February is filled with all sorts of celebrations, from Ground Hog Day to 100 Day and on to Valentine’s Day. Sprinkle in some snow days if you’re from the blizzard belt or days when your students can’t go out for recess because it’s too cold and you might have a few hyper children to deal with. 

You may be finding that your students are filled with an over abundance of energy and excitement at this time.  It’s a great month to review your rules and regulations and consequences for not following through. 

I believe it’s important for students to realize the value of behaving for the sake of behaving, however, I’m dealing with a young five and find that it’s also helpful at times to offer some sort of incentive to that end.  It also teaches my students to be team players -- cooperation, being a key life skill in the real world they’ll soon be thrown into.

Here are a few ideas that I’ve effectively used in the past.  Perhaps they’ll help you as well.

Recess Puzzle:

• Pose your class doing an activity on the playground at recess.
• Enlarge the digital print to an 8x10.
• Print it off and cut it into puzzle shapes.
• (Cut it into as many pieces as you would like your students to earn.)
• Because it’s February, I cut my photo in the shape of a heart and have a caption that says: We LOVE playing outside!
• Decide as a class how your students will earn a puzzle piece towards the goal of completing the puzzle for a free 10-15 minute recess.
• Trace the pieces onto a construction paper template and number the spaces.
• So that the puzzle goes together rather quickly, number the backs of the puzzle pieces.
• Paperclip them together in numerical order. 
• When your students have earned a piece, glue it to the template using a glue dot.
• Hang your template on the white board and keep the pieces in a Ziploc Baggie on the sill along with a strip of glue dots.
•  
• I have also used this technique for an individual child. Take a photo of them smiling (because of their great behavior!) We have an Ellison die cut that will quickly cut a photo into puzzle pieces, but if you don't just trace a puzzle-like design on the back of their photo and cut it out. Keep ther pieces in a Baggie. Trace a template for them which they'll keep taped to their desk.  Decide on the desired behavior and what it takes to earn a puzzle piece, what the goal and reward will be and then the child sets out to achieve that end, receiving a puzzle piece each time they do so.  I use glue dots so that we can re-use the puzzle as long as we need to.  When behavior has been modified, the student has a nice photo puzzle as a keepsake.  I also give them a congratulations certificate to take home as well.
  

Chocolate:

• During certain months, I’ll write a word or group of words on the board related to something that we’re studying or something that relates to the season we’re in.
• As a behavior incentive my students will earn letters during the day, or one for each day, depending on what it is and what I’m trying to accomplish.
• Once they’ve earned all of the letters and spelled the word or phrase, they will have earned whatever it is they have spelled.
•  
• For example, in November we were studying Native Americans and how corn was one of the gifts they gave us.  I put the word POPCORN on the board.
• In January, I had my students spell the words HOT CHOCOLATE because they always came in freezing and rosy-cheeked after recess.  I thought a nice cup of hot cocoa would be fun for them.  It also tied in as a nice transition to our art project mugs that we were making that day.
• As a special treat for February, I have them spell BOX OF CHOCOLATES.
• I do a mini-themed unit on chocolate.  It falls during the week of Valentine’s Day.  They try and spell all 3words by our theme day to earn a chocolate from a huge box that I buy at the store.
• Since chocolate has a yearlong shelf life, I save money by buying the large boxes of chocolate on sale after Christmas.
• They enjoy choosing their chocolate and I have a chance to review shapes.  It’s also a nice addition to my chocolate-themed day.
• I write on the board the famous quote from Forest Gump and we discuss the meaning of:  “Life is like a box of chocolates.  You never know what you’ll get." ( ‘til you bite into it.)  Their answers are sometimes quite hilarious.

Lip Delicious Behavior Terrific Teeth:

• Speaking of biting into something… Since it’s National Dental Hygiene Month I put up a huge set of red lips.
• They are parted, making room for rectangular teeth.
• The caption of this bulletin board is: Biting Into Great Behavior.
•  
• As a way to review our rules and regulations, I ask my students what kinds of great behavior do we want to see in our class? 
• As they tell me, I write them on a rectangular white “tooth”.
• These teeth will go into our red-lipped mouth on the bulletin board.
• Decide with your students how they will earn the teeth that go into the mouth, and what will be the reward after they have filled the mouth with teeth.
• You may want to have a few black rectangles to put up for a moment during the day when things aren’t going as planned.
• Quickly inform your students that they need to brush those bad-behavior “cavity creeps” away and continue with sparkling behavior.
• You know they can. You want to remove those “rotten teeth” as they don’t make you want to smile!  
• Click on the link for a lip template. Put it in front of a light source (overhead) and blow it up.

Artist’s Pallet:

• My students love easel painting.  I try to get to this once a month.
• It’s a great incentive for my students as they are always asking if they can easel paint as an extra center activity.
• With that much motivation behind it, I thought it would be a nice thing for them to work towards as a team goal.
• I cut out a brown artist’s pallet along with 8 construction paper “paint” hearts.  They can earn a color each day.
•  
• I put them in rainbow- order; (+ pink and white) we review the colors in English and Spanish as well as Sign Language.
• When we complete the color pallet we get to easel paint.
• I make this extra special by having them mix red and white paint to make pink.
• They brush paint all over their papers, white first and then red.
• They are thrilled at the color change, as well as the marbled affect.
• After they dry, I give the students tag board heart templates to choose from; they trace big hearts, and cut them out.
• I take pictures of them painting, tracing and cutting and staple them, along with the hearts on a b. board along with our paint pallet and an explanation of the program.  
• Click on the link for a paint pallet template.

I’m LOVING Your Great Behavior/Work:

• This can be run off on red construction paper and done as a whole group, or run off on pink copy paper and distributed to each or your students, or used for only a few that need to work on their own personal behavior.
• Simply decide what behavior or work habits you want to work on and how often.  
• Each time that child completes a task, assignment, stays focused, does that behavior etc.  they get to connect a dot until they have completed their heart.
• I have my students use a red marker. 
• Decide ahead of time what their goal will be, and what they will achieve when they complete the heart.
• You could also make less dots and use this as how many books a child reads as an incentive to read more.
• Click on the link for the connect the dots heart.
  

 We’re Hung Up On Great Behavior:

• Hang up a clothesline, and cut out as many paper hearts as you decide that you want your students to achieve.
• Hang the hearts with clothespins.
• I make red, white and pink hearts so that I can show a pattern.
• This is a nice incentive to do for a while, because you can add numbers as well and then use this as a counting and pattern math extension in your day.
• Give your students a challenge.  Throw down a heart. Explain to them that this is like a gauntlet from the days of Knights and princesses.
• You challenge them to __________ days of great behavior and you want to mark it in an ABC heart pattern on the laundry line because you just LOVE good behavior.
• Have them brainstorm of what types of behavior will earn them a heart each day.
•  
• I write the word HEART on the board so that they have something concrete that they can see.
• I give them a letter for completing Table Top, Centers, no one is in the Time Out-Thinking Chair or Sweet Seat, everyone is working well together etc.
• If things get a little crazy they can lose a letter, but they also have a chance to gain it back.
• I have a heart bookmark on my rocking chair during story time, which is at the end of our day, to remind me to award the heart.
• They are very good at remembering too, as clipping a heart to the clothesline and pointing at the hearts to count them and review the pattern, with a mini laser, is a coveted job. (You can purchase a laser pen at most office supply stores. Mine has a heart symbol and it's red light is perfect for February.) 

     Hopefully, your students will all be stars without that extra tri- in "triumph over frustration."  Just incase, you can feel a little better equipped with a few more behavior tricks that will be a treat for your students to take part in.  

     As always, if you have something that's working for you, I'd enjoy hearing your ideas so that I can share them with others.  Thanks in advance for taking the time. diane@teachwithme.com

Click to print/save article + February Classroom Management templates

100-Day Bulletin Board Ideas    

100 Day is coming up and it’s nice to have a bulletin board up a few days before your celebration, or to do on your 100^th Day.  Here are a few ideas that I dreamed up, that I thought you might enjoy doing with your students.  For your convenience, click on the 100 Day Bulletin Board templates at the end to view/print them.

 Happy 100 Day To Us! (Sung to the tune of Happy Birthday.)

• Using an overhead projector, enlarge my picture of a birthday cake, so that it is large enough to hold 100 candles if you want it to, or at least take up the center of your b. board.
• Use light brown paper for a chocolate cake, light yellow for a lemon cake, or  pink for a strawberry cake.  (The top is white for the frosting.)
• Cut multi-colored strips of construction paper for the candles.
• Brainstorm with your students all of the things they have learned in the past 100 Days.
• Write these on the board.
• Have children choose a DIFFERENT thing that they have learned (cross them out as they choose) and write it on their candle.

• Pre-cut candle flames.
• Make a copy of your class composite photo and cut your student’s individual pictures into ovals.
• Give children a flame to glue on top of their candle.
• Have them glue their photo to the middle of the flame.

• Children help color the bottom of the cake, or you can decorate it with cut out scraps of construction paper, glitter, etc.
• To give the frosting a real 3-D textured effect, mix equal parts Elmer’s glue with non-menthol shaving cream and whip together.
• Have students help you frost the top of the cake with Popsicle sticks.
• (Call a few to your workspace at a time to give them a turn.)
• This needs to dry 24 hours so plan ahead.
• Insert the candles into the frosting.
• For the caption, die cut letters using an Ellison die-cut machine.
• Black letters stand out, but you could also make each word a color of the rainbow, to make your b. board more colorful.  I also die-cut musical notes.  “Happy 100 Day to us, Happy 100 Day to us, Happy 100 Day to us, Look at that we’ve learned!”
  

