The Joy of Teaching – Page 3 of 45 – Sharing creative ideas and lessons to help children learn

March 21, 2023
by Evan-Moor
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WHEN THE SAHARA DESERT WAS OUR CLASSROOM

The vast road in Morocco stretches before us for hours – a black rocky desert of unforgiving terrain. Wild camels graze in the desert in search of tasty leaves for nourishment. One camel steps close to the road, savoring a rare olive branch in the middle of all this – nothingness.

He seems to smile at the four little girls in our car as we pass by.

Then suddenly, we see something in the distance. It looks like a mountain painted the color of a golden sunset, and it’s rising above the black desert like a beacon of hope.

Is it? Could it be?

SAND!

Our children cry out with delight, “The Sahara!”

We’ve made it to the village of Merzouga on the westernmost edge of the sandy part of the Sahara desert at long last. We left the city of Marrakech in the small hours of the morning to drive nine hours across the beautiful Atlas Mountains, through scores of tiny Moroccan villages and alongside many ancient ruins, all to reach this incredible place.

The Sahara Desert.

We’re on a Journey Into Wild as a family this year, and we are traveling to 15 countries as we study the world’s biomes and their current environmental challenges. We want to learn how we can become change agents in our world, and we’re capturing it all in blogs, photos, and a 10 episode, full format TV show.

This month, we want to study the desert biome, and where better to study the desert than in the largest desert in the world? We want to learn from one of the most prominent nomadic Saharan tribes, known to us as Berbers, though they call themselves the Amazigh.

We approach the edge of the great desert with awe – sand mountains shimmering and shifting in late afternoon sun.

INTO THE DESERT

We trade our wheels for Morocco’s native dromedary camels – still the transportation mode of choice for those living in the desert. There are no roads here, only sand for as far as the eye can see. Giddy with expectation, we clamber atop these tall, friendly animals, their sheer bulk exuding steadfast confidence for the multi-hour journey to our desert camp.

We cross one sand dune.

And another. And another.

Before long, we are surrounded by sand on all sides.

EMBRACING THE DESERT

After an hour of riding into the desert, our guide stops at the halfway point and slowly coaxes each camel down into a sitting position for a rest. Once safely on the ground, the children run up the highest sand dune, arms open and hearts full.

They are running, rolling, tumbling, laughing.

The sand is a sea of delight and they are fully present in it.

Soon the sun begins to set and we watch from the peak of a sand dune, cuddling close as a family. We grow quiet as the sun makes its graceful journey.

It’s magic.

This is real.

This is wild.

This is learning in its fullest form – immersive.

THE CAMP

An hour more of camel riding and we find ourselves with the first look at our new desert home – a pretty line of white tents surrounded by golden sand.

SETTLING IN

We are greeted by one of our Berber hosts, Abrahim, who is dressed in traditional garments including an elegant Berber head wrap.

“Welcome to the Sahara,” Abrahim beams, “This is your desert home. Come, let me show you the camp!”

He asks the children their names, and then scoops little Peyton up onto his shoulders and smiles at the girls with a twinkle in his eye. “I have hot Moroccan mint tea for you in the dining tent. Yala!” he says. (Let’s go!)

Our family tent is luxurious with a large queen-size bed for the parents and smallest child, and three single beds for the older girls. We have a nice bathroom and a private shower with hot water. I’m impressed. Moroccan rugs cover the floors and I spot an electric blanket on the bed. YES!

It’s even more fun than I imagined it would be.

I watch the camels being walked to their resting place for the night as the sun says it’s final goodbyes to a day well-lived. The fire is lit in the camp, and we sip warm tea as we explore our temporary desert home.

We are served a warm meal of hot bean soup and freshly made bread, a trio of traditional salads, and a chicken tagine. Our hosts complete the meal by offering a platter of fresh cut fruit and more Moroccan mint tea. We are satisfied and ready for a campfire, drumming, and stories with our Berber friends before settling into the warm bed on this cold winter night.

A NEW DAY

The next day, the sunrise is just after 8am, and we are ready for it, wrapped like locals in colorful Moroccan djellaba’s (long robes worn over clothes for warmth). We stand on a sandy dune and drink in the beauty of a new day while experiencing the desert biome in all its glory.

