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Trauma Responses in Toddlers and Infants

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Trauma Responses in Toddlers and Infants

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Community building in the classroom: Activities for kids, to help students learn social skills, develop friendships, and build classroom community.
Encouraging community building in the classroom is a passion of mine, and here I will provide you with plenty of activities for kids. These are activities that can be easily implemented daily to help build social skills, responsibility, and community.

Why Teach Community Building in the Classroom?

Participating in activities together as a class to help build relationships, problem-solving, and community is extremely valuable. They can help build a sense of trust and togetherness between peers and with their teacher. They encourage different topics of conversation, opportunities to solve problems, and new experiences. Being active and sharing also builds teamwork. These are all things that will help a child develop a strong sense of self and solid social skills. The best thing about community building activities is that they are enjoyable and bring out the best in kids.

When and How Should We Implement Community Building in the Classroom?

Community building activities for kids are great any time of year and any time of day. I use the following as culminating activities to our weekly classroom meetings to help bring closure and closeness after our meetings. They can be quick and take a few minutes, like a game of "telephone", or can be a project that takes longer and has steps, like a STEM activity. How you add your community building activities to your day is up to you. I suggest finding a gap in time or before or after a transition where an extra activity can be added seamlessly.

Community Building in the Classroom: Activities for Kids

Community building activities can be just about anything you choose to do as a class together. Activities for P.E. lend themselves well to this, as well as games you can play at the carpet. Below are 5 community building activities for kids that I teach in my classroom to connect and strengthen our relationships.

STEM Building Challenges for Community Building

STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) activities and building challenges are a great way to build teamwork and cooperation. Giving students a task they have to figure out, plan, and complete together builds problem-solving skills and a sense of accomplishment. These tactile activities work the mind and the body together. You can create STEM challenges with materials you have ready in your classroom. Give your class a set of materials, the task or a question, and let them get to work in small groups.

We enjoy using and building marble mazes in small groups. Marble mazes are not simple to build, especially when there is more than a few people. It requires communication and planning. We also have a set of red solo cups ready to go for a quick activity. Give your students a challenge to complete, such as "build the tallest tower using 30 cups," and let them get to work. Students also love it when you hand them marshmallows, Play-Doh, and some toothpicks and ask them to build a structure.

Here are some must-have materials to get your class started with STEM.

(Amazon Affiliate links)

Check out this STEM Pinterest board with tons of engaging activities for skill and community building.

Cooperation & Teamwork Activities for Community Building

Activities that get kids moving and working together help build cooperation, teamwork, and community. These types of activities work well during P.E. class or during recess when your class is in a larger, open space. They require a few pieces of equipment found in most schools.

Parachutes is a high energy activity that requires children to hold onto the edge of a large parachute and move it up and down. Whenever we play parachute games, there is instant and uncontrollable laughter. Everyone works together to get the parachute to do different things. There are many games you can play with a parachute (check out Mom Junction's post with 15 games).

Setting up relays where children must complete a sequence of activities while working as a team with peers is an excellent way to build teamwork. Teaching children to cheer on and encourage others and to show good sportsmanship is essential for success. You can use so many different items in creating relays. Hula hoops, skipping ropes, beach balls, and the outside playground set-up works great.

Here is some must-have equipment to get your class started with teamwork activities.

Get to Know You Games for Community Building

Games, where we learn more about each other, are great for building community. We feel closer and develop acceptance when we get to know each other better. It is essential to play these games at the beginning of the year to help students get to know their peers and develop new friendships. They are also fun to play throughout the year to learn something new, especially during classroom meetings.

Get to Know You Game #1: Everyone writes a fact about themselves on a small sheet of paper. Encourage kids to share things that nobody knows already (a summer vacation, an accident, a fear, etc.). Fold up the papers and put them inside the hat. Whenever you have a few extra minutes to fill, pull out a sheet, read it to the class, and have them guess who it is about. After that person is revealed, get them to tell the story of what happened.

Get to Know You Game #2: Complete a self-portrait lesson during art. Once they are complete, collect them and sue them during this game. Put up a portrait of a student. Take turns as a class sharing things they know about that person and nice words (adjectives) about that person.

Communication Games for Community Building

Communication games are an amazing way to build listening and thinking skills. Children work together to solve a problem, listen to questions and answers, and share strategies and ideas. Providing children with opportunities to "play" together builds community and fun into your day. Children love to play these games and they are quick and simple to implement.

Play "telephone" in a circle as a class or in small groups. Share a message and watch it whispered to each person in a circle. See if the message is changed or remains intact. It makes it extra fun to use a toy telephone. It lends itself well to discussions about how to focus and listen closely.

Another fun game is Headbanz. Give a student a card to put in their headband that they cannot see. They have to ask questions and their peers give answers without telling them what is on their card.

Class Jobs for Community Building

Giving students their own jobs in the classroom builds ownership and respect for one's classroom. It requires teamwork as children work together to complete tasks and help the teacher around the room. Students love having their own job to take care of each day. They take responsibility for their classroom jobs and for the most part put in a good effort, with some guidance along the way. Read more about how I use classroom jobs in my classroom HERE.

Class Transitions

Every class transitions throughout the school each and every day. Take advantage of those times with something fun, quick, and engaging. Use class call-backs anytime to need your class to listen and focus. They respond to the call you give. Below are some examples. Line up chants are also useful is readying the class for transitioning through the school. Students work together to repeat the chant aloud with the teacher.

Social-Emotional Development Resource

Looking for more lessons and activities to help build community and social-emotional skills? Check out the mind+heart SEL curriculum!

What do YOU do to encourage community building in the classroom?
Community Building Activities for the First Week of School Friendship Activities for the Classroom Teaching Kindness in the Classroom PIN IT

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Community Building In the Classroom: Activities that Create Smiling Kids

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This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. View disclosure policy HERE. Community building in the classroom: Activities for kids, to help students learn social skills, develop friendships, and build classroom community.

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In the Gather Data activity, part of the Weather Watch series, students can test-drive the tools meteorologists use every day! Scholastic provides step-by-step instructions for building and using each tool.

Calculate wind speed with an anemometer.

Measure wind direction with a wind vane.

Determine air pressure with a barometer.

Use a rain gauge to measure how much rain falls in a given period of time.

Determine how much snow falls in a given period with a snow gauge.

Measure temperature with a thermometer.

Plus, print our Weather Data Sheet to record the results of each experiment!

Learning Objectives

While participating in Weather Watch's Gather Data activity, students will:

Formulate questions to help guide their own learning

Gain knowledge of weather terms and their appropriate usage

Gather data from several sources

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Gather Data: A Weather Watch Activity | Scholastic

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In the Gather Data activity, part of the Weather Watch series, students can test-drive the tools meteorologists use every day! Scholastic provides step-by-step instructions for building and using each tool. Calculate wind speed with an anemometer. Measure wind direction with a wind vane. Determine air pressure with a barometer.

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PROMOTIONAL PANEL

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SEL & STEM Developing social and emotional skills through caring for pets | Scholastic

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Visit Scholastic, the world's largest children's book publisher. Whether you need a classic kids book or classroom-proven teaching materials, discover it at Scholastic.

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Spreading Kindness: Teaching SEL with Scholastic News | Scholastic

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Use Scholastic News to incorporate social-emotional learning in the classroom and encourage students to spread kindness.

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Social Emotional Learning With an ELA Twist | Scholastic

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Use the "mood meter" and mentor text to help strengthen your students' understanding of emotions and build empathy.

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Social-Emotional Learning: Connecting to Students | Scholastic

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Children need help learning to cope with anger, grief, and frustration. Here are some simple strategies to help students feel respected, connected, and included.

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A five-year-old in my class has been classified as having a social/emotional disorder. It takes him awhile to settle down in the morning, and he has great difficulty with transitions during the day He cries for his mommy, appears needy and sad, then suddenly lashes out aggressively Sometimes he acts recklessly and seems out of control. For example, in the parking lot we have to watch him to make sure he doesn't run in front of traffic. He's had tantrums in school, breaking things and throwing himself on the floor. What can I do for this child and for the other children around him?