We’ve Rocketed Our Way To 100 Day!

• Run off the triangular-rocket top master on a variety of colored construction paper.
• Print a copy of your class composite on the photo setting of your copier.
• Cut each student’s photo into an oval.
• Students choose a color and cut out their rocket top.
• Give each student a toilet paper roll to wrap with aluminum foil.
• Students glue their rocket top to the top of their t.p. roll.
• Using a black marker, students write their name at the end of their rocket. This is a bit difficult, so teachers might want to do this for uniformity.
• Students cut some red, orange and yellow (fire) strips and glue them to the inside of the end of their rocket so that it looks like they have fire shooting out of it.

• Hang up a navy blue background on your b. board.
• Sprinkle on some yellow stars. (You could die-cut 100 and write all of the numbers on them if you have the time.)
• Cut rainbow-colored letters from an Ellison die-cut machine that say: “We’ve Rocketed Our Way To 100 Day!
• Use thumbtacks, tacked inside the t.p. rolls to hang them on your b. board.
• You could add a moon in the corner and make it 3-D by gently scrunching up white tissue paper.
• Add a bit more pizzazz by dangling pictures of the planets from the ceiling, hung with fish line so they seem to float just above your bulletin board.

 Learning Is “Snow” Much Fun!

• Buy some snowflake bulletin board boarder so that you have 100 snowflakes.
• Cut them apart and number them 1-100.
• Staple them around your bulletin board as a boarder.
• Make a copy of your class composite on the photo setting of your copier.
• Cut each student’s photo into an oval.
• Enlarge your student’s photo so that it fits in the middle of a coffee-filter size snowflake.
• Pre-fold coffee filters, or demonstrate how to do this with your students.
• Children cut out shapes to make a snowflake.
• Students glue their photo in the middle of their snowflake.
•   Brainstorm with your students about all of the things they learned in the past 100 days of school.

• Write these on the board.
• Have students decide which was their favorite thing that they learned.
• Have students cut out red construction paper hearts  and have each student write what their favorite thing was that they learned in the past 100 days of school, and copy it from the board onto their red heart.
• Students glue one corner of their red heart somewhere on their snowflake.
• Cover the bulletin board with light or dark blue paper.
• Die cut black letters from an Ellison die-cut machine. Your caption will say: Learning is “snow” much fun!
•  
• Make a large white snowball for the center of your board.  Type up the list of things you’ve learned on a white sheet of paper and staple it to the middle of your snowball.
• Write or type a caption that goes around the top of the snowball that says:  “Look what we’ve learned in 100 Days!”
• Staple your students’ snowflakes around the snowball so that they fill up the entire bulletin board.
• You can add a bit more interest by hanging plastic, foam, 3-D tissue, or larger tag board snowflakes from the ceiling so they dangle and twirl in the air.   Hang them from fish line so they seem to float just above your board.

Look Whooooooo’s 100 Days Wiser! What’s your favorite thing that you’ve learned?

• Run off copies of the owl on appropriate-colored construction paper.
• Have students cut out their pieces and glue them together.
• They look cute if you can add wiggle eyes.
• I have my students attach the wings with brass brads for an extra bit of pizzazz.  They can also be glued on if you want to expedite things.
• Brain storm with students what things they learned in the past 100 days.
• Write them on the board.

• Children write their name on the owl’s tummy.
• Hang up a light blue paper for the background of your b. board.
• Make a partial drawing of a tree trunk on brown paper, cut it out and staple it on the right side of the board.  Cut slimmer pieces of brown paper to look like branches and staple them to the tree.
• Hang your student owls on the branches.
• Cut your caption letters from an Ellison die-cut machine: Look Whoooooo’s 100 Days Wiser!
• You could have your students glue their photo on the heart if you’d like to make things more personal, and add a bit of pizzazz.

We’re Writing Away On 100 Day!

• Cut this caption out on an Ellison die-cut machine, and staple it onto a bright yellow sheet of b. board background paper.
• Have your students do any of the writing prompts for 100 Day.  Click on the link for February Writing Article.  Scroll down the page 'til you get to 100 Day Class Book ideas, then click on that link to view/print those pages. 
• Have students glue their papers on a rainbow-colored assortment of construction paper and staple them to the bulletin board.
•  
• Another writing prompt I gave in the 100 Day Idea Article was: I’d walk 100 miles for… If you’d like to do this as a bulletin board, trace your students foot, with their shoe on, have them cut it out, make a copy of their school photo and glue that to their shoe and then write their name on the shoe with a white crayon.  Use the footprints as the border for your b. board.  Hang their writing pages up as explained above.  The other writing prompt you can do is…If I had 100 dollars I would buy… use the 100 dollar bill template, enlarge copies of your student’s photo and have them glue it to the center of this big bill. Display these as your border.  Display their papers on the construction paper as explained above. 

 A Valentine 100 Day B. Board:

• Since Valentine’s Day is on the heels of most of our 100 Day celebrations you could have your students cut out 100 paper hearts in a rainbow-colored assortment of construction paper in different sizes.
• Buy a valentine heart border and cut the hearts apart so that you have 100.

• The student-made hearts can be stapled kitty wampus all over the rest of the b. board.
• On a huge heart in the middle write or type the caption: We’ve LOVED learning these past 100 days.

• Run off the heart template on red construction paper.
• Make a copy of your class composite on the photo setting of your copier.
• Cut each child’s pix out.
• Have children glue their photo to the corner, next to the “I”.
• Have them trace the dashed lines and then complete the sentence.
  

Miscellaneous Ideas:

100 Day Collection Poster: This poster idea can be found in the 100 Day Idea Article.

How I Might Look If I Live To Be 100! Also in this article is a picture of me as 100-year-old "Granny".  A bit scary, but my students enjoy listening to her read a 100 Day story after they have made a drawing of themselves when they're as old as she is! This makes for an adorable b. board.  You can include your students' current school pix with a "before" caption, next to their "oldie-but-goodie" "later" picture.  The template for this is also in the 100 Day Idea Article.

Hunter the 100 Day Hound: This adorable puppy game/activity makes a cute bulletin board after its complete and can be found in the 100 Day Idea Article.  You can write the numbers 1-100 on the sticker dots if you want.

Working Harder To Be 100 Days Smarter: Enlarge your students’ school pix, have them glue them to a rainbow-colored assortment of hearts. Cut out this caption from an Ellison die-cut machine.  Have students glue the corner of their heart to the “Things I’ve learned in 100 days” scroll found in the packet in the above 100 Day Article.

 Whatever you're planning for your 100th Day clebration, I hope you have 100's of great moments, filled with wonderful lessons worthy to display on a bulletin board!

Click on the link to print/view the 100 Day Bulletin Board Templates + article.

 Our 100 Day Celebration:  From Start To Finish

If you're looking for activities to do for your 100th Day of school, you've come to the right Blog!  You can click on the FREE 100 Day 78-page unit at the end of the article to view/print the 100 Day activities that follow. 

Come step into my classroom and teach with me for 100 Day with Mrs. H and her Y5's.  This is a big article so I've broken it up into several parts.

Here's what I do for my 100th Day of school from start to finish: Hopefully you'll get some new ideas to help celebrate your special day!

BEFORE HAND: To prepare, buy some Smartie candies at The Dollar Store.  One of my themes for the day is that my students are 100 Days Smarter!  These are a sweet treat for them, match the theme of the day, melt quickly and are inexpensive.

100 Day Decorations:

A quick door decoration for your students to walk through on 100 Day is to measure a sheet of bulletin board paper the width of your door and the height of your students. Write Happy 100 Day on it with thick marker.  Hang it at the top of your door with the writing facing out.  Starting at the bottom, cut slashes of streamers up to the top so that they can walk through them.  I tell my students not to pull on the streamers or they'll make them come down. 

Things we have done all year long to get to this day:

We have a magnetic apple tree poster and have placed a numbered apple on it as part of our Morning Message.  So it's a big deal to finally place the 100th apple on the tree.  We quickly count these by 10's to 100.

We've also kept track of 100 days by coloring in a gumball on our gumball poster as part of our calendar time.  To celebrate this, everyone has a penny on their desk and when they are done with their Table Top lesson they get to put it in my real gumball machine and get a piece of bubble gum to chew on 'til we are done with centers, then into the trash can it must go.

In the hallway chugging around the bottom of the wall is our 100-car choo-choo train.  It was a nice way of keeping my students occupied while we waited for people to use the bathroom.  I made an engine and a caboose.  The rest of the cars were shapes.  I used the colors of the rainbow.  The star student of the day would get to write the number on it, and tell me what color and shape would be the pattern for the new car, then they'd hang it up with poster putty.  While we waited for children to finish up in the bathroom I could ask all sorts of "I spy" or prediction questions using the train.  Writing 100 on the caboose and adding it to our train was an exciting thing for my students.  The children guessed how many yard sticks long our train would be and then we measured it.  I laminated these pieces and a room helper erased the numbers with a Mr. Clean sponge so I could use them every year.  The train also fit my "Little Engine That Could" theme of "I know you can do it!" because you are "Can-Do Kids!" I truly believe that a positive attitude is "everything" and I try extremely hard all year to promote that and build self-esteem.  The train is a daily reminder of that philosophy.

