Free Elementary Valentine’s Day Activities (Printables, Lesson Plans, Tips, Crafts, and More)1/30/2015
by Lyn Lomasi, Write W.A.V.E. Media Staff 
Valentine's Day is a fun time for many children. During this celebration, you will want to teach the children the meaning of this day, as well as provide fun crafts and activities to entertain and stimulate them. Below you will find enough lessons, crafts, and activities to cover an entire day (or more) worth of Valentine's Day fun and learning.
Preparation Before starting the day with the children, be sure you have Valentine's Day books and supplies for any activities ready. To make this day run smoother, provide each child with a plain-colored pocket folder that contains all of the paper materials needed for the day. This way when it's time to do each activity, the child will be prepared. This will also serve as an easy way for the child to take the finished work home. Below is a fun way for each child to personalize their folder. For supplies that won't go into the folders, place a bin containing enough supplies to share at each desk or group table. To complete all projects below, you will need to have glue, scissors, a sharpened pencil, and colored pencils/crayons/markers for each student. You'll also need to have a jar with each child's name inside on folded papers. Handy Tips For certain activities, you may want to let the children know how much time they have. An easy way to do so is to is to tell them which number the big hand on the clock will be on when their time is up. You may want to prepare a children's collection of music to play on Valentine's Day that is related to love, sharing, and caring. For instance, one song that could be included is the "I Love You" theme song for Barney and Friends. Craft #1: Decorating The Valentine's Folder Supply each student with a white pocketed folder that contains their worksheets for the day. Instruct the children to write their names in the top right corner with their favorite dark color. Once they have done this, instruct them to write "My Valentine's Day Folder" in the middle. If your students cannot yet write, you may choose to do those first two things beforehand. After the labeling, instruct the students to draw things that represent love and Valentine's day on their folders. Allow them to draw and color whatever they wish. Story Time #1 For this first story session, you will need to have a children's book that tells the meaning of Valentine's Day and/or love. Some good books for this are as follows. "Hearts, Cupids, and Red Roses: The Story of the Valentine Symbols" by Edna Barth "I Love You Stinky Face" by Lisa McCourt "You Are My I Love You" by Maryann Cusimano and Satomi Ichikawa "I Want To Say I Love You" by Caralyn Buehner The above books are all appropriate for elementary ages. If you would rather not purchase books, remember that a local library likely has plenty of Valentine's Day books and many will order books on request if they do not have what you want on hand. Active Discussion - Once the story is read, ask the children leading questions that will provoke understanding of what Valentine's Day is for and/or the meaning of love. Activity #1: Secret Valentines For this game, the children will each need a heart-shaped paper. The lined heart paper in the activity section of this article is good for this purpose. You will need to have your name jar out. Walk around the classroom and allow each student to draw a name from the jar. If a student gets his or her own name, that student must place the name in the jar and draw again. Once every student has a name, the students should write a nice message or poem on the heart-shaped paper for that person. If the children have started with a white heart paper, they may want to color it red or pink before writing a message. Instruct the students to think of something nice the other person has done to make the messages more meaningful. The students should then fold the valentines in half and write the person's name on the outside. You will then need to come around the class and collect the valentines in a basket and then pass them out. The students can then read aloud the valentine they have received. Story Time #2 For this next story, you will want to choose a book that underlines an example of good and bad things that can happen on Valentine's Day. Some good books for that are as follows. "Arthur's Valentine" by Marc Brown (K - 3rd grade) "Roses Are Pink, Your Feet Really Stink" by Diane de Groat (2nd - 5th grade) "Please Don't Be Mine, Julie Valentine" by Todd Strasser (4th - 6th grade) "Super-Fine Valentine" by Bill Cosby (Pre-K - 3rd grade) As mentioned above, if you do not wish the purchase books, check the local library. Active Discussion - Once the story is read, ask the children leading questions that make them think about what is okay to do on Valentine's Day and what isn't. Also, let them know that it should not be embarrassing to love a friend. Friends are special. Activity #2: Valentine's Day "Fish For That