Three generations on one sofa: grandma, mum and youSeat them in age order and find what repeats: the same chin, the same way of folding arms. Draw that first.
A crown with a jewel for each childA band that curves like a smile, five points on top, and one big jewel per child with a name under each.
Mum as the queen of hearts on a playing cardHead and shoulders at the top, then the same again upside down at the bottom, like a court card. A heart in two corners.
A big bear hugging a small bearTwo pear shapes, one inside the other's arms. Only the small bear's ears and eyes show above the big arm.
A bunch of violets held in a small fistOn Mothering Sunday in Britain children gathered violets for their mothers. Dark violet flowers, kidney-shaped leaves.
A butterfly whose wings are two heartsDraw the body first, then a heart on its side each way. Match the patterns so the left wing mirrors the right.
A crown with a jewel for each childA band that curves like a smile, five points on top, and one big jewel per child with a name under each.
A daisy chain laid out in a heart shapePencil a heart lightly, then sit small daisies along it, each stem threaded through the next. Rub the heart out.
A flower for everyone in the family, tallest to smallestOne stem each, in height order, with a name on every leaf. Pets get a daisy at the end of the row.
A flower with a reason I love you on every petalDraw the petals big enough to write in. Eight petals, eight reasons, and her name in the middle.
A heart inside a heart, for a grandma or a stepmumThe day is for anyone who mothers you. Letter her own name in the inner heart, not a title.
A hug seen from behind, small arms round her waistYou only see her back, two small hands meeting and a pair of feet on tiptoe. No faces to get wrong.
A jar of folded promise notes, a job written on eachA big jar with a label and a lid. Show three notes unfolded in front: wash up, walk the dog, tidy my room.
A mother duck with ducklings in a line behind herOne big teardrop shape and five small ones, evenly spaced. Make the last duckling late and hurrying.
A rainbow of hearts, the largest on the outsideSix rainbow colours. 8 x 8 in canvas. Paint the biggest heart first, let it dry, then each smaller heart inside it.
A rainbow that ends at her nameDraw the arcs from the outside in so they stay even. One end sits on a cloud, the other lands on the first letter.
A reasons I love you comic, one reason per boxRule six boxes. One small drawing and a few words in each: you find my shoes, you sing in the car.
A rose built from one spiralIn Finland grown-up children bring their mothers roses. Start with a tight spiral and wrap wider petals round it.
A secret message that appears under a wash of paintWhite wax crayon, two watercolours. 5 x 7 in watercolour paper. Write first, pressing hard, then wash colour over it.
A self-portrait for her to keepUse a mirror, not a photo. Start with the egg of the head, mark the eyes halfway down, and sign it in the corner.
A selfie pose, faces squashed togetherTwo heads overlapping, cheeks pressed, one arm reaching towards the viewer and getting bigger as it comes.
A sign on the kitchen door: closed, Mum's day offIn Indonesia, where Mother's Day is 22 December, mothers are given the day off from chores. Hang the sign on string.
Balloons spelling MUM, one letter per balloonThree ovals at different heights, a fat capital in each, strings gathered in one hand at the bottom of the card.
Handprint tulips, one print for each childAny bright colour and leaf green. 9 x 12 in paper. Press a painted hand down, fingers together, and add a stem once dry.
Her favourite things in a grid of six boxesRule six boxes and ask her for six answers: a food, a place, a song, a colour, an animal, a time of day.
Iced buns covered in hundreds and thousandsBristol's mothering buns are plain yeast buns, iced and sprinkled, eaten for breakfast on Mothering Sunday.
Mum and me as stick figures holding one giant heartOne tall figure, one short, a heart between them as wide as both. Give each figure one detail: her hair, your hat.
Mum as a superhero, cape and allHands on hips, feet apart, cape blowing sideways. Put the first letter of her name on her chest, and invent her power.
Our house with Mum in the doorwayA square, a triangle roof and a door in the middle. She fills the doorway, one hand up, with the light behind her.
Your hand traced, with a heart in the palmSpread the fingers, draw round them slowly and lift the hand away. Colour the heart and write one word in each finger.
Cute 12
A great crested grebe with striped chicks on its backGrebe parents carry their chicks on their backs. The chicks' heads are striped black and white, like humbug sweets.