Anyone who can count to 100 by 10's on this last day of assessments gets a little bottle of bubbles.  Certificates will be awarded along with the bubbles.  One of our stories during story time will be about bubbles, at which time they will get to pop open the bubbles and blow away.  Hopefully we'll be able to make 100 bubbles.  Some of our Table Top and center lessons revolve around the theme of bubbles and bubble gum because of these things.

We've had a small 100-piece puzzle (I've numbered the pieces so we can easily put this together) on the windowsill, that we've put a piece on each day and can now complete it.

I have an index card flip book that sits in our chalk sill that we flip a numbered card over each day as we count up to 100 Day.  This is the final flipped card! We will also be turning over our last number on the 100-numbered pocket chart.  I point to this chart to count by 5's to 100, because I make those numbers in a different color for that day.

 100 Day Homework:

For homework, I send a small baggie home with a note that explains that they are to bring 5 small things in that are appropriate for gluing to our 100 Day poster.  (I have 20 students so it's easy to do the math for this.) When they bring their baggie back, I call them up to the table and they squirt a dab of glue anywhere they want on our big 100 number and glue their "things" down.  This poster has to dry over night and then we hang our collage of 100 things in the hallway.  To make one, just make the number 100 in bubble letters on a piece of tag board and send my note home to parents a few days before 100 Day.  I also pin a reminder on any child who hasn't brought a bag in before hand.

When I taught 1st grade I sent a note home 2 weeks before, along with a little 100 day journal, that explained I wanted them to bring back this booklet on 100 Day, with 100 words written in it (10 each day). These could be any new words that they wanted to learn and then to have their favorite one ready to share with their classmates.

I have a secret number that I hide behind a big question mark; today's number is 100.  Everyone has guessed it correctly every year! I trick them a little bit, before I flip the card over and show them that they are correct, because I write it as a Roman numeral, which leads us into a discussion of different ways to write one hundred. 

A Fun Way To Count To 100:

It's 100 Day so of course we have to count to 100.  That can be pretty tedious for a bunch of 5-year-old's.  I make it extra fun by stacking a pile of books! Here's a picture of a stack of 100 books taken in our library.  I have a zillion books in my personal collection, so building a stack in my room and counting them as we go is no problem and lots of fun for my students.  I have 20 students in my class so they each get to hold 5 books and take turns putting one on the pile.  We make one huge pile and count as we go.  Today is a very fun filled math day. As you can see by the other examples I have them counting to 100 several different ways through out the day.

MORNING

 100 Day Table Top Activities:

I start the day with Table Top lessons.  Today I have a packet on their desk that's entirely themed around 100 Day. 

To make that a bit more fun, the first few sheets are "Speed!" games.  I design these so that my Y5's get used to things being timed, as they'll have to take timed quizzes and tests in the future, as well as do "mad-minute" math and be expected to finish and accomplish tasks in a certain amount of time.  I want to get them used to that in a fun way so they won't have anxiety in later grades and "Speed" does the trick.

I've provided my 100 Day Table Top-skill sheet packet in the templates.  The 1st few pages are the "Speed" games that we do as a whole group.  I say: "Read-Set-100 Day!" and then they begin that paper.  The 1st one done, shoots up their hand and I check to make sure they've got the answers correct.  I allow 100 seconds for these papers.  Everyone gets a 100 Day sticker or stamp on these pages; the child who is the 1st one done with the correct answers, gets a Smartie.  I staple this packet together and they put their name on it.  If you don't want to use it as a table top booklet, you can use the cover as a coloring page, or make it into a different skill sheet by writing addition or subtraction equations etc. on it.  Pick and choose the pages that work for you.

From Table Top they independently transition to Centers.

100 Day Centers:

I run slap bracelets off on yellow construction paper, laminate the sheets, cut them out on a paper cutter, and then have my students trace the "Happy 100-Day", then I slap the bracelet on them and tape it on their wrist.  If you don't want to use them as a bracelet, they make a nice bookmark for older students.

I have a variety of centers set up for them on long tables and TV trays that I put up for special occasions like today.  If you don't have TV trays you may want to look for some at garage sales.  They are perfect for centers as they can fit in a small space,  are just the right size for little people,  set up in a flash and are easy to store.  If I haven't purchased 100 Day glasses for my kids, or made them on an Ellison die-cut machine, we make the paper plate mask listed in my Arts/Crafts & Activities side blog as one of the centers. There's also a shape mask in this packet if you'd like to reinforce shapes as well.  This one's a bit more colorful.  I like to nail as many report card standards as possible with any given project,  so this one hits colors (I teach English and Spanish) as well as shapes, so I usually opt to do this one.  I have a room helper pre-cut the shapes to expedite things, but older students have no problems whipping through the cutting.

 100 Day Art Projects:

For fun and quick art projects you can make the toilet paper roll 100 Day Fireworks, A Rip and Tear 100, or The 100 Day Heart Dangler.  I choose one option and have the supplies laying out for them.  If you want to have some decorations up for this day, you could do the Rip and Tear 100 or the Dangler the day before and then decorate the room for your celebration.  The Reinforcement Banner would be cute for this purpose as well.  My favorite is the Rip and tear 100. 

I cut rainbow-colored strips so I can reinforce the basic colors as stated above, plus a rainbow pattern.  Each student needs only one set of strips to complete the picture.  They turn out really colorful and my students enjoy making them.  Have your students tear 3 strips at a time (if they can) with the red on top, followed by the orange and yellow.

Then a second set of Green, Blue, and Purple.  I have my strips in order when I cut them on the paper cutter, and lay them out in sets for my students to grab.  After they rip off a "square" section they should lay the entire color pattern group in one little pile (ROYGBP) so they won't get confused as to the order they need to glue them on. (They will have many little piles of 6 square-like torn pieces.  They won't use them all.) I have them RUB a stripe of glue down a section of the number one and then begin sticking their color group onto the number.  Then they make another glue stripe and stick another set of colors down.  If they do it this way, they should be done with the entire project in about 6 minutes.

The slap bracelets are also a center at a TV tray and tucked in a long plastic organizational basket people buy to put in drawers.  They are perfect for keeping my centers neat and keeping my students focused and organized when they work at them.  They can also add a flat-backed jewel to their slap bracelet adhering it with a glue dot.  I also have metallic heart stickers available if they'd like to put two of those on their bracelet on top of the zeros.

Because our 100 Day is right on the heels of Valentine's Day I thought it would be appropriate for them to make a valentine that said "I love you!" in 100 different languages.  I went online and found out how you do that.  It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be thanks to the site listed below.  Run off the master on red construction paper and have the children cut it out.  To save time, and because they can't be run off, pre-cut larger black hearts and have them glue the red heart onto the black heart.  Run off the 100 "I love you!" list, pre-cut it so that it will fit on the hearts. 

Students glue the list to the red heart.  Run off the poem + the "I love you so much!" Happy 100 Day from your smart ____________.  Have them cut it out, glue it on the back of the heart and fill in kindergartner, first grader etc. in the blank and then sign their name.  I punch holes on either side of the hearts and tie with a yarn bow.  Thanks to this website where I found thr list: http://www.trap17.com/index.php/Quoti-Love-Youquot-100-Languages_t6060.html

Students also make a 100 Day Star necklace by simply stringing cut up neon or rainbow-colored straws on a piece of lacing plastic.  Older students can string 100 pieces and separate each set of 10 with a pony bead. Run off the stars, laminate, and cut them out. Attach a tiny safety pin to the top of the star.  When they are done stringing their necklace clip the star to the center of their necklace.

My students also make a 100 Day Crown, and a "This is how I will look when I'm 100-years-Old" face and then run it through Mr. Cruncher Muncher. Mr. Cruncher Muncher is a crinkling tool I bought at a craft store.  It's simply a roller.  When you insert a sheet of paper and crank the knob it churns out the sheet looking like a piece of corrugated cardboard.  It's a great fine motor skill for my students.  I do a crinkled "something" each month.  Putting a flesh-toned oval in the machine provides "instant wrinkles" and a great affect for 100 Day project that my students really enjoy.  

 Dressing Up For 100 Day:

I often thought it would be fun for students to dress up as 100-year-old people for 100 Day.  I dress up in the afternoon as a surprise guest speaker.  I ask them the day before if they would like my granny to come visit and read a story to them.  I explain that she just turned 100 in summer so she lives in a retirement home, but I could go pick her up.  They are all excited.  I remind them that she is very old and some people say she looks like a witch so please do not make fun of her. 

They promise to be on their best behavior.   I dress up in one of my Victorian tea dresses while they are at lunch, complete with a gray wig and old lady mask.   One of my room helpers is there to bring my students in and I'm sitting in our reading rocking chair and welcome them with my crackling old lady voice.  You can hear a pin drop. 

A few ask if it's me, but they are all about the wonder and imagination of it and play along so we have fun reading a 100 Day story.  After the story, I ask if I can use their bathroom, change in a minute and pop back out as me.  To my surprise they are so excited to tell me about granny and ask me where she went! Their comments are quite hilarious.

 100 Day Play Money:

One of their favorite centers is the play money.  They find their sheet with their picture in the center of the 100 Dollar bills and are absolutely thrilled!  They cut out their money, keep one of their bills and then exchange the others with friends so they have an assortment of money with their classmate's pictures! 

