1-2-3 Come Do Some Valentine-Themed Activities With Me

Oh my!  Can February get any more jam packed?  There's so many special activities going on this month.  It seems like we just finished our Groundhog Day activities (which were postponed because of a well-deserved snow day) and now Valentine's Day, 100 Day, and President's Day are all piling up. Anyone else going a bit crazy pulling it all together? 

This article will feature some quick, easy and fun Valentine activities that have been popular downloads and favorites of my kiddos.  I hope you find something you can use to make your life easier and a bit less stressful.

My simple heart paper chain, has been pinned almost 3,000 times!  (Click on the link to check out my valentine board on Pinterest.) To make these especially cool links, just cut strips of pink, white and red construction paper (1 inch wide).  I used 3 colors so we could practice an ABC-ABC color pattern. 

Students fold each strip in half, then bring the ends around to make a heart-shaped link. I used a stapler, but kiddos can glue the ends.

To turn this into a writing prompt, have students write something that they love on each strip. They could also write spelling or word wall words, or February vocabulary words on the links. 

Teachers can make one for the classroom and suspend it from the ceiling, as a great way to countdown to your valentine party day, or do 28 links and countdown the days in February. 

There are several more heart craftivities in this packet, as well as an owl valentine, which holds a pencil that you can give to your students.

Since my "Venn Friends" craftivities have been so popular, I decided to make one for February, featuring a heart-shaped Venn diagram.  Children choose a partner and then make a Valentine Venn Friend with them. 

Venn diagrams are a great way to practice the comparison-contrast form of writing.  Making a Venn Friend is also a wonderful way for students to learn more about their classmates. 

Add a school photo for that finishing touch.  Completed projects make a sweet February bulletin board too. 

Another writing prompt "craftivity" is this 3D valentine card, which features 3 different writing prompts. 

The packet includes a pattern, plus 15 writing prompts to choose from. 

Dangle from the ceiling, or have students make this 3D heart for a valentine card. 

Speaking of special valentine cards, "I wouldn't miss, the chance to blow you a kiss!" is a sweet hand print valentine that's sure to become a keepsake. 

Older students can complete a writing prompt on the back, of why they love and appreciate their family.

If you'd like to give a little something to your students, these 10 valentine bookmarks are a sweet surprise tucked in a desk, valentine card or backpack.  You can also use them as prizes for party day. 

These 20 valentine-themed number puzzles are a fun independent center or whole-group activity, which helps students practice sequencing numbers 1-10, counting backwards from 10 to 1, or skip counting by 10s to 100.  

You can laminate and use them each year, or use as prizes for your valentine games. 

For a special valentine, put one in a Ziplock Baggie for each of your students to put together then take home.  

I've also included 3 black and white puzzles that your students can color, cut, mix up and then put together. 

If they glue their completed puzzle on a sheet of construction paper, leaving a small gap in-between the pieces, they create an interesting mosaic picture that makes a nice February bulletin board.

For a valentine activity that practices a variety of standards, use my valentine-themed grammar cards packet, which includes 30 pocket chart cards. 

Print; laminate and trim, then use them in your pocket chart as a whole group activity.  Read the sentence together, then choose a student, who uses a dry erase marker to fix a card.  They circle the letters that should be capitalized and add end punctuation.

I've included quite a few contractions so you can have even more teachable moments. For more practice, have students correctly rewrite 5 of the sentences on a sheet of paper.  I've included a sheet of 60 mini grammar cards that you can pass out to children for this activity.

No Valentine's Day would be complete without reading several special valentine-themed stories. Click on the link for a list of 100 of my all-time favorites. 

Well that's it for today.  Sorry this got a bit long, but I had so much to share, and time's running out to get everything organized. 

Valentine's Day was my favorite school celebration.  I hope you found a few things here, to make yours extra special.  Wishing you a memorable and love-filled day. 

 "Roses are red; violets are blue. My life is blessed because of you."

1-2-3 Come Do Some Interesting Activities With Me

Since the lists of my all-time favorite books for various units, have been so popular, I decided to make one for my love-themed selections, which include Valentine's Day books and books about hugs, kisses and love. 

I think it's probably my biggest collection, as Valentine's Day has been my favorite holiday since I was five.   Click on the link to view/dowload the list of My 100 All-Time Favorite Valentine Books.

Books need a bookmark, so I designed ten Valentine bookmarks that you can use as incentives (challenge students to collect all of them as they complete various tasks each day) or give as prizes on your party day. 