Valentine" Card Game This game will be played just like "Go Fish". If you don't know how to play, instructions can be found by searching the internet. Where you would normally say "go fish", tell the children to say "fish for that valentine". Before the game, you will need to make the children decks of cards with different things related to Valentine's Day. Remember that in a "go fish" deck, there will be two pairs of each design, as the players will be matching them. Be sure to make enough decks so that you can split the children into groups of 4 players. To duplicate the first deck you made, just make copies of it. Laminate all the decks to make them last longer. When the children are playing, you can walk around and help them if needed. Craft #2: Valentines For Family Members Provide each child with various shapes of hearts out of a variety of different types of papers in pink, white, and red. Instruct the children to make their family members valentines with special messages. If they glue items together, be sure they know to allow the items drying time before placing them in their folders. Try not to limit students to choosing one family member. This is a mistake some teachers make. Some students will feel pressure or anxiety when choosing whether to give this special gift to mom, dad, or a grandparent because they don't want to make the others feel bad. An easy way to do this without the children getting too carried away with making a large amount of valentines is to say "Let's make valentines for parents and grandparents." This way, it limits it to a certain point, but does not make the child choose between their most loved relatives. Coloring and Activity Pages Below are links to some coloring and activity pages related to Valentine's Day and love. Various Hearts Color Pages Lots of Hearts (Color Page) Bear With Heart (Color Page) Cupid With Hearts (Color Page) Lined Valentine Heart Paper (for stories, poems, etc...) Free Valentine’s Day Word Puzzle Valentine’s Day Bingo Printables Free Valentine’s Day Crossword Puzzles *I originally published a version of this via Yahoo Contributor Network by Lyn Lomasi, Write W.A.V.E. Media Staff 
Learning to count is a common and necessary skill for preschoolers to tackle. But it doesn't have to be all pencil and paper. Use simple counting games to make it fun and enhance skills at the same time. As a mom and homeschool teacher, I use a variety of ways to teach my kids lessons. Here are 5 of my favorite simple counting games for preschoolers.
Bring me this many! Test your preschoolers knowledge and practice counting by having her bring you a certain number of items. For instance, you might say "Bring me 10 yellow blocks". If she only brings you only eight, you might say "How many yellow blocks is that again? I still need 2 more to make ten." This simple counting game can be played throughout the day at various intervals. How many words make this sentence? So your child has mastered counting objects? What about sentences in his stories? This helps with both reading comprehension and counting skills. Point to sentences and have the child count how many words he sees from the capital to the period. Doing so helps teach the child what a sentence is, as well as practice numeration. Tap to my beat. Whether you use a pencil or a drumstick, instruct your child to tap the beat in songs. Choose a specific section of the song and tap the beat, counting together how many taps there are. This counting exercise helps the child learn about rhythm and song. But it's also great counting practice that you can sneak in disguised as fun. Toss a penny in. Need a use for that old egg carton? Take off the top and use the egg holder portion to play penny toss. Number the slots 1-12 (or higher, depending the carton size). Grab a handful of pennies and hand them to your child. You might say "Toss 5 pennies into the number 1 slot". This simple counting game tests your child's hand-eye coordination, offers counting practice, tests number recognition skills, and more. Red cars speed on by! Ever watch the cars go by with your kids? Turn it into a simple counting activity. Ask questions like "Let's see how many blue cars go by before the light turns red." Another may be "The light's green. How man red cars are speeding by?" Observe what's happening and use it to count the cars in various ways. This can be played during the homeschool day. But if your kids attend school outside the home, you can also play it with them on the way to and from school. *I originally published this via Yahoo Contributor Network by Lyn Lomasi, Write W.A.V.E. Media Staff  Teaching kids to read can be rewarding, but it also can be frustrating for some. Daily activities that blend in with the normal routine can be beneficial. This technique is especially helpful to reluctant learners. However, it can be used when teaching most kids how to read. As a former nanny and a current home school teacher and parent, I have taught plenty of kids how to read by using simple daily techniques.