I simply made a copy of a real 100 Dollar bill on my printer, shrunk it down, made a master of a set of 100 dollar mini-bills, made a copy of my class composite, cut those pictures into ovals, glued them to the center of the mini bills and ran off a set for each child on green copy paper.   It takes a bit of time, but they are so surprised and excited when they go to this center that it's definitely worth it.  My students also need lots of cutting practice, and when they get to do this activity they enjoy it, so they don't mind cutting out their own money.  They also really enjoy choosing which friends they will exchange their money with. 

I print off enough of my own money so that I can give each of my students a Mrs. Henderson 100 Dollar Bill.  I make an extra copy of theirs and hang it up on a 100 Day bulletin board with the Caption: We Are Rich With Education And 100 Days Smarter! Look What We've Learned So Far: I post our 100 day glasses on the corner of our paper of what we learned. (This scrolled sheet is an activity you can also print out for your students.)

Great Fine Motor Skill Fun:

At another center they bingo dot a 100.  This was in my Subscription member's Free February Newsletter-Packet.  Check it out by clicking on the link and scrolling to the bottom of the article. Click on the February Apple Bytes Packet. 

I can't link you directly to it, because if you're not registered on our site the monthly packets are invisible on the shopping cart.  This bingo dot center is also one of their favorite centers.  For some reason my Y5's LOVE bingo dabbing and it's a great fine motor skill where I can incorporate patterning.

Another fun fine motor skill for them is to put reinforcement holes on the number 100, I've also designed a pennant flag done with reinforcement holes for older students. The other favorite fine motor skill my students enjoy doing is a Pinch and Poke.  They hang on to a large thumb tack or golf tee,  lay on their tummies on the carpet, and poke a hole in whatever pattern is on the page.  Today it is an oversized 100 Dollar bill that I made.

After they complete their centers and Table Top it's time for recess. 

AFTERNOON

 100 Day Math Games / Activities: Measuring-Guess-timating

• When they come back in I have their math game activities set up. 

I have 100 colored garage sale circle dots stuck all over the room.  Each child gets to find 5 and stick them on Hunter the Hundred Day Dog, turning him into a spotted hound. To make one, put the dog picture on an overhead and trace him onto a large sheet of tag board.  Buy 10 different colored stickers and then stick 10 of each color around the room.  Figure out how many each child can find, and then let the game begin. Count the colors by 10's so that you can count quickly and move on to the next activity. 

I make name labels for everyone and tell them that they have to take care of their label so that they can use it several times.

• Name labels are a great thing for Y5 students who are just learning to write and recognize their name, and a wonderful time-saver for teachers. 
  
• I use large Avery address labels and make them in Word on my computer.
  
• The first guess-timation game we'll play is with Unifix cubes. 
• They work with several other students to make a rod of 10 cubes, so that we have a class set of 10 rods. 
• We count them by 10's so that we know we have 100 pieces. We measure the rod with a ruler. 
• I tell them we are going to connect the rods and make one long Unifix cube line of 100 pieces.
•  They need to guess where the 100-piece Unifix cube line will end by putting their name label down on the carpet.
•  It's OK to go out the door of the room into the hallway, if they think the line will go that far. 
• I give everyone 100 seconds to decide where to stick their label and then pass out the10 rods to 10 children who begin to assemble the path. 
• The child who is correct gets a Smartie candy for being the smartest.

• Everyone picks up their name label and they listen for the next 100 Day math game directions. 
• I show them a ruler and tell them that it is 12 inches.  I tell them to go put their name label down where they think 100 inches will be.
  

More Fun 100 Day Math Extensions:

Prior to doing the next activity, make sure you count out your steps so that you can see your children.  My 100 steps is out the door and straight down the hallway, so my students don't have to turn any corners, and are always in plain sight.

• I tell them that we will be counting 100 of my steps down the hall from the start of our classroom door.
• I show them how big my foot is and we measure it with the ruler. 
• How is that the same/different than the Unifix cube rod/ruler?
• We will have 100 of these, not 10!
• Now go put your label where you think 100 steps will end. 
•  I give them 100 seconds to do that, and then they line up next to me and we start counting.
•  I put one foot in front of the other, one step at a time and have them do the same thing with theirs. 
• It's amazing how off their 1st, 2nd, and 3rd guesses are from each other. 
• Some children are very good at guessing, some have no concept of what they're doing, but they all have a really good time. 

When we get back, I have my students look at 100 Day books from their book basket.  They lay on their tummies while I sprinkle 100 Day cards around the room. 

• Print these out on construction paper, laminate them, cut them apart and write numbers 1-100 on them.
• Make a few blank ones so that you can fill in any numbers that may turn up missing. 
• We sing the Clean Up song and I explain to my students that as soon as I say "On your mark, get set, 100 Day!"
• They can go look for 100 Day Cards. The one who finds the most gets a Smartie. 
•  
• I give them 100 Seconds to do this, more if needed. 
• Everyone counts their cards and puts them in a nice neat stack, all facing the right direction. 
• I have them sequence their numbers from lowest to highest as well. 
• I have them put their cards in 1's 10's 20's 30's etc. piles in front of them. 
• When we've determined who's found the most, I surprise everyone, by giving each child a Smartie, with the winner getting two, because we are all 100 Days smarter! 
• I ask who has the 1 card, then the 2 card and we assemble the cards in order 'til we get to 100. 
• This can take a bit of time if your students don't know how to count, or recognize numbers, so if you don't need a fill-in game, skip this part and just have them count their cards and then collect them.  

100 Day Math Extensions: Weighing

Besides measuring we also weigh things.

• Some of the things we weigh are:
• 100 pennies, 100 buttons, 100 paperclips,  100 erasers, and 100 toothpicks.
• I give each group a letter A-E
• and have my students put them in numeric order of which they think will be the lightest to the heaviest.
• It's now time for lunch.
  

 100 Day Blast Off!

After lunch I set a timer to ring promptly one minute before 1:00 then as the exact time approaches, have a 10-9-8-7-6 count down and yell "Happy 100 Day!" like you would on New Years.  I have my students get in a crouching position so they can bounce up into the air like a rocket ship. We sing some 100 Day songs at this time and march around the room to get the wiggles out.

 100 Day Gross Motor Fun:

• Instead of Free Play Center Time today,  I  haul out the Unifix cubes, building blocks, Lego's, Duplo's and anything else I think my students can make a stack of.  I give them about 15 minutes Free Play time to see who can build the tallest tower before it comes tumbling down.  No one's ever made it to 100, but they have a blast trying. 
  

• I have a 100 Day Henderson Record Book (Like the Guinness World Book of Records) where I record the "best ever" of all my events.  I let my students know the challenges they're up against and they enjoy trying to beat those records.  If they get tired of making towers, I let them opt to make a really long "path" out of whatever they want.  They snake them around the room to see if they can get to 100 pieces in their road.

• Other records they try to break are how many seconds can everyone stay quiet without a single sound especially giggles and sighs! We try to make it to 100.  How many of the following can they do in 100 seconds: hops on one foot, letters can they write, numbers can they write, can they balance that long on one foot, can they hold their breath that long, words can they write, times can they write their name, claps can they clap, jumps can they jump, blocks can you stack, bingo dots can they dab, stickers can they stick, lines can they trace, things can they find in the picture, letters can they say in the alphabet, numbers can they count up to, and whatever else I choose to have them race at, against my 100-second-set timer.

Other 100 Day Games & Activities:

• After everyone has cleaned up I ask them if they would like to make the number one hundred out of their bodies.  I give them a few minutes to see if they can figure out how they could do that on their own, before I help them out.  Each year I climb up on a table and take a picture of the 100 "kid body" for that year and put it in my 100 Day Body Book.  After I take their photo I show them the past year's pictures.  This 100-Day photo was when 100 Day fell on Valentine's Day.  Talk about a crazy day!

• If there's time left, I have a dice game they can play as well as a connect-the-dots to make a box game.  Each involves a 100-box grid and is played with a partner.  I've also included a groundhog sheet where students count up to 1000 by 100's.  This helps review 3-digit numbers and is very easy to do even for my Y5's.  Because we are working on place value, I make a class set of place value Popsicle sticks so that each child has a 1's, 10's and 100's stick.  Choose a color for each value.  Write the value on the end of each stick.  i.e. the red stick will have 1's written on the tip, the yellow sticks will have 10's written on the tip, the blue sticks will have 100's written length wise. Have them TRACE the beginning number for each groundhog and write the two zeros next to it to complete the skill sheet. Give each student their 3 place value sticks and explain the directions.  Call out a groundhog number and have them place the Popsicle sticks under the numbers in their appropriate place value order.  I find this helps the "light bulb" go on, as well as reinforces the new 3-digit number we have just counted up to! 
  

THE END OF OUR DAY...

We end our day on a quiet note and do these things:

 Zero The Hero

The lower grades get together and we have someone dress up as Zero the Hero and visit each class. 

• He passes out a treat and congratulates us on learning whatever we tell him we have accomplished as a class. 
  
• I make up certificates for skip counting to 100 by 10's and attach lollipops for him to hand out to my class. 
  
• You could ask a parent to do this for you. 
  
• Simply buy a brightly colored T-shirt,
  
• put a big black zero on it with permanent marker
  
• and give him a cape that you can buy after Halloween,
  
• or buy a yard of silk from the fabric store and sew on some yarn ties. 
  
•  
• Buy some super-sized sunglasses at The Dollar or Party Store,
  
• or have him wear goggles, anything silly,
  
• perhaps a neon green, yellow or orange cap. 
  