LEARNING TIME

After breakfast, the girls and I relax into our daily morning learning time. The girls have a set of fun activity pages we printed a few days day before from Teacher File Box.

This is is one of our favorite learning tools because there are over 80,000 pages of printable activities which we have access to on demand anywhere in the world.

Since we can’t carry books with us, much of our learning is on iPads. But the kids LOVE doing activity pages, reading, researching, and coloring, so Teacher File Box is a way we can have these tools at our fingertips without carrying books. We simply print exactly what we need at any given time. This year, we’ll be in 15 countries, and in each of them, I’ll be printing fun activity pages like this for our girls.

We are worldchoolers, which means the whole world is our classroom and everything in it is a learning opportunity.

So as we sit in the warm Sahara sun, the girls enjoy their activity pages. They are learning about Africa’s geography, the Sahara Desert as a biome, the animals that live in the Sahara and how they have adapted to their extreme environment, Moroccan food and more.

The learning is rich and deep.

As we discuss the activity sheet called “Playing it Cool in the Desert,” we talk about how animals adapt to the desert so they can thrive. We discuss how how humans have also adapted to extreme climates like this. The Berbers, for example, wear head scarves to keep the sun off their faces and the sand out of their eyes.

We role play this by putting on our own desert scarves and notice how much better we feel with them on.

The girls ask all kinds of questions about the desert, and I love that I can feel their curiosity running wild. After several activities, I can see they’ve reached their height of excitement, and so we transition to tactile learning. It’s time to get hands-on with the desert.

PLAY TIME – SAND BOARDING

When we finish our activity sheets, we are off to play in the desert and test some of our new found knowledge in the real world.

The kids opt for sand boarding first, and they hone their skills on the sand dunes using decommissioned snow boards as tools, courtesy of our camp.

It takes a while, but the girls soon get the hang of it and before long, they are sliding down the sand with ease, laughing hysterically as they learn.

FAMILY TIME – 4x4s IN THE DUNES

After lunch, we’re ready for a different challenge – taking 4x4s (with two guides) deeper into the Sahara Desert.

We speed along the dunes, making new discoveries every few minutes. We find an oasis and the kids remember the learning on their activity sheets about how important an oasis is in the desert – both for people and for animals.

EVENING

As the afternoon sun begins to cool, our activities slow and we rest, letting the desert calm wash over us.

We spend time napping, journaling, drawing and practicing drumming patterns our Berber friends taught us the night before. Life is beautiful, and there’s no where else we’d rather be.

With the sunset comes a new glow on the ever-changing colors of the sand, and again we find ourselves breathless with anticipation as we pause to wonder at the desert biomes’ extremes.

My twelve-year Reagan volunteers to take the camels for a walk, imagining herself to be a child living in the desert as part of the Berber tribe.

The girls run into the sunset, remembering this day of learning with the Sahara Desert as our classroom.

We have a new-found appreciation for the desert, for its animals, and for the people who live here.

For more information about the Sahara Desert as a family travel destination or about the Teacher File Box learning tool, please send an email to janelle@adventurefamilyjournal.com and I’ll be happy to support you however I can.

Note: This blog may contain affiliate links, for which I receive a small commission if you click through to check out the product and decide it’s a great fit for you. It’s my joy to share about real products and services that have enriched our lives as a family, and I hope you get to enjoy them too!

Janelle Schroy, the writer behind Adventure Family Journal is traveling the world to 50 countries or more with her family of six! View their adventures and travels at https://adventurefamilyjournal.com/

March 1, 2023
by Heather Foudy
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Free Financial Literacy Activities

Incorporating financial literacy lessons into your curriculum is a great way to engage students in learning real-world math applications and life skills. Money-based word problems and real-world stories allow students the opportunity to learn important financial concepts, explore realistic opportunities, and make choices about using money, collecting allowances, applying for credit cards, and more.

Celebrate Financial Literacy Awareness Month in April with free printables from Financial Literacy Lessons and Activities, a valuable resource for promoting financial education and empowering kids with essential money management skills.