It is not uncommon for a child with social/emotional difficulties to vacillate between depression and aggression, although some children are predominately depressed. They might say they wish they hadn't been born and are so sad that they isolate themselves and seem to not experience the joys of relationships, learning, or even playing. Other children with social/emotional disorders may be more needy and fearful: They might be afraid of other children pushing them or feel wary in situations where there's too much going on. Often such children have nightmares. Their troubles sometimes cause them to retire into a corner, rather than participate; they often have few, if any, friends.

It's important to remember that every stage of a child's development has its normal challenges, including fears and anxieties. It's common for four- to six-year-olds to have bad dreams--for instance, about being kidnapped or otherwise harmed. Some young children are afraid of the dark or seem cautious about a new experience. Most want "Mommy" when they start school.

A good way to distinguish such normal fearfulness from more worrisome emotional problems is to consider whether a child's fears interfere significantly with age-expected activities. If the child is able to play with his peers, enjoys learning, and participates fully in family life, even though he may periodically need extra comforting and reassurance, there is no reason to believe that he has a social/emotional disorder. In fact, if in two out of the three main spheres of a child's life--home, school, and peer play--things appear to be going well, you can presume that the child is OK. On the other hand, if in two out of the three things are not going well because of a child's sadness, fear, or aggressive behavior, he may indeed have a social/emotional disorder.

A word of advice: Having nightmares or anxieties over recent or anticipated normal experiences is a part of development and usually temporary. If a child's worrisome behavior is in response to some current event or events-- for instance, the arrival of a new baby, entering a new school, or a recent family move--it's not a sign of social/emotional disorder. However, if the child's problems continue for a long period of time in at least two of the three primary spheres of his life, the situation is more serious.

Analyze the Cause

The most significant factor that distinguishes adult depression from the depression we see in children is that in children, family dynamics and relationships with teachers and peers are often significant contributors. And making a change in these relationships and situations can often help a child feel a lot better about his life and himself fairly quickly. So the first thing I try to do when helping a child with a social/emotional disorder is get a general sense of how much an environmental situation is interfering with his well-being. I then consider what can be done to make family life or the school experience more fulfilling for that child. I look at each of those three major domains--home, school, and peer play.

Let's say a depressed, anxious; and irritable child has a younger sibling who the older child feels is favored. The younger child appears to get away with everything, while the older child feels like the designated "bad boy." He is angry with his parents and sibling, and he begins to feel hopeless and helpless. In this case, simply getting the family dynamic worked out and establishing a sense of equality can help the child feel better.

Working With Parents

When you are considering whether a child may have a social/emotional disorder, it is very helpful to ask parents whether they see similar behaviors at home. The teacher and parents are the core members of an important team approach to understanding and helping the child. Respectfully inquire about what may be happening at home that might raise the child's level of anxiety. Consider whether minimizing family conflict or preventing the child from being overstimulated and/or frightened by aggressive play would lessen the problem.

Together, you and the parents can try to create safe, secure, nurturing environments in school and at home. You might also strive to incorporate reassuring structure, responsibility, and discipline into the child's day. A child with social and emotional troubles needs discipline that is gentle and respectful, but also firm. Sometimes the extra structure and clarity of expectation helps a child to feel calmer. But if his anxieties persist even after you've worked to improve the environment, this child might benefit from a consultation with a mental health professional.

Safeguarding Peers

Because the boy in your class is impulsive as well as sad, you need to be sure that the other children feel protected from his outbursts. Encourage them to come up and tell you when the distressed child is misbehaving. Keep a watchful eye out for anything that could harm other children, and tell the assistants and volunteers in your class to do the same. Don't hesitate to hover around this unpredictable child while he's playing and be ready to move in quickly if you sense trouble brewing.

If things don't improve quickly with these measures, you may have to hire an aide, at least temporarily. If you have a cooperative program, the boy's mother or father could be invited in to offer assistance or ask other parents to volunteer. I find it very useful to have a rotating series of parent-volunteers, because in most classrooms, the adult/child ratio is not quite good enough for these young children. An extra staff person will provide an added sense of security and will help the teacher feel less overloaded and overwhelmed.

If all of this is not enough to make the desired change in the child's emotional/ social state, and the child's parents decide to seek the help of a mental health professional, the teacher might offer to be part of the enlarged team. Since you spend a lot of time with the boy, you can be of great help in implementing the learning goals. You may also provide valuable ongoing information to the mental health professional about whatever may be happening at school. With the ideal cooperative team of teacher, parents, and a mental health professional sharing goals, the long-range outlook for this boy is quite good.

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Meeting Learning Challenges: Working With Children Who Have Social/Emotional Disorders | Scholastic

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A five-year-old in my class has been classified as having a social/emotional disorder. It takes him awhile to settle down in the morning, and he has great difficulty with transitions during the day He cries for his mommy, appears needy and sad, then suddenly lashes out aggressively Sometimes he acts recklessly and seems out of control.

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Attitude Latitudes

Standard Met: McREL Behavioral Studies Standard 3
(Understands that interactions among learning, inheritance, and physical development affect human behavior)

What You Need: Three worksheets: Introvert or Extrovert, Optimist or Pessimist, X-Y graph
What to Do: Ask students what it means to have an attitude. Though they'll likely think it's a matter of having a good or a bad attitude, define attitude as one's "readiness to act or react in a certain way."

Have students describe how they act or react in different situations. Does their attitude change from situation to situation? Hand out the Introvert or Extrovert and Optimist or Pessimist worksheets for students to find out how they rank. Then, have them figure out their "attitude latitudes" on the third worksheet (an X-Y graph). Students will graph their introversion/extroversion score on the horizontal axis and their optimism/pessimism score on the vertical axis to land in one of four quadrants. You might use fictional characters from a book or movie to symbolize each quadrant. (I've used characters from Shrek. You're a "Donkey," for instance, if you're an extroverted optimist.) This will give students some insight into how they relate to other people and how they might harness their energies in the most socially beneficial way.

Brain Freezers

Standard Met: McREL Behavioral Studies Standard 3
(Understands that interactions among learning, inheritance, and physical development affect human behavior)

What You Need: Worksheet and answer key
What to Do: How often do your students think about their own thinking? Distribute the Brain Freezers worksheet. Have students work individually or in small groups to answer all of the riddles as quickly as possible. (You might set a time limit, such as 10 or 15 minutes.) When students are done, ask them which riddles were difficult and which were easy. (They will likely say that riddles in the first column were easier.) Invite students to share their answers. As they do so, write the most common responses on the board. After reviewing the answers and explanations using the supplied answer key, ask students if they have changed their minds about which riddles were easy. Elicit that the riddles in the first column seemed easy, but actually should have made them stop and think. Their wrong answers were the result of "fast thinking." Conversely, the riddles in the second column seemed to require a lot of thought, when the solutions were actually simple; "slow thinking" likely bogged them down.

Use this activity as an opportunity to talk about times that "fast thinking" or "slow thinking" got them in trouble: "Fast thinking" can cause you to jump to conclusions, while "slow thinking" can make you dwell too much on problems.

Setting Boundaries

Standard Met: McREL Behavioral Studies Standard 2
(Understands various meanings of social group, general implications of group membership, and different ways that groups function)

What You Need: Boundaries worksheet
What to Do: To most students, boundaries are the lines drawn between states or nations. Explain that boundaries also pertain to relationships-rules that tell us what we can and can't do. Talk about the boundaries that apply in families, school, and society. Next, hand out the Boundaries worksheet and talk about the types of rules-rigid (hard-and-fast), clear (firm but appropriate), and fuzzy (inconsistent or nonexistent). Have students work in small groups to evaluate the boundaries listed on the worksheet to determine the type of boundary described in each. Review the answers as a class and discuss what life would be like without boundaries. Are they frustrating but important to have? Work with students to create a list of classroom boundaries, organized by physical (respect one another's space), behavioral (listen respectfully), and academic (turn in work on time).

What Sets You Off?