Identifying Objects With Phonics Whenever you hand your child an item, say the letter and sound it starts with, followed by the name. For instance, if you give your child a cup, you can say "C" then the sound, followed by "Cup. Here is your cup." This daily activity can set the foundation for reading comprehension. Phonic House Walk Using the daily activity mentioned above, walk around the house with your child. Point to and pick up objects, identifying them with phonics. Not only does this help with reading, spelling, language, and comprehension, but it familiarizes your child with the surroundings. If you label certain items with the corresponding word, it makes the phonic house walk even more effective. Reading Well, you may have expected this daily activity to be on the list. Nonetheless it needs to be included. Reading is essential when learning to read. Huh? That almost doesn't make sense. But of course, the parent will be the one reading at first. Point at the letters and read slowly, sounding out words, so that the child understands how you are reading. Ease into the child reading certain words onto complete sentences and entire books. Daily family reading circles are great for this technique. Daily Phonics Games Playing phonics and reading games daily also can help in teaching kids to read. These can be board games, computer games, or DIY games like Spelling Memory, Stop and Read, and Make This Sentence. Flash cards are also great for this and can be used in a traditional way or as part of a more detailed game. If you make up your own games, try to keep the rules simple and the game lighthearted and fun. This will help hold the child's interest. Letter Writing Practice Writing the letters daily can help kids further identify with the alphabet. It's especially helpful if the child is asked to state the letter's name and the sound it makes when writing it. The child can even copy words and sentences before knowing how to read. This action can increase understanding of the way words, sentences, and stories are formed. Comprehending that is an essential skill when it comes to reading. More Reading Activities on Life Successfully *I originally published a version of this via Yahoo Contributor Network by Lyn Lomasi, Write W.A.V.E. Media Staff  Image (c) Lyn Lomasi; All Rights Reserved In addition to regular reading, related activities and games are great for practicing and developing essential skills. Not all children learn in the same way. As a homeschool teacher and parent, it's common practice to come up with such games and activities for the kids. Here's one of the homemade games I play with my kids called Make this Sentence.
Materials
Making the Game To create Make this Sentence, the first step is creating a list of sentences. These should be formed based on reading and writing levels. Sight words are a great base for these. Now, cut the index cards in fourths. Write the words for each of the sentences on the index cards. Each word should have its own card. Common words can be written on two or three cards. Playing Make this Sentence This game can be played with two or more players or teams. One person needs to be assigned to reading out the sentences. This can be a parent, teacher, or student. The same person also gets to keep score. Spread the cards out in the middle of a table or floor. The words should be face-up so that the kids can easily see them. When the first sentence is read out, the timer needs to be set for one minute. The first player or team needs to create the sentence with the cards. If the sentence is created before the minute is up, the player or team gets the point. If not, no points are awarded. For a variation, some might give the point to whomever is next when a player or team doesn't create the sentence in time. Move on to the next player or team and continue in the same fashion. Beneficial Skills from the Game When used in conjunction with regular reading, games and activities can help children develop and enhance reading skills. Whether children are hesitant to read or they enjoy it thoroughly, Make this Sentence can be beneficial in many ways. Hand-eye coordination is practiced in the act of searching for the right cards and assembling the sentences. Important organizational skills are taught when the child arranges the sentences in the proper order. This action also is another form of reading practice. The child has to read the words in order to create the sentences. More Reading Activities on Life Successfully *I originally published a version of this via Yahoo Contributor Network A Fun Game to Motivate Kids to Readby Lyn Lomasi, Write W.A.V.E. Media Staff  Reading practice is essential to a child's development. Getting creative with reading can be not only fun, but rewarding to the child as well as the parent. As a parent who strives to implement fun and exciting ways to enjoy reading into the lives of my children, as well as many others, I have invented many activities that encourage children to read. "Stop and Read" is one of those activities. Below you will find instructions on this activity.
Materials Needed
Instructions For Playing the Game Before beginning the Stop and Read game, a teacher or parent should seat the children in a circle. This game will be played in increments. The first book should be placed in one of the children's hands. Set the timer or stopwatch for 3 minutes. The child with the book will read out loud from the book until the time is up. Once the time is up, the teacher will say "Pass The Book", at which point the timer should be re-set for 30 seconds. The children will then pass the book around the circle clockwise until the time is up. The person using the timer will yell out "Stop And Read" once the time is up. Whomever is in possession of the book will read for 3 minutes, just like the first child did. The game should continue for at least 20 minutes, preferably longer, providing the children are interested. Benefits Of Playing Stop and Read There are many benefits to playing this game with children. This game provides oral reading skills, which are very helpful in school and in the workforce. A child can also learn how to share, as well as learn that not everything in life is fair because some children may get to read more often than others. Hand-eye coordination is also practiced when passing and receiving the book. The more a child reads, the more brain cells he or she will be gaining, which can contribute to absorbing knowledge well. Reading skills help a child to achieve in every academic subject. How To Handle Disagreements At times children might argue over who was in possession of the book. When this happens, one solution might be to hand the book back to the last reader and start the "Pass The Book" round over again. Some children might complain if others get to read more often. One solution could be to just encourage the children to continue play and let them know there's a chance they might get to read on another round. Each instance will be different, so base your response to the child's argument on each child and situation. Just be sure that your response incites positive behavior from the child. Remember Every child is different. While some children will enjoy and benefit from this activity, there is no guarantee that every child will. Use your own discretion when implementing ideas into a child's curriculum or educational activities. ~ ~ Have you tested this activity with a group of children? Did you enjoy reading this content? Do you have another activity suggestion? This author welcomes and appreciates your feedback in the comments section below. More Reading Activities on Life Successfully *I originally published a version of this via Yahoo Contributor Network by Lyn Lomasi, Write W.A.V.E. Media Staff  Memory (sometimes called Concentration) is a classic game loved by many - kids and adults alike. Have you ever thought about using it to help teach kids how to read? In our homeschool, I like to get creative with the teaching to keep the kids interested. Here's how to make and play Spelling Memory. Use it as both a fun craft and an interactive learning game.