Download these free sample activities from Financial Literacy Lessons and Activities for grades 1–8 here.

Five Topics to Include in Financial Literacy Activities

These financial topics are a simple way to introduce the concepts of buying, earning, budgeting, saving, and borrowing into your lessons. Hands-on games, activities, and classroom discussions can engage students in learning these important life concepts and create fun learning experiences they will remember.

young girl and father shopping for groceries

Making Spending Decisions activities help students understand price as one of many things to consider when choosing between product options. Activities such as purchasing groceries at a store can bring the concept to life as students learn to compare shopping items and prices. Children often go shopping with their parents. However, they may not notice how many choices there are for each type of item or how prices for the exact same item can differ from store to store. They might not realize that similar products can vary in price. Many young consumers may not have a lot of experience comparing prices.

Earning Money concepts can help children understand that when people are hired to do a job, they work for a certain amount of money. Children might not have regular jobs, but they often earn money doing chores around the house. Or they might do work for a neighbor or a family friend. While adults have jobs to pay for things they need, such as food, clothing, housing, and utilities, children often earn money to buy things they want.

Spending Plans are a great way to demonstrate how to reach a financial goal. When people set up a budget for themselves, they figure out a plan for managing their money. While children don’t usually work or pay bills, a child’s budget can be based on an allowance or money earned from doing chores or odd jobs. They can spend money on fun things, donate to help others, and/or save money for the future. A budget can help children figure out how important different purchase choices are to them.

Saving and Investing helps students understand that saving comes from money you receive that you don’t spend. For example, they might eat a cookie now or save it to eat after lunch. They might save a favorite book for bedtime. If children want to buy something that costs more than they have, they may not realize that they can continue adding to their money until they have enough to buy it. Saving small amounts of money lets them buy a larger item. Setting a goal and making a plan to reach the goal can help people save enough to buy things they can’t afford right now. Money can be saved in a bank or at home in a special place.

Borrowing concepts demonstrate how financial loans operate. Some children borrow and lend all kinds of things from a young age. They may borrow video games from siblings, pencils from classmates, and books from the library. They may lend a sweater to a sibling or a bike to a friend. Children usually understand that you have to return something after you use it. Some may not realize that this applies to money as well. This unit helps students understand the fairness in the lending-and-returning process and models different agreements and ways to repay.

Financial Literacy Lessons and Activities for grades 1–8 is a great teaching tool in your classroom. The lesson units demonstrate how to apply math with activities and hands-on projects related to budgeting, grocery shopping, loans, credit cards, and more. Printable math play money and budget sheets also help students apply skills in a fun way.

The lessons are already done for you and easy to implement. From getting students engaged to showing how math is used in daily life, we’ve got you covered with these free financial literacy printables and worksheets.

Activities include:

A real-world story
Vocabulary and concept practice pages
Money-based word problems and math applications
Hands-on partner and whole-class games

Download these free sample activities from Financial Literacy Lessons and Activities for grades 1–8 here.

Create memorable and engaging math lessons with hands-on financial literacy games and activities. The real-life applications in Financial Literacy Lessons and Activities allow students to explore financial choices with the understanding that there isn’t a right or a wrong answer.

For more free activities and lesson ideas, subscribe to our e-newsletter here!

Heather Foudy is a certified elementary teacher with over 7 years’ experience as an educator and volunteer in the classroom. She enjoys creating lessons that are meaningful and creative for students. She is currently working for Evan-Moor’s marketing and communications team and enjoys building learning opportunities that are both meaningful and creative for students and teachers alike.

January 23, 2023
by Heather Foudy
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Teach Real-World Math with Financial Literacy Printables

Help your students learn real-world math skills with this selection of financial literacy printables from Evan-Moor’s TeacherFileBox. The financial literacy activities below are a great addition to your April lessons and help to highlight the importance of Financial Literacy Awareness month. These interactive activities highlight important math and critical thinking skills with engaging stories and fun games. The lesson units demonstrate how to apply math with activities and hands-on projects related to budgeting, grocery shopping, loans, credit cards, and more. Printable math play money and budget sheets also help students apply skills in a fun way.

