Handprint Christmas Plates

The handprint Christmas plates are always such a hit with the parents. My favorite Christmas activities for preschoolers are beautiful and sentimental works of art that can be displayed every holiday season for years to come. This project certainly fits that bill!

For parent Christmas gifts this year, my preschool director got in touch with a local paint-your-own-pottery shop. Each kiddo in our preschool creates the most darling hand print Christmas plates for their parents!

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Materials for Hand-Print Christmas Plates

Creating this family Christmas present with the children was lots of fun! As a preschool teacher, you might have everything you need, with the exception of the plates, in your supply closet. And, depending on the amount of Christmas plates you need, they shouldn’t be too had to find! Here is the full list of materials (I may get commissions for purchases made through links in this post):

Small ceramic plates
Paint
Permanent markers
Water-based polyurethane varnish (optional)

For the youngest children, teachers painted their feet and pressed footprints onto the plates. We then added brightly-colored polka dots, the year, and the child’s name. Underneath all of that was written “mistleTOES”.

The toddlers and three-year old students made their hand prints into Rudolphs. With the help of their teachers, their hands were painted brown and pressed onto the plate. They each used red paint on a fingertip to add Rudolph’s nose, and black paint was used to add antlers, eyes, and hooves. A few of us teachers added the decorative polka dots, the year, and each child’s name.

The oldest classrooms, including mine, used their fingerprints to make snowmen. The kiddos painted the background of their plates sky blue. Once the blue was dried, the teachers painted four fingers and the upper palm of each child’s hand with white paint. With the teachers’ help, the students pressed their white prints onto their plates. The children then went back and decorated their snowmen using red, green, and black paints. A few of us teachers added the polka dots, the year, and the children’s names.

If you want to seal the plates, there are a few different options. One option is to place the painted plates (once fully dried) into a cool oven, heat oven to 350 degrees, and heat plates for thirty minutes. Then let them cool off and they will be completely safe to eat from. Another option is to purchase a water-based clear polyurethane varnish. Then, wipe or paint two coats onto each plate, letting it dry completely between coats.

I absolutely adore how well the children’s plates turned out! Each child had a different version, and I swear their personalities came through.

I suggested making some with Engineer, and he was all for it. He chose to make a reindeer version, as well as a snowman version. As you can see from his expression, he was very much into the painting. He helped me with the polka dots, but let me add the year and his name to both plates. He and I decided to keep one for ourselves and give the other to his grandparents. I think ours will be used to set aside cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve.

What fun Christmas keepsakes have your children/students made recently?

Done-for-You Preschool Resources

Planning meaningful lessons for students week after week while balancing other teaching responsibilities and a personal life can be a daunting task. That’s where Preschool Teacher 101 comes in to save you time!

Preschoolers LOVE Christmas activities! Luckily, Preschool Teacher 101 has got you covered! Click on the images below to learn about some of our great Christmas-themed resources.