• 50 ideas
  • Checked October 2026

Art and Craft Ideas for Grandparents Day

Press for three things to draw or make for Grandparents Day: a card, a keepsake or a class project.

Art and Craft Ideas for Grandparents Day

Show all 50
  1. A class tree with a paper leaf for each grandparent's first nameDraw a bare trunk on a big sheet. Cut paper leaves, write a name on each and fill the branches.
  2. A card with a window cut out and your drawing showing throughCut a square from the front. Draw on the inside page where the hole falls, then frame the hole with a border.
  3. A photo frame woven from paper strips in two colorsCut slits in a card border. Weave strips of a second color over and under all the way round.

Next step Things to draw on a cardMore drawings made to give away

All 50 ideas

Cards 13

  • A card front of five things you do together, one in each box Rule five boxes. Draw one small scene in each: baking, a walk, a board game, a story, the garden.
  • A card that says You Are Grand over a grand piano Letter the words first. Under them draw the piano as a curved box on three legs with its lid propped up.
  • A card with a paper pocket on the front holding a folded note Glue three edges of a small paper square to the front. Write a note, fold it twice and slide it in.
  • A card with a window cut out and your drawing showing through Cut a square from the front. Draw on the inside page where the hole falls, then frame the hole with a border.
  • A counting card: one hug, two stories, three cookies, each drawn Rule three rows. Write the number at the start of each and draw that many small things beside it.
  • A forget-me-not card: small blue flowers round a greeting Draw flowers of five round petals with a yellow dot. The forget-me-not is the day's flower in the United States.
  • A heart that unfolds from one sheet, a name on each half Fold a sheet, draw half a heart against the fold and cut. Write your name on one half and theirs on the other.
  • A lift-the-flap garden card with a drawing under every flap Glue four paper flowers on by their top edges only. Under each one draw something you do together.
  • A name card where every letter of what you call them holds a drawing Outline the letters big and hollow. Fit one thing they love inside every letter.
  • A pop-up card where two paper arms open into a hug Fold a strip into a zigzag, glue a paper hand on each end and stick the middle to the fold of the card.
  • A portrait of the two of you, side by side on the card front Draw two ovals at different heights first. Add hair, glasses or a hat last, since those turn it into them.
  • A tall fold-up card: you reaching up, them reaching down Fold a long strip in three so it opens upward. Draw yourself at the foot and one of them at the head.
  • A two-sided card with one grandparent's favorite thing on each side Fold a card so it stands. Draw one side for each of them and write both names along the fold.

Keepsakes with a handprint or a photo 12

  • A drawn album page with corner mounts and a caption under each space Rule four photo spaces. Draw a triangle on each corner and write who and where under every one.
  • A family autograph page: each person signs and adds one tiny drawing Rule a line for everyone in the family. Ask each to sign, then draw one small thing they like beside the name.
  • A paper frame with a photo space and a border of drawn buttons Cut a window in a card rectangle. Draw buttons, shells or leaves round it and tape a photo behind.
  • A paper quilt square that pictures one shared memory Rule a square into nine. Draw the memory in the middle box and a pattern in each of the eight round it.
  • A paper ribbon as tall as you are today, to roll up and give Tape strips end to end until they match your height. Decorate it and write the date at the top.
  • A photo bookmark with a tassel and a pattern down the strip Cut a long strip of card. Leave a square at the top for a small photo and draw a pattern down the rest.
  • A placemat for their table with the meal they cook best Draw a plate, a fork and a spoon at life size on a large sheet. Fill the plate with their best dish.
  • A then-and-now frame: two photo spaces side by side Rule two windows on one card. Label one THEN and one NOW and draw a small clock between them.
  • A traced-hand card that opens like a book, a note in the palm Fold a sheet and trace your hand with the little finger on the fold. Cut it out and write in the palm.
  • Their front door in pencil, your photo taped onto the step Draw the door, the number and the plants beside it. Leave the step clear and tape a small photo there.
  • Two traced hands, theirs and yours, one inside the other Trace the bigger hand first. Lay your own hand in the middle of it and trace again in another color.
  • Your photo face on a drawn body: an astronaut, a chef or a pilot Cut your face from a spare photo and glue it near the top of a card. Draw the suit, the hat and the scene round it.