Materials
Making the Game Parents or teachers can make this game themselves or turn making the game into a fun craft for the kids. Have handy a list of sight words or spelling words for the appropriate level. First cut out even-sized squares from the poster board to write the words on. Once they are all cut out, write each word on two squares. This is so that each word has a match. Objective Kids who play this game regularly should be able to quickly recognize and read the words used in the game. Word recognition and reading practice are essential to succeed in reading, spelling, and other academic subjects. Playing the Game Playing Spelling Memory is about the same as the classic game, except that there are words instead of pictures. Shuffle all the word cards by placing them on a table or floor face down. This is sometimes referred to as kindergarten shuffle because even small children can participate. Once the cards have been mixed well, line them up next to each other to form an even pattern, such as a square or rectangle. Keep them all face down. The first player needs to turn over two cards from any two locations. If the cards match, that player keeps those cards as a match. Each time a match is gained, that player takes another turn. This continues until no matches have been made. It is then time to move on to the next player and repeat the process. The game goes on until there are no more matches left. Count each player's matches or cards. Whomever has the highest number is the winner. Lessons from the Game Spelling Memory can help teach children their sight or spelling words. Regular word practice is essential to spelling and reading comprehension. Distinguishing whether words are a match or not can help with recognition, thinking skills, and reading practice. The game can be used to practice for tests, enhance skills, or even just for fun. More Reading Activities on Life Successfully *I originally published a version of this via Yahoo Contributor Network  by Lyn Lomasi, Staff Writer
Math should be an important part of your child's daily life. The problem we sometimes face is the kids don't want to do math drills every day. So, what do you do? You play some easy and effective math games. This turns math into fun instead of a chore. These games can be used in classrooms, homeschool, or just for regular home study. Parents and teachers alike will find them quite useful. Mix it Up Variety is important when it comes to teaching and interacting with children. Not only does it show them how to do things in different ways, but it also keeps them interested. Variety can be a leading motivator in getting your children to learn quickly and efficiently without the fuss. Be sure to rotate the games for each subject the children are learning. It's OK to play a favorite game more often than the others, but the others should still be thrown in as well to provide that variety you're looking for. Keep in mind that some of these games will require the Everything Math Deck, so you may want to make or purchase one ahead of time. Fact Triangles Fact Triangles are another form of flashcards. Make your own fact triangles by cutting out 3x3x3 triangle shapes out of poster board or card stock. You will need enough to cover facts for each number from 0 to 13. You can make these for addition & subtraction or for multiplication & division. Fact Triangles consist of three numbers that work together to form a fact family. For example, if you are making Fact Triangles for addition & subtraction, one of your fact families could contain 3, 4, and 7. You will place the largest number on top of the triangle and the two smaller numbers on the side corners of the triangle. As you make the cards, you will need to keep track of which numbers you have already made so you don't make duplicate cards. The easiest way is to write down all the facts for the set you are making and cross them off as you go. The basic way of using the fact triangles is to hold them up in front of the child with a finger over the factor or product you don't want showing. Then, you ask your child the appropriate question. This can get boring, so sometimes you'll need to mix it up a little and have fun. How about turning it into a game show and awarding the winner a small prize? You could also try making up a fun song that will help them remember how to find the answers. Another fun game with the fact triangles is something I call "Triangle Collect". Every time someone gets a correct answer, they get to collect the triangle. When all the triangles are gone, the players can count their triangles and see who got the most. Don't give a reward every time, but sometimes you can give a small reward. It will be appreciated more if it's a surprise and they don't expect it. Flash Cards You can make flashcards for any subject your child is studying. Making the flash cards is fairly