Valentine's Day Activties

Bring STEM fun to your Valentine’s Day this year! It’s super easy to give classic STEM activities a holiday makeover when you add theme accessories and of course traditional colors.

Building towers, flying heart catapult, creating candy box for a valentine and more. Let's celebrate Valentine's Day with these activities. Holiday activities are designed to provide challenges that will foster a growth mindset. Supplies needed for these activities include legos, conversation hearts, tongue depressors, and rubber bands.

STEM #1- The Valentine's Gift

Problem: You are in charge of making a gift for your valentine. Design and build a candy box that can hold 100 candy hearts using Legos. You must have a lid on top that snaps shut so your candy doesn’t fall out when you deliver your gift.

STEM #2- Heart Tower

Problem: Cupid needs your help. He needs you to build the tallest free standing tower so he can see all the people passing out valentines. You get three tries. Make sure you record your totals each trial. Cupid needs evidence of your hard work!

STEM #3- Launching Hearts

Problem: You need to send messages to a friend. Design and build a catapult that will launch candy hearts to your Valentine.

There are 3 levels appropriate for elementary aged students. 

• K-1 level has addition and subtraction 1-25. 
• 2-3 level has 2-digit addition and subtraction 1-100
• 3-5 level has all four operations using 1 X 1, 2 X 1, and 2 X2 digits

Why did the boy put candy under his pillow? 

   

STEPS of the Process

Common Core Rubrics: 3rd grade

Great for promoting a growth mindset. Use with students as a checklist for processing expectations or on the final draft! Either way feedback is offered in a simple and clear way for your authors!

These writing rubrics are staples in my 3rd grade classroom for ELA. I use these for final drafts and store in student portfolios. Rubrics are editable as well as pre-made for you to use. Three writing genres are included in this bundle: Informational, Essay, and Narrative.

 Each genre includes three types of rubrics: score from 1-4, (not yet, starting to, and yes) columns, and a skill based one. Draft paper with requirements listed is also included.

These are editable too!!!

How to make students in groups work more effectively.

Use examples and non-examples of good and bad group work. I use these clips from You tube to get the discussion rolling...

LINK HERE

Example of Team Norms

Have students create some "team norms" together as a class or group. These are some of the ideas we discuss before creating them. 

• Have respect for each other. - Respect each other's ideas. ...
• All group members should do an equal amount of work. ...
• Your group should have a common understanding of goals that need to be achieved. ...
• Be open to compromise. ...
• Effective communication. ...
• Time management. ...
• Be happy in the group you are in.

Purchase HERE

Define roles! Let them wear their tag or paste to the cover of their folder for the project. It will make them feel important (kids loving having "jobs") and it let's you know that the group is on task, time and target!

For each job title, you can print the description on the back. There are 4 jobs per team:

Team Captain
Facilitator
Resource Monitor
Recorder/Reporter

Use checklists that explain clear expectations to each group! 

Example

8 ways for teaching Main Idea

Main idea can be a challenge to teach. At first it doesn't seem so hard to teach. All students have to do if figure out what the passage is mostly about. But when faced with the learning objective to do so, there is a lot more that goes into that question: "What's the main idea?" Students are figuring out how to comprehend what they are being taught as well as what the most important part is without getting sidetracked by the details.

I have found that it is good to use a variety of tools and even better when you revisit the concept throughout the year.

1.) Start with an chart

 

2.) Use examples and non-examples

3.) Look at Titles

4.) Look for key words

5.) Look for the details (little ideas)

6.) Read the first line and last line

7.) Add in the missing title

8.) Use activities to reinforce and keep practicing

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Practice main idea and supporting details with these short informational text cards.

• 24 practice cards, scoot page, and answer key
• 3 passages with answer keys included

Covers RI.3.2 for common core is covered. If you are not teaching Common Core, then the pack is still valuable to use when teaching 3rd grade students to find the main idea and support key details in a text.