• They sell caps at Hobby Lobby and Michaels Crafts that you can decorate with zeros.  
  
• JoAnn Fabrics also has a nice selection of novelty fabrics. 
  
• Perhaps your hero will even don leotards and boxer shorts for you! 
  
• You could buy a pair of black silk shorts and using puffy paint put all sorts of zeros on them. 
  
• A pair of sweat pants works well too.  
  

Snack Time: A special 100 Day snack called Derdnuh!

We eat our Derdnuh snack. 

• What's Derdnuh?  Derdnuh is something that I made up. 
  
• It's hundred spelled backwards and is like trail mix. 
  
• I send a note home to parents explaining the recipe and assign each student an ingredient to bring in the week of 100 Day. 
  
• My students LOVE LOVE LOVE this snack. 
  
• We make such a big batch that we enjoy it for a few days,
  
• and have enough that I can share a few bowls with the principal, librarian and secretaries who look forward to Mrs. Henderson's class making this treat every year. 
  
• Here's how to make your own batch of Derdnuh:
  
• Look over the note and make any adjustments,
  
• assign ingredients to your students,
• run off copies
  
• and send home to parents a week or two before your 100 Day celebration. 
  
• Send a reminder note home the day before. 
  
• Obtain a large box and 2 large black garbage bags. 
  
• Line the box with the 2 garbage bags. 
  
• When students bring in an ingredient, make sure that their parents have put their name on it. 
  
• Keep these in an empty box. 
  
•  
• On 100 day, gather children in a circle on the carpet. 
  
• Choose an ingredient out of the box and have that child dump it into the garbage bag box. 
  
• As they do so have all the children thank them for their ingredient. 
  
• Give them a wooden spoon with a long handle (you can buy one at The Dollar Store)
  
• have them gently stir the ingredients. 
  
• Keep doing this 'til all of the ingredients have been added. 
  
• Gently remove the bags from the box. 
  
• Twist them shut so that you can gently tumble the ingredients so that they get mixed up really well. 
  
•  
• Put the bags back in the box. 
  
• Fold the top of the bags down so that you can dip the children's bowls in and serve each one of them a bowl of Derdnuh. 
  
• When everyone has a bowl, they take it to their desks and eat! 
  
• Mmmmm Mmmmmm delicious!  
  
• I serve with apple juice that a mom volunteers to bring in. 
  
• This is a thirsty snack so I also have a pitcher of water available.
  
• This is a picture of my photo album showing my students making Derdnuh.  Here I'm using a huge soup kettle.  I'd add some ingredients and then when the pot became over flowing we'd dump them into the baggy box.  The children tho' got a little over zealous with their stirring, and some of the items got broken, so now I keep it all in the baggy box, and everyone gets just one time to stir the ingredients.
  

Quiet Time:  A Special 100 Day Guessing Game

Guess which bags have 100 in them.

• I have a box of 30 different large Ziploc Baggies filled with a huge variety of things.
  
• All of them have 100 items in them. 
  
• I also have several that don't have 100 items in them so that I have a comparison.  
• I give my students a numbered list from 1-20.
•  
• They are instructed to circle the numbers, that match the bags I show them, that they think, have 100 items in them.
  
• So that it's easy to correct, all of the bags I show them, have 100 items in them except for the last one.
  
• So they should have circled the first 19 numbers.   
• They really enjoy this activity, and learn that 100 seed pearls really look different and take up a different amount of space than 100 seas shells. 
  
• When I taught older grades they brought in their own Baggies of 100 things and shared them at this time. 
  
• I read 100 Day Worries by Margery Cuyler as a nice follow up to this activity. It's my favorite 100 Day book.
  

 Discussion, Sharing & Story Time:

We share what our favorite thing was that we did during 100 Day.  I ordered a 100 Day ball from Oriental Trading and I toss that back and forth to each child to give them a turn to talk.

I finish reading Sammy the Snake Counts up to 100 Day and let the children select one more 100 Day book from our basket and I read that. I made a Sammy skill sheet where students fill in the missing numbers from 1 to 100.  I did not put in any other numbers other than 1 and 100.  I leave that up to you to decide as to the difficulty of the sheet.  Fill in as many as you want.

I have compiled their 100 Day contribution pages and made our 100 Day Class Books, so I share these with them as well. Click on the link which will take you to the February Writing Class Books article; there you can read the directions and click on the 100 Day Class Books .  I've also included 2 other ones (I'd Walk 100 Miles For... and Our 100 Pictures) in this packet.  For other 100 Day storybooks check out the link in my 100 Day Books bibliography in the February Books of the Month Blog. Scroll down the page, 100 Day Book Bibliography is the 2nd one. 

 My other favorite 100 Day book is Keiko Kasza's Wolf's Chicken Stew.  If you get Mailbox Magazine and save your issues, check out the 2007-2008 Dec/Jan issue.  I'm one of their freelance writers and on page 54 I did an article on this book. It includes several activities that would be perfect for 100 Day extensions, after you read the story.  One's an easy baby chick that students make where they feed cookies to the chick.  It's great for regular or skip counting. The other is a pig face they make and then cut out and sequence the 6 story circles and staple them to the pig's nose.

Something else I made up that will help your students practice writing and counting to 100 is my What's Missing? a fill-in-the-blank 100 Counting Skill Sheet Book.  It's filled with a 100 grid for each month.  More squares are left blank as the month's progress and children become more adept at this skill.  To view/print one, click on the link.

Our day has now come to an end and I wish my Y5's one last "Happy 100 Day!" and tell them how proud I am of how far they've come, and how much they've learned.  I give them each a "100 Day Certificate" and a "100 Words of Praise From Your Teacher" sheet that I made up so they can tuck it in with the rest of their goodies, as they pack up their things and get ready to leave.  It's been a terrific day and I'm ready for a nice cup of tea and 100 minutes of peace and quiet...

100 Day is one of my favorite theme days. 

I hope you gathered some ideas that will make 100 Day at your school extra special for you and your students/children too! 

As always, if you have something fun that you do for your 100 Day, I'd love to hear from you! diane@teachwithme.com

100 Day Activity Templates

I've made this into a nice 100 Day Unit for you.  It's chock full of all these ideas (78 pages! + the article's tips, 7 pages, for a grand total of 85 pages! Enjoy. )

      1-2-3 Come Play Some Groundhog Games With Me

Slip Slappin' Away....

     Have you ever been to an arcade and played the game where you hold a hammer and wait for that crazy furry little critter to emerge and then try and bang him on the head? 

     That game led me to thinking up a slapping game you could incorporate in your Groundhog Day activities.   My Y5's couldn't wait for their turn to slap a groundhog card with a flyswatter. 

So why would they slap him?  To recite answers: like letters, shapes, numbers and skip counted sequences!  I thought this would not only be a great time for my students, but a terrific way to review lots of report card standards, and a super easy way for me to whole-group assess at the same time! Click on the link to view/download the Groundhog Day Slappin' Games

The packet includes slapping cards for 54 words that are related to groundhogs and Groundhog Day.  I've included a traceable word strip on the bottom of each card for students to practice writing. 

Make an extra set, laminate and cut the traceable word off to make puzzles.  There's a 2-page tip list of ideas for the word cards, plus I've included a cover for them, so students can make "Itty Bitty" word books. 

As a Daily 5 word work activity, have students arrange the words in alphabetical order.  There's also a cover for students to make a Groundhog Day Word Dictionary.

There's a set of groundhog alphabet cards showing both the upper and lowercase letters together, and then sets for separate upper and lowercase letters.  These are great for Memory Match of "I Have; Who Has?" games.

So you can review colors, there's a set of cards for traceable color words as well as 2 different kinds of groundhogs that your kiddos can color, so there's a groundhog to match each color word.

Traceable number cards to 10, as well as sets of skip counting cards by 2's, 3's, 5's, and 10's are also included.

My personal favorite is the "I spy a shape" groundhog cards.

There is a card for the star as well as the heart, because I know some preschool teachers also cover those shapes, plus a set of cards that don't have the groundhog on them, so that you can make more games, or use them after Groundhog Day is a distant memory.

These too have matching traceable word cards.  All sets include blank cards so you can program with whatever you'd like, such as addition and subtraction equations, spelling words, CVC words etc.  (So many possibilities; so little time!) 

Here's what you do:

• Print off the masters, make extra's to add your own information, laminate the cards and cut them out.
  
• At school, gather your students into a circle on your carpeted area.  Choose the cards you want to work on, and sprinkle them face-up on the floor. 
  
• Explain what they should do, and model it for them.
  
• Give the first child the flyswatter and one minute to slap as many groundhog answer cards as they can.  Keep track of how many groundhog cards they slap correctly, by writing their names on the board and making tally marks.
  
•  For young children who are learning how to identify they name, you can write students' names on the cards and have them slap their name card. 
• Once everyone has identified their card, use them to do the Groundhog Pokey to help them get the wiggles out, then pin the card to their shirtsand have them locate classmates who have some of the same letters, or the same initial as they do.
  
• Click on the link to view/print The Groundhog Pokey
• Another game you can play is to let each child take a turn at sequencing the skip counted cards, or play "I Have; Who Has?" and count as you locate the cards.
  
• They could also arrange the skip counted cards in front of them and then omit every other card. 
  
• After they have done that, they can slap the groundhogs, counting as they go, saying the missing numbers as they slap the groundhogs and the empty spaces. 
  