Standard Met: McREL Behavioral Studies Standard 4
(Understands conflict, cooperation, and interdependence among individuals, groups, and institutions)

What You Need: What Sets You Off? worksheet
What to Do: Managing emotional responses is difficult for many adolescents, who are still developing neurologically-the emotional centers of the brain develop more rapidly than the executive centers.

Hand out the What Sets You Off? worksheet. Have students recall a time when they got really angry and then write down "just the facts" about the incident. Students should detail three different experiences on the worksheet. Then, challenge them to look for patterns as to what sets them off. Have they gotten angry at least twice over the same situation or with the same person? This can reveal that certain people or behaviors (e.g., teasing) act as triggers for them. Likewise, it will help identify "danger zones" for confrontations (the locker room, for instance). When you debrief students' experiences, focus on the suggestion "Don't react! Respond." Discuss the difference (reaction is knee-jerk, while response is something you do after careful thought) and how a response might have de-escalated an encounter.

Resolving Conflicts

Standard Met: McREL Behavioral Studies Standard 4
(Understands conflict, cooperation, and interdependence among individuals, groups, and institutions)

What You Need: Two worksheets: What's Their Attitude? Part I and Part II

What to Do: Introduce students to four communication styles: assertive (standing up for yourself and respecting others), passive (doing anything to avoid conflict), aggressive (standing up for yourself and not caring who gets hurt), and passive-aggressive (secretly angry). Give examples of these styles using characters from a book you've recently read in class.

Hand out the first worksheet, What's Their Attitude? Part I, to learn how these different styles play out in
conflicts. Then, create a fictional disagreement, inviting student volunteers to role-play it. Dissect the conflict by identifying who was involved, what each person wanted, how the individuals communicated what they wanted, and if it was resolved, including who "won." Talk about the different communication styles each actor exhibited.

To wrap up, have students complete the questions at the bottom of the worksheet and on the second worksheet ( What's Their Attitude? Part II) to anticipate how they might best act during a conflict. Refer back to these win-win solutions the next time a disagreement occurs in class.

Adapted from Social & Emotional Learning: Essential Lessons for Student Success.
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Grades 6-8: Social-Emotional Skills | Scholastic

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Standard Met: McREL Behavioral Studies Standard 3 (Understands that interactions among learning, inheritance, and physical development affect human behavior) What You Need: Three worksheets: Introvert or Extrovert, Optimist or Pessimist, X-Y graph What to Do: Ask students what it means to have an attitude.

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Ages 3-6

Where the Wild Things Are is a classic American book whose story of a frustrated, imaginative boy can help young children recognize and understand their own difficult feelings and how they can feel better. This reading guide, which aligns with the Second Step curriculum, can be used with children ages 3-6 by parents or teachers.
The Story
The story is about a boy named Max. Max is angry after being sent to his room for making mischief. The story can help you to discuss strong feelings and ways to calm down with your child. Max manages his strong feelings by going on a journey in his imagination. This models one way to calm down-thinking about something else. The story can also help you discuss changing feelings and coping with loneliness.
Reading 1: Talking About Social-Emotional Skills
Ask at least six of these questions as you read with your child. Stop on the page indicated, and after you have asked the question(s) give your child lots of time to think about the answer and tell you what he or she is thinking. Questions that are grouped together in a paragraph should be asked together.

(Hold up the book and show the cover.)
Look at the front cover of the book.
What do you What do you What do you wonder?

Why does Max say "I'll eat you up!"?
How do you think Max might feel?
What could Max do to calm down?

How do you think Max might feel now? His feelings have changed.
Why do you think his feelings changed?

What is Max imagining in this picture?
Do you ever imagine things to help you feel better when you are angry or sad?

Page 26:
Max is having fun with his friends. What do you do with your friends to have fun?

Page 32:
The wild things don't want Max to leave. Have you ever had a hard time saying goodbye to a friend? Tell us about it.

After the reading, show your child page 6:
Max is very angry here.

Then show page 36:
Max is calm here.
How did Max calm down?
How do you like to calm down?
Reading 2: Your Child as Storyteller
Look through the book and choose some pages with important events to have your child talk about. For younger children, choose three or four pages. For older children, choose between six and nine pages. Use the following questions to encourage your child to talk about the story.

What happens next?

Has this ever happened to you?

What is happening on this page?

How does (fill in with character's name) feel? Why?

When have you felt this way?

What do you remember about this page?

Why did (fill in with a detail from the story)?

What is (fill in with character's name) doing?

What would you tell (fill in with character's name)?

What does this story remind you of? What happens next?

Has this ever happened to you?

What is happening on this page?

How does (fill in with character's name) feel? Why?

When have you felt this way?

What do you remember about this page?

Why did (fill in with a detail from the story)?

What is (fill in with character's name) doing?

What would you tell (fill in with character's name)?

What does this story remind you of?

Like this activity?

We're adding more K-8 classroom activities to our Free Activities page all the time. They're easy to find-just visit cfchildren.org/resources/free-activities/ for grade-specific, K-8 classroom activities that align with our Second Step Suite.

Learn more about social-emotional learning, research on the topic, and how it benefits students in the classroom, at home, and in their daily lives.

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Activity-Where the Wild Things Are Reading Guide | Committee for Children

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Ages 3-6 Where the Wild Things Are is a classic American book whose story of a frustrated, imaginative boy can help young children recognize and understand their own difficult feelings and how they can feel better. This reading guide, which aligns with the Second Step curriculum, can be used with children ages 3-6 by parents or teachers.

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In this free activity, you can help students understand why and how they can be thankful for big things and little things in their lives. This activity is based on a quote from the free Mind Yeti* session " Hello Gratitude ": "You can feel gratitude for big things and for little things."

Instructions

(Optional: Print out this image to share with your class.)

Say: What is something big you're grateful for? Why?

Give examples and write responses on the board or on a sheet of paper. Post and share them throughout the month or just keep them as a reminder.
Examples of big things can be:

Say: What is something little you're grateful for? Why?

Give examples and write responses on the board or on a sheet of paper. Post and share them throughout the month or just keep them as a reminder.
Examples of little things can be:

Cuddles from your dog or cat

When your parents or teachers surprise you with something that makes you happy

Download and Print This Activity
Like This Activity?

We're adding more K-8 classroom activities to our Free Activities page all the time. They're easy to find-just visit cfchildren.org/resources/free-activities/ for grade-specific, K-8 classroom activities that align with our Second Step Suite.

Learn more about social-emotional learning, research on the topic, and how it benefits students in the classroom, at home, and in their daily lives.

* Mind Yeti is not accepting new users at this time.

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Being Grateful for Big and Little Things-Activity - Committee for Children

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In this free activity, you can help students understand why and how they can be thankful for big things and little things in their lives. This activity is based on a quote from the free Mind Yeti* session " Hello Gratitude ": "You can feel gratitude for big things and for little things."

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Books can offer fun, adventure, learning, and laughs. From an early age, many children understand that reading can help expand their understanding of the world and help them navigate the unknown waters of elementary school. Books can also help illustrate and support the social-emotional learning students are doing in class. That's one of the reasons we've included recommended reading as part of our Second Step Suite*. Topics include empathy, inclusion, and bullying prevention.

One of the books we recommend is The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig, a nationally acclaimed speaker, award-winning author, and the author of several stories you'll find in Second Step Bullying Prevention Unit lessons.

The following free classroom activity includes before-, during-, and after-reading prompts and instructions to help teachers guide a discussion about how it feels to be excluded and what students can do to help.
View and download Read our book review "Dr. Rose Reissman is a veteran teacher and educator, whose Writing Institute Program has been replicated in 181 schools nationally. She is the coauthor with Mark Gira of Project Based Literacy (Infoage, 2016). Life Lessons-Addressing & Reaching Out to the Socially Excluded, Invisible Child" was prepared by Dr. Rose Reissman, literacy specialist & director of the Ditmas IS 62 Writing Institute. It's intended for Grades 3-6. of The Invisible Boy and interview with author Trudy Ludwig, plus another free classroom activity. this classroom activity.
*Educators teaching the Second Step Suite can find grade-appropriate book lists in the resources section on SecondStep.org.

