Celebrating Valentine's Day in the Upper Elementary Classroom

Celebrating Valentine's day does not just have to be for lower elementary. Lots of kids still enjoy it in the upper elementary classroom too. Hey, even the teacher loves it. 

I have a quick disclaimer to make. I work in a tiny school and I have the same kids for two or three years, depending on the year. I have had my current fifth graders since they were little third graders. With that in mind, I have to shake things up from year to year to keep it fresh since I teach multi-grade and get to hold on to the same kiddos for so many years. So because of that, I have to have a huge collection of activities that I can rotate each year.

Valentine's Day Boxes in Upper Elementary

Today, my fifth graders were asking if we could do Valentine's Day boxes. I have to admit. I love the boxes ....a lot. I enjoy seeing the creativity and originality or each student. Their personalities and passions shine through. They actually teach me something about themselves when they create these amazing boxes. It is always a surprise to see the boxes they create to hold their cards from our card exchange. They are excited to share and to see each others' and I think it is fun to create a little competition around them. So we will be doing that again this year. 

Valentine's Day Books in Upper Elementary

My students love...LOVE a good book. They love chapter books and also picture books. No book is off limits, including picture books that others may see as books for the younger crowd. Kids love growing up, but they also love the familiarity of a simple book. I love reading them just as much as they love hearing them. Here are some of the books I have collected through the years. 

Games

We love games and having fun. I love doing Minute to Win it challenges with the class. Kids this age are very competitive. A little competition is just what they need.

S.T.E.M. 

S.T.E.M. challenges are perfect for any holiday. They are perfect because they are not something we do everyday. They are a challenge, in a good way. They get kids interaction and work together. They stretch kids' creativity and ingenuity. They give kids a break from the usually learning tasks and bring a novel form of learning. They are super fun. Last year we did a Valentine's Day bridge building S.T.E.M that I got from Maniacs in the Middle. It was so much fun. This year, I purchased a class set of Valentine hashtag blocks that we will be using for small S.T.E.M. challenges. 

The History Behind the Holidays

I feel like this topic is included in every holiday I talk about. I just love helping kids learn about where traditions that surround the holidays came from and Valentine's Day is no different. Last year, I created several articles to help my students learn about some of the most obvious traditions. This year I created some more articles that I can use in my class. Here is a quick list what traditions and things my students learn about. 

Conversation Hearts

Valentine's Day Cards

Chocolate

Traditions around the World

Roses are Red, Violets are Blue Poems

Paris, the City of Love

The Love Lock bridge

We read and do comprehension activities. We extend our learning with other activities that tie into our learning as well. 

Card Exchanges and Small Gifts

Card exchanges are a must for me. We all bring cards (whoever chooses to) and some bring small candies to share with classmates. It is just so much fun to share and put a smile on the faces of others. The kids feel that. They feel the love. I enjoy bringing something small to share with the class as well. Maybe it is a pencil, a book, and special treat, just something to let them know they are loved and I am glad they are a part of our class family. 

Party

This year, we are having a donut themed party. I found cute donut erasers to pass out. We will have real donuts too. I am bringing glazed donuts and we will have a donut bar. Students will get to frost their donut with pink frosting and add sprinkles if they want. We will spend some time immersed in Valentine's books, eating donuts and maybe sipping some hot chocolate too. 

I hope these ideas help you find ways to make the holiday special in your classroom. Whatever you do, your kids will love it.

Here is a link to my History Behind Valentine's Day pack if you are interested. 

If you want to see some of the boxes we created in previous years click here. 

More Valentine's Day activities here. 

 

9 People to Feature during Black History Month in your Classroom

There are so many people, both well-known and not as well-known, that are both amazing and perfect to study with your classroom. During this black history month, here is a list of 9 of those people to bring into the classroom. My students will be studying these people and doing a simple biography about one of them. I have done this same project with kids from second grade through fourth grade and the difference is on the amount of writing the students do. I cannot wait to get started again this year.

Let's start with the well-known people:

First up is of course Martin Luther King Jr. If you have ever taught, I am sure you have taught about his man. Everyone knows about his dream for America...how he wanted all people to be able to be judged by their insides and not on the color of their skin. He spent his life working to end racism and help all people be treated equally. He protested, but he found ways to do it peacefully. He is one of the black leaders at the forefront every single black history month.

Next is Rosa Parks. She is almost as famous as Martin Luther King Jr. himself. Rosa was famous for refusing to give up her seat on the bus. It was the start of the Montgomery bus boycott. 

Bessie Coleman was another amazing black woman who was also a pilot. She had to work hard for the right to reach her dream and became the first black American to have a pilot's license. 

