Fun Friday & a Catch Up Day

This quarter has been a tough one with sicknesses and absences in my class. I could count on two hands...maybe even on one... the amount of days I have had all my students together in the classroom and we are 7 weeks in!

Let's face it. When students are out, it is difficult to get them caught up. Gone are the days when you can just send all that work home and expect it to come back finished. The way we teach math now is a huge factor...parents feel like they cannot help because they do not understand the methods themselves. 

So...with all that missing work, I decided a Fun Friday was in order to help motivate my students to work quickly and stay focused. I announced it ahead of time and then prepared some activities the night before.

Fun Friday Activities

I knew I wanted a menu of ideas that my students could choose from for Fun Friday. They had to be learning related and cover a wide variety of skills. So here's a look at the 13 activities I came up with:

1. And then...stories

This comes with a box-shaped book that opens to reveal different story starter cards. Students choose a card, read the beginning of the story, and then use their own creativity to finish it off. 

2. Reader's Theater

I copied several reader's theater scripts. Students enjoy doing plays and reading through scripts. This is a great way to practice fluency and especially reading expression. 

3. Multiplication Draw & Trace

This is a new game I have created that I put out so my students could continue to practice their multiplication facts, but in a fun way. Each student gets a board that focuses on one set of facts. They shuffle the facts for each board together. Then they take turns drawing an equation. If the product is on their board, they trace it. If not, they return it to the draw pile. The first person who fills their board wins. 

4. Extreme Dot-to-Dots

This is a childhood favorite...dot-to-dots, but with a challenging twist. These dot to dots go to 500! It's a great practice for number sense for students, especially younger ones like 2nd-4th graders. This book had different animal ones included.

5. ABC Art

This sheet comes with 26 spaces, one for each letter of the alphabet. Students create art from a-z with each box focusing in on one alphabet letter. They should create mini masterpieces that feature items beginning with each of the letters of the alphabet. Another more challenging twist would be to give them a theme...like ABC's of the Northeast or Native American ABCs...the sky is the limit. 

 6. Draw Write Now

This book is full of step-by-step drawings and written paragraphs about animals from the arctic. All I have to do is add some paper with a drawing spot and handwriting lines. I have my students read the paragraph and write the same words in cursive. They also draw the picture and color it. Easy peasy!

7. Seek and Find Books

These books are a lot of fun. They come in many different themes and over the years I have collected so many different ones. Students love to work with a friend on these books. They look for a list of items hidden in plain sight on each page. I don't bring these out often, but when I do, the students love them.

8. Puzzles

I brought out a big puzzle and this was one of the first things that the students did. This was a 400 piece puzzle, but it had large pieces, so it wasn't too hard. A group of students literally spent hours around this puzzle chatting and were so proud when they had completed it all. They wanted a picture of it sent home...and of course I obliged. 

9. Kandinsky Art Station

I set up a station where students could watch a small video about Kandinsky and his art. They had a biography poster they could fill out with information they learned. Then they were suppose to recreate one of Kandinsky's circles art pieces. They could choose to go traditional with circles or change it up and do hearts. Or, if they wanted, they could change it up and do another set of concentric shapes. 

10 & 11 Legos:

At one station, we had small Lego STEM challenge cards. At another, it was a Lego art challenge. Students were tasked with drawing using the Art for Kids Hub and then recreating their drawing using Legos.

 12. Floating Flower STEM

In this challenge, students planned and created floating flowers. The flowers had to be able to float independently for at least one minute. There were size constraints as well. 

13. Online Jeopardy

In the final rotation, we had a Jeopardy game that was on one of our class IPADS. Students could compete against another student or team of students. Ours was a Bible theme, but you can find all sorts of free Jeopardy games for many different topics.

The best part of all of this is that I did not spend money on anything. I either had it, found it for free, or created it myself. 

At the end of the day, students were asking when our next Fun Friday would be. I call that a win! 

15 Indoor Recess Ideas that Save Your Sanity

When the weather is nasty and the gym is off limits, what's a teacher to do? Indoor recess is not ideal, but you can still salvage the fun if you get creative. Having some games and activities up your sleeve can save your sanity when the weather does not cooperate. Here are some great ideas that can be used with minimal supplies. 