Five Financial Literacy Activities for Grades 1–8

Grade 1

This in-depth first grade financial literacy lesson about making spending decisions includes a real-world story, six pages of concept practice, a hands-on game, and teacher resources pages!

Activities about making spending decisions help students understand price as one of many things to consider when choosing between product options. Activities such as purchasing groceries at a store can bring the concept to life as students learn to compare shopping items and prices. Children often go shopping with their parents. However, they may not notice how many choices there are for each type of item or how prices for the exact same item can differ from store to store. They might not realize that similar products can vary in price. Many young consumers may not have a lot of experience comparing prices.

Grade 2

This second grade math unit about getting money from gifts or household chores helps students learn about earning money. This unit includes activities that focus on ways to get money at home, math pages that focus on skip counting, addition, subtraction, and currency, and a collaborative game called “Spin to Earn,” which includes play money and a game board.

Earning-money concepts can help children understand that when people are hired to do a job, they work for a certain amount of money. Children might not have regular jobs, but they often earn money doing chores around the house. Or they might do work for a neighbor or a family friend. While adults have jobs to pay for things they need, such as food, clothing, housing, and utilities, children often earn money to buy things they want.

Grade 3

This third grade unit on spending plans is a great way to show students how to reach a financial goal. This unit includes activities that focus on prioritizing expenses, math pages that focus on skip counting, addition, subtraction, multiplication, and currency, and a collaborative activity called “Needs and Wants Budget,” which includes cards.

When people set up a budget for themselves, they figure out a plan for managing their money. While children don’t usually work or pay bills, a child’s budget can be based on an allowance or money earned from doing chores or odd jobs. They can spend money on fun things, donate to help others, and/or save money for the future. A budget can help children figure out how important different purchase choices are to them. View this third grade sample unit below.

Grade 4

Teach students about banks and financial institutions with this fourth grade unit on saving and investing. This unit includes activities that focus on savings and checking accounts, math pages that focus on addition, subtraction, multiplication, and currency, and a collaborative game called “Earn Some, Spend Some, Owe Some,” which includes play money and cards.

The activities help students understand that saving comes from money you receive that you don’t spend. For example, they might eat a cookie now or save it to eat after lunch. They might save a favorite book for bedtime. If children want to buy something that costs more than they have, they may not realize that they can continue adding to their money until they have enough to buy it. Saving small amounts of money lets them buy a larger item. Setting a goal and making a plan to reach the goal can help people save enough to buy things they can’t afford right now. Money can be saved in a bank or at home in a special place.

Grades 6–8

Help students learn about taking out loans and paying them back with this 6–8 grade unit. This unit includes activities that focus on loan agreements, math pages that focus on addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, decimals, percents, and currency, and a collaborative game called “Loan Request Role-Play,” which includes cards and role-playing.

Some children borrow and lend all kinds of things from a young age. They may borrow video games from siblings, pencils from classmates, and books from the library. They may lend a sweater to a sibling or a bike to a friend. Children usually understand that you have to return something after you use it. Some may not realize that this applies to money as well. This unit helps students understand the fairness in the lending-and-returning process and models different agreements and ways to repay.

These money-based word problems and real-world financial literacy stories from TeacherFileBox printables allow students the opportunity to learn important financial concepts, explore realistic opportunities, and make choices about using money, collecting allowances, applying for credit cards, and more. The hands-on games, activities, and classroom discussions can engage students in learning these important life concepts and create fun learning experiences they will remember.

Sign up for a free 14 day trial of Evan-Moor’s TeacherFileBox printables here.

January 11, 2023
by Heather Foudy
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Personalize Reading Instruction with TeacherFileBox Printables

As every teacher knows, reading in the elementary grades is one of the most important skills taught. Because it affects all other academic achievement, a good deal of classroom resources are devoted to reading instruction and support.

As a second grade teacher, I would spend hours looking for reading lessons that fit the needs of my students. Finding and incorporating relevant reading activities that met the various abilities of my ELL students was a difficult and time-consuming process. On most Friday afternoons, you would find me flitting from classroom to classroom begging teachers in different grade levels for readers.

