The Happy Learning Den

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Thanksgiving Themed Learning

Thanksgiving math activities, reading comprehension, and writing short responses can be so much fun with Thanksgiving Themed Learning! What upper elementary student doesn’t love turkeys, pies, and Thanksgiving riddles? Turn that excitement into learning with scaffolded and differentiated Thanksgiving Math, Reading, & Writing Activities!

These worksheets and activities are perfect for teachers who need to scaffold and/or differentiate, and it’s also ideal for teachers who are looking for more ways to really engage students with a themed learning activity. While these worksheets are fun, they are also aligned to standards.

My ready to print and photocopy Thanksgiving Themed Reading, Writing, and Math worksheets are also no-prep. Who doesn't need no-prep learning activities during the holiday season?

The Reading and Writing packet includes:

★ Parts of Speech Posters

★ Parts of Speech Color by Code

★ Word Search (with hidden messages such as read, smile, be kind)

★ Simile Worksheet

★ Following Directions Worksheet

★ Compare and Contrast Worksheet (Venn Diagram and Paragraph Writing)

★ Short Response Creative Writing (Fall Fun!)

★ Turkey Riddles (Crack the Code)

★ Answer Keys

The Math packet includes:

★ Missing Addends worksheet

★ Missing Addends (word problems with missing addends)

★ Snacking on Word Problems (mixed operations)

★ Perfect Pumpkin Products (3 pages of multiplication practice)

★ Delicious Division (division word problems- no remainders)

★ Dividing Antics (division word problems- with remainders)

★ Save Turkey Tom! (division vocabulary writing prompt)

★ Save Turkey Tanya! (multiplication vocabulary writing prompt)

★ Answer Keys

You can also purchase both together for a nice discount! Click here to purchase the bundle at a 20% discount.

These Thanksgiving Themed activities can be incredibly engaging and fun for your students! I am sure that they will enjoy the theme as much as you love their active learning.

Have a great week!
-Sandra @ The Happy Learning Den

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Engaging Discussion

I am diligent in providing my students with different activities: from muti-media such as virtual labs, power points, and online research, to reading nonfiction texts, interactive notebooks, and journaling.
There is always discussion in my classroom. After all, students learn from one another. We talk about what they have learned, and I try to answer their questions. I admit, sometimes they stump me! Many times I say to my students, "That's a really great question! Let's research that answer." Then we discuss how to find the answers. Students mostly want to look online! But I don't always allow this. They look in their science books and other scientific/ student-friendly books that I have in my class library. Even if they can't always find the answers, I truly hope that our discussions help them love the process of learning and researching, and digging deeper for answers.

PLEASE leave me a comment below and let me know what you do to engage all of your students! One reason I started this blog is to collaborate with teachers all over the world to gain insight so I can continue to learn and grow as an educator!

See you next week!
-Sandra @The Happy Learning Den

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Surviving Halloween

It is that time of the year…Halloween! Your students are excited, even hyperactive and the days leading to and just after Halloween can be challenging. Here are some ways to enjoy the holiday while remaining sane amid the sugar rush.

Know School Protocol

Does your school celebrate Halloween or attempt to curtail it? Some schools go all out with a Halloween parade around the school and classroom parties. In my school, we have the Storybook Parade. This is where students come dressed in their favorite story book character and march around the school with their book for parents and classmates to see. Of course, we have our share of vampires and witches, but the parents and teachers are great about pairing the costume with a book.

In some schools, teachers plan special activities for a portion of the day but follow regular routines the rest of the day. In some schools, teachers and students dress up in costumes, in others they do not. Find out the expectations and then plan accordingly. You don’t want to be the only teacher to show up in a costume in a school that discourages holiday participation.

Have fun with it.

Students are going to be thinking about Halloween, you might as well try to enjoy it.

Play eerie music during transition time.
Paint ghosts on your windows!
Put fun drawings on handouts or on the white board.
Decorate your door with your students. The promise of time to decorate is often a great incentive to get students to focus on doing regular classwork the rest of the day.
Build fluency by having student practice and perform a Reader’s Theater show with Halloween themed poems.
Remind students of expectations.

You don’t have to be a wet blanket, but you will need to remind them and expect them to adhere to previously established routines and procedures. Sometimes a quick reminder is all you need.

Be sensitive.

Some families do not celebrate holidays or allow their children to participate in holiday themed activities. In most cases, parents will have discussed this with you ahead of time. If your school does allow Halloween activities, make sure that activities and costumes are developmentally appropriate. Some children are easily frightened by scary costumes.

I hope you have a great Halloween week!

Sandra @The Happy Learning Den