**The Invisible Boy illustration
copyright (c) 2013 by Patrice Barton

Like This Activity?

We're adding more K-8 classroom activities to our Free Activities page all the time. They're easy to find-just visit cfchildren.org/resources/free-activities/ for grade-specific, K-8 classroom activities that align with our Second Step Suite.

Learn more about social-emotional learning, research on the topic, and how it benefits students in the classroom, at home, and in their daily lives.

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Books can offer fun, adventure, learning, and laughs. From an early age, many children understand that reading can help expand their understanding of the world and help them navigate the unknown waters of elementary school. Books can also help illustrate and support the social-emotional learning students are doing in class.

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Grades EL-3

When it comes to personal safety, children need to know who to go to for help, particularly if they're having a problem with someone touching their private body parts. Whether it be a parent, teacher, neighbor, or an adult family friend, identifying who's a safe person to go to in a time of need is important and can help kids be confident in uncertain situations.

In this free activity, which has been adapted from the Child Protection Unit, teachers, parents, and guardians help students name the people in their lives who they can go to when something's not quite right.
Preparation

On an 8.5 x 11 sheets of paper, print this PDF or an outline of a leafless tree and pass them to your students (one per student)

Give students, or have them cut out, leaves on which they will write their names

Instructions
Addressing the class, give examples of scenarios that may be unsafe and that should be reported to a trusted adult. These can be

- A stranger with a cute puppy calling you over

- A family member touching your body in a way that makes you uncomfortable

- An adult or other child showing their private body parts to you

Then, discuss with your students who they might be able to talk to. Afterward,

Have students list the names of adults they can go to for help

Glue the names to the branches of their trees

This is an excellent activity to send home with your students so they can share with their parents to help add names to the tree.

Like This Activity?

We're adding more K-8 classroom activities to our Free Activities page all the time. They're easy to find-just visit cfchildren.org/resources/free-activities/ for grade-specific, K-8 classroom activities that align with our Second Step Suite.

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Support Tree Activity | Committee for Children

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Grades EL-3 When it comes to personal safety, children need to know who to go to for help, particularly if they're having a problem with someone touching their private body parts. Whether it be a parent, teacher, neighbor, or an adult family friend, identifying who's a safe person to go to in a time of need is important and can help kids be confident in uncertain situations.

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Students work hard to master their social-emotional skills. Help them stay in practice when they're outside the classroom with this easy-to-make SEL Passport. Parents and teachers can help kids apply their skills with this handy reminder of how to use kind, respectful, prosocial behavior in any situation, in or out of school.

Grades K-5
Second Step teachers and families: Family Letter with Instructions
Instructions

Tell children or students what a passport is and why this one's different: You like to explore, right? When you travel the world, you need a passport to visit different countries. This "passport" is a little different. It will help you explore your inner world and use your Second Step skills in real-life situations.
How to make your SEL Passport:

1. Photocopy or print these two pages front to back, onto one double-sided sheet of paper.

2. Fold in half vertically along the solid line.

3. Cut into three strips along the dotted lines.

4. Arrange pages in sequential order based on the number in the top-right corner (cover page opens to page 1, which opens to pages 2 and 3, and so on, with these instructions on the back page).

5. (Optional) Staple along the fold for a little extra stability. Color it for a little extra flair.

How to fill your SEL Passport:

1. For each social-emotional skill listed, practice using that skill in a real-life situation (for example: at the park, working on homework, in the lunchroom with friends, taking a test, doing chores, in the car, on vacation).

2. On a separate piece of paper, write a brief summary of the situation, describing the outcomes you observed (you could also draw a picture of what happened, if you prefer).

3. When done, ask your teacher or parent for a stamp to add to that skill.

4. After filling your booklet with stamps, congratulate yourself for working to become a kinder, more capable person-yay for you!

Like This Activity?

Committee for Children-the nonprofit behind Second Step-works year-round to develop free and engaging resources for children, teachers, families, and communities. We encourage you to take advantage of all that we offer, including child protection and bullying prevention resources, Sesame Street Family, our social-emotional learning podcast Grow Kinder, and more.

Join us in our mission to foster the safety and well-being of children through social-emotional learning and development.

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Summer SEL Passport Challenge for Social-Emotional Skills | Committee for Children

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This summer, help your students practice their social-emotional skills with this easy-to-make SEL passport. Parents and teachers can help students create this handy reminder of how to use kind, respectful, prosocial behavior anytime, anywhere.

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It's a busy world out there, and the holidays can make it seem even busier. With all the celebrations and gift-giving swirling about, it can be difficult to remember to stop . . . take a breath . . . and remember the little things that are most important.

That's why our mindfulness app, Mind Yeti,* is featuring its premium session " The Gift of You " through December 2018 and through early January. This five-minute session helps kids slow down and see how something as simple as their presence can be a true gift to their friends and loved ones.

Teachers and families can listen along and learn together that being present is a present you can always give. It's truly the best gift of all. A gift from your heart.

Go to Mind Yeti to register for free and access "The Gift of You" audio session today.

Instructions for a free children's mindfulness activity

This activity below (which you can print for your classroom) has been adapted from the premium Mind Yeti session " The Gift of You ", and you can help students realize one of the best gifts they can give is themselves.

1. Say: Let's take a deep breath in . . . and let it out . . . Take a breath in . . . and out.

2. Say: Would you like to give someone you love a present?

3. Give example: What if you gave them a gift from the heart. A gift of you.

4. Say: Think about someone you care about. Picture this person in your mind. A friend. A grandparent. A sister or brother. Your mom or dad.
Give students about 10 seconds to think about this person.

5. Say: Take a moment to think of a time when the two of you were happy being together. Maybe you were playing together or reading a story. Take a moment and remember that time together.
Give students about 10-20 seconds to think when they were happy with someone.

6. Say: How did you feel? Happy? Comforted?
Give the students 5 seconds to breathe, pause, and think.

7. Say: Any time you want to give the people you care about a gift, you can. Just spending time with someone and being truly present is a gift. A gift from your heart.

Like this activity?

Our innovative web and mobile iPhone app Mind Yeti provides mindfulness audio sessions that teachers and parents can use in supporting social-emotional skills and helping children and their adults learn and thrive.

We also update our K-8 free classroom activities page regularly. Find easily accessible grade-specific, K-8 classroom activities that align with our Second Step school curricula.

Learn more about social-emotional learning, SEL research, and how SEL benefits students in the classroom, at home, and in their daily lives.

* Mind Yeti is not accepting new users at this time.

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Mindfulness Activity-Gift of You - Committee for Children

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It's a busy world out there, and the holidays can make it seem even busier. With all the celebrations and gift-giving swirling about, it can be difficult to remember to stop . . . take a breath . . . and remember the little things that are most important.

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Empathy and kindness can positively affect children in their social and academic lives. Teaching these skills is a big part of our social-emotional learning program, Second Step. That's why we were recently thrilled to see, in a nationally published list, many of the books we recommend for families to read together.

Each grade level of Second Step has a curated list of recommended books that help reinforce the social-emotional skills taught in our classroom curricula. Here's our list of the books in our Early Learning through Grade 2 lists that focus on kindness and empathy.

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12 Recommended Books About Empathy and Kindness - Committee for Children

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Empathy and kindness can positively affect children in their social and academic lives. Teaching these skills is a big part of our social-emotional learning program, Second Step. That's why we were recently thrilled to see, in a nationally published list, many of the books we recommend for families to read together.

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It's important to practice self-care, but doing so on a regular basis can be challenging at the best of times! One way you can develop your own self-care practices, as Read More "

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Anger Management Story-Children Literature Story Telling Read Along-How

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There seems to be a preparation gap between what our students are learning in school and what they actually need to succeed. The big missing piece is the cultivation of social-emotional competence. Schools that provide tools and programs to develop these skills report students do much better academically and feel better prepared for life than those who don't.

In fact, a recent study reports that 88 percent of students, regardless of race or socioeconomic status, who attend schools with a strong SEL curriculum feel motivated to work hard and do their best in school, compared to just 39 percent of students from schools without an emphasis on SEL.