A hen with chicks peeking out from under her wingA round hen sitting low, feathers fluffed out. Three small faces and one pair of feet show under the wing edge.
A kangaroo with a joey looking out of the pouchA joey sticks its head out of the pouch for a few weeks before it climbs out for the first time.
A koala with a joey riding on her backA koala joey lives in the pouch for six to seven months, then rides on its mother's back. Two round shapes, four ears.
A mother and baby elephant on a plain pink groundTwo greys, white, one pink. 8 x 10 in canvas. Flat grey shapes first, then the darker grey for ears and shadows.
A mother and baby elephant, trunks curled togetherThe calf stands under her chin. Draw both trunks as one S shape where they meet, then split it in two.
A mother bird feeding chicks in a nestSky blue, brown, pink, yellow. 8 x 10 in canvas. Drag a nearly dry brush in curves for the twigs of the nest.
A sea otter afloat, her pup on her chestA mother sea otter floats on her back and cradles the pup on her chest, out of the cold water.
A sea otter pup wrapped in kelp, waitingWhile the mother dives for food the pup floats on the surface, sometimes wrapped in kelp so it cannot drift away.
A teacup with flowers growing out of itA cup and saucer seen from the side, stems crowding the rim and one flower drooping over the handle.
A teapot pouring hearts into a cupA round pot tipped forward, a stream of small hearts from the spout, and a cup below that is already nearly full.
Nesting dolls of grandma, mum and you, big to smallThree skittle shapes in a row, each with a round face and a painted shawl. Give each doll its owner's hair.
For cards 12
A bookmark for her book, a vine climbing its lengthA tall thin strip. One wavy stem from bottom to top, leaves alternating left and right, a flower at the very top.
A bouquet in her favourite colour, tied with stringPick one colour and draw every flower in shades of it. The stems cross at the string and fan out below.
A handwritten letter with a drawn borderAnna Jarvis, who founded the American holiday, wanted handwritten letters, not bought cards. Border first, then write.
A heart left white in a field of dabbed flowersThree pinks, leaf green. 8 x 8 in canvas. Mask a heart with tape, dab flowers over everything, then peel the tape.
A new mum holding a swaddled babyThe blanket is a long bean shape across her arms. Show only the top of the baby's head and one tiny fist.
A plate of croissants and a coffee pot on the stairsIn Belgium the father brings croissants and pastries to the mother in bed. Draw the plate halfway up the stairs.
A red carnation and a white carnation side by sideBy custom a red carnation is worn for a mother who is living and a white one for a mother who has died.
A spray of flowers growing in from one corner of the cardStart the stems off the page at bottom left and let them reach for the middle. The empty corner holds the words.
A wreath of flowers round the word MumDraw a light circle, space five big flowers round it, then fill the gaps with leaves and buds. Letter the middle last.
Mum as the queen of hearts on a playing cardHead and shoulders at the top, then the same again upside down at the bottom, like a court card. A heart in two corners.
Music notes drifting up to her windowIn Mexico the day, 10 May, traditionally starts with the song Las Mañanitas, sometimes played by a mariachi.
Red carnations and roses wrapped in paperFlowers often given to mothers in Japan, where the day is the second Sunday of May. Fold the paper like a collar.
Flowers 10
A bouquet seen from above, a circle of flower headsThree pinks, cream, sap green. 8 x 8 in canvas. Dab each head with a round brush, big ones first, leaves in the gaps.
A carnation corsage pinned to a cardiganIn South Korea some parents wear a carnation corsage on the left chest on Parents' Day, 8 May. Red and pink flowers.
A single carnation with fringed petalsAnna Jarvis made the carnation the day's emblem because it was her mother's favourite flower. Zigzag every petal edge.
A wild carnation in a glass bottlePinkish purple, grey-green, white. 5 x 7 in canvas. The wild flower is bright pinkish purple; the leaves are grey-green.
A wildflower meadow under a sponged skySky blue, white, two greens, red, yellow. 8 x 10 in canvas. Sponge the sky, pull grass upward, dot the flowers last.
Her garden gate with roses over the archSage, white, rose pink, grey. 11 x 14 in canvas. Paint the gate first, then dot roses over the arch with a cotton bud.
