I think it’s safe to say that ALL toddlers love a trip to the zoo. We are lucky to have a pretty fantastic zoo close to where we live so we take full advantage of that and visit every few weeks or so. Madelynn always loves seeing what the animals are up to, so I knew this […]
You’ll love everything about these 25 last week of school ideas and activities for elementary and middle school students! Get end of the year activities and party ideas including theme days, outdoor fun, memory books, and even escape rooms on this end of year activities list. Perfect for 3rd grade, for 4th grade, 5th grade, and even 6th grade!
A list of fantastic end of the year activities for creating a relaxing, yet fun and memorable ending to your school year.
Here are the 5 most powerful activities for first day of high school that will liven up your class and eliminate the boredom.
Every activity plays an important role in development of students These activities are an essential part of school life and helps in enhancing learning process of students at school. Co-Curricular activities are compulsory activities which is important for every student to participate. They are designed and balanced with academic curriculum so that every student gets to learn beyond subjects. Co-curricular activities are vital because even though they are not a part of the core curriculum, they play a very crucial role in giving the young boys and girls the ability to shape up their lives. The school activities have to be designed purposefully to give an apt mix of student’s participation in academics and also to create a chance for all-round development. The importance of co-curricular activities cannot be ignored. In today’s world, there is a lot of stress. Doing extracurricular activities helps your child to have a good time and relieve stress. Working with other children
Spending the first week of school teaching classroom expectations and procedures is essential for a successful year. Glue is a tricky school supply for many little learners and there definitely needs to be instruction dedicated to teaching learners how to use this tool.Glue BottlesWhen learners are not taught how to use their glue correctly things
Pre-K and TK Back to School Worksheets. Name practice, fine motor skills, color identification, pre-k math skills and pre-k alphabet practice.
Sharing activity inspired by Should I Share My Ice Cream by Mo Willems! Perfect for homeschool, classrooms, or family fun. Includes a free printable!
How to Avoid the Summer Slide! Summer is right around the corner! We all LOVE our summer vacation, but not the "Summer Slide!" The Summer Review Packets
Summer is a season of sunshine, warmth, and relaxation. It's also a great time to capture your own image through self-portraiture. Whether your students are in kindergarten through 5th grade, drawing a self-portrait can be a fun and rewarding way for students to express themselves and document their unique features. In this fun and easy drawing guide students will draw themselves living their best summer lives!
Looking for a fun Space Preschool Binder for kids? Check out these 8 Hands-On Unicorn activities for Preschool or Kindergarten.
First Week Watercolor Portraits 7 comments Back to School, Bulletin Boards, Self Portraits, Tutorials Every year, my second graders paint a watercolor self-portrait. It is truly my most favorite first week activity of all time. After sharing this picture of this year's portraits on Facebook, a sweet reader asked if I had a blog post about them. Well, it dawned on me that while I have shared my annual self-portraits many times, I've never really shared them exclusively in a post. So, here goes! Every year, I have my students paint a self-portrait during the first week of school (an idea I learned while student teaching many moons ago). I hang these portraits in the room, for the entire year. They really brighten up our space and they are such a joy to look at (this is a picture of my students' portraits from last year). I am not an art teacher and I believe that kids should be encouraged to take risks, so when I task my students with painting their portraits, I pretty much let them "have at it." Don't worry, it isn't a total free for all. I do model the process and I also share examples from years past, like the ones shown below. I just make it very clear that I don't expect their paintings to look like an actual photograph. ;) I always begin by pointing out how much of their body/self they will be painting. I tell them to think about the pictures they see in their yearbooks and how those pictures only show people's heads and shoulders. I explain that they will include only their head and shoulders in their paintings. I then show them examples from previous years (sometimes students move and they get left behind, so I have a few on hand). Once the students understand what it is that they will be including in their portrait, I model the drawing process on the board. I discuss how large the head should be in relation to the paper and show them what this looks like. From there, I show them how I draw a neck and shoulders, hair, and facial features. I apologize that I don't have a photo of this, but essentially, I model and narrate the process, one step at a time. And, then...it's the students' turn. I give each student a piece of white card stock (8x10 inches) to work with. Card stock