Teacher’s Brain

Star Wars Day School Activities Students Will Love

May 4th will now forever be known as Star Wars Day! This is a day where we all happily showcase our love for the beloved franchise by greeting everyone around us with a happy “May the 4th Be With You” and participating in some fun and stellar Star Wars activities! 

This day is particularly fun with kids. If you are an elementary teacher looking for ways to celebrate, you’re in the right place! You may be wondering- how do people celebrate May 4th? Or what can kids do on Star Wars Day? 

Don’t worry, I have you covered! I knew students would love the galactic theme so of course, I came up with some super fun, low-prep activities that you can use to get your students engaged in Star Wars-themed activities. 

Star Wars day Activities for school pin image

Check out these Star Wars Day school activities!

My May the 4th Be With You Star Wars Themed Day Plan is full of Star Wars Day printables that will get students engaged in their lessons all day long. 

Star Wars day activities for kids

This resource includes a full day of fun with training, activities for finding planets, instructions for cool intergalactic treats, and activities to learn force and motion. These activities are perfect for pre-k, kindergarten, first, or second grade students. 

Here’s what’s included

Donations Please Page for Parents, Create a Space Creature activity, Give you space creature a personality activity, Sweet Fighter Treats instructions (EASY to Make), Venn diagram of Earth vs any other planet you choose, Venn diagram of Earth vs a star, Venn Diagram answer key, I SPY Planets activity, ODA SODA (ingredients and directions to make punch, galactic water labels for water bottles, fight training code of conduct poster, training laser directions, Training Academy certificate, Push, Pull, Force, and Motion Posters. 

Star Wars day printables for kids

Check it out here! 

Another one of my favorite May the 4th activities is this Star Wars Day digital escape room!

Star Wars Day online games

This space escape activity will help students to review planets, and practice problem-solving. Digital Escapes™ is a fun way to get students to learn without even realizing it. No printing and no prep needed for this digital escape! Students will love these Star Wars-inspired challenges! 

To play, students will click an audio button for directions and watch a short video with a problem to solve to help with their first clue. During the escape, students will be tasked with solving 4 lock clues to escape the room.

Star Wars day online games preview

There is a pdf included in this download with directions, the link to the site, an answer key, and an optional note-taking worksheet for students. This activity takes about 30 to 40 minutes to complete but students will remember it for years! 

Check out the video preview!

Check it out here! 

I hope these Star Wars Day ideas inspired you to have an out-of-this-world celebration with your elementary students! What’s your favorite May the 4th activity? Let me know in the comments!

For more themed day fun, check out my post here! 

 

How To Catch The Easter Bunny: A Fun and Engaging Easter Activity!

Easter is right around the corner and that means it’s time to whip out all of the fun pastel and egg-shaped decor and stock up on Easter candy to hand out to your students. It’s also time to start brainstorming Easter activities to do in the classroom to celebrate. 

There is always the traditional Easter egg hunt or coloring eggs, but when I was in the classroom I tried to think outside the box so I could get my students truly engaged and give them a unique Easter classroom experience.

I came up with an Easter activity that would give students the opportunity to create an Easter Bunny trap!

I created a digital resource that would make this activity a simple, no-prep, no-mess option! 

easter activity

The interactive and editable Google Slides allow students to copy and paste movable parts to design their own Easter Bunny trap. This gets students thinking creatively and critically to come up with their own unique trap.  

Then, they will write a narrative, persuasive, or opinion paper about how they plan to catch the bunny. This activity is perfect for engaging students in creative thinking and planning. 

Easter activity

Make it even more fun by adding all the student’s work to a new slide show with the music provided while in present mode to have a bunny trap design contest. You can also print and display them in your room or make a slideshow with the student’s finished products to view virtually. Music is provided! 

Included with this Easter activity you’ll get: 

  • 12 background slides for students to choose from to begin designing
  • 4 slides with movable parts for students to use to design their own bunny trap (You can edit some images, remove or add images)
  • 6 slides for students to brainstorm, organize thoughts, and write a story about their trap
  • Black and white slides for students to digitally or handwrite stories. (narrative, persuasive, or opinion writing included)
  • A Google Form to have a Favorite Trap Design Contest

Easter activity

If you love this activity but can’t do it virtually with your students, you can also print it out and complete it that way! This resource can easily be adapted to do in person, digitally, or sent home to complete with the child’s parents. 

Check out the video tutorial! 

Looking for more spring and Easter activities for the classroom? Check out my post here!