simple. You can use index cards, card stock, or poster board paper. If you use index cards, you won't have to cut out anything, but I suggest using colored card stock or poster board so your child cannot see the answer through the paper. First, determine how many cards you will need. Facts can be written on both sides with the answer to the problem on the opposite side at the top or bottom in small print. This saves paper and makes it easy for the person giving the flash card quiz to know what the student is looking at. Flash cards are used much in the same way as fact triangles. You hold them up for the child to see and wait to hear the correct answer. This regular method can be useful at times, but can also get too repetitive and dull for the child. While it's important to use this basic technique a couple times a week, you can also try playing different games with the flashcards. Flashcards usually come with a parent card that has game suggestions. Use those as well as some of your own. Try playing "Around The World" using flashcards rather than questions. "Around the World" is a popular game played in schools all over the U.S. If you are not familiar with it, try doing an internet search for "Around The World Flash Card Game". It should be easy to find. Bingo Bingo is a game most children enjoy. Now you can use it to teach your kids as well. There are many different versions of this game. You can make a Bingo Game for just about any math subject. All you need to do is make the calling problems, make boards with the answers to them, and make marking pieces or use pennies as markers. If you don't feel like designing these yourself, you can also do an internet search for "printable math bingo" or other such terms. I suggest laminating all the game pieces for prolonged use. That way you won't have to keep printing them up. My children will still play the versions for facts they already know, simply because they're fun, so try and keep them in good shape to make them last. Assorted Games 1. Skip Toss (instructions below) 2. Addition Top-It 3. Name That Number (can be used for all operations;+,-,x,/) 4. Penny Grab (Two-Fisted Pennies) 5. Math Rummy 6. Who Wants Pizza? (fun online method for learning fractions) 7. Bug Splat (online fraction addition game) 8. Equivalent Fractions Game (online) 9. Baseball Multiplication 10. Murb's Fun & Furry (can be used for all operations;+,-,x,/) Skip-Toss This is a multiplication game I invented for my kids. Materials: any ball Instructions: Form a circle of players (if there are only 2, stand across from one another. if there are 3, form a triangle). Player one has the ball. The object is to skip count 14 times per number. Zero and One will not be used. Start with 2's. If the number in play is 2, player one tosses the ball to the player on the right and says 2. As that player catches the ball, he/she says 4 and throws the ball to the next player. As that player catches the ball, he/she says 6 and so on. Continue until the number has been skip-counted 14 times. Then, move on to the next number. Play this for at least 20 minutes each day. This can replace the flash cards., but be sure to rotate with both. Manipulatives (purchase these or download printable ones) 1. Base 10 Blocks 2. Graph Paper 3. Graph Paper w/multiplication 4. Coordinate Grids 5. Clocks 6. Pattern Blocks 7. Fact Triangles(assorted and blanks) 8. Play Money 9. Fraction Manipulatives 10. Attribute Blocks 11. Charts (100 chart, multiplication chart, etc...) 12. Pattern Blocks/Tangrams 13. Base 5 Blocks 14. Rods(use w/color tiles for fraction practice) 15. Color Tiles 16. Pattern Block Grid Paper 17. Geoboard Paper 18. Beginner's Graph Paper 19. Polar Graph Paper Manipulatives are an important part of various math lessons. They will help the children to visualize what the problems stand for and how the answers make sense. Many games and math lessons include the use of manipulatives, so you will find yourself using these often. I recommend using cardstock for your manipulatives and laminating them after you make them. Another way to make your manipulatives sturdy is by using thin cuttable plastic sheets (stencil blanks sold in craft stores work well) to make them. You may want to print and make several copies of all of these and store them in plastic tubs or containers. For the graph papers and charts, I still suggest laminating them and letting your students use write & wipe markers. That way the charts will last longer and the students can use them over and over for more practice. Notes: Math games should be played for at least 20 minutes every day, in addition to your child's regular math homework or study. This makes the lessons stick in your child's mind and also makes the math more fun. *A version of this article was previously posted on the Yahoo! Contributor Network |
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