TeacherFileBox was a great tool that I discovered. It allowed me to personalize reading lessons in my classroom with its diverse selection of reading lessons and activities. I found beginning alphabet activities for students who needed additional support, and advanced reading units for the students who were progressing faster than the rest of the class.

The reading comprehension lessons and activities below highlight important skills and strategies with engaging stories and activities. Help your students become confident and competent readers with this selection of reading activities and lesson units from TeacherFileBox printables.

Phonics Reading Activities

Help students increase their fluency and reading skills with these phonics and reading comprehension printables from TeacherFileBox. This online digital lesson library allows you to search lessons across grade levels so you can personalize your reading lessons for every student.

Grades PreK–K Alphabet Awareness: This alphabet awareness activity highlights the letter “H.” Students sound out the letter, read a minibook story, draw, trace, and practice beginning writing skills.

Grade 1 Reading Level D: This reading unit includes a helpful story booklet with activity pages that highlight important word families and sound combinations.

Grades 1–2 Vowel Digraphs: Practice important phonic sounds and word patterns with these ai/ay vowel digraph printables.

Grades 1–2 Phonics Readers: Practice the long “o” sound with these phonics readers. These paper books make it easy for students to consistently read at home and in the classroom.

Cross-Curricular Reading Activities

Capture students’ interest and keep them engaged with interesting reading passages and comprehension activities. These standards-based reading printables are great to add to theme-based, cross-curricular teaching units.

Grade 3 Observing Our World and Beyond: This paired-text science unit focuses on helping students answer this Big Question: How do we learn our place in the universe? These printables include teacher support pages, a dictionary, reading selections, and a variety of written and oral activities, including reading comprehension, close reading, vocabulary, and text-based writing activities.

Grades 3–4 Petrified Forest National Park: This “Read & Understand Science” unit for grades 3–4 investigates how fossils developed into the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. The unit contains a two-page article, plus three skills activities to answer comprehension questions, define vocabulary, and write sentences about fossil pictures.

Grades 4–6 Sedna, Goddess of the Sea – Inuit Myth: This unit captures students’ interest with an interesting Inuit myth and provides practice of summarization, making inferences, and vocabulary development.

Grade 6 The Terra Cotta Warriors: An Army of Clay: This nonfiction article tells the story of the terra cotta statues created by a Chinese emperor over 2,000 years ago and newly discovered in 1974. The reading activities ask students to make inferences, express options, and learn important vocabulary and spelling words.

Reading Comprehension Skills and Strategies

Target important reading comprehension strategies with these leveled and in-depth reading units. Assign each student their own reading article in Google Classroom and easily differentiate your classroom reading lessons.

Grade 2 Fiction Compare and Contrast: The fictional stories included in this reading unit include engaging reading activities and practice pages that highlight compare-and-contrast reading strategies.

Grade 4 Week 5 Determine Important Information: Build fluency and vocabulary with short, daily reading activities! This daily reading comprehension unit includes five days of activities that focus on how to determine important information in an article.

Grade 5 Fiction: Summarize: This reading comprehension lesson unit focuses on summarizing fiction texts. The unit includes one practice activity with a rule box and practice items, a fiction reading selection with comprehension questions, and a review activity.

Hands-on Reading Activities for Kinesthetic Learners

These kinesthetic reading activities are a great addition to your center rotations. Perfect for active learners, these creative activities help students practice phonics patterns, word families, and reading comprehension.

Grades 1–2 Make a Word (Word Families): This center activity includes all the components to create an interaction reading center.

Grade 2 Listen for Long Vowels (Take It to Your Seat Centers): This inviting, hands-on center directs practices long vowel sounds in words with different spellings. The center includes student directions, word cards and sorting mats, and a response record sheet.

Grades 5–6 Book Commercial (Book Project): This creative unit directs students to read the same book, discuss the best “selling” points of the book, and create a commercial. It includes directions, instructions on how to make a commercial, planning guide, and bookmark of guidelines for working together.