Social-Emotional Skills That Make a Difference: Self-Regulation

Among the spectrum of social-emotional skills, self-regulation, the ability to manage emotions, focus, and handle frustration, is one of the most important. But, is self-regulation a skill that can be explicitly taught? And, what does it look like when schools tackle the skill? This is how three schools are making self-regulation a part of their routine and how you can, too.

Setting the Stage: Nonnegotiables

The staff at Tumwater High School in Tumwater, WA, started teaching SEL skills three years ago when they noticed a group of 10th graders falling behind in their classes. In response, the team created a course that brought at-risk students together for SEL instruction and mentoring. From there, says Lisa Perriera, assistant principal, the SEL focus expanded across the building. It's been a multiyear process with core values and nonnegotiables established first. Creating one set of values and rules provided the backdrop for students to practice monitoring their behavior.

The energy in Tumwater's hallways and classrooms is calmer with the new nonnegotiables, and the front office is quiet. As teachers have reminded students of the first nonnegotiable (We have all the tech you need), referrals for inappropriate cell phone behavior have dropped. When everyone knows the expectation, according to Perriera, it makes it easier for the students to regulate their behavior. Now that the rules around technology are firmly in place, the faculty has moved on to reinforce their next nonnegotiable: being in class on time.

The Secret Weapon: Peer Mentors

Each year, Jaime MacEwen, teacher at Cumberland Regional High School in Bridgeton, NJ, reviews incoming freshmen data to see who may need an SEL boost the most. Incoming ninth graders, who have struggled with academics, attendance, or managing their schedules, are assigned to a freshman SEL seminar. MacEwen's secret weapon: upperclassmen. Seniors who are models of self-regulation themselves, with organized binders, extracurricular participation, and straight-A records, lead freshmen seminars as mentors.

The magic is in their relationships. As at-risk freshmen build relationships with their mentors, they see what self-regulation looks like in high school. They learn how to manage their own schedules and workload. Having a role model to follow and someone to problem-solve with helps freshmen develop important organization and problem-solving skills. The instruction and mentor relationships pay off. Students in the freshman seminar overwhelmingly pass their classes and form relationships that outlast the school year. "It's the little things that we see," says MacEwen, "that are the biggest win."

Stop and Breathe: Add Weekly Yoga

Each week for 30 minutes, students in grades six through 12 take a deep breath and begin their yoga practice at Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders in Austin, TX. Although a tad uncomfortable at first, it doesn't take long for the sixth graders to buy in. By senior year, some students lead sessions. The 30-minute yoga practice includes breathing exercises and encourages students to check in with the physical sensations in their bodies. From there, they learn techniques to regulate their emotions.

"You'll hear students say they're carrying their stress in their shoulders," says counselor Jane Howk, "and then they'll take a few deep breaths to relax and refocus." Yoga also teaches students how to verbalize what's happening in their bodies and how to fix it. "They notice how their bodies react to different situations," says Howk. "They're more in tune and can apply yoga skills to lots of situations."

Five Ways to Start Teaching Self-Regulation Today

Establishing nonnegotiables and teaching freshman seminar and yoga classes all sound awesome. But, what can you do to begin self-regulation instruction right now? Here are five ways to get started:

1. Teach students to name their emotions.

Instead of complaining that they're stressed, the counseling staff at Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders helps students identify the actual emotions they're feeling. This helps them deal with what's really going on so they can implement a problem-solving process and move forward.

2. Teach self-regulation explicitly.

Teach self-regulation the same way you'd teach math or science: with explicit instruction, modeling, and practice. For example, a lesson defining self-regulation could transition into a fishbowl activity in which students give input about tricky situations and ways to deal with them.

3. Practice, practice, practice.

When it comes to self-regulation, practice can make perfect. Create scenarios that students can role-play to practice applying self-regulation habits before they're in the heat of the moment. The more students practice, the better able they'll be able to self-regulate in the moment.

4. Reset with a mindfulness activity.

If you feel your group of students veering off course, take a page from the Ann Richards School playbook and have students do a mindfulness activity. For example, have students look around the room (silently) and find five blue items, four red items, three green items, two yellow items, and one black item. Then, once students are more centered, return to the problem at hand.

5. Empower students to monitor their progress.

Students in the freshman seminar at Cumberland Regional High School monitor their grades closely, which helps them manage their workload and progress. Help students identify a data point to monitor (attendance, grades, etc.) and create a procedure to help them track their progress and identify next steps.

Explicit skills instruction ensures that we do not rely on student assumptions, but that we purposefully teach students the skills to navigate their world. Social-emotional development can be fostered in a variety of ways to support student success. Explicitly identifying and teaching the skills is important, but it's of equal importance to do it consistently and often. Knowing the what and why of explicit social-emotional-skills instruction can help you make a well-thought-out decision on how to best foster students' skill development.
Thanks to our friends at The Allstate Foundation for sponsoring this and other SEL articles. Check out their resources. Plus, 12 Fun Ways to Build SEL Skills During Advisory or Homeroom

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Think Self-Regulation Can't Be Taught? These 3 Schools Are Doing It

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There seems to be a preparation gap between what our students are learning in school and what they actually need to succeed. The big missing piece is the cultivation of social-emotional competence. Schools that provide tools and programs to develop these skills report students do much better academically and feel better prepared for life than those who don't.

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COVID-19 Morning Meeting and Responsive Advisory Meeting Downloads | Responsive Classroom

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Thank you for completing the form. Please enjoy these resources. Elementary Resources Middle School Resources Thank you to our Morning Meeting Contributing Teachers: Thank you to our Responsive Advisory Meeting Contributing Teachers:

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Ohio's Statewide Family Engagement Center

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Sign up to receive 3 free texts per week to learn about fun activities you can do together as a family. Each text has ideas to encourage play, motor skill development, language development, and more!

Example Text: "TIP: After a bath, dry off by dancing like the wind. Can your child twirl and whirl? Make wind sounds or turn on some music to inspire their movements."

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Ready4K: 3 free texts per week for families to get their children moving, grooving, and learning - Ohio's Statewide Family Engagement Center

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Sign up to receive 3 free texts per week to learn about fun activities you can do together as a family. Each text has ideas to encourage play, motor skill development, language development, and more! Example Text: "TIP: After a bath, dry off by dancing like the wind.

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Turn and Talk Reflection sheets for class or group work.

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Turn and Talk Reflection sheets for class or group work.

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Reflection Sheets for builing leadership skills.

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Reflection Sheets for builing leadership skills.

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Building and implementing SEL skills utilizing video talking circles.

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Building and implementing SEL skills utilizing video talking circles.

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Current All Content Teach Leadership Implement LiM Professional Learning

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Have you started dreaming about the next school year? When you envision your learning environment, what does it look like? What does it feel like? What will students remember?

A class theme is a great way to transform a ho-hum classroom into an exciting space for learning-whether it's a physical classroom or a virtual one. Download our Classroom Theme Choice-Board to start your creative juices flowing! Then, start making plans for next year's classroom today. If you anticipate being back in your school building, the choice board is "plug and play." If you think you'll still be learning remotely, take on the challenge of creating a classroom theme with your students in each of their spaces for those first wonderful days together.

Resources:

Download our Classroom Theme Choice-Board and begin dreaming about how you can Synergize with students to create a memorable learning space.

Learn More:

This Leadership Classroom Best-Practice "Look-Fors" resource is another great guide for creating a Leader in Me classroom.

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Have you started dreaming about the next school year? When you envision your learning environment, what does it look like? What does it feel like? What will students remember? A class theme is a great way to transform a ho-hum classroom into an exciting space for learning-whether it's a physical classroom or a virtual one.

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Morning meetings build social and emotional connections, helping each student feel like a valuable member of their classroom team. The meetings provide a daily structure that sets the tone for a powerful day ahead-beginning with key academic and social-emotional learning and reinforcing a positive classroom culture where everyone contributes.

The same elements of in-person morning meetings apply when conducting them virtually. The eight tips below, along with the Virtual Morning Meeting template, are just what you need for your virtual morning-meeting makeover!

