20+ Easy End Of School Year Crafts To Celebrate The Last Days

The final weeks of school are a special time for celebrating memories and small milestones. These end of school year crafts are designed for preschool through early elementary kids and are great for parents, teachers, caregivers, and homeschoolers.

Use them in the classroom, at home, or in daycare with simple supplies and minimal prep. Each idea helps build creativity and fine motor skills as you create keepsakes. For more seasonal inspiration, browse our summer crafts collection.

Colorful graphic reading “20+ End of School Year Crafts for Busy Classrooms,” surrounded by examples of student craft activities and end-of-year projects.

Fun Classroom Crafts for May

Summer Crafts

Two completed sun name crafts on blue paper, each featuring a smiling yellow sun with folded orange rays and personalized cloud name cutouts labeled “Maggie” and “Theo”—a bright and fun preschool weather activity.

Paper Sun Name

A free template turns colored cardstock into a big smiling face, with snipped paper strips that fold up for a 3D pop. After gluing the eyes and cheeks, kids add cloud-shaped letters underneath and finish with a quick marker touch for a personalized keepsake.

Hang it up during the last week of school, then send it home as a cheerful start to summer break.

nontoygifts.com

Paper Summer Bucket List

Printable patterns, cardstock, scissors, and glue come together to form a sturdy paper pail with a little shovel detail tucked into the handle. Kids fill out the writing pages with ideas and drawings, then attach those pages to the back using a black marker for headings and notes.

Great for the final days of school when everyone's counting down, and kids want something they can keep looking at all break long.

Related: Summer Cutting Activity Pages

Hand holding a completed watermelon paper craft character with big eyes, smiling face, red pipe cleaner arms, and green pipe cleaner legs. Another finished craft is visible in the background.

Paper Watermelon

Using a printable template, colored paper pieces get layered with glue into a bright slice shape, and a sweet face gets added on top. Pipe cleaners become bendy arms and legs, taped on the back so kids can pose their finished character for silly end-of-year photos.

Perfect for the last week of school when students need a quick win before summer break kicks off.

taminglittlemonsters.com

Paper Plate Boat

A small paper plate becomes two simple shapes after cutting—then kids paint them before assembling with glue. Torn strips of light and dark blue construction paper create textured waves, and a jumbo popsicle stick holds the sail upright like a mast.

Set it up as an end-of-year art station, then let kids bring it home for pretend-play days during summer break.

Also try: Summer Worksheets

Shark Tissue Paper

Colored cardstock and tissue paper squares turn a printable outline into a textured collage that kids can build section by section with glue. After adding the eye pieces and teeth, a quick trim along the dashed line finishes the shape neatly for display.

Perfect for the last days of school when you want a calm, fine-motor project that feels hands-on but still low-prep.

www.craftymorning.com

Sunflower Noodles

Rotini noodles are painted yellow on a paper plate, then glued around a brown-painted fingerprint circle. Green pipe cleaners add a stem and leaf, giving kids a mixed-media project that feels different from standard paper cutouts.

A fun pick for end-of-year classrooms when supplies are running low, and students still want something bright to show off.

Handprint Pineapple

Colored cardstock, scissors, and glue create a cute fruit shape, then kids add marker details and a friendly face with the template pieces. A traced handprint on green paper becomes the leafy top, so every child ends up with a personalized keepsake without using paint.

Send it home in the last week of school as a fun reminder of how much their little hands have grown.

merakimother.com

Summer Paper Weaving

Cardstock and printed scrapbook paper form an over-under pattern once kids cut slits and thread one-inch paper strips through. The finished panel becomes a mini scene with template pieces, black-marker details, and real sand glued along the shoreline for extra texture.

Great for end-of-year art time when students are ready for a slightly trickier challenge before summer break.

Also try: Summer Do A Dot Printables

www.aboutamom.com

Paper Plate Beach Ball

A paper plate gets lightly folded into sixths, then kids use a pencil to sketch section lines before filling each wedge with torn construction paper. A small white paper circle glued in the center helps the design read clearly, and the tearing motion doubles as great pre-writing fine-motor practice.

Ideal for those last school days when you want a colorful, low-cost project that still feels like a celebration.

Teacher Appreciation Crafts

thesoccermomblog.com

Ladybug Teacher Thank You Card

Two red paper wings and a black head get cut from the printable pattern, then connected with a brass fastener so they open and close. A child's photo and handwritten message hide inside, while googly eyes and drawn-on spots add personality on the outside.

Perfect for end-of-year gift bags when you want something heartfelt that kids can help make in one sitting.

Also try: Ladybug Paper Craft

www.messymommacrafts.com

Cotton Balls Thank Ewe

Cotton balls cover the back of a paper plate to make a fluffy texture, while black construction paper shapes and googly eyes create the face. A popsicle-stick sign lets kids add a note with a marker, and the back can hold an envelope for sliding in a gift card.

Great for the last week of school when students want to give something playful but still practical.

