15 Ideas For Teachers During The Holidays

Need an engaging lesson to use for Christmas time? Need to spice up your classroom? Here are some great ideas for various subjects and ages! Check out TimePlan Education on all Social Media platforms and let us know how they turned out!

1. Winter Words - Literacy AND Decorating!

Pinterest / Via pinterest.com

Use literacy to decorate your classroom! Have students get into groups and come up with all of the words they can think of having to do with Winter/ Christmas. Write them down on a fun, Christmas template.

Excellent starter activity to get the mind and vocabulary flowing!

Students can then choose some of the words to use in a winter story. BONUS - get them to peer assess their story and whoever used the most vocabulary (and spelled it correctly, of course) gets a sweet!

ENGLISH/LITERACY/PRIMARY/SECONDARY

2. Grow some Christmas Crystals

Via science-sparks.com

A great, hands-on lesson for a practical in the Science lab! Work with your students through some inquiry-based learning on how crystals form.

You can even give their creations back to them as a Christmas gift!

SCIENCE/SECONDARY/PRIMARY

3. 12 Days of Review

Use the 12 Days of Christmas as review! The term is almost ending and this is a great way to incorporate formative assessment and see how much they have learned.

Each day, have a new quiz question and get each student to hand it in. Perhaps at the end they get a special treat to take home for each quiz question they answered right!

ANY SUBJECT - Primary or Secondary! Especially good for HISTORY/SCIENCE.

4.

Via teacherspayteachers.com

Christmas time is all about giving - so get your students in the Christmas spirit while learning some valuable life lessons.

This is a great idea to help your students gain research skills, marketing skills, and communication skills. Allow students to research a Christmas Charity, create a proposal for raising money, can include a written or oral component - it can be as in-depth as you want it to be!

Check out the website for full details, templates, teacher and student instructions.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Christmas-Research-Project-Give-the-Gift-of-Service-1506683

SECONDARY/BUSINESS

5. Pin The Heart on the Grinch

Via pinterest.com

Need a fun activity for that last day of school?

Let's face it.. they aren't doing anything productive!

PRIMARY/SECONDARY

6. Writing a Letter to Santa

Via pinterest.com

Santa loves giving gifts to children who have excellent literacy skills! Get your students to write a letter to Santa.

Short template, but can be adapted to fit all learners!

BONUS - you can even send them to Santa and receive a letter back.

This can also be adapted for higher-ability students or secondary students to make it a persuasive writing task. Use persuasive techniques in your letter to convince Santa to bring you all the gifts you want!

ENGLISH/LITERACY/PRIMARY/SECONDARY

7. Christmas Careers

Via pinterest.com

For those practical and life skills lessons. If your students are getting ready to jump into the real world, help them be successful by creating resumes.

Spruce it up by finding them a job at the North Pole!

Your students are intelligent, reliable, and adaptable - Santa looks for all those qualities in his future elves..

SECONDARY/ENGLISH/BUSINESS

8. Call Santa!

A great way to excite the kids! Give Santa a call and leave a Merry Christmas from your classroom to the North Pole.

The young ones will love this!

951-262-3062 - Santa Hotline

You can also visit these sites to receive a personalized video message e-mail from Santa!

http://www.freepersonalizedvideogreetingfromsantaclaus.com/

https://www.portablenorthpole.com/form-target/

PRIMARY

9. How did Christmas start?

Christmas isn't all about presents! Allow students to research the history of Christmas and the religious beginnings.

Greatly for R.E lessons and can be used as a written assignment or presentation. Can be done in groups or individually - so adaptable!

PRIMARY/SECONDARY RELIGION

10. Interview An Elf

Via pinterest.com

Excellent when exploring different types of writing. Students can pretend they are writing for the local newspaper and interviewing Santa's elves.

This can even be done in pairs and have them present their interview to the class!

PRIMARY/ENGLISH

11. Snowflakes!

Via pinterest.com

For young students, this is a great way to use their fine motor skills and practice cutting!

Make sure you use your starter to remind students of the safety rules.

BONUS - Use their creations to decorate your classroom!

PRIMARY/ART

12. Christmas Truce of The First World War

What happened on Christmas Day in 1914? This day said a lot about the First World War and would be a great event to discuss with your students.

Can be used for a seminar/ starter discussion. What do your students think? Why did they not fight on Christmas Day? How do they think the soldiers felt?

Excellent for a starter and can be followed up in so many ways!

Example: Get students to write a diary entry for December 25th, 1914 as a solider fighting in the war.

SECONDARY/HISTORY

13. Christmas Math - Problem Solving

Via pinterest.com

This can be used in a lesson, as a plenary, homework task or a starter!

A math worksheet used used for helping students with their subtraction skills.

This can be adapted as well for Secondary students creating harder problems and more complex steps.

PRIMARY/SECONDARY/MATH

14. Chop Down the Christmas Trees

Via pecentral.org

A fun and active lesson helping students practice correct form of the overhand throw in P.E. class.

Have students on opposite sides of the gym with pylons (Christmas trees) behind them. Try to chop down as many Christmas trees on the opposite side before the round is over! If you catch a ball thrown - you can re-plant one of your own trees!

PRIMARY/PHYSICAL EDUCATION

15. Snowman Cookies

Via pinterest.com

Looking to give your students a Christmas treat before the holidays?

An adorable twist on a regular cookie!

We know your are a busy, busy teacher, but these are very easy to make!