Get exclusive access to these reading lessons and more with a subscription to TeacherFileBox! This online library makes it easy to differentiate your lessons with just the click of a button. With thousands of PreK–6 printables across subject areas, TeacherFileBox provides scaffolded learning resources that meet the needs of every student. Choose from in-depth teaching units, hands-on center activities, bulletin boards, art projects, and more! Save your favorite printables in your personal account, print lessons, project them onto a screen, or share them with your Google Classroom! Choose from reading, math, language, writing, science, geography, social studies, STEM/STEAM, SEL, and more!

Try TeacherFileBox for free for 14 days!

December 12, 2022
by Heather Foudy
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Ramadan Kindness Activities for Kids

Learn about Ramadan in your classroom with activities that focus on kindness. Ramadan is a festive time in Islam and is celebrated for a month. It is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and starts in early spring. During Ramadan, some people fast from sunup to sundown, and many people show extra kindness to one another and think about what they are grateful for. At the end of the month, people have a celebration called Eid-al-Fitr where families and friends gather together and have a big feast.

Download these free Ramadan Kindness printables for grades 1–3 here.

Classroom Read-Alouds for Ramadan

These picture books are a great way to connect students’ understanding about Ramadan with the traditions that are a part of it.

Rashad’s Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr by Lisa Bullard (Illustrated by Holli Conger)

Learn how Rashad celebrates Eid al-Fitr! Discover what he eats and plays during his Ramadan celebrations.

Hassan and Aneesa Love Ramadan by Yasmeen Rahim (Illustrated by Omar Burgess)

Follow Hassan and Aneesa on the first day of Ramadan and find out why they love it when the Muslim holy month arrives.

Lailah’s Lunchbox by Reem Faruqi (Illustrated by Lea Lyon)

Lailah is in a new school in a new country. When Ramadan begins, she is excited that she is finally old enough to participate in the fasting but worried that her classmates won’t understand why she doesn’t join them in the lunchroom.

For more free lessons and activities, subscribe to our free e-newsletter here.

December 6, 2022
by Heather Foudy
0 comments

Kwanzaa Holiday Activities for Kids

Kwanzaa is a seven-day holiday that is celebrated by many African Americans from December 26 through January 1. It was first introduced by Dr. Maulana Karenga in 1966 as a ritual to welcome the first harvests to the home. He adapted the Swahili word kwanza (meaning “first”) to “Kwanzaa” to create a seven-letter word that represents the seven values and symbols of the holiday, each represented as a candle on a kinara.

During this holiday, families come together to celebrate their history, their culture, and the loved ones who lived before them. Over seven days, people share food, music, stories, and a drink from the unity cup.

Throughout the week of Kwanzaa, seven values are highlighted: unity, self-determination, collective responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith. In addition, Kwanzaa is also represented with symbols that signify unity such as ears of corn and other vegetables, fruit, nuts, a straw mat, a candleholder, a communal cup, and gifts.

Teach children about Kwanzaa during the holiday season with these free hands-on STEM, art, and writing activities.

Kwanzaa Unity Cup STEM Challenge Grades 1-4

In this activity, children learn about the tradition of the Kwanzaa unity cup and make their own unity cup in a fun STEM challenge.

Download this free Kwanzaa STEM Project here.

Kinara Art Project Grades 1-4

In this art activity, children create a colorful paper kinara, or candleholder, for the celebration of Kwanzaa. Choose green, red, and black construction paper to symbolize the colors of Kwanzaa.

Download this free Kinara Art Project here.

Kwanzaa Family-History Writing Activity Grades 1-6

Involve everyone in celebrating Kwanzaa with this free family-history writing activity. Children are prompted to write a story from their family history and share it with others.

Download this free Kwanzaa writing activity here.

For more holiday activities, read these Evan-Moor blog posts:

3D Reindeer Arts and Crafts for the Holiday

Celebrating Three Kings Day (Día de los Reyes Magos

Lunar New Year Activities for Kids

Subscribe to the Evan-Moor e-newsletter for free activities and printables every month.

December 1, 2022
by Heather Foudy
0 comments

Discover the Magic of Las Posadas Traditions

For many children in Mexico and other Latin American countries, celebrating Las Posadas is a large part of their Navidad (Christmas) traditions. As it gets closer to Navidad, many families in cities, towns, and ranches host these small parties for everyone in the community to attend. As a child of immigrant parents, for me this was a much-anticipated celebration during our travels to Mexico. It was a special time to spend with our family who we only saw once a year.