• After the fun, have them make an Itty Bitty Booklet out of whatever set of cards you want your students to work on, or make little booklets for all of the sets.
• Children enjoy a "just-my-size" booklet to share with their families and it reinforces what they're learning at school. 
  
• Before your students go home, give them a certificate of praise for being great groundhog slappers!
  

I hope you'll have lots of fun slapping these groundhogs!  Enjoy your day! Click on the link to print/view the Groundhog Slap Game cards. Feel free to PIN away.

"Education is learning what you didn't even know you didn't know!" -Daniel Boorstin

Another Old Favorite: Click on the link at the end to view/print the activity templates for this story. 

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Background: I use this book to introduce my post office theme the week before Valentine's Day.  That week we make a Valentine for our families and then we walk to the post office to mail them.  I send an envelope home with a note asking parents to address and stamp the envelope. The town our school resides in is pretty small, so the post office is just 2 blocks away.  On a sunny day in February it makes for a nice day of exercise. We hold hands to cross the street and the children are quite joy-filled and excited about the adventure.  I have several adults volunteer to help walk with us so I have "big people" at the front, middle and end, being a "caboose".  We're not mailing any elephants that day, but we do have a grand time stuffing our valentines in the big blue box on the corner.  The children are quite amazed when their card arrives at their home.  The entire process is very intriguing to a 5-year-old, and one of my favorite events of the year. 

The Gist:  The main character of the story is a little boy who decides to mail an elephant to his cousin Dilly for her birthday.  

Why I LOVE it:  The illustrations are hilarious.  Even the dog gets involved licking the stamps and then getting his tongue stuck. The elephant and dog are quite adorable and the emotions that they exhibit on the pages bring you right into the story and make you laugh and sympathize with their predicaments.   My students giggle at the antics of all 3 characters especially when the elephant is being stuffed into the mailbox.  Mailing something and the post office process, is reviewed in a fun way, so it's a great lead-in for my post office theme. The ending, which I have my students predict, is quite nice and delights the children.  It's one of my favorite post office books.  

Magic Trick: I show my students that there is nothing in my change bag, then I produce an elephant finger puppet that helps me tell the story.  

Story Telling Tip: Whenever I come to a section of the story where the boy is having problem with the elephant I poke the elephant finger puppet above the book and have my students say the title: "You should never mail an elephant." If you don't have access to a finger puppet you can use a small stuffed animal or you can print off the elephant clipart, laminate it, cut it out and mount it on a Popsicle stick with a glue dot and use it as a storytelling puppet-prop. 

Art Extension: "I love you enormously!" valentine note. Run off the master on gray construction paper.  Have children cut it out.  Run off the heart master on red construction paper; fold the papers.  Remind students to keep them folded.  Children cut out their hearts.  (My Y5's are always amazed when they unfold their papers and they have a heart!  It's almost "magical"!) Students glue their elephant to the heart and write "I love you." and then sign their names. 

Writing Extension: "I love you enormously because..." Children color the elephant and then write on the back "...because... and fill in why.  They can tuck this note and their elephant heart in an envelope or simply take both activities home and give to a loved one.  To make things a bit more dramatic and exciting, like the story, I tell my students to leave their notes somewhere special so that their parents can find them and be surprised!  We brainstorm for a few minutes where fun places to leave "paper love" might be like on their pillow, on the car seat, in the glove box, in a kitchen drawer or cupboard.  Some funnier ones that get the giggles going are on a toilet seat, in a pocket etc.  It all adds to the fun of the story.  

 Go-Together Books: My other favorite book that I read after this one is The Jolly Postman by Janet & Allen Ahlberg.  It's a bit pricey starting at $17.95, but you can buy it used on Amazon for $7. It's just one of those books that's "worth it" because you can do all sorts of things with it and my students LOVE LOVE LOVE this book and so do I.  In a nutshell, the Jolly Postman delivers mail from well-known fairy tale characters.  The verse is in rhyme which makes it a fun read aloud.  "Once upon a bicycle, so they say.  A Jolly Postman came one day.  From over the hills and far away..."

My students can't wait for me to reach into the pocket pages and pick out an envelope and read the apology letter from Goldilocks to the 3 Bears, or others addressed to the Wicked Witch, Giant, and the Big Bad Wolf.  The illustrations are wonderful and give you insight into the characters.  My students come to realize that much can be learned from delving into people's mail.  I use the book as an introduction to letter writing.  My students are very excited, and highly motivated after I read this book, to choose a fairy tale character and write their own letter.  We make their letters into a class book that becomes one of their favorites. 

February's #2 Book of the Month Elephant Activity Templates 

This February, snuggle up with with your sweetheart and a good book!

For Black History Month I want to mention ... 

“And the winner is…” The Caldecott Awards were announced and future Dave The Potter books will be printed boasting a sparkling silver stamp! Illustrator Bryan Collier can be proud.  Author Laban Carrick Hill tells a story of a gifted African American slave during the 19^th century in South Carolina, who was a potter that could make 20 gallon pots at a time that wasn’t very common.  His were extra special because he added lines of poetry to the clay. “I wonder where, is all my relation, friendship to all—and, every nation.” Outstanding images, coupled with minimal text, mold maximum effects.

Here are a few other great reads for your students/children (5-9) for a Black History month theme:

Child of the Civil Rights Movement by Paula Young Shelton -This is about the youngest daughter of Andrew Young who was a civil rights leader.  She shares about the time she moved to Atlanta from New York with her two older sisters to protest the unfair laws.  They effectively changed the laws with the help of leaders like Martin Luther King Jr.

Muhammad Ali: The People’s Champion by Walter Dean Myers -This is the story of Cassius Clay’s rise to boxing fame as the Golden Glove’s champion all the way to Olympic fame.

March On! The Day My Brother Martin Changed The World by Christine King Farris -This book is written by Martin’s older sister who watched his famous speech on TV with her parents in Atlanta.

Henry Aaron’s Dream by Matt Tavares  “Hank” had a dream of playing baseball and he did just that in a time when black athletes weren’t the norm.  His career spanned from 1954 through 1976.  He was a vocal spokesperson for equality between black and white players.

Sit-In:  How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down by Andrea Pinkney -Martin Luther King Jr.’s powerful words inspired four students to protest in a way that some say changed the United States.  These “Greensboro Four” began a sit-in on February 1, 1960 in North Carolina at a segregated lunch counter, which helped contribute to the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.  This is their compelling and courageous story.

You can view/print the February art templates at the end of the article. 

Groundhog Day Picture

Review all of the basic shapes with this cute and quick Groundhog Day picture.  Here's how:  

• Run off the master on blue construction paper if the groundhog has seen his shadow, white construction paper if he has not. 
•  Run off the triangle pine trees on green construction paper.  I have made them 3 different sizes so that you can also review small-medium and large!  
• Print  color copies of the groundhog so that each student has one to cut out and glue to their oval-shaped burrow.  
• Point out the various shapes on the paper and ask your students what shape that represents.  
• Students cut and glue their trees in a cluster on the left-hand side of the paper.  (This project is also a nice review of left and right as well as other spatial directions.)  
• Inform students if the groundhog has seen his shadow.  
• If he has, they need to draw a shadow in front of their groundhog using a black crayon.  
• If he has not, have them draw a cloud on a piece of white scrap paper and glue it over their sun.  
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• Children TRACE around the heart, as well as the appropriate yes/rectangle or no/square with a crayon. 
• If the groundhog has seen his shadow, explain to your class that legend has it that we'll have 6 more weeks of winter.  
• Give everyone a Q-tip and a dollop of white paint on a paper plate.  
• Students dip their Q-tip into the paint and decorate their groundhog picture with "snowflakes".  
• Set pictures aside to dry.  
• If the groundhog does not see his shadow, have children color the bottom of their papers with green grass and flowers and put a happy face on their sun, for springtime is just around the corner!

Harrison and Heidi The Happy Hearts:

These danglers and quick and easy and if your students are like my Y5's they will LOVE making these heart-shaped pals to either take home or have hung as a delightful decoration, dangling from the ceiling. Here's how: 

• Run off the heart master on red and pink construction paper.  I like to do two colors because I think it's important to give students a choice.  
• My girls usually pick the pink hearts and my boys usually pick the red ones, but sometimes the boys pick pink because they are making the "pal" for their mommies, which I think is really sweet. 
• Cut strips of white paper the length of a long sheet of extra large construction paper (These will be the legs). (You can use regular size construction paper for younger children so that it is more manageable for them. I used the smaller size so that I could fit it on the photograph.  I like the longer strips for legs because it's extra fine-motor skill practice and the longer legs look cuter dangling from the ceiling.) 
• Cut smaller strips from the width of the paper (These will be the arms.) Students will need two of each. 
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• Demonstrate how to accordion fold a strip of paper.  
• Children fold all of their strips of paper and glue them to the backs of their heart so that their pal has arms and legs. 
• Students can decide if they want their arms shorter, and simply snip off a bit of length and then glue them to the sides of their heart. 
• You can make the project as simple as this, or you can pre-cut some medium and small hearts to review those 3 sizes and have children glue them on for hands and feet. 
• I like to make the small-hand hearts red and the medium-feet hearts black. 
• For a bit of pizzazz, children can add dot-dash details around the edges of these smaller hearts using crayons or markers. 
• Have students write their name on the black-heart shoe with a white crayon.  
• If you opt not to do "shoe hearts", then have students write their name with a black crayon on the back of their large heart. 
• Students add a bit of color to the face of their pal.  
• To add a bit of pizzazz, if you want, you can add a bit of glitter glue to the dot-dash edges.
• You could also give each student two heart stickers for the cheeks.
• Wiggle eyes also add some 3-D pop, but aren't necessary.  
• Punch a hole in the V at the top of the heart, add a loop of yarn and hang from the ceiling with a paperclip. 