Are you missing your students? Do they miss you? Reconnect to their hearts during the greeting. Welcome each other with virtual hugs or "high fives." Feeling extra adventurous? Try "hello" in a new language, like learning how to spell hello in sign language.

2. Virtual Mission Moment

Inspire everyday greatness by connecting with the class mission statement. Reflect on yesterday and prepare for the day ahead by asking, "How did our behaviors match our mission yesterday? How will our behaviors match it today?" Consider having students take their answers into a web-conferencing chat box, discuss as a whole class, or utilize breakout rooms for small-group discussions.

3. Virtual Expectations Review

Cultivate leadership by celebrating students who model classroom and learning expectations at home. First, review the expectations. Then, share positive feedback by including the student's name, the reason for celebration, and the impact their behavior has on the class: "Today we celebrate ______ for ____________. This action positively impacted our class because____________________."
Example: "Today we celebrate Jalen for his contributions to our virtual math lesson yesterday. This action positively impacted our class because his description of how he arrived at his answer to the word problem helped us all to better understand the multiple steps."
4. Virtual Announcements

Increase communication with "open mic" time. Invite students to share personal updates as well as school news. Intentionally model what Habit 5 listening skills look and sound like in a web-conferencing platform. Consider having a student leader share announcements and monitor the chat room for any personal announcements listed there.

5. Virtual Weekly Goal Review

Commit to class goals, priorities, and/or learning targets for the week. Monitor through the week and gauge follow-through with hand signals . Continue a virtual class Wildly Important Goal or create a new one. Use a visual scoreboard (paper or digital!) to keep track of progress and to reflect together. If you would like to turn your paper Leadership Notebooks to digital ones, have a look at this article with online templates to get started.

Leadership is even more important during times of challenge. Consider asking a powerful question about one of the 7 Habits, from learning embedded in the Student Leadership Guides or with a resource like Question of the Day.

Give students voice by solving problems and discussing class family issues that need attention. Start by inviting students to drop notes into an "issue bin" and establishing norms for its use. Consider creating an online survey that allows students to anonymously ask questions and provide feedback on issues of concern. Give careful consideration about when to use names and when to keep things anonymous.

Foster a growth mindset with a virtual Plus/Delta reflection on a regular basis. Capture what students think is going well and what could be improved. Use the chat box or encourage class discussion about progress of the virtual learning environment, time spent with family, and class synergy.

There are some logistics to virtual morning meetings that we don't face when in person. We suggest you use a web-conferencing platform in a live-online format. Parents of young students may need to help younger students connect. Be patient, expect some false starts and tech challenges at first. Over time, everyone will get better. Consider recording your morning meetings to share with any students who may have missed.

Our Virtual Morning Meeting template contains unique ideas for virtual morning meeting success.These visuals can aid students in a deep understanding of the meeting process. You'll find one idea on each slide, plus bonus ideas in the notes section!

Resource:

Use our Virtual Morning Meeting template slide deck to structure your virtual morning meeting. To access, click and then make a copy of the document when prompted.

Learn More:

Muriel Summers, Principal of A.B. Combs Elementary, shares her heart about the importance of the classroom morning meeting for all ages in this Leader in Me Weekly article, Ask Muriel: Morning Meetings .

Watch Leader in Me teachers conduct morning meetings and read about some best practices in My Morning Meeting Structure .

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Morning meetings build social and emotional connections, helping each student feel like a valuable member of their classroom team. The meetings provide a daily structure that sets the tone for a powerful day ahead-beginning with key academic and social-emotional learning and reinforcing a positive classroom culture where everyone contributes.

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How to keep kids social during a time of social distancing

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How to keep kids social during a time of social distancing

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How to keep kids social during a time of social distancing

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Running out of ideas that involve kids endlessly video-chatting with friends? Here are some ideas for deeper connections.

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A-plus teachers went to their students' driveways and drew encouraging messages in chalk | GMA

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A-plus teachers went to their students' driveways and drew encouraging messages in chalk | GMA

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A-plus teachers visited students' driveways and drew encouraging messages in chalk

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Two Minnesota teachers went the extra mile for their students.

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Worksheets to help deal with student ADHD. Click on the ADHD worksheets below.

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Worksheets to help deal with student ADHD. Click on the ADHD worksheets below.

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On the night of a "supermoon," the moon appears larger and brighter than any other time. The moon doesn't change, but the way it looks from Earth does.

Since the moon's orbit around the Earth is egg-shaped, sometimes during the month-long lunar cycle the moon is at its shortest distance from Earth; other times it's farthest away. If the moon is full at the same time it's very close to Earth, you see a supermoon.

A supermoon can appear up to 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than a full moon.

If you hear a supermoon is coming up, and the sky looks clear, try to get outside to see it. You might have to wait more than a year until the next time. They happen about once every 14 months.

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On the night of a "supermoon," the moon appears larger and brighter than any other time. The moon doesn't change, but the way it looks from Earth does. Since the moon's orbit around the Earth is egg-shaped, sometimes during the month-long lunar cycle the moon is at its shortest distance from Earth; other times it's farthest away.

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Click on the Baseball Pro at the bottom of the picture for the BB game.

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Everybody loves a good riddle once in a while and solving hard word searches on a regular basis can even improve your problem-solving skills and logical thinking. It makes your brain cells go wild while trying to come with the answer and when you do solve it, the feeling of accomplishment is more than gratifying. This time, we have prepared some word searches for you - simple yet very satisfying hidden words puzzles for you to solve.

All you have to do is find the words in the pictures below. We don't want to torture you with the unknown, so we'll say that there are precisely six hidden words in pictures, and they do relate to the themes of the drawings.

And if these word puzzles are not enough for you, try our hidden panda picture challenge!

More info: highlights.com | Facebook

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Can You Find 6 Words Hidden In These Puzzles? (12 Pics)

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Panda got a little bored hiding and instructed us to get you new puzzles, so we obliged. This time we challenge you to find the words hiding in the drawings below!

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If you've ever played UNO, then you know how to play Four Colours. Face up to three computer opponents. Match cards by colour or number or play an action card to mix up the game. Be the first to get rid of all the cards and win the game. Don't forget to press the 1 button when you only have one card left!

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Four Colours | Play Free Online Games for Kids | CBC Kids

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If you've ever played UNO, then you know how to play Four Colours. Face up to three computer opponents. Match cards by colour or number or play an action card to mix up the game. Be the first to get rid of all the cards and win the game.

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Description

Drag the coloured blocks onto the grid board until lines are filled across vertically or horizontally. Once a line is filled with blocks it will disappear, leaving you more room for blocks.

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Drag the coloured blocks onto the grid board until lines are filled across vertically or horizontally. Once a line is filled with blocks it will disappear, leaving you more room for blocks.

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Have students get up and move. Play music and freeze when the music stops. Then start dancing again when the music starts.

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Students can participate in these fun online teaching activities which can make their new virtual classroom a little less intimidating.

With schools utilizing virtual classroom meetings, webchats, and other distance learning tools, it can be difficult to get students to engage or participate in class. Students are often distracted or struggling to figure out what is going on in the meeting and they do not focus on the instructor or speaker.

While there are no magic words or online teaching games that will make them focus, a new or fun game can help capture their attention at least for a bit. We will look at games and activities that take preparation ahead of time and others that can be done spur of the moment.

No Preparation

These online teaching activities will take no preparation ahead of time. Students can participate whether they are on a mobile device or a computer and can make the new classroom a little less intimidating

1. What's Left?

Ask each person to hold up the nearest thing to the left of them that they can. Obviously, they cannot hold up a TV or couch, but students can hold up a remote, bag of chips, drink, or sock.

To make it even more fun, you can give a scenario such as a zombie apocalypse where students are going to fight the walking dead using only the object to their left!

For students without a camera, ask them to describe the item to their left.

2. Eye Spy

Play a game of eye spy with the people in the class to figure out whose background you are looking at. This might get fun for classes that have a mixture of virtual backgrounds and home backgrounds.

