It's the holiday season and the kids are restless.  They are ready for a break and so are the teachers.

What should I do to wrangle them in and get them focused?  Well go with the madness.  I know that sounds crazy.  Do you want to join me?

Here is my plan of action:

I went to the library and found some of my favorite holiday Read Alouds:

Thanksgiving:
Twas the night before Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is for Giving Thanks
Beauty and the Beaks:  A Turkey's Cautionary Tale

Christmas:
Polar Express
Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins
Seven Candles for Kwanzaa
The Night Before Christmas

I than found poems, created a variety of puzzles using Puzzlemaker.com and I found Mad lib activity pages, I plan to develop  writing prompts using the Read Alouds,  I plan to allow the kids to make ornaments, we will create turkey frames for our writings.


I know your wondering how am I going to do all this and make sure I am still teaching.  Easily.  First off let me say these will be interwoven into the existing curriculum. So For every book I read,  I can create comprehension questions around, I can come up with Tier 2 Vocabulary, while look at words the author used on purpose.  All of these words will be used for the puzzles I create. 

I am able to teach Compare/contrast, Character analysis, Theme, Inferring, Cause/effect as well explore Story Elements. I am sure with the exploration of the text I will be able to teach and Review Grammar skills such as Capitalization, comma usage, Quotation usage, Possessive forms, plurals and contractions.  Writing is a given,  so many prompts can be developed from each book, free writing possibilities and Poetry.  I will get a little Social Studies' Culture and  Geography activities and let's not forget we can also incorporate Math concepts, Art and Music concepts.

As a teacher of Reading, I realize that the possibilities are endless with any book whether it is a picture book or a chapter book.  You need to make sure that you read the book first and really think about what your going to do with the books.  Think about how you will still teach content while celebrating and engaging in holiday activities.    A comprehension packet stuffed full of lesson plans that cover all subject areas, activities, and crafts is on the horizon. Meanwhile  check out this freebie:  Hit the MrsEduc8te's TPT  link on the side bar to access it and much more.

Are you ready for the holiday madness?  Do you have a plan of action?  Are yo ready to nurture and love on our kids.  This is the time of year behaviors kick in because of instabilities at home and the fear of the unknown, so being flexible, take breaks, give a smile, lend an ear.  Most of all remember school is some of our students safe zones.  The thought of going home and not having a place to go to is scary for some and they only know one way to deal with that emotion.  So the routines are important, the structure of your day is important and that is why I say that content needs to continue to be taught and is applicable while you incorporate some holiday spirit into the atmosphere.