Valentine’s Day is one of the most popular days in school. There are so many fun things to do! There’s an explosion of red and pink, loads of friendship-themed ideas and parties galore. Through the years, I have done many different things for Valentine’s Day in my classroom. I wasn’t thinking only about the usual chocolate and Valentine cards kinds of things but also the idea of kindness, love and equity and how we can promote more of that in school while still having a blast on Valentine’s day.
For some of us, the 100th Day of School is very close to Valentine’s Day. It is usually full of fun learning activities about what it might look like to be 100 years old. There are apps where you can take a picture of yourself and it converts the photo into you at 100 years old. Why not turn some of those aging and 100’s day fun events into compassionate learning experiences?
While using this app, I would ask the students what they think it might be like to feel 100. How old are your grandparents? Great grandparents? How might your aging body change your walking or daily activity, your ability to learn, drive, attend events, play with your grandkids? It’s a great way to teach kids to feel compassion for their elders.
One fun way to take a look at growth over time and diverse families is the do a timeline. This post on Interactive Mindful Notebooks for Diversity describes a fun way to bring equity into your classroom that also promotes friendship and kindness.
What do you usually do on Valentine’s Day? Do you have a party? Exchange cards? I usually do both but my party is more of a friendship and cooperative learning day. A few days before Valentine’s Day, I use my task cards to teach students about social skills so that they are in the right frame of mind for friendship fun! There are Valentine’s cards in there too in case some students don’t have any. You can find them on Teachers Pay Teachers here or by clicking the picture.
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