Garden Stepping Stones for Mother's Day

We created Garden Stepping Stones for Mother's Day using quick drying cement.

The materials we used were:

aluminum cake pans
WD-40 (spray on lubricant)
quick drying cement mix
glass flat marbles and stones
white duct tape (for name labels)

We labeled every cake pan with each child's name.  I have also done this project the same way with plastic plant pot drip trays.  This time, I decided I would like the children to carry the stepping stone home in the pan.  When I use the drip trays, I keep the tray after removing the dried stepping stone.







Before adding the quick drying cement, we sprayed each pan with WD-40 so that the stepping stone could a easily removed from the pan when dry.

We mixed the cement in an old plastic pan and then poured some into each cake pan.

A 60 pound bag made enough cement for 16 cake pans.

Next, the students added glass flat marbles and stones. We told them to be sure to push them down into the cement so that they would be surrounded and not come out when dry.  Sometimes, I have the children stamp their name with cookie cutters or a stick.   They then place the marbles on the letters to form the shape of their name. This year, I decided to let them create any design they wished.

We allowed the stepping stones to completely dry for several days before taking home to our mothers.  Each student made just one, but you could produce multiple stones for a garden in the same manner.