When your little ones are all grown up, you will be so happy that you took the time to make this school year memory jar each and every school year to open up and read all the good times. The new school year has just started in my neck of the woods. Make this memory jar to encourage your children to try their hardest each and every day in order to be able to add a new accomplishment. Of course when your children are too young and havenโt quite learned how to read and write, you can ask them about something fun that happened at school that particular day and write it for them.
Another great idea to use this jar is to encourage good behavior at school. Use it as a reward system and if they do good the whole week at school, then they can add a new and fun memory each week. Another great encouragement of using this jar is to remind your kids of all the great things they do. School and growing up can be hard sometimes. When they seem to be struggling or having a hard time with schoolwork, pull out a note from the jar and remind them of the great things they have done in the past and all that they are capable of doing if they will only try their hardest.
At the end of each school year, it would also be fun to pull out all the notes and take turns reading them out loud. This will also boost your childโs confidence by reminding them how far they have come within the last school year and how much smarter they already are.
If you are a teacher, the memory jar would be a fun way to remember each class of students that you teach each year. You could have the students write their name and an accomplishment or memory that is special to them on a notepad throughout the school year and then place it in the jar. These are memories that you would have for many years to come of each of your precious students.
Pictures and videos are great ways to remember important parts of life and record memories. But writing the memories down makes them so much more personalized in their own little handwriting at each grade level. Plus many of the small but meaningful everyday accomplishments are not always taken in a picture or video either. This is a great way to remember those little things in life.
What you will need:
- Clear, glass jar
- Mod podge
- Foam brush
- Cricut
- Cricut Alphabet cartridge
- Cricut tools and accessories
- Scrapbook paper
- Foam mounting dots
- Photo adhesives or adhesive runner
- Round corner punch
- Twine
- Ribbon
- Scissors
- Notepad
- Crayons/pencils
First I would like to begin by saying that this is a jar that can be personalized according to your childโs favorite things or style that you choose. Using decorative pieces that your child likes will also be another great memory as you look at how each jar changes in appearance every year. I am going to explain how I choose to make mine though below.
Have your layout and design ready to go before starting with any specific scrapbook paper or stickers you may need.
Use the Cricut to cut out the letters and numbers that you will need depending on your childโs specific school year. I used the Cricut Alphabet cartridge which has a standard but also cute font that worked perfect for this style.
If needing more specific instructions with how to use the Cricut, check out this 80โs sign that was made with the Cricut with step-by-step instructions.
Cut out a rectangle or shape to use to place your letters and numbers on before attaching to the jar. I found a scrapbook paper pad that had the writing tablet paper design and thought it was perfect. I cut my rectangle to be 4โx3โ.
Then using the foam brush, brush a light coat of mod podge over the entire rectangle.
While still wet before completely drying, place your letters and numbers on the rectangle. Brush another coat of mod podge over the top of the letters and numbers to help them stick and lay flat. Do not worry if you have never used mod podge before and everything seems to have a white coat of paint over it. You did not ruin it. I promise. It will dry clear.
Let the rectangle dry completely before moving on. Once dry, brush a coat of mod podge over the part of the glass where you want to place the rectangle.
While still wet, place the rectangle on the glass jar and then brush another coat of mod podge on the top of it to help it to adhere to the glass and lay flat.
Add any dรฉcor or stickers to the jar at this point. I cut out from a piece of scrapbook paper, a little half-moon shape that said โNotesโ to add a little something extra.
I also thought a tag hanging around the mouth of the jar would also be cute. The tag hanging on mine was actually just a plain yellow tag design from the same scrapbook paper pad that I used for this entire project. I cut it out and then also cut out several pencils that were on the same paper and adhered them to the tag using scrapbook adhesive squares. Use foam dots on certain shapes to raise them up and add an extra dimension.
Make a hole through the top of the tag which I found was easiest and cleanest looking using a straight pin until the hole was large enough to place twine through it. Measure your twine by first placing it around the mouth of the jar and then cutting it. Place the twine through the hole of the tag and wrap around the mouth. Tie a knot in the end to keep it from sliding off the top of the jar.
Measure the ribbon in the same way and wrap around the mouth of the jar for a little extra color. Tie the ribbon in a classic bow.
Once you are satisfied with your jar and the dรฉcor, now all you need is a notepad and a few crayons or pencils to start taking notes and making memories.
This project is also a fun way to get your kids involved helping you and also using their imaginations to design something that shows off each of their individual personalities.
Help your kids make their own school year memory jar to remember good times for many years to come. This jar is just a great way to incorporate what I truly do believe in. Itโs the little things in life that really do matter that we must not forget. Live for the moment and enjoy the little things in life!
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