1. Silent Speed Ball

Use a foam ball for this one. Count down from 10 to 0 and everyone must be in a different spot in the classroom. They should not be hidden behind something. They cannot  talk at all during the game or they are out. In this game, students must always keep one foot in its original place. They can move one foot and put it back and then can move the other. If they move out of their place, they are out. The ball is given to one student who will attempt to throw it at another student. If it hits the other student, that student sits down where they are, and they are out. If the student misses, the student who throws the ball is out and must sit down. If the student throws the ball and the other student catches it, the student who threw it is out. So with each throw someone will get out. The student who ends up with the ball will throw it at another player and continue to do this until one one player is standing. If needed, a student may move from their spot to retrieve the ball and then return to their spot where play continues. Students who are sitting down may try to get another player to talk to them, getting them out. Last player still standing wins. 

2. Four Corners

Number each corner from one to four (you can just do this verbally and do not need a sign). One person will be it and will close their eyes. They will count from 10 to zero. As the student is counting down, the other players must find a corner to stand in. If they are not in a corner by the time zero is reached, they will be out. The "it" will call out a number from 1-4 and whichever corner is called out, those players in that corner are out and must return to their seats. Continue recounting and playing until four players are left. At that time, announce that each player must be in a separate corner. If a corner is empty at any time, announce it for the "it" so they do not call that corner. This will help each round to go faster by getting someone out. When one player is left, they are the winner and the next "it."

3. Heads Up 7 Up

Choose 7 students to be it. For small classes, you can choose less. Everyone else will put their heads on their desks and their thumbs up. The students who have been chosen to be it will each go and tap one person, but they should each tap a different person. Any player who has their thumb up, and gets tapped, must put their thumb down as a signal that they have already been tapped. As players are finished tapping, they will come to the front of the class. Once all the students who are it at are the front, announce, "Head's up seven up!" The other players will lift their heads and stand up if they were tapped. They will take turns guessing who tapped them. The players who are it will not say yes or no. After everyone guesses, allow the players who are it to reveal who they tapped one at a time. If anyone guesses correctly, they can switch places with the player who is it for the next round.   

4. Charades

Charades are always fun. You can do any type of Charade you choose, but here's some ideas to get you started: 

animals, students, popular shows,  or Bible stories (Christian schools)

5. Simon Says

One person is Simon. They will call out things such as, Touch your nose. Stand on one foot, etc. If they say, "Simon says Touch your nose," everyone should do it, or they are out. If they give a direction without saying, "Simon says," the other players should avoid doing it, or they are out. 

 
6. Guess My object (Mystery Bag)

One student will place an item inside a bag. The student will give clues to their classmates about the object. Students will make guesses about what is inside. I would suggest giving a certain amount of guesses like 10 or 20. If no one guesses it in that amount of time, the student will reveal what their item was and choose another player to go next. If someone guesses the item, they will be the next player to go. 

 

7. What Changed

One student will be chosen to be it. They will slowly spin around in front of the class to allow the other students to look at them. Then the student will step out of the classroom. They will change one thing about themselves. For example, they may roll down one sock, lift up their collar, or part their hair differently. When they come back inside the classroom, they will again slowly turn around to allow the others to try to figure out what changed. Students should raise their hands to guess what changed. If they guess correctly, they are the next one to be it. 

8. Higher Lower 

One person will choose a number from one to 100. Students try to guess the number as quickly as possible. Students will ask questions like is it higher than 40? Or is it lower than 20? Keep taking guesses until someone figures out the number. Whoever figures it out first is the next person to choose a number for the others to guess. 

9. Stations building, puzzles, etc. 

Some fun things to add to this station are things like Magna Tiles, Play-Doh, and 100 piece puzzles. 

10. Board Games

Find some fun board games like Sorry, Checkers, or Candyland. You can find cheap ones at thrift stores like Goodwill. 

11. Hot potato

You can use a ball to play this game. Students sit in a circle and pass the ball to the person on their left. Continue passing the ball while students chant, "Hot potato, hot potato, who has the hot potato? If you have the hot potato, you are O-U-T, out!" At that point, whoever has the ball is out. They slide out of the circle and play continues with the chant again. Continue until only one player is left. They are the winner. 

12. I-Spy

One player will look around the classroom and mentally take note of one item. They will say, "I spy with my little eye something...." (and will give a clue such as "blue"). Other students will guess until someone figures it out. They will become the next it. 

13. Cup Stacking Challenge

Get a stack of cups. Allow students to build towers with them. They could divide into two teams and race to add some more fun. 

14. Whiteboard Games

Games such as Pictionary (drawing pictures of certain objects for others to guess) or Hangman can be a lot of fun in teams or a large group.

15. Directed Drawing

Here's one more fun one! If you have students who love to draw, turn on some directed drawings and let them follow along as a master artist shows step-by-step how to draw some amazing pictures. My favorite place to look is Art for Kids Hub. I use this sometimes for class art projects. 

If you have any additional ideas for indoor recess, comment below.