Simple, Meaningful Activities Before Winter Break

By. Meredith Biesinger

It’s the most magical time of year! The entire holiday season is stretching out in front of you. Your assessment is finished, and there’s that buzz in the air that only comes with end-of-year carols, treats, and classroom activities and parties.

As any teacher knows, surviving the last week before winter break is no mean feat. Teachers face several HUGE jobs like cleaning out classroom spaces and managing over-excited and over-tired children.

What do you teach during this last week?

Fun yet meaningful lessons that are easy to implement and require little preparation are essential this time of year.

So here are some easy, meaningful, no-prep activities that will save a teacher’s sanity during the last week before the holidays.

Investigate Holiday Symbols

As a class, make a list or mind-map of things associated with Christmas and the holiday season. There are many to choose from; symbols such as pine trees, candy canes, wreaths, stockings, and reindeer are a great start.

A Clever Writing Assignment

A Christmas favorite to use is “Do NOT Open This Present!” This is an excellent assignment as it is so different from other Christmas writing tasks. Children use their writing skills and creativity to describe why their present should NOT be opened.

Christmas-Themed Reading Strategies

Educators will be teaching reading strategies right up until the holidays. Using a holiday-themed reading resource is a great way to reinforce inferring strategies while staying festive.

DIY Wrapping Paper

Do you have any excess sheets of butcher paper or miscellaneous craft supplies? Before the break, have your class make their own wrapping paper to take home. Give each student a large sheet of paper, and they can decorate it with drawings, writing, or stamps.

Holidays Math Concepts

This week is also the perfect time to revise essential number concepts before a two to three-week-long hiatus!

No matter what you decide to do in your classrooms, be sure to remember the significant impact you have on your students’ lives each day. They come to school excited to see you and anxious to know what they’ll be doing during this week!