Harriet Tubman is one of my favorites. She was nicknamed Moses because while she could have just saved herself, she didn't. She continued to rescue other people who were enslaved. She is likened to the Biblical Moses who saved his people from slavery. She was brave and strong and selfless. 

Now for some of the lesser known people who were still just as amazing:

The first one is Garrett Morgan. Garrett was an amazing inventor who did not get all the credit he deserved. Some of his inventions were credited to another person because black people could not hold patents. He was willing to allow someone else to get credit so the inventions could be of help to others. He made traffic lights better and saved many people's lives in the process. 

Dr. Charles Drew was a hard-working black doctor who worked to figure out a way to save blood that was needed for injured people. Before his time, transfusions were done from one person directly into another person. He was able to save it so hospitals could have a blood bank to draw from. Also, he is the father of the modern bloodmobile. 

Did you know that the very first open heart surgery was performed by a black surgeon? Dr. Daniel Hale Williams did that in 1893 without any of the modern conveniences of medicine today. He saved the patient's life. He also was not allowed to practice medicine at the white hospitals of the day so he opened a hospital that kept an interracial staff and was willing to help all people. 

Lydia Newman was a black inventor. She holds the first patent for a hairbrush with synthetic bristles. This hairbrush was better suited to detangle hair, especially that of African Americans. The bristles were stiffer than those made of animal hairs. The brush she invented was also easier to clean and more sanitary. She also worked hard to get voting rights for women. 

Mary McLeod Bethune was an educator. She opened one of the very first schools for African American girls. She also worked with some presidents to help with civil rights for African Americans. 

These are just, of course, a few of the many men and women of color who have helped to make our country great. Who will you choose to bring to life in your classroom? 

Check out my black history resources if you are interested. You can find these individually or in a complete bundle. Click below to be taken to each resource.

 

Three Ways to Celebrate the New Year in Your Classroom

With Christmas break ending, teachers everywhere are gearing up to go back to school. I personally have been thinking of ways to extend the holidays and bring them into the classroom for one or two more days. This year, as we always do, we will be celebrating the new year. I was thinking about how to make that happen since I have the same students for at least three years (I teach in a multi-grade classroom of 3rd-5th graders). 

1. New Year's Learning Fun

With that in mind, I decided to create new products that could help me bring the learning while sprinkling in some fun. One of my favorite things to do is to teach my students about the history behind holiday traditions and I have a line of products that helps me do this, but I did not have anything yet for New Year's. I sat down the past few days and focused on making that a reality. With a reading theme, I will be introducing my students to seven different traditions about the new year. Each of these topics has a non-fiction passage, comprehension sheet, and many also have an additional game or activity to go along with it. Check out the different topics we'll be studying as we return to school. 

The reading passages are all non-fiction and include topics that help students learn the history behind New Year’s traditions. Included in the pack is one about the first and last countries to welcome the new year and how they celebrate. Another article explores the different balls that have been used in New York’s Time Square on New Year’s Eve and how that tradition got started. Students can extend their learning by completing a STEM challenge based on the ball drop. The third article is about the famous song, Auld Lang Syne, and just what those words mean and how the song came to be one we that sing when the clock strikes midnight on January first each year. Next, there is an article about goals and new year’s resolutions. Students can extend what they learn by setting goals of their own in a cute New Year’s Eve ball card. Another article is about words and how words are added to our dictionary each and every year. The class will learn who chooses what words are added and where these words come from. To extend, they may even create a snack or something to play with, should you choose to do so. Up next, is an article about the Tournament of Roses parade. When students read this, they may be inspired to create models of their own. So to extend their learning, you can have them create small shoebox floats and host their own walk-thru parade. Lastly, students will learn about college football bowls and how they came to be.

Also included is a time capsule that students can create individually. And finally, there is a teambuilding game that is perfect for welcoming your students back into the classroom and get them talking and sharing about their break and also the new year. My students will not only get reading activities, but this crosses over to other subject areas as well including history, science, writing, and art.

2. New Year's Teambuilding 

I love teambuilding. It is essential throughout the year, but even more so at the beginning or after a long break. I have this line of teambuilding art challenges that go along with many different holidays, but did not have one completed for New Year's. So I dusted it off and got it finished and I can't wait to try this with my class. If you have seen the TV show Chopped, then you have an idea of what happens in this challenge. Groups of students are each given a bag of items that includes identical art supplies. With the art supplies, teams are given an art challenge that they must complete collaboratively in a certain amount of time. Teams are then judged based on creativity, teamwork, etc.  After three rounds, you can name a winner. It is a lot of fun and kids really get into it. 

