chose our fireplace because we were a bit short on time… but you can probably think of somewhere much nicer. They do look especially nice in children’s bedrooms.
This week we’ve put together two sets of rhyming clues for treasure hunts. One is a pirate theme, the other is for mermaids. They make a great activity for birthday parties or any other family gathering where there are children to entertain.
What You Need:
A printer, obviously, and a pair of scissors. You’ll also have to think of a prize (or “treasure”) you can put at the end of the hunt, with the very last clue. For the pirate treasure hunt, you’ll need an egg to place one of the clues next to, as you’ll see when you read the rhymes.
If you need more help: Scroll down, there are suggestions for hiding each clue lower down.
Just print the clues, cut them out and hide around the house accordingly. (There are PDF buttons underneath each set of clues to make printing extra-easy.)
When planning your treasure hunt, here are some questions to ask yourself and extra ideas for each clue below.
Whole House or Certain Rooms?
If you’re planning this scavenger hunt for a children’s party, you might want to make it clear which rooms they should look in and which are off-limits – just in case you don’t want a million little hands rifling through every cupboard in the house!
Competition or Team Work Game?
You might also want to decide whether your treasure hunt is a competition or not. Does the first person to get to the end get the prize? Or is it about team work? If it’s the former, make it clear that clues must be left where you found them, so that the next player can find them too. If it’s the latter, make sure there’s some “treasure” for everyone at the end.
Tips and Suggestions for Each Verse of Pirate Clues:
Yo ho, me lovelies! Here be a clue: To find the surprise Ye must seek out a shoe!
Just pop the clue into any shoe that the children are likely to find. If you want to make it easier, you could point them to the right room.
Keep on, me hearties! A pirate’s got grit, Ye’ll find the next clue Where ye like to sit.
Place the clue under/on/under the cushion of a chair. It could be a dining chair, armchair, rocking chair and so on.
Well done, me pirates! You’re moving ahead A secret is written Where ye go to bed.
This one’s easy – just hide the clue in a bed. If it’s a party and you don’t want children in every room, make it clear which bedrooms are off-limits.
Now listen up closely Me beauties, me gems, There’s a landlubber watching The next clue’s on them!
You or another adult should hide the next clue about your (or their) person. Perhaps in a pocket or, if you’re joining in the festivities, under the pirate hat you’ve got on!
Not far to the treasure, Me brave sailing folk! The next one’s beside A thing with a yolk.
You’ll need to place the next clue near an egg. Perhaps in the fridge or egg basket? If you don’t have a real egg in the house, you could always draw one, cut it out, pin it to a wall and put the clue beside it.
Fine work buccaneers! Now hark to me fable: There once was a clue Who hid by a table.
Any table will do here – if you’re feeling crafty, tape the clue underneath it rather than leaving it on top.
Well done me shipmates! You’re right on the brink… The last clue is hiding Not far from a sink.
Could be the bathroom or the kitchen – just hide the clue in or near a sink.
Aha so ye found it! I’m piraty-proud, A toast to yer cunning And courage out loud!
The “treasure” should be left with this clue. It can be anything – chocolate, sweets, a toy. Might be a nice touch to make it a piraty gift, arrr! If this treasure hunt wasn’t a competition, make sure there are enough goodies for everyone. You could always include one of ourpirate certificatesat the end for whoever got there first. This one, for anHonorary Pirateone would be a good fit:
Honorary Pirate Certificate (No name needed)
Tips and Suggestions for Each Verse of Mermaid Clues:
Follow the clues For treasures galore! Swim that way dear mermaids, The first’s on a door.
Pick any door in your house and stick/pin the next clue to it. If you want to make it harder, you could choose a less obvious door, such as the door to a wardrobe… or even a cat door!
Hark to me, merfolk, Crustaceans and fish! The next clue is hiding Inside a dish.
Pop the next clue inside a dish, any dish you know the children will find. Might be best not to choose a valuable one though, in case it gets broken.
Well done, now another…. If you’re in a rush I’ll tell you a secret: It’s near a hairbrush.
Hide the clue near a hairbrush. If the children don’t know where to look, you could always point them towards the correct room.
The next place is strange It’s a manmade machine And the clue is not far From its sparkly bright screen.
This “manmade machine” with a “sparkly bright screen” could be a TV, a laptop, a desktop, or even a tablet. (In theory, it could even be a phone but that might be hard for them to guess.) Hide the next clue near whichever device you have in your house – we always use the TV.