Super Quick Craft Card:

• If you have access to an Ellison die-cutting machine and the boy/girl silhouettes, make 2 for each of your students out of black construction paper.  
• On your printer, make a copy of your class composite.  
• Cut your students' photographs into ovals.  
• Have them glue them onto the face of one of the figures.  
• Students glue their figure to their choice of construction paper and the other foot-to-foot with the photo figure so that it looks like their shadow.  
• They write their name under the figure with a black marker and then trace around it with a piece of white chalk.  
• Add a paper white heart lace doily with the typed caption: Me and my shadow and present to parents as a greeting card on Groundhog Day. 

100 Day Mask:

My Y5's love wearing masks.  You can punch a hole in either side of these and tie them on your students/children with yarn, or tape on a Popsicle stick and have them hold it up to their face; either way they will enjoy wearing them to help celebrate the big day.  Run off the master on white copy paper.  Students color the 100 in zany colors with crayons or markers and then TRACE the words.  An adult pre-cuts the eye-holes the day before to expedite things.  Students cut out the nose hole.  Glue on to a paper plate that has been cut in half with an oval cut out for the nose.  These could have been hole punched and tied with yarn the day before as well.  Have fun and Happy 100 Day to you and yours! 

Click here to print/view the February Art templates.  

Just in time for Valentine's Day I made a few puzzles, a thank you note for helpers, a trace and write skill sheet, some pencil toppers + some certificates you can give to your students. Enjoy

Click here to print/view the Valentine Fun Sheets. 

I hope you have a fantastic February, filled with everything and everyone that you love the most!

As always if you have some arts crafts and activities you'd like to share with us, we'd enjoy hearing from you! diane@teachwithme.com

February is avocado and banana month.  Think about what your favorite fruits and veggies are and write about any of the following:  Why is it important to eat fruits and vegetables?  What are your favorite fruits and veggies?  What fruits and veggies have you never eaten and would like to try?  Or... Pretend you're a gourmet chef; plan a creative meal with a special vegetable dish and fruit dessert; what are you making, what does it look like, what's it called and who are you preparing it for and why? 

It's National Boost Self-Esteem Month:  Do you have good self-esteem? Why? Why not?  How did you acquire it?  What kinds of things cause you to have low self-esteem?  High self-esteem?  How can you help build up your friends' / younger siblings' self-esteem? Do those things and write about what happened. 

It's also Expect SUCCESS Month.  Write about what you'd like to be when you grow up. Or... What do you think it takes to be a successful person? Or... Who do you think is the most successful person you know, and why do you think they're successful? Or... If you could meet your favorite successful person, who would it be and why would you like to meet them? Or... Some people say: "You are what you believe!"  Do you believe that believing in yourself is half the battle in being successful and that "attitude is essential"? 

February is also Library Lovers Month! What's your all-time favorite book? Write a little summary about it and tell why it's your favorite. 

It's National Black History Month.  Choose a famous person, find several interesting facts about them and write a paragraph to share with your classmates. Going along with 100 Day, as a class, see if you can make a list of 100 African American people who have made an impact on our history.

100 Day: Other 100 Day writing ideas: I'd walk 100 miles for... (write who, what, why, when, where, how....details please!) I'd like 100 pounds of...  Or... In 100 years I think the world will have changed by...

Happy Dental Health Month. Write about your first trip to the dentist and how you felt. Or...  Pretend you're a mom or dad and explain how you would your kids about the importance of dental hygiene. Or... Pretend you're a dentist and you've just checked your best friend's mouth and they have 6 cavities! What do you tell them? Explain the scenario.

It's National Mend A Broken Heart Month.  Write about how you'd go about helping someone mend their broken heart.  Or... You're a columnist for a teen magazine, what advice can you give to young people when they break up? Or... has this happened to you?  What does it feel like to have a broken heart?  What did you do to get better?

Let's not forget to celebrate National Time Management Month!  How do you manage to get everything done in a day?  Are you organized?  Do you get your work done on time?  Do you fly around like a chicken with your head cut off, procrastinate, turn things in late, wonder where the day went, take your seat just as the bell rings?  Write about it!  How can you improve? How important is it to manage time wisely? 

It's Responsible Pet Owner's Month! Do you have a pet?  Describe your pet.  How did you come by them?  What's their name? (Details please!) If you don't have a pet, write about a pet you'd like to have and what you'd name them.  Another topic would be cruelty to animals.  You've seen the commercials on TV with those adorable abused pets.  What are your feelings about that? How can you help?  Would you like to get involved?  Why/why not? Or... write about an incident you know of where an animal was not taken care of properly.  Or... Here's the scenario: You have just won the "Most Outstanding Pet Owner Award. Write about the things you do to properly take care of your pet, that made the judges decide that you should win this trophy. Along with the trophy is a $100 prize.  You need to spend the money on your pet.  What will you buy?   

This one made me LOL. It's Pull Your Sofa Off The Wall Month! Honestly, who thinks of these things?  But....I thought it would be a fun writing prompt to write about rearranging and changing your room!  You've got $2,000 to create the bedroom of your dreams.  What does it look like? What's in it?  How have you decorated it and why? 

February 8-14 is "Love makes the world go 'round; but, laughter keeps us from getting dizzy!" Week.  Write about something or someone that had you laughing really hard.  Or... Write why you think laughing is an important thing to do. (They say: "Laughter is the best medicine." What does that mean?)  Or... write about things that make you laugh. Or... Write about a funny experience you've had in your life that is really funny.  Make us laugh! Or... Do you think that love really makes the world go 'round?  Why? 

February 12-15 is "Random Acts of Kindness" Week.  Think of one, go out and do it and then write about what you did and the result it had. 

February 17-23 is International Friendship Week.  Spin the globe, touch your finger to a spot, find out something about the country where your finger landed, and write a letter to a pretend pen pal.  Or... make up an international friend and write about him/her and why you are great friends. 

February 4th is Bubble Gum Day!  What's your favorite gum and why?  Now include that information and write a story about the day that bubble gum saved the day! Or... write a story about the day that bubble gum ruined the day!

February 8th is Extraterrestrial Culture Day! Here's the scenario: A space ship has landed on the playground and abducted your class! Write about it. Or... A space ship has landed and taken over your school! Or... A space ship has landed and you have an alien for a teacher for one day.  Or... An alien becomes your best friend. 

February 8th is also "Laugh and Get Rich Day!" Write about how you laughed and got rich!

February 9th is Stop Bullying Day.  Now this is a great idea.  I HATE bullying.  Have you ever been bullied?  Write about that experience. How did you feel? What happened?  What did you do?  If not; write about what you'd do if you saw someone being bullied. Or... You've got magical powers (be sure to write what they are.) You're an anti-bully super hero!  You show up on playgrounds when children are being picked on.  What's your super hero name and what do you do to solve bullying problems? 

February 17th is My Way Day.  If you could have everything YOUR WAY for a day, what would your way be like and why. 

Happy Presidents' Day February 21st.  Which president is your favorite, Lincoln or Washington and why?  Or... How is Obama's presidency different from Lincoln or Washington's presidency?  Or... If you could meet the president, would you want to?  Why or why not?  Or... out of all of the presidents, which is your favorite?  Why?  Or... If it were possible, would you like to be president some day? Why or why not? 

It's "Inconvenience Yourself Day the 23rd.  What do you suppose that means?  Why should it be celebrated?  Or... When have you ever been inconvenienced?  How did you feel?  How did you handle the situation? What could you have done to avoid it?  Or... Actually do it; inconvenience yourself for someone else.  What did you do?  Why did you do it? What were the results? How did you feel? 

It's "Levi Strauss Day" the 26th.  Some say this is the man who made blue jeans famous.  Are blue jeans your favorite attire to wear?  Describe your favorite outfit?  What kinds of clothes do you feel most comfortable in? 

I also wish you all the best as you celebrate Groundhog Day on the 2nd, 100 Day (on whatever day that lands on for you), and my personal favorite day of the year, Valentine's Day on the 14th!

And...

I hope some of these National day, week and month-long celebrations get you excited to write.  I'm a firm believer if you're enthused about a topic, the creative juices start flowing and you WANT to write.  The more you write the better you get at it.  The better you write, the more you want to write. So, as always, by all means....

WRITE ON!

For more writing prompts, click on the link.  I've made a booklet that contains some for each month on a variety of topics!

Now that's a good question.  It's a hot topic among many Blogs whether the classroom has gotten burdened down with too many celebrations.  From themed days to party days and holidays + tossing in children's birthdays and special events at school. What's a teacher to do? What say you?  

February is a good time to discuss this as it's a party-packed theme month.  I'm for everything in moderation.  I LOVE themed days and find it very helpful in organizing my entire year.  It keeps me organized, and helps me plan.  It also motivates my students and keeps them interested as it makes learning fun.  I also enjoy plugging in the various holidays.  

We celebrate Halloween, Christmas and Valentine's as our big school-wide party days.  100 Day is another special event that the entire school takes part in as well as a Dr. Seuss Day in March with all sorts of special days planned around a March is Reading Month theme.

