5 Day Classroom Countdown to Winter Break!

Impress your principal, parents, and even yourself as students engage in both fun and learning right up until the last bell rings before Winter Break with the 5 Day Classroom Countdown!  

All teachers know the last week before the winter break is difficult to fill.  Students are distracted with their anticipation for winter break, so teachers want activities to be engaging yet educational. This year, you can have a balance of both fun and learning!  With these non-holiday, Classroom Countdown to Winter Break Lesson Plans for Grades 1-3 or Grades 4-6, students will be racing to school, excited for what each new day has to offer.

Here is a look at Gingerbread Man Day for Grades 1-3! 

As a class, you will read aloud a Gingerbread Man story and students will complete a story map. Then, you will read a second gingerbread version and students will compare/contrast the two texts. Next, students can explore several writing options.  They can respond to a choice of prompts, “Would you try to catch the Gingerbread man or let him run away?”  Or, “How would you catch the Gingerbread Man?” As another choice, students can create their own version of a Gingerbread Man story.  Also included is a fun scavenger hunt around the school if students want to try and catch the Gingerbread Man. (We are guessing all students will want to try and catch that crazy cookie!) After the scavenger hunt, you will return to class for math to play a “Guess My Number” place value game. Additional activities include “Roll-a-Gingerbread Man,” drawing the other half of gingerbread man to review symmetry, and decorating (and eating!) gingerbread cookies.

Here is a look at Snow Day for Grades 4-6!

This brrrrrrilliant day begins as students read the Snowflake Facts text, highlight key words, and jot notes on their snow note catcher. Once they have some background knowledge about snow, you will read another snow-themed text to the class. Students will compile information from both sources to write their own short snow report. Next, choose from a variety of differentiated math activities that will help students hone their snowman fraction skills. Students will have “snow” much fun cutting out their own unique snowflake designs and completing a snowman glyph. The day continues as student listen to a literature or informational story about snow from the suggested book list, then complete a reading response organizer. Of course, the day wouldn’t be complete without a paper snowball fight in the classroom!

Here is a look at Kindness Day for Grades 4-6!

This day begins as you read aloud a story about kindness. Students respond in writing by completing a story’s moral  graphic organizer. Next, the class brainstorms a variety of ways they can show kindness while creating a kindness web or A-Z chart then make a goal to try and complete a certain number of kind deeds during the winter break. During math, the students will play an Acts of Kindness subtraction game after they complete a subtraction review page . With the “sweet acts of kindness” coloring sheet, students are challenged to complete as many acts of kindness as they can  by the end of the day and hand out pass-along cards encouraging others to be kind as well. When Kindness Day nears its end, the students can create a helping hands wreath or picture frame to hang around the room. Over the next few days, they can continue their kindness streak by filling in the candy cards sprinkled on their helping hands wreath for each additional act of kindness they complete.

Here is a look at Penguin Day for Grades 1-3!

To prepare for the each of the 5 Day Countdown lessons, you will need some type of container to store each day’s materials. We purchased nesting boxes, then taped the daily labels onto the side. You could also use manila envelopes, file folders, or even shirt gift boxes.

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We also offer our most popular holiday-themed countdown lesson plans!