Things to make 13

  • A booklet called All About My Grandparents Fold three sheets in half. Give each page a heading: their names, their home, their laugh, their best story.
  • A door sign for their room: Grandma's Garden or Grandpa's Workshop Cut a long card with a hole at each top corner. Letter the words and thread a string to hang it.
  • A flip book in which the pair of you wave hello Cut ten small pages and staple one edge. Draw the same two figures on each, arms a little higher every page.
  • A matching game: six cards in three drawn pairs, to play together Cut six cards the same size. Draw each of three things twice, turn the cards face down and take turns finding a pair.
  • A page marker with the hero of your shared story on top Cut a strip of card. Draw the main character at the top and a row of dots below, one for each chapter.
  • A paper bouquet: flower heads on card with green straw stems Draw and cut five flower heads. Tape each to a straw and tie the bunch with a ribbon.
  • A paper crown that says Grand on the front Cut a zigzag strip long enough to go round a head. Letter the word on the middle point and tape the ends.
  • A photo frame woven from paper strips in two colors Cut slits in a card border. Weave strips of a second color over and under all the way round.
  • A picture map from your door to theirs, landmarks along the way Start with your own door. Draw the turns, a landmark at each one and their house biggest of all.
  • A recipe card for something you cook together, with drawn steps Rule a card into three boxes. Draw one step in each and write the name of the dish across the top.
  • A word search with the family's names hidden in it Rule a grid of ten by ten boxes. Write the names in first, across and down, then fill the gaps with any letters.
  • An interview sheet: five questions with a box for each answer Rule five boxes. Write one question in each, such as what game they played at your age, and draw the answer.
  • Four coasters cut from card, one season drawn on each Trace round a mug four times and cut the circles out. Draw spring, summer, fall and winter.

For a class or a visit 12

  • A book of drawn stories: what they did when they were my age Ask first, then draw the answer on one page with a caption. Bind the pages of the whole class together.
  • A class recipe book with one drawn family dish from each child One page each: the name of the dish, who cooks it and a drawing of it on the plate. Staple the pages.
  • A class tree with a paper leaf for each grandparent's first name Draw a bare trunk on a big sheet. Cut paper leaves, write a name on each and fill the branches.
  • A paper tablecloth for the visit, with a drawing square at each seat Rule a square at every place on a roll of paper. Draw in your own square and leave the next one for a visitor.
  • A wall of portraits, each child's grandparent in a paper frame Give out cards of one size. Draw head and shoulders, name the sitter underneath and hang them in a grid.
  • A WELCOME banner, each letter filled in by a different child Hand out one sheet a letter. Each child fills a hollow capital with pattern, then the sheets are strung in order.
  • A wreath made from every child's traced hand Trace and cut one hand each. Overlap them in a ring, fingers out, and glue them to a card circle.
  • Cheerful cards for a care home, to hand to anyone you meet Draw something with no name needed: a garden, a pet, a sunny window. Write hello inside.
  • One big card that everyone in the class signs Fold a poster-sized sheet in half. Draw a border together and leave the middle open for names.
  • Paper rings joined in a chain, a grandparent's name on every ring Give everyone a strip. Write a name and draw a small picture on it, then join the strips into loops.
  • Placemats to take on a visit, with a maze drawn in one corner Draw a border, a simple maze in one corner and a big hello in the middle of a large sheet.
  • Table tents for visitors, each with a lettered name and a flower Fold a card in half so it stands. Letter the visitor's name and draw one flower beside it.

How it works

Art and craft ideas for Grandparents Day, which in the United States falls on September's first Sunday after Labor Day. The 50 ideas cover cards, keepsakes, things to make and projects for a class or a visit.

Read the full guide

Cards and keepsakes a child can make

Cards opens with A portrait of the two of you, side by side on the card front. Keepsakes with a handprint or a photo holds things to keep on a shelf, such as Two traced hands, theirs and yours, one inside the other. Each idea says how to start.

For a class or a care-home visit

For a class or a visit has projects that many hands finish together: One big card that everyone in the class signs, or Table tents for visitors, each with a lettered name and a flower.

  • The forget-me-not is the day's flower in the United States: five round petals and a yellow dot.
  • Write the date on the back of anything with a handprint.

Questions and answers

When is Grandparents Day?

In the United States it is September's first Sunday after Labor Day, so it moves each year. The day was proclaimed nationally in 1978.

What can a young child make for Grandparents Day?

Press once, then choose Easy in the list under the button: A paper ribbon as tall as you are today, to roll up and give, or A paper crown that says Grand on the front.

What can a class make for Grandparents Day?

One shared piece, or one small piece each. A class tree with a paper leaf for each grandparent's first name fills a wall, and Placemats to take on a visit, with a maze drawn in one corner stay on the tables afterwards.

How is this different from things to draw for your grandma?

Things to draw for your grandma is drawings for one grandmother on any day. This list is for the September day and both grandparents, with keepsakes and things to make.

More tools

Show 6 more

Browse Drawing Ideas