ALL ABOUT ME HAND

GETTING TO KNOW YOU PROJECT FOR THE NEW YEAR!
Students trace and cut out five (or more) hand prints.  On 1st, ALL ABOUT _______ with thumb-stating name, pointer-stating age, middle-stating grade level, 4th finger-stating height and pinky-stating hair color. On 2nd hand, MY FAVORITE BOOKS - each finger names a book.  On 3rd hand, MY FAVORITE PEOPLE - each finger names a person.  On 4th hand-MY FAVORITE FOODS - each finger names a food. On 5th hand-MY FAVORITE THINGS TO DO - each finger names an activity.   These topics can change according to your interest.  When you are finished, staple together at the wrist.  You could add one more hand.  Write What I Want to Be When I Grow Up - list one occupation on each finger, OR My Hopes and Dreams....  And it could go on.  Definitely, I would only do one hand at a time, with younger students, to get a better result.

SANTA TREAT BOX


Can blow up and use cafeteria milk cartons as a secure base.  Fill with treats and tape on students' desks during the party.

STRING ART TREE



                                                                       



MARSHMALLOW TREAT


Have students dip mashmallows in chocolate then place them on a gram cracker base. Students stack the dipped marshmallows to make bodies.  Decorate with M and M's, chocolate chips, and other small candies. To help attach the candies, poke a hole in the marshmallow using toothpicks. Licorice whips and cotton candy are fun for hair, bubble gum makes a fine scarf, and pretzel sticks can be arms.  Get ready to EAT! (Can do a writing or poem if wish)

CHRISTMAS STORY SEQUENCE AND WRITING

Have the numbers to sequence on the squares for younger students.  White out the numbers so older students can do their own sequence.  After students color and cut out, form a time line of the Christmas Story, then have them write the story.

POPPERS FOR OUR SOLDIERS PROJECT






                                                                                                                                    
This projects is a spin off from I'M AN EXPERT PROJECT  assigned to 
Third Graders to
meet a Language Arts Concept.  It would be given out late October as a Home Project.  Projects would be presented in class the last three days of December.  The Popper Project went over so well, we adopted it as a yearly Service Project for our Soldiers.  Students brought in toilet paper rolls they had been collecting since September, red, white, and blue tissue papper, ribbon, and decorations, such as glitter, sequins, stickers.  They also brought in bags of wrapped candy.  One afternoon we made poppers at different stations manned by parent volunteers.  Stations included the STEP 2 - wrap popper and tie one end, STEP 3 - fill the popper with candy, sequins, glitter, stickers..., STEP 4 - tie the other end, STEP 5 - decorate the popper with stickers (less is better), LAST STEP - curl the ribbons and attach a signed note card.  Classes chose to make their own poppers in their classroom or they came down to our room in small groups to make one.  Teachers also came to make a popper during their break time.  Parents, Teachers and Students (students did in class) were asked to write short Valentine Cards telling the soldiers how much we appreciate them. All poppers were packed in paper boxes that the school saved for us.  Each box had some of the Valentine Cards.  Before the lid was put on - the extra sequins, glitter, stickers and candy were sprinkled on top.  All boxes were packed ready to be shipped prior to break.  We then found families in our school that had loved ones overseas and gave them boxes to ship in January to be received for Valentines.  Everyone enjoyed this project.  One year a soldier responded back to us and sent us the flag below!  


I'M THE EXPERT BOOK REPORT


This project was taken from Instructional Fair 8453 Book Projects to Send Home.  We did it right before Christmas Break.  A lot of the activities presented were Christmas items and many of the students donated the completed items to The Home Bound in the Parish, so it also became a Mini Service Project.  See HOW TO MAKE POPPERS PROJECT (for an example) and note how we expanded the student's project to become a yearly Valentine/Patriotic Project to send to our soldiers oversees.  http://okscribbler.blogspot.com/2009/12/poppers-for-our-soldiers-project.html

DIRECTIONS
DIRECTIONS cont.
TO PARENTS
GRADE SHEET



CHRISTMAS MEMORY BOOK


This project does it all.  Students end up with a unique booklet that tells all about their Family Traditions.  It hits penmanship, eye-hand copying from the board, creative writing, capitalization and punctuation, sentence structure, drawing from writing, and A GIFT that will never be thrown away!  Each morning write a sentence beginning on the board for the students to copy and expound on.  First grade will add 1 sentence, 2nd grade will add 2 sentences and on...  This is a great project to seal up a lot of language arts concepts prior to moving on in the Second Semester.  Make sure to give lots of time for drawing and coloring.  Encourage DETAILED DRAWINGS!  I collected each writing and kept in stacks to distribute when we were ready to put our book together.  That way the pages didn't get torn up.  I also tracked who had finished what page. We started right after Thanksgiving Break and  I insisted each child have at least 10 pages in their booklet.  Teacher needs to staple.  Make sure the door on the front cover is over the picture on the inside cover.  That way when you cut the dotted lines, the door opens to see the student welcoming people into The Family Traditions.  If a student was way behind, I would send home to be completed, in secret!!!  TRY THIS...YOU WILL LIKE IT.