Photo Coasters
Suggested Age Group(s): Young, Middle, Teen
Purpose: To assist the group in remembering and preserving memories
Task/need: Coverting the relationship to memory
Activity Setup Ideas: Talk about the fear that some children have about forgetting the memories that they had with their family member who died. Discuss the idea of capturing these memories now so that they will not be lost. Ask the children to bring in a copy of a photo (that can be cut) showing a favorite family memory with their loved one. It could be a picture from a family vacation, from a holiday gathering, or just a special time with them together with their family member. The main image needs to fit on a 4 x 4 square. Black and white photos look especially nice if they can print it at local CVS or Walmart, which allows for easy transition to black and white.
Materials:
- 4 x 4 white bathroom tile
- Mod podge (gloss)
- Sponge paint brush
- Mod podge clear acrylic sealer
- Felt
Description: Have the child or assist the child with cutting the photos to fit the 4x4 tile block. Apply a thin coat of mod podge to the back of the photo and adhere to the tile. Allow to dry. Once dry, three coats of mod podge are needed to cover the photo. These should be applied lightly, using a left to right stroke each time, and allowed to dry completely between coats (15-20 minutes of drying time between coats). After these three coats are applied and thoroughly dried, 5 coats of acrylic sealer should be applied and allowed to dry thoroughly between coats (15 minutes of drying time between coats) in order to use as a beverage coaster. (Because of the fumes of the sealer, this should be done outside of group time).
After all the sealer coats have been applied and dried, have the children cut felt to cover the back of the coaster. Attach with mod podge, tacky glue or hot glue. Allow to dry.
Activity Wrap Up Ideas: Allow each group member to share one or more memories with the group. They can describe the picture, why they chose it and what was meaningful to them about that memory.
