I have some cute December stories that involve mice, which my Y5’s enjoy. I like to follow them up with an activity I know they will enjoy.
Merry Christmas mouse is one that’s easy, quick and fun. You can also review the oval and heart shapes with your students!
Here’s How:
- Run off my master.
- Gray construction paper looks nice, but if you want to make a cardstock template for children to trace, textured wallpaper that has silver tones looks awesome. I've also experimented with green bodies and red pom pom noses which look cute too.
- I used metallic silver wallpaper with a hot pink nose in the photograph.
- Children cut out their body.
- You can also make a template of the heart and have students cut their own pair of ears, or run off hearts on construction paper and have them cut them out.
- Depending on the age of your students you could expedite things and have them pre-cut by a room helper.
- Students fold the point of their heart-ears by bending them forward. This will give their mouse a 3-D appearance. Using a glue stick, glue them to the head of their mouse. I have put X's on the master to assist students with placement.
- To avoid a mess, and so things stay stuck, I use glue dots for the wiggle eyes and pom pom nose. Whenever I have a glue-dot step, I have students come up to the glue-dot table and I assist them one-on-one.
- They pick up their wiggle eyes and pom pom nose (you could give them color and size choices) and then stick them to their mouse.
- You could also cut the slit and have them insert their candy cane at this point.
- Give them a piece of Scotch tape and have them tape their candy cane in place on the BACK of their mouse.
- If you want your students to be able to use this as a Christmas ornament, you can make the mouse body smaller. Simply shrink it on your copier, and use the smaller wiggle eyes and pom poms.
- I think the large candy canes still look nice, but you could also buy the smaller candy canes.
- I use bubblegum or cherry flavored candy canes, because in the past whenever we’ve graphed who likes peppermint, I’ve had very few who do.
Click on the link to view/print the Merry Christmas Mouse activity.
Pop back tomorrow and see how to make adorable fingerprint keepsake Christmas Tree Ornaments!
I wondered if getting a personal letter from Santa would help improve my students’ energetic December behavior (they are soooo excited!) and add to the wonder of Christmas.So one afternoon 12 years ago, I decided to sit down and become Santa for an hour and I composed a letter for a boy and one for a girl, then I put each of my student’s names in, put some Christmas - printed paper in my copier and within 10 minutes I had 40 personal letters from Santa!
- I designed some adorable North Pole address labels, + a sticker that said: A Letter From SANTA
Xeroxed off a coloring page, - Tucked in a sticker and took it a step farther...
- I bought a box of Quaker Oats at the grocery store and a big bottle of blue glitter and I made up an enticing batch of “reindeer food” for Rudolph and the gang.
- Craft stores sell the little clear Ziploc bags in packs of 100 for $1.49, so with spoon in hand I was in business scooping 1 spoon of oats and 1/4 teaspoon of glitter into a tiny bag. (Mix thoroughly.)
- A Christmas Stamp printed in green on the envelope was the finishing touch.
- I wrote everything with a green and red marker and tucked in a note explaining about the bag of glitter oats.
- Anything we send to students our school pays the postage for, so my total investment was around $7.00.
- Buy everything when things are deeply discounted after Christmas and you'll save even more!
- My students are thrilled. They get the cards in a day; some of them even bring them in to share with me.
- The looks of excitement and the sparkle in their eyes make the extra time and effort definitely worth it!
- The thing that’s amazing is that each year that I’ve done this, is that right after the children receive their cards their behavior really does IMPROVE! I don't know if it's because of the card or not, and I don't really care, but I will continue to do it for as long as I teach.
I now send them to my grandchildren.
- One year I had a mom ask if she could have a copy to run off for the rest of her children. So now I keep extra's available for parents who request it.
- I have a girl and a boy version for you. Simply write your students names in and put the Christmas paper face down in your copy machine, or face up depending on your copier.
- For those of you who are subscription members you can print my Santa address labels by putting my master in your printer with a sheet of 30-count Avery labels in the paper tray (one sheet at a time.) My HP printer has the labels face down. Follow the directions for yours.
The labels and Reindeer food insert are available in A Letter From Santa Extra's.
- Click on the link to view/print a copy of the Letter from Santa for Boys pdf and the Letter from Santa for Girls pdf
- I have it in a pdf or a doc so that you can easily add your own names if you want to type them rather than write them. Enjoy!
- Letter from Santa for Boys doc and the Letter from Santa for Girls doc
Get To The Point!
A Lovely December Bulletin Board Idea
Here’s How:
Cover your bulletin board with black paper. If you want to add a 3-D effect, twirl some green crepe paper and use it as a border.
Run off the leaf pattern on green construction paper. Each student needs two leaves. One they will add “veins” to with a green marker or crayon.
On the other leaf they will complete the sentence: In December I like to…
Before hand, assemble your students in front of the board and brainstorm things they like to do in December.
Write the list of activities on the board so that children can choose several and compose a sentence that they will write on their second leaf.
Students cut out their leaves and glue them to the back of their poinsettia flower after they have glued it together.
Run off the petal template on red construction paper. Each student will need 12.
This is a lot of cutting for younger students, so you might want them pre-cut and folded by a room helper. Older students will have no problem.