Click on the link to view/download the Valentine's Day Bookmark packet.

Like the book lists, the punctuation pocket cards, have also been extremely popular, so I made a set of 30 with a valentine theme.  Print; laminate and trim. 

You can put them in your pocket chart, read as a whole group and then make corrections with a dry erase marker. 

Students circle the letters that should be capitalized, and then add end punctuation. 

I made a lot more cards for this packet, as I thought it might be a fun activity for Valentine's Day. 

Pass one out to each student to make corrections and then share the results with the class. 

I purposely included quite a few contractions in the simple sentences to provide yet another teachable moment.  Click on the link to view/download the Valentine Grammar Cards.

While I was making the valentine clock cards yesterday, I was working on several other telling time activities, and finished them today. 

Time For Valentines is a candy heart spinner game.  Children play with a partner or in groups of 3 or 4 taking turns spinning the candy heart clock. 

Whatever number they land on, is the heart that they color on their recording sheet.  Students also write in the digital time, and if you want, have them cover the heart with a candy one. 

The student who completes their clock first is the winner.  The prize can be the candy hearts. Inform students that they may eat one, and then put the rest in the box to take home.  Click on the link to view/download the Candy Heart Clock Game.

Finally, I also finished the Watch Me Tell Time whole-group assessment activity.  Print off the pocket watch page on tan or gold paper, cut off the directions. 

Run off the clocks and digital time rectangles on glossy photo paper. Cut out the clocks and boxes and glue one to each pocket watch paper.  You've now created a dry erase board.

Call out a time. Using a dry erase marker, students draw hands on the clock face and write the digital time in the box.  When they are done, they hold up their pocket watch. 

This is a quick, easy and fun way to whole group assess analog and digital time to the hour or half hour.  (Common Core State Standard:  1.MD.3)  Click on the link to view/download the Watch Me Tell Time assessment packet.

Thanks for visiting today; I hope it's love-filled.   Feel free to PIN away! 

"Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself." -John Dewey 

1-2-3 Come Do Some Valentine's Day Activities With Me

I had so much fun making things with candy hearts on Monday,  that I thought I'd make a few more things for today.   If you missed the article, simply scroll down.  As usual, my brain was going a zillion miles an hour of what other things I could do with the candy heart generator.

One of the things I made was a set of candy heart color cards.  The colors are just the 7 in the box, but sometimes its nice to limit things, especially for younger children.  The favorite color and favorite flavor candy heart graphs from yesterday, will compliment these activities. 

Print; laminate and trim to make Memory Match or "I Have; Who Has" games.  I've also included a cover, if you want your students to make an Itty Bitty Candy Heart Color booklet.  Click on the link to view/download the Candy Heart Color Cards.

Contraction activities are often requested, so I thought I'd make a set of those, using 61 contractions. 

Students match the word cards to their contractions.  You could also have children choose several cards and then write what the contraction or words are, depending on which ones they picked.  Click on the link to view/download the Conversation Heart Contraction Cards. 

Switching gears, I wanted to design a few quick Daily 5 word work activities with a valentine theme. 

How many words can you make using the letters in the word valentines?  Challenge your students to work independently or in small groups.  Set a timer, or let teams work on their lists throughout the day. 

I came up with a whopping 312 words!  When everyone has shared their list, share mine and highlight any that students don't know.

Give some to each team and have them look the words up, and then share their results with the class. I've also included several certificates of praise. Click on the link to view/download the Valentine Word Challenge. 

A Valentine Word Search is also a fun way to practice spelling, and build vocabulary.  This one has 22 familiar words associated with Valentine's Day, an answer key, plus several links for students to play valentine word searches online, as well as a list of quite a few sites for them to do valentine crossword puzzles. 

Including a site where they can make up their own crossword puzzle to share with their classmates.  Click on the link to view/download the Valentine Word Find packet.

Finally, I enjoyed making a list of 100+ ways to say "I love you!" in different languages. Challenge your students to each learn 1 or 2. 

These would be fun to include in a valentine card students make for their families, or as a jumpstart to having students do some computer research and find 3-5 facts about one of the countries listed.  Click on the link to view/download 100 Ways To Say "I love you." 

That's it for today.  Thanks for visiting.  Feel free to PIN away. 

"Study without desire, spoils the memory, and it retains nothing that it takes in." -Leonardo da Vinci