December is short, fast-moving month! However, I was able to squeeze in a few December themed activities in my small groups. May your coffee be strong and your December go by quickly! Happy Holidays!
Until the next time,
Santa Bucket Digraph Toss
My Firsties are wrapping up Digraphs shortly before break. We have played every game I could think of, so this is a Ms. Amy Original!
This one is simple to put together. Back in November, I think, I found these Santa buckets at Dollar Tree. I knew I could use them for something, so I grabbed a few to add to my collection. Like most buckets from the Dollar Tree, these are also dry erase, so that makes them very versatile. I pulled out my bean bags and actually taped on pictures from another digraph game (Spin, Pin, Win). I printed a second copy and cut the pictures apart.
My Firsties had to grab two (2) bags at a time, tell me the picture, and figure out which blend was at the beginning. Simple, yet effective.
Keep a look out for Santa Buckets and grab them when you see them!
Fact & Opinion Christmas Trees
My Littles have been working on fluency and adding different techniques all year. In December, they focused on Fact & Opinion. This is my hands-on group and they love when I do seek and find activities. I knew I could create something interactive and informative for them.
I searched Teachers Pay Teachers for fact and opinion sorts, then made my own ornaments. I will link all the sorts I found below. I found the ornament clip art off Google. I didn't print them in any certain order, so I was sure to get a colorful mixture on each tree. I traced the tree from a Google clipart on chart paper.
This was a great conversation piece for my group of Littles. One person's fact actually became an opinion. One of my Littles said that everyone must eat turkey on Thanksgiving and Christmas. The rest of us in the group said that we don't eat turkey on Christmas. We spent the next few minutes discussing what our families serve for Christmas. Even though we got off track just a bit, I love those little learning experiences I get to share. (PS-They were shocked that my family is having Chinese and Baskin Robbins ice cream cake for Christmas.)
Fact and Opinion - Christmas 12 Days of Christmas: Fact and Opinion Sort
Holiday Fact & Opinion Freebie Activity Fact and Opinion Christmas Around the World Freebie
Grinch Escape Room
Okay...so a little about me. I LOVE the Grinch! I don't know if it is because he has a dog, or the fact that his heart grows at the end, or maybe it's because "Christmas means just a little bit more..." Whatever the reason, in December, my classroom is decked out in all things Grinch.
On Thursday mornings, I get to spend the first class of the day with a group of middle schoolers for an elective class. They get to choose their elective every quarter, and teachers can do something different every quarter with their new group. This quarter, I did teambuilding. Another fun fact, I was a long-time 4-H member, so teambuilding comes second nature to me.
Anywhoo...for our activity before Christmas break, I found a Grinch Escape Room. Before I share, let me tell you, it took some work putting everything together. However, it was worth it in the end! I actually started working on it over Thanksgiving and then when I had a minute here and there.
Here is the link for the Escape Room. It does cost, but once you pay for it, you have it forever. Enjoy!
Saving Christmas - Grinch Escape Room
Note: I didn't use the locks suggested in the directions. I had all the codes written down and teams had to come check with me before opening the correct gift box to find their heart piece.
Each team of two (2) students received a directions page along with a glue stick. If they cracked the three-digit code for a puzzle, they found the gift box and gained a piece of the Grinch's heart. Their goal is to make the Grinch's heart grow three (3) sizes.
Puzzle #2: The Ornaments
This puzzle was surprisingly the most difficult for some teams. If you look closely, the ornaments are in the shape of a clock. All teams had to do was look at the Stealing Christmas To Do List and find the corresponding times on the ornaments. Who know telling time would be difficult!
Puzzle #4: Stockings
This puzzle took some knowledge of the book. Inside the stockings were candy canes. On six (6) of the candy canes were clues from the story. I did allow teams to use a copy of the book to locate answers. If they were able to find each clue, the code number was hidden within.
Puzzle #6: Map of Whoville
I did actually purchase the lock for this puzzle. I bought it off Amazon. The lock makes the puzzle, so it was necessary. Teams had to remember the Grinch's path when visiting Whoville and move the lock in each direction to unlock it. I did give them a cheat sheet after a few tries.
Overall, I was very happy with how well my Middles did on this Escape Room. No team completely made the Grinch's heart grow, but giving a little more time, I know a few teams would have saved Christmas. However, I call it a win because collectively they made a complete heart.
Here's a full view of my classroom with the Escape Room set up. I tried to spread out the six (6) different puzzles because I wanted groups working at different areas in my room at different times. This made copying codes from other groups more difficult. I picked up my Grinch decorations from Amazon, Oriental Trading, and Hobby Lobby. Let's take a look at each puzzle.
Puzzle #1: Presents
This puzzle took the longest to put together. Each block had to be folded and taped together correctly. Teams had to turn the blocks different ways to create a present. Then, they had to read the clue around the present to discover the code.
Puzzle #3: Logs
Super simple puzzle. Teams had to find the three (3) numbers hidden on one of the logs. Funny story, many teams looked inside the rolled paper to find the numbers. Sometimes I get a huge kick out Middles.
Puzzle #5: Puzzler-o-Meter
Another puzzle that involved math skills, but this time it was multiplication. I guess my Middles didn't think they had to use math skills in teambuilding. Once they actually took a minute to look at the puzzle carefully, most teams solved it without difficulty.
The Heart Piece Boxes
I saved several different sized boxes and found Grinch wrapping paper. I wrote in small print on the bottom of each box which puzzle went with each box. I put all the presents under my classroom Christmas tree. I used velcro to keep the boxes shut so none of them had to be ripped open to retrieve the heart piece.
