Classroom Activities to Survive the Last Few Days Before Break

You can feel it in the air. The buzz of excitement is everywhere! My students are practically vibrating with anticipation, counting down the days until the holiday break. The festive energy is contagious. While it's wonderful to see their joy, it can be a challenge to keep everyone focused and engaged when all they can think about is the holiday fun. With only a few more days until the break, we still have some time for learning. So, to help you survive the last few days before the holiday break, I have a selection of classroom activities that are not only fun but also educational! These lesson plans have been my lifesaver during these times of the school year, right before a break. They help us keep the momentum going while embracing the fun of the holidays. 

Classroom Activities to Engage Your Students

Over the years, I have gathered a collection of engaging classroom activities that have become my go-to for keeping my classroom lively and productive during the countdown to holiday break. These activities were created to capture my students' attention and channel their excitement into something academic. Let's explore these classroom activities that will make your last few days together both enjoyable and memorable!

Middle Ages: Will Your Kingdom Survive 

In my World History class, we usually dive into the fascinating era of the Middle Ages around holiday break time. To make this period even more engaging, I love using a simulation. The Middle Ages simulation has quickly become a favorite among my students! This interactive activity transports them into a fictional kingdom during the Middle Ages. There, they get to make important decisions and see the consequences unfold. 

Each student begins by randomly selecting a fictional kingdom profile and a treasury card. These elements set the stage for the adventure and influence some of their decisions throughout the simulations. They then face 18 different scenarios. Each scenario presents multiple options. Depending on their choices, they either gain or lose gold coins for their treasury. This adds a fun and competitive edge to the activity. 

Even though the kingdoms and scenarios are fictional, my students love making connections to the real historical events and concepts we've or will discuss about the Middle Ages. Once the simulation is over, they get creative by writing a story that weaves in what they've learned, along with at least two of the scenarios they encountered during the simulation.

Christmas Traditions Around the World Scavenger Hunt

If you're on the lookout for fun classroom activities that bring technology into the mix, my students enjoy this Christmas Traditions Around the World Scavenger Hunt! This activity is a fantastic way to get everyone up and moving while learning about how different cultures celebrate Christmas. There are a couple versions of this activity. One version uses QR codes, but if that isn't really your thing, there's another version that does not have QR codes!

There are 30 different cards with statements about all the different Christmas traditions from around the world. I take these cards and scatter them around the room to encourage my students to get up and move. Ready with their QR Code Readers, my students go through the scavenger hunt to discover which country has which traditions. My students love this activity because they get to move around, use technology, and learn about different traditions. They fill out a handout as they go along!

I also include a digital version, so if you have students out of school or already traveling they can join in on the fun! No one misses out on exploring Christmas traditions from around the globe. This activity definitely keeps everyone engaged! 

Christmas Traditions Around the World Bingo

My students always get a kick out of playing Bingo. It just so happens to be the perfect follow-up activity
after our scavenger hunt. It's a fantastic way to review all the interesting things they discovered about Christmas traditions from around the world. This Christmas Traditions Around the World Bingo game is one of the top classroom activities to turn learning into a fun time!

The game comes with 30 different Bingo boards and calling cards filled with terms and definitions related to Christmas traditions. It's so much fun watching my students eagerly exclaim and mark off their boards as they recall what they've learned. 

Bingo has always been a favorite in my classroom. This themed version is a great way to keep the holiday spirit alive while reinforcing our new knowledge. 

Doodle Notes to Make Note-Taking Fun

In Civics, I love using Doodle Notes to keep note-taking engaging. If it's a Presidential election year, we dive into the Electoral College. If it's not, we explore how a bill becomes a law. Both of these classroom activities do come in print and digital versions, which makes differentiation a bit easier!

When we cover the Electoral College, I pull out the Electoral College Doodle Notes. My students learn about how it works and what role it plays during Presidential elections. As I go through the presentation, my students follow along on their note pages. They enjoy the coloring and doodling as we take notes. It's a fantastic way for them to absorb the information while having a bit of creative fun. 

My How a Bill Becomes a Law Doodle Notes are very similar. With this set of notes, my students learn about the entire process. They start with a bill's introduction in the House of Representatives and work their way to becoming a law. My students fill in and color their note pages as we go through the presentation. This helps them stay engaged and retain the information. 