Related: Sheep Toilet Paper Roll Craft

Friendship & Classmate Crafts

happyhooligans.ca

Framed “Kindness Cloud”

A simple picture frame (or a blue-painted canvas) becomes a backdrop for a puffy white cardstock cutout edged in glitter. Kids write a friend's name on top, then add rainbow cardstock strips with words that describe what they appreciate about that classmate.

A sweet end-of-year send-off that feels personal and helps kids reflect on friendships before summer break.

coffeeandcarpool.com

Paper Flower Kindness

Printable templates make it easy to cut out petals, a stem, a leaf, and a center from construction paper or colored cardstock. Kids write a friend's name in the middle, add kind words on each petal with a black Sharpie, then glue everything together with a glue stick.

Perfect for end-of-school-year classroom exchanges when students want to leave on a positive note without needing fancy supplies.

Also try: Mother's Day Flower Craft

Graduation Crafts

Featured image of Graduation Gnome Craft

Gnome Graduation Day

A printable template guides kids as they cut cardstock pieces and glue them together to create a cute character wearing a cap and gown. Layering the eyes, beard, diploma, and tassel keeps little hands busy while still feeling doable for a class celebration.

An easy way to mark moving-up day and send kids home with a paper keepsake they'll remember.

nontoygifts.com

Last Day of Kindergarten Headband

A printable paper-hat template on white cardstock lets kids color their own design with markers or colored pencils. After cutting it out, tape the side panels on, curve it into a circle, and tape the ends together for a comfy fit.

Perfect for end-of-year photos and classroom celebrations when students want something wearable without a big craft setup.

homeschoolpreschool.net

Graduation Gnome Handprint

Cardstock, scissors, glue, and a simple cap template turn a child's cut-out handprint into a fluffy beard on a half-sheet background. Black-marker details and a few small cardstock shapes build the cap and face, leaving space to add the year or a short message.

A meaningful end-of-year keepsake that captures tiny hands right as the school year wraps up.

funhandprintartblog.com

First and Last Day School Handprint

A free printable on white cardstock becomes an 8×10 keepsake once kids trace and cut their hand from colored cardstock. Glue down the fingers to show the grade number, then attach the hand to the template and add the finishing letters with a black marker.

Great for last-day-of-school photos, and it's easy to save for next year so families can compare growth.

artsymomma.com

Paper Preschool Graduation

Start with a piece of white paper, glue on a red cap-and-gown cutout, and let kids color in the rest to look like themselves. A small piece of curling ribbon adds a fun tassel detail without much extra work.

Perfect for a classroom display during the final weeks of school, then send it home as part of the ceremony memories.

Keepsake Crafts For Parents

creativefamilyfun.net

Pompom Picture Frame

Glue four jumbo craft sticks together to form a simple square frame, then line up and attach colorful pompoms to create a playful border. Once dry, trim a favorite photo to fit and tape it to the back, keeping the finishing step nice and simple.

A sweet end-of-year gift for parents, especially with a classroom photo tucked inside before summer starts.

Related: Pom Pom Sheep Craft

rhythmsofplay.com

Thumbprint Heart Glass Magnet

Two angled thumbprints (with acrylic paint or a fingerprint ink pad) create a small heart on bright white cardstock. After it dries, glue a clear flat-backed glass gem over the print and attach a small round magnet on the back for a fridge-ready keepsake.

Perfect for end-of-year gifting when kids want to leave families or teachers with something tiny, personal, and actually useful.

iheartcraftythings.com

Back-to-School Photo Frame

Eight jumbo craft sticks get painted yellow, black, and silver on a paper plate palette, then glued into a frame shape with wheels and a printable plate at the bottom.

Red craft jewels become tiny lights, and a 4×6 photo gets trimmed and glued behind the opening, ready for the fridge with adhesive magnets. A fun way to save an end-of-year snapshot now, then use the same frame again for next year's first-day photo.

theimaginationtree.com

Sand Clay Handprint

Mix 2 cups of sand with 1½ cups of plain flour and 1¼ cups of salt, then slowly stir in 1 cup of warm water until a kneadable dough forms. Press hands into the clay to make prints, add small shells or pebbles, and harden the pieces so they last.

Ideal for the end of the school year when families want a keepsake that captures little hands before summer adventures begin.

Also try: Handprint Goldfish Craft

www.redtedart.com

Fingerprint Keepsake

Sticky-back plastic creates a simple stencil on a mini canvas once you cut a heart-shaped window (using a cutter to trace around). Toddlers dab acrylic paint fingerprints into the opening, then peel the plastic away for a clean-edged design ready to display on the little easel.

A sweet end-of-year keepsake that's easy for tiny hands, and parents will love saving it with the year's memories.

More Fun Kid’s Ideas

12 Fin-tastic Mermaid Activities For Kids
21 Easy & Fun Pirate Crafts For Kids
38 Fun Ocean Crafts For Kids

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photograph of found of Simple Everyday Mom, Sam

Meet Sam

Sam is the crafter and founder of Simple Everyday Mom. She has been featured in Oprah Mag, Good Housekeeping, The Spruce Crafts, Country Living, The Bump, and more.

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