3. Storytime

Students will build a story one sentence at a time. The teacher begins by giving the opening line. Each student adds another line to the story. The rules are that the next line has to make sense. It can be silly or outrageous but should make sense. For example, you would not say, "We all went swimming. My truck was making a weird noise." However, it would be fine if one person said, "We all went swimming." Then the next student said, "since my truck was making a weird noise, so I didn't want to drive." When the class is finished creating the story, you could introduce topics such as the author's purpose, word choice, setting, and other writing or language arts related topics.

4. Two Truths and a Lie

This game is a popular ice breaker for many groups. Children old enough to understand the truth and lies can play. Adults even enjoy this game sometimes. Each person tells two true things and one that is a lie. Each thing either needs to be reasonably believable or all sound unbelievable. This game is easy to adapt to your classroom as well. You could make it two lies and a truth or three truths and two lies. Adapt this game to meet your time and classroom needs. The person with the most incorrect guesses is the winner. You might offer them extra points or a virtual high five for winning.

Some Preparation

5. Where in the world?

Have all of the students change their background to a location. Each student gets to write down their guesses as to where each place is. Some might be obvious like the Eiffel Tower, Great Wall, or San Francisco Bay Bridge, but others might be more difficult. They might be grandma's backyard, the Pacific Ocean, Australian Outback, or many other places. This is one of the online teaching activities that can be the introduction into a geography, context clues, social studies, or even art lesson if you choose.

6. Pet Day!

Have students bring their pets to the meeting. Any student without a pet can find a photo or bring a stuffed animal of a pet they think would be cool. Students should introduce their pets, tell a little about what they do all day, and what their diet is like. This way, you can sneak a little science into the lesson too!

7. Whose is this?

Have students take a picture of the oldest thing they still own and email it to you. Use your presentation to put a few of them up on the screen. The first person who virtually raises his or her hand guesses to whom the item belongs. For example, if Shannon wanted to guess, he would raise his hand and wait for you to unmute him, then. he would guess who owns the first object. If he gets it right, the next item would be shown. If he gets it wrong, someone else can guess. You could do a few each meeting if you were concerned about time.

8. Music Video Scavenger Hunt

On YouTube, find a music video where you can find 5 or more things related to the theme of your unit or lesson. The song lyrics is also a good place to find unit-related vocabulary. Before the class starts, watch the music video with the students and ask them to find series of items within the video or series of words in the lyrics!

9. Help Me!

Tell students the topic of the meeting/class. Have them email you one question that they have about the topic. Read a few at the beginning of the meeting, especially if there are several of the same kinds of questions. Ask if anyone already knows the answer or wants to take a guess. At the end of the session ask again. See if the students can now answer the question. Students will often want to listen for their questions and listen for the answer if they think they can be the one to talk after.

10. Teach us

Once a week or so, have an "extra credit" session where students can take turns teaching something. This can be a recipe, craft, or artistic task. It cannot just be a showcase of talent. Students who teach the lesson get extra credit. All students must attend. If a student attends and follows the instructions or lesson and emails you proof (a photo of the finished product), he or she may also get extra credit. Students will sign up for a week and can "work together" but should remain in their own spaces.

For example, one student might demonstrate from their home the first part of the dish, and the partner, having completed that part ahead of time can complete the second part. This works best with recipes that take longer cooking times. Materials lists can be sent ahead of time for what students need to have on hand to complete the recipe or activity. If the students need extra time to do the activity (a recipe that requires baking time) this should be noted in the materials list, so that students do not expect to do it in real-time. While this activity is better for older students, even young children can complete age-appropriate recipes and tasks.

11. Gamify Reviews

Take advantage of the many quiz apps and formative assessment tools already available online! Turn your review lessons into a fun online game! Luckily, most of these apps are playable remotely. You can also use quizzes made by other educators that are available on the platform. Why not try Kahoot, Gimkit, or Quizalize perhaps?

Closing thoughts

All of these online teaching activities can be adapted to meet your class's needs and abilities. Think outside the classroom walls to come up with fun activities. Plan virtual playtimes too. Students need to be able to decompress and destress too. The learning is sometimes secondary to the mental health improvement that comes from having a community of peers that understands their struggles, goals, and achievements. Anything, we as teachers, can do, to foster a love of the classroom, is a good thing.

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What do you think of these online teaching activities? Let us know in the comments!

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11 Online Teaching Activities to Warm Up the Class

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Students can participate in these fun online teaching activities which can make their new virtual classroom a little less intimidating. With schools utilizing virtual classroom meetings, webchats, and other distance learning tools, it can be difficult to get students to engage or participate in class.

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Kids have one minute to go and take a photo of something from a weird angle, or extreme close up. Then they take turns to show their photo and the rest have to try and guess what it is.

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Fill out these questions to generate your own silly mad libs story instantly online! This mad lib only has nouns, verbs, and adjectives so it can be used with Kindergarten common core classes. (Hint: a Verb is an action. A noun is a person/place/thing. An adjective describes a person/place/thing.)

Fill out these questions to generate your own silly mad libs story instantly online! This mad lib only has nouns, verbs, and adjectives so it can be used with Kindergarten common core classes. (Hint: a Verb is an action. A noun is a person/place/thing. An adjective describes a person/place/thing.)

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Fill out these questions to generate your own silly mad libs story instantly online! This mad lib only has nouns, verbs, and adjectives so it can be used with Kindergarten common core classes. (Hint: a Verb is an action. A noun is a person/place/thing. An adjective describes a person/place/thing.)

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Resources for cool ideas during pandemic. 

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Resources for cool ideas during pandemic. 

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This was shared on a FB Tech page

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Emotion Check-In using RULER's Mood Meter

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Emotion Check-In using RULER's Mood Meter

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http://moodmeterapp.com/ Screen Share on Zoom and have students annotate how they feel or try the app....I just haven't figured out how to share yet

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Make sure everyone is unmuted.

This is a simple game where the first person starts by saying 1.  Then someone else has to say 2, another says 3 etc.  Until you reach 100.  The catch is that if two or more people say a number at the same time you must go back to one.

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This activity gets the kids up and moving. It involves a clapping and slapping sequence. I got it from aTed Talk by Dale Sidebottom. The explanation of the game is in the first 2 and a half minutes of the video.

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Narcissistic To Nice | Dale Sidebottom | TEDxDocklands

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w/ See/Think/Wonder

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Virtual field trips are a great way to expose kids to new places all from the comfort of home. In this age of technology, so many museums, zoos and aquariums have set up virtual tours and webcams of their facilities. Now more than ever, is it easier to visit destinations around the world from the comfort of your couch.

The last couple of years has shown us how much we take being able to visit places for granted. Even something as ordinary as a school field trip became rare. So, we came up with a list of places you could visit using technology for those times when you can't be there in person. Virtual field trips are a fun and educational way to visit places virtually and and "travel" without leaving home or school.

I've rounded up 20 virtual field trips that you can take with your kids. There are also lesson ideas, activities and book suggestions to extend the learning for each type of destination.

Art Museums

Visit some of the best art galleries in the world virtually. From Paris to New York to Amsterdam, kids can see priceless works of art from the world's most famous artists.

Activities and Resources

Choose a favorite painting or sculpture and create a copycat piece of art.

Research an artist. This is a great book about some amazing artists kids should know about https://amzn.to/38QWQGf (affiliate link).

Choose a piece of art to focus on. Describe it, tell why you chose it and how it makes you feel.

Choose 2 works of art to compare.

Zoos

Zoo webcams have allowed visitors to drop in on the habitats of some of the zoo's favorite animal exhibits. Here are some highlights. Want more? Here is our complete list of virtual zoo field trips.

Activities and Resources

Aquariums

Just like with zoos, aquariums have used webcams to let you visit their exhibits virtually. In addition, some aquariums have set up virtual tours led by their staff to give visitors a more in depth look at their facility.

Activities and Resources

Travel the World

In this day and age, it is easier than ever to travel the world without leaving home.

Activities and Resources

Plan a trip to a new destination. What would you do, see, eat?

Make a travel brochure for the destination you visited.

Write a postcard from that destination. Include details about the place and what you can see there.