Mum with flowers in her hair, one for each childDraw the hair as one big shape, then tuck the flowers in along the parting. Different flower for each child.
Three flower pots in a row, a different bloom in eachTerracotta, three flower colours, green, cream. 12 x 6 in canvas. Pots first as flat shapes, flowers dabbed above.
Tulips in a jam jar, stems bent by the waterRed, yellow, leaf green, pale blue. 8 x 10 in canvas. One stroke per petal. Shift each stem sideways at the water line.
White chrysanthemums in a jugAustralia's traditional Mother's Day flower; May is autumn there. Build each head from rows of narrow petals.
Portraits 8
A hug painted as two overlapping colour shapesBlue and yellow watercolour. 8 x 10 in paper. One figure in each colour, left to mix to green where they overlap.
A portrait of Mum in profile, framed like a cameoSide view in an oval. Forehead, nose and chin first, then the hair as one shape. Keep the background plain and dark.
Her hands doing what they always doKnitting, typing, potting a plant. Hands are portraits too. Block the palm as a box and each finger as three tubes.
Mum and child baking, flour on both nosesPut the bowl between them and both pairs of hands in it. One dot of white on each nose tells the story.
Mum and child forehead to forehead, seen from the sideTwo profiles facing each other, touching at the brow. The gap between them makes a shape too, so draw that as well.
Mum at her job, with the tools of it around herA uniform, a laptop, a van, a stethoscope. Ask her what she uses most and put that in her hands.
Mum carrying a sleeping child, head on her shoulderHer hip pushes out to one side to take the weight. The child's arm hangs loose and heavy, fingers open.
Three generations on one sofa: grandma, mum and youSeat them in age order and find what repeats: the same chin, the same way of folding arms. Draw that first.
To paint 1
Her houseplants on a windowsill, against the lightDeep green, olive, terracotta, pale yellow. 8 x 10 in canvas. Paint the bright window first, then dark leaves over it.
How it works
All 70 Mother's Day drawing ideas here are things to make for her: flowers with the customs behind them, portraits of the two of you, card fronts, animal mothers and 14 subjects to paint. Each has a hint for the first lines. Deal three, then pick a group such as Kids can do.
Read the full guide
What to draw for your mom with one evening left
Pick the group that fits the person drawing. Kids can do holds 27 easy things to draw for your mom, all plain shapes: Your hand traced, with a heart in the palm needs a pencil and a steady minute. Portraits holds 15 poses for older hands. A hug seen from behind, small arms round her waist has no faces to get wrong.
Mother's Day painting ideas, each with its colours named
To paint holds 14, and each hint gives a surface size and one technique as well. Among the Mother's Day canvas painting ideas a child can finish is A heart left white in a field of dabbed flowers: mask the heart with tape, dab three pinks over everything, then peel.
Things to draw for Mother's Day need not be flowers, but 21 here are. A single carnation with fringed petals is the day's own emblem, chosen by its founder.
Unsure what to draw for Mother's Day when the card is for someone else who mothers you? A heart inside a heart, for a grandma or a stepmum takes any name.
For cards holds 24 Mother's Day card drawing ideas. Letter whatever you call her, Mum, Mom, Mam or her first name, in pencil before any ink goes on.
Questions and answers
When is Mother's Day?
It depends where she lives. The US, Canada and Japan keep the second Sunday in May. Britain and Ireland keep Mothering Sunday, the fourth Sunday in Lent, three weeks before Easter. Mexico uses 10 May, Norway the second Sunday of February, Thailand 12 August and Indonesia 22 December.
Who started Mother's Day?
Anna Jarvis founded the American holiday. The first official service was held on 10 May 1908 at a church in Grafton, West Virginia, where she delivered 500 carnations, her mother's favourite flower. It became a national holiday in 1914. Jarvis wanted handwritten letters, not bought cards, so a card you drew yourself fits.
Which ideas suit a whole class?
Choose Kids can do, press five times, let each child choose. A flower with a reason I love you on every petal works at any age, because a reason can be one word or a sentence. Some children will be drawing for a grandma, an aunt or a carer, so say first that any name can go in the middle.