How will you be celebrating Easter with your students? Let me know in the comments?

 

Easter activity pin image


 

Digital Sight Word Puzzles for Practice

We know how important sight words are in those early grades. They are crucial to developing reading fluency and expanding reading comprehension. It’s also a nice little confidence boost for beginning readers when they come across words they know! 

To do this, we generally work on them in class and hand out our sight word lists for students to practice at home and they get them checked off as they master them. This is a simple and effective way to make sure your students are getting the practice they need! However, it’s not the most engaging or fun thing to do. 

How can we make sight word practice fun and engaging? 

I have lots of ideas on this topic including this cute and fun sight word teacher dress, sight word escape rooms, plus all of these fun, hands-on activities listed here.

You could say making sight word practice fun is a passion of mine! 

Today I wanted to share another sight word practice activity that is a unique and engaging way for kindergarten and first grade students to master those sight words. 

These digital Sight Word Puzzles are guaranteed to get your students excited to practice! 

sight word puzzles

Created using interactive Google Slides, students will get to solve a puzzle using picture clues. They’ll locate the sight words and write them in the text box. 

Two types are included 3×3 and 5×5 so you can differentiate and choose the difficulty level appropriate for your students. 

sight word puzzles

This resource comes with 11 unique puzzles for students to work through at once or spread out. Plus, it comes with a fun bonus puzzle for those who need a little extra work for a real challenge. 

I love this activity because it is completely digital. This means that it is perfect for students in the classroom or who are doing virtual school. So no matter the status of the pandemic or the weather, you can reach for these digital puzzles. 

Here’s what’s included

Eleven total puzzles. Ten puzzles are 3×3 (easy version) and ten are 5×5 (more difficult to put together.) One puzzle is the bonus challenge. It is 5×5 and has 12 sight words instead of 6. 

Students drag the puzzle pieces over the image area (picture cue) to solve the puzzle and see the sight words. Then, they will type the sight words into the corresponding area. When they are done you can have them send them back to you to check.

sight word puzzles

Wondering what sight words are used in this resource? 

I, like, the, and, see, we, a, to come, me, with, my, you, what, are, now, is, how, of, so, many, where find, this, from, came, on, will, be, into, that, your, who, go, for, here, they, soon, up, make, play, them, give, say, new, said, good, was, then, ate, could, she, all, over, her, when, some he, no, must, saw, down, there, day, too, take, off, put, saw, their, very, look, ask every, one, walk

Learn more about these sight word puzzles in my video here! 

What are your favorite ways to practice sight words? Let me know in the comments!

sight word puzzles

 

Valentine’s Day Escape Room Students Will Love

One of the latest trends making waves in the education world (and in the outside world too), is escape rooms. If you don’t already know, escape rooms are a game where people (or in our case students) work together to solve clues, puzzles, or complete designated tasks in order to “escape the room” in a set amount of time. Sounds fun, right?!

These games are so exciting because they are very immersive. The interactive aspect really makes you feel like you are living the story of the escape room! 

In the classroom, escape rooms can include puzzles or tasks related to the skills you are working on in your lessons. This makes it an educational activity for students that feels like fun, not work! 

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, I wanted an escape room that had a fun and festive Valentine’s Day theme while still being an engaging way to work on skills in the classroom. 

So, I created this Valentine’s Day Escape Room! 

Valentine's Day escape room activity

This Valentine’s Day mystery requires little prep and includes detailed directions, 3 clues to solve, a video hook, and set-up photos to help you put it all together. The set-up checklist will help you ensure that everything runs smoothly for the activity. 

To start, students will watch the video hook or introduction to learn about their mission. Then they will be tasked with solving 3 clues using comprehension skills. If you find that any of the activities are too easy for your students, there are additional activities included to differentiate. Students will practice teamwork skills while solving clues to help learn about holiday vocabulary and number patterns. 

Valentine's Day escape room activity

The clues will help them unlock the box and claim their prize. For prizes, you can use candy, homework passes, or bookmarks. Whatever you choose! 

The supplies needed are simple. You’ll need a box , some surprises to put inside the box (homework passes and bookmarks are provided), pencils, 6 large file folders (or regular folders), candy hearts (paper ones are provided if you don’t want to use real candy) and magnifying glasses (2 or more). 

Valentine's Day escape room

This activity is so engaging! It’s so fun to see how excited students get to put their detective skills to work so they can solve the clues. 

What are your favorite Valentine’s Day activities for elementary? Let me know in the comments!

Valentine's Day escape room