The "how you do it" is entirely up to the teacher.  Or school gives a few guide lines.  I enjoy the freedom and love dressing up.  I have a Winnie the Pooh Pajama Day to celebrate A.A. Milne's birthday in January. We stress the letter P and reinforce or science study of hibernation.  I also extend the 100 Day 3-digit number lesson with a 101 Dalmatian celebration.  

I basically use these ideas as a theme, not a party day, to keep the craziness down.  Everything we do is based around our report card standards even if it's a party or celebration day.  You can have fun and learn at the same time.  

I'd enjoy hearing what kinds of things you and your schools are doing and how you feel about parties, celebrations and holidays.  For me I think part of the joy of being a child is igniting the imagination and pretending to be a princess or whatever, dressing up, doing extra special things on especially creative days.  It's part of making memories at a special time in one's life.  

I still remember those days when I was little 50+ years ago. They made a positive difference in my life. 

diane@teachwithme.com

An Old Favorite:
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The Gist and…

Why I LOVE it: (I LOVE the layout, illustrations, nostalgia, and because it’s a song!) This book is like a greeting card and a novelty book all rolled into one.  It invites you to snuggle up with your sweetie and giggle together.

Skidamarink was one of the first songs my daughter came home singing when she was in kindergarten, and I can see why she remembers it, because every year when I teach it to my Y5’s, they delight in singing it and doing the hand motions.  I use this book as an introduction.

The repeated refrain is rather simple: "Skidamarink a-dink a-dink, Skidamarink a-doo, I love you." And continues…"I love you in the morning and in the afternoon. I love you in the evening and underneath the moon.” Just the word skidamarink is fun for a little one to say.  It’s one of those goofy words like supercalafragalisticexpealidocious, that feels fun tickling your tongue and can’t help but make a child smile.

The adorable illustrations featuring a roly poly polar bear and petite penguin will steal your heart. My students enjoy seeing what’s going to be revealed as I open the double-flap folds and they anxiously await in anticipation as the white, potato-shaped bear plops down on an ice cube... "skidamarink" and the green-hatted penguin skates to the edge of the page; another turn of the flap reveals "a-dink" and the penguin nearly falls off the ice. A second turn of the flap finds the penguin splashing in the icy blue water. The skate marks he’s left behind are heart-shaped.  My students are encouraged to become book lovers through a combination of this well-loved song, adorable characters and creatively displayed page illustrations. They are also excited to learn and sing the song.

Story Telling Tips:

I let my students know when the Skidamarink-a-doo refrain is coming up by holding up a heart-shaped sign with the word on it.  That's their signal to say that part with me.  It gets them "tuned up" to learning the song.  

Magic Trick:

I put a paper heart with a penguin and the word skidamarink on it, into my dove pan. I put the lid on (The magic words are Skidamarink-a-doo!) and when I take the lid off, inside is an adorable soft little stuffed penguin named of course, Skidamarink! After the story I toss him to each child and give everyone a turn to tell me what they liked about the story, song, or which character (polar bear or penguin) was their favorite. We take a minute to graph the results. 

  Skidamarink-a-doo-to-you

and your little ones.

Here's my bibliography for FEBRUARY:

• 100 Day Books
• Groundhog Day Books
• Valentine-Love & Friendship-Hugs & Kisses-themed Books
• Presidents' Day Books
• Dental Hygiene Books

FREE Easy Readers for February:

The Shape of the Cavity Creeps

My 5 Senses In February

My Groundhog Book

February is all about sweethearts and sweet treats, and lip-smacking delights! I've got some crazy concoctions for you to whip up with your little ones, that will have their sweet tooth more than satisfied.  

Fizzy Sweet Treat: A Science Lesson For Young Students

Toss some "fizzies" in a plastic bag and dip a cherry or strawberry lollipop in it and you have one awesome treat for a little kid to experience.  I never really knew what was in my "Sweet Treats" as a child, nor why it sparkled and made my tongue all tingly, but it was great fun.  Your students/children can do this too and have a science lesson at the same time!

The basis of the sweet treat is confectioners' sugar.  50g will make enough for about 6 children.  For that amount you will also need a scant teaspoon each of bicarbonate of soda and citric acid.  You can buy the latter, in the form of white powder,  very cheaply, in small quantities, from the pharmacy.  Children will also enjoy having a lollipop to dip into the powdery confection.  I get the small "dum-dums" at The Dollar Store so that they don't last "forever". 

Ingredients: 

• 50g icing sugar 
• teaspoon bicarbonate of soda 
• teaspoon citric acid 
• lollipops

Directions: Mix all the powders together thoroughly.

Why does it fizz? It's a reaction between the citric acid (the same acid as in lemons) and the bicarbonate of soda, which is an alkali.  In this case the chemical reaction happens on your tongue, as the two dry ingredients mix with water (saliva) they create a gas in the form of lots of tiny little bubbles.  The bubbles provide the tingle in your mouth.  You are creating the same chemical reaction when you drop a bath fizzy bomb into your bath water.  The active dry ingredients-which again include bicarbonate of soda and citric acid-react when they meet the bath water.   Try doing this with vinegar as the liquid and get a real fizzy, bubbling result.  The reaction happens immediately because the vinegar is the liquid.  Combining vinegar and bicarbonate of soda is actually an old-fashioned cleaning recipe, used to help remove suborn stains in the kitchen,  I use this chemical reaction in September during my dinosaur unit and add red food coloring to the vinegar so that it looks like lava.  I put all these ingredients in my students' baby food-jar volcanoes and they have fun watching them erupt!  Keep your "Fizzy Sweet Treats" dry.  Store in little re-sealable plastic bags ready to dip your lollipop in,  or in a plastic food container.  You could also add some red Kool-Aid for a splash of color for Valentine's Day.  

Shake It & Make It - Ice Cream In A Bag

If you've got a few minutes, you can make another Sweet Treat with your students and have more science fun in the classroom.

Ingredients: 

• Tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup milk
• 6 tablespoons rock salt
• 1 gallon-sized Ziplock baggie
• 1 pint-sized Ziplock baggie
• 1 bag of ice
• plastic spoons
• Optional: Red, Pink & White sprinkles

Directions: 

• Fill the gallon-sized bag 1/2 full with ice. 
• Add rock salt to the bag and seal.
• Pour sugar, milk, and vanilla into the small baggie and seal.
• Place the pint-sized bag into the large bag and seal.
• Shake the bag for 5-7 minutes. 
• I put on a zippy dance CD and my students "shake it up" and dance with their bags.
• Take the small bag out of the large bag.
• Open the small zip bag and enjoy your ice cream with a spoon!
• Put the other students' small bags into the other large bags and repeat, 'til everyone has made a bag of ice cream. 
• Because it's close to Valentine's Day when I'm doing this, I buy some sprinkles and we add this to our ice cream too. 

Cinnamon Heart Ornaments:

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon all spice
• 1 tablespoon nutmeg
• 1 cup applesauce
• 1 ½ tablespoons white glue
• 1 drop cinnamon oil added to the white glue to make them really fragrant.

Directions:

• In a bowl, mix ¾ cup of cinnamon, 1 tablespoon all spice, and 1 tablespoon of nutmeg together. 
• Slowly stir in 1 cup of applesauce. 
• Pour in 1½ tablespoons of white glue. 
• Mix well until mixture is stiff.
• Pour the mixture onto some wax paper.
• Press another sheet of wax paper over it and roll it out to ¼-inch thickness. 
• Cut out hearts with a cookie cutter. 
• (I use a mini copper heart cutter so that I can make more hearts with some to spare in case a child breaks one.  
• How many you get out of a batch will entirely depend on how big your cookie cutter is. 
• Use the scraps and roll out the "dough" to make more. 
• Poke a hole near the top of each heart with a toothpick.  
• If you are doing this with only one or two children, use a bigger heart cookie cutter, and poke a hole with a straw. 
• Just an FYI don't do this on Valentine’s Day, because it takes about a week to dry (at room temperature).
• When dry, string with a ribbon. These make wonderful Valentine's Day gifts and your home or classroom will smell absolutely fantastic while you're making them!  

Valentine Strawberry-Chocolate Swirl Half 'n Half's 

A room mommy brought these cupcakes in for her daughter's February birthday treat. She got the recipe from the Internet and shared it with me.  Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 1 package strawberry cake mix (plus ingredients on the box to prepare mix)
• 2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 4 ounces cream cheese
• 1 cup strawberry frosting
• 1 cup chocolate frosting

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Grease or use paper baking cups in a 24 muffin pan.
3. Melt chocolate chips in microwave for 30 seconds. Let child stir, and microwave for 10 second intervals until melted.
4. Prepare cake mix according to directions, letting your child help with each step depending on age and skill level. Separate half the batter in a different bowl. 
5. Combine melted chocolate chips and cream cheese to one batter. 
6. Beat with mixer at medium speed until blended.
7. Using chocolate batter first, spoon chocolate and strawberry batter’s side by side in muffin cups about two-thirds full.
8. Bake for 16 minutes or until tooth pick that you insert, comes out clean. 
9. Cool cupcakes in pan for 10 minutes before placing them individually on wire wracks to cool completely.
10. Let your child pick which frosting he wants to be in charge of . They spread the frosting on one half of each cupcake. 
11. You spread the opposite frosting on the other half.
12. If you want to get fancy, take a Popsicle stick and swirl the center, making a little peak in the middle. 

I hope you enjoy these sweet treats with your little sweeties!  

May you have a love-filled February!