Estimated time to complete activitiy:
Up to half hour per pot.

Materials needed:
Terra cotta pot(s)

Acrylic paints (not tempera!)

Slim paintbrushes

Foam fabric stamps (optional)

Clear acrylic finish spray

Potting soil, small spade

Colorful plant with flowers

Drop cloth/newspapers

Cup of water (brush rinse/soak)

Old Clothes on the Artist!!!

Description:
Let your child create a custom work of Art on the pot, and choose a plant to give to the teacher(s).

Instructions:
Paint designs on the pot; allow to dry. Spray with the clear finish, inside and out, and allow to dry Very completely. Select your plants; fill the pot with dampened soil, and add your plant(s).

Other suggestions or comments:
Too small a pot, and the soil will dry too quickly; too large a pot, the child may have trouble presenting it to the teacher, the teacher may have trouble finding a lovely spot to place it, etc.

I found all sorts of fancy, detailed (and pricey) methods for painting pots, but the truth is, this is a Loving Gesture, not a Ming Vase. It is meant to last for however long it will, que sera, sera...

We bought new bottles of acrylic paint, and considering the small amounts of paint necessary, some of the dibs n' dabs I had at home might have been sufficient. The stamps I was so sure would be the mega-hit with the 12 year old were minimally used (but will be fun to use in the future for other things); she had Very definite ideas of what she wanted to paint! I let her go her own way; her teachers, her project. My role in this amounted to cleaning the brushes before the paint got too crusty on them.

You can buy matching saucers, but that will make the gift harder for the child to carry. Often an inverted lid (margarine, cool whip) functions about as well to protect a surface. Teachers are pretty creative about such matters.

Instead of painting images that would remind the teacher of her, my daughter chose to paint things related to the teacher. This is the end of her 6th grade year, and she made these for some other school staff, too, as a parting gesture. The librarian has books painted on hers; the media specialist has a computer; the music teacher has notes; the classroom teacher has red Volkswagen bugs! The stamps got used here and there; cats, flowers, mice running 'round the rim. She put her own "stamp" of individuality on each one, which takes more time than just utilizing the stamps. To each his/her own.

If you make several, it does take the better part of an afternoon, and it's a very good Outdoor project in good weather.

Make sure to have enough pots that the child can keep one. This will also give you the chance to see how your painting/finishing technique holds up over time, or if there's anything you'd care to change. We left the basic color as terra cotta, because we like it!

We used a laundry basket to transport several of these flower pots to school; I carried the basket, she distributed her gifts. There were old towels placed between the pots to prevent breakage. There's no way a kid should take this kind of thing on the bus, and it's Heartbreak City if it doesn't survive long enough to be a gift!