Get ready for a wild ride in December! This month is bursting with excitement and energy, especially in the classroom. We know it’s important to strike a balance between learning and fun, so we’ve got some fantastic activities just for you. Get ready to engage your students with these December classroom activities.
Festive Days
Get in the holiday spirit with some festive dress-up days. My advice–don’t overcomplicate it and it becomes easier for students to participate. Try to be general (green day) instead of specific (Grinch Day) so that it is more inclusive! And don’t forget to join in on the fun.
If you want to borrow this graphic, I have an editable copy for you here. In order to use the font I used, you will need to click “file –> download as a PPT” and download KG Blank Space Solid.
Readers’ Theater
Building reading fluency + having fun! My students obsess over Readers’ Theaters every year! I seriously think it’s one of the most memorable parts of our year. We always begin by doing a whole class read-through. Then, I have students sign up for their top two choices of characters to be. I try reeeeeally hard to give everyone a character of their choice but also explain that it’s not always possible. I make copies for each student to send home to practice and keep a copy at school (it’s a lot of copies but it’s worth it to not have the headache when students don’t bring it back to school).
We practice for a week or two and then invite another class to come to watch. Here’s a free 5 part reader’s theater called “The Snow Family” by Designed by Danielle and another free one with 4 parts by The First Grade Bloom.
Holiday Books
One of my favorite December classroom activities is reading holiday books! Monthly-themed virtual libraries are always a hit with students! There are twelve books in the December library inclusive of many holidays and traditions.
It is FREE and available in Google Slides or Seesaw. Click here to get your copy!
You could have students listen on their own during independent literacy centers. Or, you could incorporate it as a part of your day and choose a book to listen to as a whole class!
Design a Sweater
Designing a holiday sweater is one of my favorite activities every year! I love seeing students’ creativity. I make sure to provide ample time to work on them so they can be high quality!
December Class Incentive
December is the perfect time to incentivize your students to reach a common goal. I’m sure your students will be antsy for the holiday break and distracted by…well..everything around them. Sitting down to discuss what you need from your students for the next few weeks, how they can accomplish the goal, and what they will earn will be time well spent! You get what you put into a class incentive.
In this incentive tracker, students earn lights on the tree. All of the lights are movable in edit mode. Changing out your incentive tracker isn’t just for looks. Students will be motivated by the novelty of each month’s theme. You can check out more of these monthly incentives here.
These are available for the whole class or individuals as well! For each desired behavior, a light or mitten is added. The goal and rewards are editable! I’ve included 18 different ideas for virtual rewards. You can read more about those here.
December Memory Games
If you’ve been following along here for a while, you know I absolutely LOVE games! I think they are one of the best ways to learn, keeping students engaged and excited. I play games with my reading groups at least once a week. Playing games virtually looks a little different but I’ve created games for each month and they are a lot of fun! These December Memory games are perfect for a morning meeting activity, reward, brain break, or Fun Friday!
Adding fun, holiday activities can feel overwhelming. I hope you and your students can enjoy the holiday season with these December classroom activities.</p></p>