Nice work, lovely creatures, But now understand: A grown-up is hiding A clue in their hand!!!
This could be you or one of the other grown-up friends/parents. Give them the clue before the game starts and tell them fold it up small and hide it in a fist. Pick someone who doesn’t mind having their hand prised open by small fingers!
Now you must swim To and fro, here and there, To find a clue waiting Under a chair.
Any chair in the house will do for the next clue. You could hide it under the chair’s cushion, under the chair itself, or tape it to the back of the chair.
The hunt’s nearly over, You’ve swum many knots, Now look in a room Full of saucepans and pots!
Clearly, the next clue needs to be hidden in the kitchen. You can make finding it as easy or as difficult as you like.
Hooray little merfolk, Here is your prize. You are not only pretty But clever and wise!
This is the last clue so some kind of mermaid treasure should be left here. Sweets/candy is probably the most obvious prize – you could also add one of our free mermaid certificates. The one below would be an easy choice because it doesn’t require you to add a child’s name. (Obviously, if it’s a competition you couldn’t add a name in advance because you wouldn’t know which child was going to get to the end first!):
Mermaid Friend (No name needed)
Attribution: All pirate and mermaid rhymes in the clues above were written by Leone Annabella Betts and have been reproduced on this site with her blessing.
Looking for More Pirate Party Ideas?
From around the internet, we like these:
Make a Pirate’s Treasure Map – This is a great idea for a pirate’s party activity. Just watch the BBC (CBeebies) video then get the children at your party making maps of their own.
Make a Pirate Treasure Chest – If you’ve got a bit of preparation time, this print and craft treasure chest from Tim’s Printables might prove useful. You make one for each guest, pop a couple of sweets inside and put it on the party table.
Buccaneer Eye Patches – Authentic looking eye patches to print out from Real Classroom Ideas.
Please note that we’re not responsible for the content on these pages or the upkeep of their websites.
We’ve been updating our Tooth Fairy and Birthday Fairy notes this week and we thought you might find it useful to see a quick list of which notes are brand new.
We’ll continue adding notes from both these magical characters whenever we can. If you enjoy a particular note, please consider liking it using the social media buttons (Facebook, Twitter etc) at the bottom of the relevant page. This helps us work out what’s popular and what to make more of. Thanks. x
Beyond uploading new notes, you’ll noticed that we’ve reorganised the Tooth Fairy’s messages into categories. We hope this will make it easier to find the note you need.
As for the Birthday Fairy, she has only just started writing messages for our site. We hope to hear more from her soon. To find out when she writes something new, you can follow us on Facebook or Twitter, join our mailing list or simply keep an eye on our Birthday Fairy note page.
Ever wondered which of our printables other visitors like best? Well, we thought we’d put together a list of this month’s top ten for you to browse. We hope you find it of interest.
1. Tooth Fairy Note: Thank You for Your Tooth! – This one didn’t surprise us. It’s a basic Tooth Fairy note suitable for just about any little one who has just lost a tooth.
3. Halloween Party Invitation – Ah, well this will be due to the time of year. (Can’t believe it’s October already!) We suspect it will slip off the top ten list as soon as the 31st has been and gone. Oh, and while we’re on the subject of all things seasonal, British visitors who like our party invitations might like to check out our Bonfire Night one before November 5th.
5. Tooth Fairy Note: Lost Tooth – Ok, this one surprised us. Who would have thought there were so many lost teeth? Then again, if you think about it, it’s probably pretty common for teeth to fall out at school or at friends houses or just about anywhere where they’d easily go astray. We’re glad this little note’s of help.
7. Tooth Fairy Note: Visiting the Dentist – It’s good to see this here. It’s such a sweet, reassuring note if you’ve got a child who’s a bit nervous about a trip to the dentist. Always makes us smile.
8. Blank Fairy Notepaper (pink) – Glad to see this in the top ten. We had no idea if there was any call for it, but it seems quite popular, which is always nice.
9. Santa’s Magic Mirror Writing – It seems that Christmas is creeping in! We’re sure this one will top the list before the year’s out, it’s always popular. It’s a magical way to encourage children to be good as Christmas gets nearer. Clearly some of you just can’t wait… and we don’t blame you!
10. Junior Pirate Certificate – Another editable PDF here, nice and easy just to add the date and your young pirate’s name. Arrrr!
