Christmas Party Ideas: Student Gifts

Games? Check.

Cute crafts? Got 'em.

Christmas picture book to read aloud? Done.

We've been having a lot of fun planning our class Christmas party around these parts :) We've looked at tons of fun party games, creative crafts, and my favorite picture books to make your party a success.

Now it's time to plan out what to give those cute little munchkins!

As teachers, our hearts are often larger than our wallets and our time is often more precious than gold. We want to show the kiddos that we love and appreciate them, but we need to do it on a budget and in a way that leaves us time to still celebrate this season with our families.

Knowing this, I've collected a few simple gifts that won't break the budget and are a snap to put together.

Snowman Hot Cocoa Packets: Hot chocolate is a holiday staple in every kid's life. Buy a few boxes of hot cocoa mix and wrap each packet in one of these adorable snowman wrappers. Click on the image to download this FREE snowman wrapper.

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Merry & Bright Glow Sticks: We used glow sticks for our summer program at our church and they were a HUGE hit with kids of all ages. You can usually find them at any dollar store, but I seem to have the best luck purchasing these from Amazon (just a few bucks for 100 glow sticks!)

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Christmas Tree Lollipops: This is a simple and cute way to dress up a lollipop for Christmas. And really, who are we kidding? Kids love candy. Period. 

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Dollar Books: Maria over at Kinder-Craze had a great idea for using the books in the dollar section of the Scholastic book catalogue as student gifts. Just print off a few labels and you're done! Bonus: you are spreading the joy of reading. Love!!

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Cute Treats: There are an assortment of cute and easy ways to take a bag of m&ms, marshmallows, or even gum balls and turn them into a fun Christmas treat (and slip some bathroom humor in there for your boys too!) Check these out: 

Elf Kisses:

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Reindeer Noses:

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Snowman Poop:

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Elf Poo:

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Christmas Tree Crayons: Use Christmas-shaped cookie cutters or molds to melt down spare crayons. Finally, a good use for all those (millions) of half-used crayons you've been picking up off the floor all year! ;) ...I might take this just one step further and print off a Christmas coloring sheet to go with the crayon. You can even turn a class picture you take into a coloring sheet using the Coloring Page Creator site.

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Reindeer Food: This is a mixture of glitter, oats, and birdseed to sprinkle in the front yard on Christmas Eve. I made this with my son last year and it was a hit! I shared this when we were talking about a fun Christmas craft to do with your class, but I think it might just make a nice little gift as well.

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What are some budget-conscious, easy Christmas gifts that you've given your students?

Fiction and Nonfiction Sorting Activity

Kelly over at First Grade Fairytales found a fun activity that's also my favorite F word....FREE! She used the book club stickers that come in the mail, along with sorting circles to create an instant, hands-on nonfiction v. fiction sorting activity. 

If you didn't have sorting circles, you could easily use white boards with circles drawn on, embroidery hoops, or just two pieces of construction paper. 

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This is just one idea that was pinned to the BEST Teaching Tips & Tools board on my Pinterest page. This is a awesome board full of TONS of creative ideas pinned by other teachers. Check it out:

Wanna join the board?

Do you sell your own teacher-created products? Have a teaching blog? Just love sharing interesting teaching pins with other teachers? Then this board is for you! It's easy- just follow these simple directions.

Christmas Party Ideas: Picture Books

Has the Christmas Ants visited your room yet? You know, the ones that make your kids wiggly and completely unable to focus on anything that isn't red, green, or glittery? ;) 

Don't worry- your break is almost here! BUT before it comes, we've got to plan The Best Christmas Party Ever. Or as my 3 year old would say: "Da Best Cwist-miss Pawty Eh-VUH". 

We've already brainstormed some great party games and a few fun crafts. 

This week, we're gathering the kids together on the carpet, passing out a few candy canes, and cracking open the pages of a Christmas picture book. 

Bonus Idea: Go to the library and take out a bunch of Christmas picture books. Wrap each one and place in a spot in your room. Allow your class to pick one book out, unwrap it, and use that as your read-aloud for the day. Just wrapping the book adds a whole new layer of suspense that will engage your kids. We do this at our house every year and the kids love it!

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Here are a few of my favorite Christmas read-aloud books: 

If You Take a Mouse to the Movies: Our favorite little mouse is back with a holiday-version of his adventures.

The Polar Express: This classic should be a staple in everyone's classroom. Follow up the book by a special pajama-clad showing of the movie.

How the Grinch Stole Christmas: Another classic Christmas book that was also turned into a movie (both a cartoon and a real life version)

Annika's Secret Wish: A lovely story with a sweet and meaningful message.

Bear Stays Up For Christmas: Bear's friends try to help him stay awake until Christmas. In the end, he has a special gift for each of them.

The Gift of the Magi: I love this book! The story is about a poor couple who both decide separately to sell their favorite possession in order to get the other person a Christmas present. 

What are some good Christmas picture books that you read in your room?

Crayon Classroom Organization

Amanda over at Mrs. Terhune's First Grade found an easy solution to the stray crayon on the floor problem that seems to haunt all elementary classrooms. Her students just know that if they find an orphaned crayon, they can put it in this cute little 3-drawer organizer:

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And the inside is just as lurvely:

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Then, when a student is missing a color while doing an activity, they can just quietly get up and open the correct drawer to find a replacement....all without bothering their neighbor to borrow a crayon.

