Sunday, September 9 is Grandparents Day this year. If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know that, over the years, I've created several activities designed to help kids either learn more about their grandparents or make emotional connections with them. Grandparents are the embodiments of family history to children, and we can work to get children more interested in their family history just by tapping into the special relationship grandparents and grandchildren already share.
Today, I've created a few simple Grandparent worksheets that even the youngest children can use to celebrate and interact with their grandparents. All of the worksheets involve drawing. Drawing pictures allows even the youngest children to get their 'thoughts' down on paper, and I wanted these worksheets to be as age-inclusive as possible. (For each set of worksheets, I've included versions with a few different forms of grandparent 'names:' Grandma, Nana, or Mamaw and Grandpa, Papa, or Papaw. If you would like a version made with different grandparent name, just let me know; it's super-easy for me to adjust one for your situation.)
The first set of worksheets is for children to draw a portrait of their grandparent. This can be done with their grandparent 'sitting' for the portrait or it can be done from a photo or from the child's memory. Your child may even want to present their portrait as a gift to their grandparent. (Click on either image below to download PDF. It is 6 pages long.)
Today, I've created a few simple Grandparent worksheets that even the youngest children can use to celebrate and interact with their grandparents. All of the worksheets involve drawing. Drawing pictures allows even the youngest children to get their 'thoughts' down on paper, and I wanted these worksheets to be as age-inclusive as possible. (For each set of worksheets, I've included versions with a few different forms of grandparent 'names:' Grandma, Nana, or Mamaw and Grandpa, Papa, or Papaw. If you would like a version made with different grandparent name, just let me know; it's super-easy for me to adjust one for your situation.)
The first set of worksheets is for children to draw a portrait of their grandparent. This can be done with their grandparent 'sitting' for the portrait or it can be done from a photo or from the child's memory. Your child may even want to present their portrait as a gift to their grandparent. (Click on either image below to download PDF. It is 6 pages long.)
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The next two sets of worksheets also involve drawing, but the purpose of them is to get the child to ASK his or her grandparent 'What are your favorite things to do?' and 'What are your favorite foods?' With these two questions, a child is interviewing a family elder and recording that person's response in the form of drawings. Now, these aren't earth-shattering questions, but they are questions that a young child understands and finds interesting. The goal is to simply show a young child how to ask a person questions about himself or herself and write down what they are told. (That's the essence of an interview.) Hopefully, with time, the child will grow to ask their grandparents more in-depth questions about themselves and their lives. (Click on each image below for a six-page PDF.)
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These sets of worksheets are deliberately basic and uncomplicated. I wanted them to be easy to reproduce, and I WANT you to use them at whatever Grandparents Day function your church, school, elder care home, community center, or library may be hosting or sponsoring. Below are links to other grandparent-related activities I've written about in the past:
Grandparent Pyramid
50 Books for Grandparents Day
Grandparent Butterflies
Grandparents As Teachers
In Grandma's Kitchen (printable)
Roll A Memory Game
Books About Grandparents and Memory Journals
Grandparent Pyramid
50 Books for Grandparents Day
Grandparent Butterflies
Grandparents As Teachers
In Grandma's Kitchen (printable)
Roll A Memory Game
Books About Grandparents and Memory Journals
©2018 Emily Kowalski Schroeder