More Stuff to Do at Home:

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20 Virtual Field Trips to Take with Your Kids - Adventures in Familyhood

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Virtual field trips are a great way to expose kids to new places all from the comfort of home. In this age of technology, so many museums, zoos and aquariums have set up virtual tours and webcams of their facilities. Now more than ever, is it easier to visit destinations around the world from the comfort of your couch.

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Co-brainstorm list of weekly challenges like: fort making, map drawing, creating your own code language -- then students do challenge @ home and post to Padlet - during Morning Meeting Zoom you can share screen - and student can share their process/product - it produces positive emotion & inspiration

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How to Help Children Manage Fears - Child Mind Institute

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Teaching your children how to manage fears without parental intervention will help them build confidence and independence so they feel more in control and less afraid. Advice from the Child Mind Institute on how to support kids as they learn to face fears.

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Early childhood teachers know that hands-on learning is essential. Sensory play encourages open-ended thinking, language development, collaboration, and builds fine motor skills. Sensory materials are magically both engaging and calming.

The great thing about sensory tables and bins is that reinventing the wheel is not required. Tried-and-true materials like sand, beans, rice, and water will always delight children. But, since mixing it up is fun, too, we've gathered some of our favorite next-level sensory play ideas below. If you need even more inspo, we suggest grabbing a copy of Exciting Sensory Bins for Curious Kids by Mandisa Watts. She's the creator of Happy Toddler Playtime (see #19) and she knows her (ooey, gooey, squishy) stuff.

Worried about kids swapping germs while they scoop and pour? Check out the end of the post for some ideas for when you need to keep sensory play extra squeaky clean.

1. Confetti and Eggs

What kiddo wouldn't go wild for an entire bin of confetti? Eggs for opening, closing, scooping, and hiding "treasure" make it extra fun.

Source: Wildly Charmed

2. Gems in Epsom Salt

Source: @secondgradethinkers

3. Colored Ice Blocks

Freeze water and food coloring into ice cube trays and any containers you have handy. (For super cool balls, freeze colored water balloons!) Add a few utensils, and play away!

Source: Fun-A-Day

4. Mini "Skating Rink"

A pan of frozen water + figurines frozen into ice cube "skates" = miniaturized skating fun!

Source: @playtime_with_imagination

5. Itsy Bitsy Spiders and a Spout

Investigate water in motion while singing the classic nursery rhyme.

Source: @playyaypreK

6. Iceberg Ahead!

Hop on! Freeze a couple of pans of water and float them in your sensory table with some Arctic animals.

Source: @ganisraelpreschoolsantamonica

7. Gourd Wash

Washing pumpkins is a preschool fall staple. Adding colored water and fun-shaped sponges definitely adds some oomph!

Source: @friendsartlab

8. Button Boats

Buttons are fun, foil and container "boats" are really fun...together, LOTS of fun!

Source: @the.life.of.an.everyday.mom

9. Floating Flower Petal Fun

Deconstruct a spent bouquet, or bring in some clippings from outside. Just add water and utensils for hours of flower-themed fun. (It's also amazing to freeze flower petals in ice cube trays or muffin tins of water!)

Source: @the_bees_knees_adelaide

10. Magic Puffing Snow

Okay, so you will need one unusual ingredient (citric acid powder) to make this Magic Puffing Snow, but it's so, so worth it. Check out the whole Fun at Home With Kids site for every other kind of slime, dough, and foam you could ever want to make, too.

Source: Fun At Home With Kids

11. Shaving Cream and Blocks

Shaving cream "glue" adds new possibilities to block play!

Source: @artreepreschool

12. Shaving Cream and Water Beads

Water beads are tons of fun on their own. When they start to get a little slimy and ready for the trash, squirt some shaving cream into your sensory table with them for one last hurrah!
Source:@letsplaylittleone
13. Birds and Nests

Tweet, tweet! Sandi at Rubber Boots and Elf Shoes is your guru for themed sensory bins. Be sure to check out her entire A to Z list.

Source: Rubber Boots and Elf Shoes

14. Rainbow Pom Pom Fun

How can you not smile when you see this colored rice sensory table with giant pompoms and cupcake liners? (No time to dye rainbow rice? Check out readymade kidfetti for a similar feel. It's even washable!)

Source: @friendsartlab

15. Hot Cocoa Bar

There are many variations of this activity across the web, but how cute and fun is this simple one? All you need are some pinto beans, mugs, spoons and cotton ball marshmallows!

Source: @luckytoteachk

16. Three Billy Goats Gruff

Trip, trap, trip, trap! Retell a favorite story with fun props. Growing Book By Book has lots more ideas for book-themed sensory tables, too.

Source: Growing Book by Book

17. Grassy Playground

Curriculum for days! Plant grass in the sensory table and play with it once it grows. Genius!

Source: @truce_teacher

18. Ramps and Chutes

Raid your recycling pile and get kids thinking out of the box about how to move sensory materials around, like with this corn chute setup!

Source: Fairy Dust Teaching

19. Acorn Drop

Add an element of mystery to your sensory bin simply by adding a cardboard box with holes on top. Drop, plop, retrieve, repeat!

Source: @happytoddlerplaytime

20. "Bake" Up a Pie

Doesn't this apple pie look good enough to eat? You could vary the pie recipe based on the season.

Source: @PreK4Fun

Tips for Keeping Sensory Play Good, Clean Fun

The only trouble with friends' little hands digging into a bin of fun is ... that's a lot of germy little hands. You can always station a bottle of hand sanitizer next to your sensory table to clean hands before and after playing. If that's not enough, here are some other strategies to try.

(Note: We definitely aren't the CDC. Please defer to any regulations or guidance put forth by your district or state!)

21. Add soap!

Move hand washing right on over to the water table. You can soap up pretty much anything in a sensory table and kids will love it, but this pumpkin potions setup is especially cool. Bubble, boil, and brew!

Source: @pocketprovision.eyfs

22. Individual Mini-Trays

Play together, separately. How cute are these individual labeled trays? (Though dollar-store lasagna pans or other budget options would work just as well!) You could periodically sanitize and trade the accessories around.

Source: @charlestownnurseryschool

23. Take Turns

Set up a table of individual sensory bins and mark each child's spot with their photo. Sanitize or quarantine the bin contents before inviting a different set of children to use them.

Source: @charlestownnurseryschool

24. Sensory Bags

Yeah, it's more fun to get your hands messy. But bags can easily be wiped down between kids, so they could be the next best thing. Plus, these may get some sensory-cautious kids to play when they otherwise wouldn't! You could go in so many directions with these seek-and-find examples.

Source: @apinchofkinder

25. Multi-Bin Table

Major props to the person who figured out this cheap and easy DIY PVC solution for a four-bin sensory table. In the classroom, you could set up a simple water play center in each bin. When one kid moves on, swap in clean water and toys, and the next kiddo is good to go!

Source: @mothercould
How do you use sensory tables in your classroom? Share your favorite sensory table ideas in our WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook. Plus, our favorite preschool games and activities.

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Preschool Teachers, You'll Want to Try Every One of These Fun Sensory Tables

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Early childhood teachers know that hands-on learning is essential. Sensory play encourages open-ended thinking, language development, collaboration, and builds fine motor skills. Sensory materials are magically both engaging and calming. The great thing about sensory tables and bins is that reinventing the wheel is not required.

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The Lion King | Get Moving With Disney Family by Disney Family

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Get ready for a fitness adventure for the whole family! Move like Simba, Rafiki, Zazu, and more of your favorites from The Lion King.

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Mulan | Get Moving With Disney Family by Disney Family

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Get the whole family together to train just like Mulan did at Captain Li Shang's training camp.

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The Incredibles | Get Moving With Disney Family by Disney Family

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Get ready for a hero-themed fitness adventure for the whole family! Spring into action like the Incredibles, break a sweat, and defeat the bad guys during this episode of "Get Moving with Disney Family."

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Winnie the Pooh & Hunny Pots | Disney DIY

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Give your home a smackerel of cuteness with these delightful Winnie the Pooh-themed DIY flower pots.

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