3. New Year's Procedure Practice

After every break, it is VITAL to do some refreshing on rules and procedures. At 3rd-5th level, I would be lying if I said that kids do get tired of this, but it is so important that I push through anyway. So, if I can make it fun, I will. This year, as I was browsing, I came across an idea that I saw with procedures on sticky notes that cover a class prize...such as extra recess. After reviewing the rules and procedures, we will have them all written on sticky notes. I will be watching for students who are completing these throughout the day. If I see the class doing one, I will remove that sticky note. Once all the notes are removed, students will get to celebrate with the reward that was revealed. 

While going back to school may not be something your students (or maybe even you) are looking forward to, it is here and the transition can be fun while also being academic. I say we start out 2022 with a big bang and make it one of the best years ever!

If you are interested in either of the resources mentioned, you can check them out by clicking on the pictures below. 

Five Fun Ways to Teach Thanksgiving in the Classroom

I love teaching my class about the history behind the holidays, and I have so many resources to help my class learn about this. I love getting it in the hands of classrooms around the country or even the world as well. Finding ways to get kids excited about social studies excites me and learning about holidays is a very good way to get this done. This year, I created a couple of resources to help. I want to immerse my students in experiences and activities during the days leading up to Thanksgiving. Here's how I plan to get it done. 

1. Reading Comprehension Passages

One way to get in a lot of learning and content is through the use of reading passages that can be used in small groups or Close reading. In this pack, students will learn about many different aspects of thanksgiving. They will learn about if and how people around the world celebrate this holiday. Also, students will learn about the woman who gave us Thanksgiving. She is amazing! One of my favorite topics in this set is turkey pardoning. When you dig a little deeper, there is much more to learn about this fun tradition. Students get to learn about how some of the Thanksgiving staples came to the table. Another topic is pies and how they came to be. And the last topic is thankfulness and your brain. This set also includes comprehension and activities for each of the short reading passages. There are four extension activities, two for math and two for writing. The math activities include a pie graph and equivalent fraction pie matching. For writing, students will write an opinion piece about which pie is the best pie for Thanksgiving as well as a persuasive essay for a new holiday each student would like to create. Using this pack will bring a lot of unusual knowledge, about Thanksgiving, to your students. 

2. Art Fun

What student doesn't love art? I have art teambuilding challenges for many different holidays and Thanksgiving is no exception. These art challenges are such fun! Groups of students receive a bag of art items. Each group receives the same supplies as well as a topic for their project. They must then evaluate the supplies they have in their bag and come up with a way to complete the themed challenge using what they have. After time to create, students present their projects to the class and are evaluated based on teamwork, creativity, and originality. Students compete in three rounds before a winning team is named. 

3. Simulations:

I love a great simulation and Thanksgiving is the perfect time to create one. One simulation that I have done with second graders, third graders, and fourth graders was a definite classroom hit. Each student created a costume for a turkey that was on its way to the Thanksgiving table. The purpose was to find a way for their turkey to escape being eaten. Along with the craft project, each student creates a persuasive essay about why their turkey should not be eaten. 

Once the groundwork is laid, students meet before a "judge" (me dressed in a black graduation gown with a gavel in hand). They each bring their cases and try to defend their turkeys from certain death. The students eat it up. They always take it very seriously as they nervously present their appeals for the lives of their turkeys. It is a fun and amazing experience for them all. 

4. Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade:

I love watching the Thanksgiving parade each year, if I can. It is fun to see the balloons bouncing down the streets in NYC. I would love to be there in person some day. I ran across a book about the history behind the parade and it got me all excited! Tony Sarg, an immigrant  settled in NYC in the early 1900's. I love his passion for puppetry and how he turned that into something big...The Macy's Parade. Throughout the book Tony has to overcome obstacles and persevere. He sticks to his dreams and finds a way to reach them even when he has to tweak his ideas several times to make it happen. I decided to bring this story into my classroom and also his love of puppets. After reading his story, we work on our own puppets, parade balloons, and wonderland windows. It is really a lot of fun! 

  5. Books, Books, and more Books:

Can you ever have enough books? My husband seems to think so. In fact, he always teases me that I need to get rid of some, but parting with books is way too hard. Books are perfect for bringing history into the classroom and teaching students about many different topics. Thanksgiving is no different. There are so many great reads to learn from. Here are some of my Thanksgiving stand-bys. 

If you are interested in any of the resources for the activities I mentioned above, you can find the entire mega bundle here or you can purchase each set individually.