Civil War Map Activity

In my U.S. History classes, we dive into some engaging classroom activities with maps that really bring
history to life. One of my favorites is our Civil War map activity. It's great for helping my students visualize what the United States looked like during this period. This map includes the western territories, locations of key battles, and which states were Union, Confederate, or Border states. 

This activity is a wonderful way to weave geography into our history lessons. My students have hands-on experience by labeling, coloring, and drawing on their maps. By the end of the unit, this map was one of the most memorable tools my students had found useful. To help reinforce their maps, I have my students answer a few questions. 

This map activity helps my students grasp the geographical context of the Civil War and makes this unit more engaging. The historical event becomes more relevant and concrete for them. After this activity, their interests are usually piqued, and they want to explore more! 

Make the Last Few Days Before Easy with These Classroom Activities 

As we count down the days to our holiday break, these classroom activities have been my secret for keeping the excitement manageable and the learning ongoing. From navigating medieval kingdoms to exploring global Christmas traditions, these engaging activities ensure that every moment in our classroom is filled with fun and discovery. I hope these ideas inspire you to create a vibrant learning environment for your students as you wrap up these last few days. Wishing you all a joyful and restful holiday break. Let's make these last few days before the break ones to remember! 

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The Importance of Critical Thinking in A Growth Mindset Class Culture

Welcome to Chapter 4 of Mindsets in the Classroom by Mary Cay Ricci: "Why is Critical Thinking Important in a Growth Mindset Class Culture?"

This post is part of a book study blog hop so to get caught up, you may want to check out these posts first:
Chapter 1: What are Mindsets, and How Do They Affect the Classroom? by Brigid from Math Giraffe
Chapter 2: What Are Some Ways to Begin Building a Growth Mindset School Culture by Ellie from Middle School Math Moments
Chapter 3: Why is a Differentiated, Responsive Classroom Important to a Growth Mindset Culture by Leah Cleary

Think back to when you were in school...
Can you name one of the "smart" kids from your class? How about one of the "not-so-bright" kids from your class? Were they always the "smart" or the "not-so-bright" kid? I can easily name classmates that fit into these categories and, as far as I can remember, they were always "that" kid. It's easy to fall into the fixed mindset culture where we think that people have fixed abilities and levels of intelligence.

A growth mindset culture challenges the fixed mindset perception by believing that a person's intelligence can grow and develop. Growth mindset is a very interesting concept. It means that, as teacher, we actually need to challenge our own personal mindsets about our students and what they are and are not capable of.

I think back to my teaching days. One of the major differences between my lower and upper level high school U.S. History classes was the amount of critical thinking opportunities I gave my upper level classes versus my lower level classes. My upper level students were expected almost daily to engage in critical thinking while my lower level students only had the opportunity once a week or so. In Chapter 4, Ricci explains a project where children in 53 classrooms were given the opportunity to engage in critical thinking by playing carefully chosen computer games. The results were really staggering! Low performing students showed huge growth in reasoning and the teachers perspectives of these students changed dramatically. And after her project, Ricci concluded that a growth mindset culture and increased opportunities for critical thinking can make a significant impact on students and their schools.

I would love to see a project like this take place at the high school level. What would be different? What would be the challenges?
I suspect that a major challenge is that by high school, students have bought into the fixed mindset culture:
They are the smart kid.
They just don't "get" math.
English is too hard for them.
Dates just don't stay in their brain.

Almost more challenging than the mindsets of high school students, is that of high school teachers. If we want the mindsets of our students to change, our mindset has to change, as well. One way to change is to incorporate more opportunities for our students of all levels to engage in critical thinking and actually believing that they will be successful. However, Ricci notes in Chapter 4 that she doubts that simply increasing the amount of critical thinking engagement will do anything unless it is accompanied by a growth mindset culture. So, the two must be incorporated together.

Intrigued by a growth mindset culture and want to learn more? Here are some great resources for middle and high school teachers:
How to Weave a Growth Mindset into School Culture by Katrina Schwartz
Even Geniuses Work Hard by Carol S. Dweck
6 Ways to Teach Growth Mindset from Day One by Angela Watson

Ready to learn about Chapter 5? Head over to Brittany's post at The Colorado Classroom.

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