What is Las Posadas?

Las Posadas is a celebration and re-enactment from the Biblical story of Mary and Joseph searching for a safe shelter in the town of Bethlehem where Mary could give birth to the baby Jesus. Posada means “inn” or “shelter” in Spanish. Posadas parties are typically celebrated for nine days from December 16–24. During a posada celebration, groups of people travel together in a procession (sometimes in costume) from house to house looking for a place to stay. People will sing songs asking for shelter until one house invites them in. Participants are warmly greeted with holiday music and traditional foods such as tamales, warm beverages, and sweet pastries.

The highlight of Las Posadas is the breaking of the piñata. A piñata is a brightly decorated paper-mache figure. Las Posadas piñatas are usually in the shape of a star to symbolize the Star of Bethlehem that guided the three wise men to see the baby Jesus. Piñatas are typically full of candy, peanuts, or other small treats. In our family, sometimes piñatas were filled with flour and confetti, so it was always a guessing game as we took turns hitting the piñata. While children break the piñata, all the people in attendance sing religious Navidad carols. At the end of the night, if you are lucky, you might find yourself taking home candy and an aguinaldo (goodie bag) filled with peanuts, oranges, sugar cane, and animal cookies.

Las Posadas Book

With this Las Posadas writing and drawing activity, children can make a book to show why and how they celebrate Las Posadas with their families.

Get the free Evan-Moor activity here.

Traditional Posadas Songs for Children

These audio recordings help children learn traditional Las Posadas songs:

Listen to audio recordings of traditional Las Posadas music here.
Learn the words to “Pidiendo Posada” here.

In recent years, Las Posadas traditions have seen a resurgence by immigrant communities in the United States. Look around in your community or create your own posada tradition and invite your family and friends. Feliz Posadas y Navidad!

For more holiday ideas and free activities read about Celebrating Three Kings Day (Día de los Reyes Magos)

Laura Guzman has worked in the educational sector for 17 years starting in educational technology as a graphic, print, social media, and UX designer. She is a mother to a son and whenever possible volunteers at her son’s school. She also enjoys long-distance running and being outdoors as much as possible. She is currently working for Evan-Moor’s marketing and communications team as a desktop publisher designing Evan-Moor’s customer facing communications.

November 10, 2022
by Heather Foudy
0 comments

Lunar New Year Activities for Kids

Learn about the Lunar New Year in your classroom and provide students with an opportunity to share their unique traditions with these free printables!

The Lunar New Year’s Festival is a very important celebration in many countries all over the world. It marks the beginning of spring according to the lunar calendar. Often referred to as Chinese New Year, it is also called Tet by the Vietnamese, Sol by the Koreans, and Losar by the Tibetans.

The first day of this New Year starts with the new moon, which appears between January 21 and February 20. The Lunar New Year is celebrated in many different countries and communities around the world, including Taiwan, Vietnam, Korea, Singapore, Thailand, China. Each country has its own traditions and celebrations. Many families clean their homes and hang colorful decorations such as lanterns to prepare for the holiday. Every New Year is aligned with one of the animals of the Chinese Zodiac.

Download these free Lunar New Year Activities for grades K–3 here.

For more activities and ideas to celebrate the Lunar New Year, check out Chinese New Year Lessons and Free Dancing Dragon and Chinese Lantern Activity

October 17, 2022
by Heather Foudy
0 comments

Recommended Activity Books for Kids

Colorful and fun activity books give kids a screen-free alternative that is entertaining and educational! These top workbooks for children are great solutions to keep kids practicing educational skills while having fun with hands-on projects, brain teasers, crossword puzzles, creative writing activities, colorful skill worksheets, and arts and crafts. With game-like activities, these kids’ books provide positive learning experiences for children and help foster a love of learning.

These are the best activity books for kids for fun and learning—and make great kids’ gifts for holidays and birthdays!

You can find these on the Evan-Moor Amazon store or the Evan-Moor online store.

