Just a few short weeks until the oh-so-anticipated holiday break! Are you hanging in there?
This time of year can be the most fun but also the most challenging. Excitement for the holidays is high, and there are so many fun activities to do with your students.
On the other hand, kids can be a little harder to wrangle (so many Christmas treats!), and you’re probably feeling the pressure to fit in all that curriculum before you close out 2019 (so many things!!).
I feel you.
Take it from me, the best thing you can do this time of year is BREATHE and SIMPLIFY.
I can’t help you with the breathing (although there are a lot of great meditation and yoga apps out there), but I can definitely help you with simplifying.
How about some done-for-you holiday activities that aren’t just time fillers (hello tedious word searches), but are actually meaningful and engaging?
Sign me up, right?!
Here are two of my favorite activities for this season. I hope they help you add meaning, fun, and holiday cheer to your classroom (and save you some time and sanity):
Christmas Around the World Escape Room
Send students on a secret mission around the classroom to learn about holiday traditions around the world. Students will love solving puzzles and cracking codes to save Christmas dinner in Japan!
Encourage critical thinking, teamwork, and multicultural understanding, all in one action-packed 30-60 minute class period.
The best part. NO PREP, just print and go. Time. Sanity. You’re welcome 😉
Winter Wonderland Collaborative Block Poster
Bring your students together with this fun, collaborative poster project. Each student will design his or her own poster block. Then, the students have to collaborate to put all the pieces together in just the right spots. The end result is an eye-catching winter wonderland scene perfect for bulletin boards, a door display, or a hallway conversation piece.
To save you time and sanity, I include step-by-step directions for teachers and students, pattern design ideas, and 25 printable poster blocks.
Tell me, how are you feeling this holiday season? Energized? Stressed? Overwhelmed? No matter what, you are doing great! Just keep breathing, and remember to SIMPLIFY!