See more of Amanda's classroom! 

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This is just one idea that was pinned to the BEST Teaching Tips & Tools board on my Pinterest page. This is a awesome board full of TONS of creative ideas pinned by other teachers. Check it out:

Wanna join the board?

Do you sell your own teacher-created products? Have a teaching blog? Just love sharing interesting teaching pins with other teachers? Then this board is for you! It's easy- just follow these simple directions.

Christmas Party Ideas: Crafts

The turkey was delicious, Black Friday was a success (as I sat on my couch snagging the deals in my pjs- that really is the only kind of shopping I like!), and it is 100% officially the holiday season! Time for that classroom party, aye? 

Last week, we discovered a lot of fun party games for your whole class.

This week, we're going to talk about a few cute Christmas crafts that will be sure to be a hit with your kids.

Snowman Handprint Ornaments: This handprint ornament is one that a parent can cherish forever. Simply use glass ball ornaments and white paint to create these cute snowmen. Find out how to make them here.

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Macaroni Glitter Snowflakes: Unleash your students' imaginations with this winter craft. Simply give them a bowl of macaroni and see what unique shapes they come up with!

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Photo Elves: These are just too cute! Along with a fun party craft, I can also see this being a great bulletin board or door decoration. 

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Yarn Ornaments: Recycled cardboard and colorful yarn are used to create one-of-a-kind ornaments.

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Reindeer Puzzle Ornament: What a great way to finally use that that puzzle that's been missing one piece for years! Paint the pieces brown, add a ribbon, eyes, and a red nose....instant Rudolph!  

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Snowmen Milk Jugs: These snowmen are easy to make from milk jugs, felt, pipe cleaners, and a few pom poms. 

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Paper Globe Ornaments: The only items you will need to make this ornament are colorful paper, ribbon, and glue.  

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Santa Glass Ornament: How cute! And how easy! Fill glass ornaments with paper that has been wrapped around pencils, and use a marker to create the belt. 

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Melted Snowman Ornament: Similar to the Santa ornament above, this cute idea involves simply filling glass ornaments with sea salt, paper, ribbon, and cloves (for the eyes- so clever!).

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Reindeer Food: Make this mixture to sprinkle in front of your house on Christmas Eve. I made this with my son last year and it was a hit! It only took a few minutes to put it all together, so it would be perfect for a filler during a busy holiday-filled school day. 

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What are some fun and easy Christmas party crafts that you use in your room?

Super Teacher Tip #8: Nail Polish Removes Marker

Use nail polish remover to take permanent marker off plastic or laminated items. You can read here about my love for nail polish remover and how it allowed me to reuse plastic and laminated items over and over again- even after writing children's names in permanent marker on them.

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So many of my readers shared other fantastic ways to remove permanent markers, so I thought I'd share them here:

• "white board/ dry erase marker... just color over the permanent marker than wipe clean with a tissue or wipe."

• "Magic eraser (even the walmart brand/version) will remove markers from anything. My kids (at home) get into my sharpie stash all the time!!"

• "Rubbing Alcohol. I know it works for Sharpies every time."

Don't forget to check out the amazing things you can do when you pair this tip with using floor tape in your classroom!

Have you ever used this tip in your room?

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What's a"Super Teacher?" Any teacher that's trying his or her very best to create effective teaching moments and provide a positive classroom environment.  We Super Teachers aren't perfect teachers by a long-shot, but we are always striving to become better teachers. Read more Super Teacher Tips here!

Want to share some of your own Super Teacher Tips? Just leave a comment below.

RAK: Make Christmas Decorations

During my first few years of teaching, I read a book by Ron Clark called The Essential 55. Besides being an extremely entertaining story, Ron talks about 55 'life rules' that he imparted to his students each year. 

The one rule that really stood out to me was Rule 11: "Surprise others by performing random acts of kindness. Go out of your way to do something surprisingly kind and generous for someone at least once a month. " My students and I decided that we would brainstorm and do a RAK (Random Act of Kindness) each month at our school and it turned out to be one of the most enjoyable parts of our year. While not technically *random,* these act were a great way to teach my students the value of being kind to others.

Want to join the club? Each month, we are going to highlight a different RAK that you can do with your class. You can choose to do this or any RAK of your choosing. Don't forget to come back and share with us how it went! 


This month's RAK:

Make Christmas decorations to give away.

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Here's some tips for doing this RAK: 

• Choose a local organization (ex: homeless shelter, youth center, adult home, soup kitchen) and speak with the director to find out what kind of decoration they would like. Do they want something to decorate a tree? A centerpiece for their tables? Something to hang from the ceiling or on the wall?

• A simpler option might be to make decorations for one of the areas in your school- your library, cafeteria, teacher's lounge, etc.

• Some ideas for things to make might be simple ornaments, paper chains, Christmas cards or holiday-themed drawings. 

Click here to find past RAK ideas.

It's your turn now! Go brainstorm a RAK with your class or use the one found here. Then come back and tell us how it went! 


Do you have a good RAK idea? I'd love to hear them! You never know...they might just be featured on YTA in the future :)