I think these poinsettias are prettiest when run off on red construction paper, but you could also shrink the pattern and have your students make a smaller white version with less petals as well.
When you scatter both the large red and smaller white blooms on the black background you will have a really striking December bulletin board.
Students rub glue on the folded part of the petal and glue it to another folded part of another petal continuing until they have connected all 12 petals so they have a huge poinsettia flower.
The day before, make gold glitter blobs on yellow construction paper. Children or a room helper can cut these into circles.
Students make a 3-circle clump and using glue dots, stick it to the center of their poinsettia.
One big yellow pom pom also works well, but I think the glitter is more striking.
Using an Ellison die cut machine, cut letters out for your caption and run it above your bulletin board: “Our Writing is Blooming!” “Wishing you a Brrrr-illiant December!” “A Bouquet of December Thoughts.” “Our Writing Skills Have Blossomed!”
Click on the link to view/print Poinsettia December bulletin board pattern.
Click on the link to view/print History of the Poinsettia. You can print this off and hang it on or next to your December Bulletin board.
Be sure to check out the other December Bulletin board ideas by scrolling down!
As always, if you have a December bulletin board idea you'd like to share, I'd enjoy hearing from you! diane@teachwithme.com
December Does Double Duty
A Snowflake December Bulletin Board Idea You Can Keep Up For Your January Bulletin Board!
Since December seems to simply fly by, I like to make one of my bulletin boards wintry so that I can leave it up through January.
This snowflake bulletin board does the trick, gets your students writing as well + involves their families!
Here’s how:
Click on the link to view/print a copy of the “My family is ‘snow’ special!” Snowflake December Bulletin Board pattern.
If you'd like a copy of my sample, click on the December bulletin board Family Snowflake sample link.
Run off copies on white construction paper and send home along with a note to families explaining the December bulletin board.
Click on the link to view/print December Bulletin board snowflake letter home to parents.
Cover the bulletin board with royal blue or navy paper and spray with silver or opalescent glitter.
They sell it by the can in most craft stores for less than $2.00 a can.
The smell can be a bit over powering, as it's alcohol-based, so you may want to run a fan, or open a window briefly, and then follow up with a few spritzes of cinnamon air freshener. The sparkling effect will be worth it!
To add a 3-D effect, twist some silver or white crepe paper around the edges or add white sparkly garland. Twinkle lights look festive, if you have a plug nearby.
Tissue paper, plastic, or white tag board-die cut snowflakes, that are suspended from fish line and dangling from the ceiling, just above your bulletin board, will also add interest and pop. I have a dozen like the ones pictured, that I purchased in a package at The Dollar store.
Hang your December bulletin board “caption” above the board. Use an Ellison die cut machine to cut out black letters that spell: Brrrr-illiant work! Or “_________________’s class is ‘snow’ special!” OR “Snow special sentiments from ________________’s class.” OR “Let is snow!” OR “A blizzard of Brrr-illiant writing!”
Sprinkle your students’ snowflakes in an interesting pattern across the bright blue background. Your students will enjoy seeing their family's pictures displayed through out the month, as well as have their self-esteem built by having their wonderful writing up on the wall!
Be sure and check out the other December bulletin board ideas in more blog articles by scrolling down. Tomorrow I'll have one last one that's just beautiful, so be sure and pop in!
As always, if you have a December bulletin board idea you'd like to share, I'd enjoy hearing from you! diane@teachwithme.com
A December Bulletin Board Idea That Will Get Your Students Writing!
Here is a quick, easy and eye-catching December bulletin board idea:
Dear Santa:
Have students practice their writing skills by composing a letter to Santa.
Gather children in front of the board and brainstorm a “wish list” of things they want for Christmas and write them down.
Have them select two things. Choose a form letter you like, and run off copies.
Have students use red or green markers or crayons and printing as neatly as they can, fill in the rest.
They can also color in the holly at the top to add a bit of pizzazz to their paper.
Click on the link to view/print a Dear Santa Letter for December bulletin board ideas.
If you like, tell your little ones that they will be making two copies: one to send to Santa and one for your December bulletin board.
Mount their letters on red and green construction paper.
Cover your bulletin board with white paper and scatter their letters around the board in an interesting pattern.
Add a triangular piece of white paper on the top of the bulletin board so that the entire board looks like a huge envelope.
If you want to add a bit more pizzazz print off my jumbo stamps, cut the edges with a pinking sheers, mount them on hot pink, turquoise, lime green and neon yellow construction paper and dangle them from the ceiling with fish line, over the top of your bulletin board.
Click on the link to view/print Christmas stamps for December bulletin board
You could also dangle tissue paper, or white tag board snowflakes that you can buy pre-cut at any party store.
Using an Ellison die cut machine, cut Dear Santa letters out of black construction paper and stick them in the middle-center of the triangular part of the white envelope at the top of your bulletin board.
For a teachable moment, have them put the second copy of their letter in a large manila envelope and show them how you properly address an envelope.
I do a mini lesson of how to address our valentines when we walk to the post office in February to mail them. If you do that too, this would be nice recall.
For more December bulletin board ideas scroll down to the next article.