Early Learning

Listen and Learn: Animals for grades PreK–1 includes colorful animal activities that help children practice beginning reading and writing skills with hands-on art, drawing, writing, games, and more. From chameleons to kangaroos, the beautiful animal photographs and stories will take young children on an animal adventure around the world. Recipient of a Mom’s Choice Gold Award and a National Parenting Product Award, every page includes an audio read-aloud option so that children can listen to read-alouds and learn about their favorite animals.

Smart Start: Beginning Coding for grades PreK–1 includes engaging, screen-free activities that help young children build a strong foundation in computer science. Recipient of the Creative Child Award, the fun coding stories and colorful activities help early learners become critical thinkers by practicing the building blocks of thinking.

Smart Start: STEM for grades PreK–1 includes hands-on STEM challenges and activities that encourage your child to think creatively and explore different ideas to solve problems. Engaging science stories and colorful thinking activities help guide children to complete a hands-on STEM activity. Complete with planning guides and engaging artwork, these activity books provide endless hours of entertainment as children build and create their own creations.

Ages 4–12

Heart and Mind Activities for Today’s Kids for ages 4–11 has 100 fun activities that support your child’s well-being. The activities create positive learning experiences for children and help them learn to manage emotions, reduce anxiety, and navigate social situations. Activities include art, puzzles, games, coloring, and more!

The Never-Bored Kid Book for ages 4–9 This fun activity book is full of game-like activities and art projects that help children practice important skills without them even knowing it. Each full-color book provides mazes, riddles, hidden pictures, things to cut out, dot-to-dots, and other engaging, age-appropriate activities.

Real-World Writing for Today’s Kids for ages 6–11 demonstrates how diverse and innovative writing in today’s world can be. The colorful and hands-on creative activities include infographics, blogs, restaurant reviews, and more! Real-life writing activities will give your child practical writing experience and inspire even reluctant writers to put pen to paper.

Top Student for grades PreK–6 jumbo workbooks provide more than 350 activities to keep kids challenged and excited as they strengthen their skills in every subject area. Topics include math, science, reading, spelling, grammar, vocabulary, writing, social studies, computer science, SEL, STEM, and mindfulness. Give your child in-depth review and practice in every subject area with these packed workbooks! Each book includes a full-size informational poster and stickers (for grades PreK–3).

Skill Sharpeners: STEAM for grades PreK–6 activity books integrate science, technology, engineering, art, and math to create meaningful learning opportunities for kids! The real-world topics in these STEAM workbooks connect learning to the environment, Earth, people, and cultures, and inspire children to solve real problems related to sun safety, water conservation, wildlife, and more! If your child prefers hands-on learning, these books are a great fit. The open-ended questions and problem-solving capture children’s interest and keep them thinking and learning long after the activities are over. Each workbook includes a free downloadable teaching guide with additional activities and tips.

Skill Sharpeners: Critical Thinking for grades PreK–6 activity books offer creative activities that challenge your child to use higher-order thinking skills such as analyzing, inferring, solving, and creating. The imaginative puzzles, drawings, and matching activities create fun learning experiences that children enjoy.

For more educational workbook activities check out these top favorites!

Skill Sharpeners series for PreK–6 has 8 subject areas including: reading, math, spelling, science, geography, STEAM, critical thinking, and grammar and punctuation.

Smart Start activity books for PreK–1 offers 5 subject areas including: reading, sight words, math, STEM, and coding.

If you are getting ready for kindergarten, check out these recommended books: Get ready kindergarten activity books

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October 7, 2022
by Heather Foudy
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Celebrate Diwali in Your Classroom with Rangoli Art

Incorporate Rangoli art into your fall activities and teach your students about Diwali! This holiday is celebrated by over a billion people worldwide and is an important festival observed by Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs each year in either October or November (dates vary from year to year, based on the Indian lunar calendar.) Also called the “Festival of Lights,” Diwali represents the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness. Diwali lasts five days and people celebrate it by lighting lamps, decorating, cooking and sending family and friends good wishes.

Rangoli art represents the happiness and positivity of a household and during the festival of lights, it is used to welcome the Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and good luck.