For most of you, winter break is just a few weeks away. What are you going to spend time teaching when students’ attentions spans get gradually shorter and shorter as the promise of vacation lurks near? As it gets to the end, I do all our usual end of semester testing and finals, but I like to sprinkle in a short story or two and add some fun winter and holiday themed activities!
The Gift of the Magi
One of my favorites stories to teach during this time is “The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry. It’s short, it’s sweet, it has an easily identifiable theme and figurative language galore! Start with this Text Annotation + Vocabulary resource. Next, this Bloom ball activity (doubles as an ornament) and Figurative Language Mazes are perfect for extending student learning on this story. You can get the all of the above in a 1-week bundle!
Get Up and Go Activities
Also, getting students up and moving always helps release some of that energy! Figurative Language in Christmas Songs Treasure Hunt gets students working together to solve the puzzle, and the Holiday Poetry Stations is great for stretching their creativity (and makes a great gift for a loved one too!)
Early Finisher Activities/Easy Sub Plans
These are perfect activities for early finishers. This Ugly Sweater Pitch activity can be an absolute blast and the Figurative Language Mazes can be challenging (especially when students create their own maze!) You can give these to students to work on while others finish up testing, or use these for sub plans!
December Freebie
Get this freebie exclusively for my mailing list subscribers! It’s great for a fun and quick poetry activity and looks great on a bulletin board! Click here to subscribe now and download it!
Happy holidays!
Stacey
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