is brighter and thicker than construction paper, and it just seems to hold the paint better, in my opinion. Then, they start their drawing. Sometimes, I have them draw the outline of their pictures with a black crayon (see below). When I do this, there is NO pencil involved. This helps them to really slow down and visualize before they draw because they know that they can't erase. However, this year, I let them draw with pencil first and then they traced over their pencil lines with a Sharpie. Why did I do that? I have no idea, it was just what I decided to do when I was prepping the materials, but the end result was still fab! Once the students draw the outline of their portrait, they get to paint! Using watercolor is a tricky thing for many second graders. They have a hard time always gauging how much water to use, so a discussion about this (and a little modeling) ahead of time is a good idea. Tip: No matter how much explaining and modeling you do, you'll still have a student or two that uses too much water. Let them use a tissue to blot their paper if you notice this happening. I lay the portraits to dry on the floor, in an out of the way spot. They dry within minutes here in the desert. Once they are dry, I flatten them by stacking heavy teacher manuals on them overnight. I could iron them, but my iron and I do not get along. At all. The next morning, I hang them up and admire the sight before me...all year long. :) At the end of the year, it's always fun to repeat this process. You will be amazed at how much growth your students show. Here are a few examples from last year. Amazing, right? We always get lots of compliments on our portrait display, and the kids are always very proud of them. They love seeing if their parents can guess which one is theirs, and it's fun to see how many parents get it right! At the end of the school year, I send the portraits home as a keepsake. Many parents have commented how much they love them, and they are the perfect size for framing! First week self-portraits are a great way to encourage students to take risks, have fun, and learn to use materials. Beyond that, the students take great pride in their creations and enjoy them just as much as I do, and we have something truly magnificent (that they created!) to look at all year long. :) Share It:
To begin class, we talked about the basics of portrait drawing: your eyes are in the middle of your head, your head is 5 eyes wide, your neck is as wide as your pupils, etc. I had the students make…
These Joseph activities can be used in Christian Preschool programs and Sunday schools. Joseph & the Coat Sequencing Print these story sequencing
These fun review printables will help your Pre-K students practice all of their skills over the long summer before kindergarten!
Hey there, fellow English teacher! I want to share what my secondary English curriculum for the first six weeks of school looks like.
If you're thinking about making glue sponges and want to know if they're worth it, read on... Ever since school ended last June, ...
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Summer has heated up and so has your schedule! To keep pace with it all print one of 50 free printable June 2024 calendars! Print from home!
STEM Tips, Ideas, and Resources! Ways to maintain engagement and stay busy and involved with these end-of-year projects! Take the stress out of your last month.
It is the first week of kindergarten! What do I teach? I get this question all the time! I am so excited to put together this page together for you. I’m sharing our favorite first week of kindergarten read aloud stories and the free coordinating printables I made to go with them. Plus I will s
I have been checking the STATS on my blog lately to see who is out there, where you are from, and what you are reading. I was so sur...
Transform the end of the school year into a celebration of growth and accomplishment with these fun ideas and activities!
Free June 2025 calendar templates are available in printable and fillable PDF formats. Featuring blank and aesthetic designs with holidays.
How to Avoid the Summer Slide! Summer is right around the corner! We all LOVE our summer vacation, but not the "Summer Slide!" According to Oxford
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This FREE handout is a great activity for warm-ups or even early finishers. This handout was inspired by the book Beautiful Oops! by Barney Saltzberg. Here is the BLANK version. This is a good opti…
It is the first week of kindergarten! What do I teach? I get this question all the time! I am so excited to put together this page together for you. I’m sharing our favorite first week of kindergarten read aloud stories and the free coordinating printables I made to go with them. Plus I will s
FREE printable Tracing and Coloring worksheets with a Back to School theme.Different versions included for preschool and kindergarten kids, tracing pictures as well as words. Great fine motor and handwriting practice!
Using 8” by 10” photographs, each student traced a simplified contour drawing of their face. They transferred the drawings onto colored paper and “fractured” them by dividing the picture into smal…
The Feed the Animals activity is Perfect for small group activities, circle time, or even individual use during center time, this activity is sure to be a hit with young learners. To begin, print
