The holidays are behind us and January is already half over – whew! On the horizon is February, which is always a sneaky-packed month when you start planning for Groundhog Day, the 100th Day of School, Dental Health month, and of course … Valentine’s Day! I’ve got some great literacy activities for you to use throughout the month of February to help ease the craziness of kids cooped up inside and a sugar-filled holiday!
Groundhog Day Interactive Booklet
This interactive booklet is the perfect way to discuss and learn all about a fun but small holiday – Groundhog Day! It includes a little bit of everything: reading, writing, math and simple research. My students have always enjoyed learning more about the history of Groundhog Day and more about the animal itself.
Make sure to start this activity at least the day BEFORE Groundhog Day because one section is where the students make a prediction about if Punxsutawney Phil (a.k.a. the official groundhog) will see his shadow or not.
My favorite book to use for this activity – although we read many – is Groundhog Gets a Say by Pamela Curtis Swallow. It includes a TON of facts about groundhogs and is written in a really silly way that kids always get a kick out of.
Turkey’s Valentine Surprise
Moving on to Valentine’s Day I have a brand new book for you. If you enjoyed Turkey Trouble by Wendi Silvano, or any of the books in that series, you’ll be happy to know they she has finally come out with a book for Valentine’s Day. Turkey’s Valentine Surprise follows Turkey as he tries to disguise himself and hand out secret Valentines to all of his farmyard friends.
This craft is so fun and the students get to make up their own animal Valentine pun to go inside (since Turkey came up with so many in the book)! Not only is there a cute craft, there is a full comprehension packet for you to pick and choose from.
Click, Clack, Moo I Love You!
Another series of books I love to use are from the Click, Clack series by Doreen Cronin. Click, Clack, Moo I Love You is a sweet story that follows Little Duck, and the rest of the animals, as they get ready for the Valentine’s party. This story is great as it discusses inclusion on the most basic level, including someone that is different than you.
For the craft activity the students work on story retell-either problem & solution or first, next, then, last and they also make a text-to-self connection by either writing about what they could do to make a new person feel welcome or tell us about the lesson that Duck taught them in the story.
Love, Splat!
Splat is always a student-favorite character and the Valentine’s book is just a great as the rest. Love, Splat by Rob Scotton is a simple story of friendship at Valentine’s Day.
This simple craft activity has the students write about a special valentine and does a contrast of the characters Splat and Spike from the book.
Crack the Code: February
Looking for something super quick and easy that is NO PREP and your students will absolutely love??? Crack the Code is it. These are perfect for fast finishers, to use as a phonics center, quick homework sheets, you name it! This packet includes 10 different codes to crack – I promise your students will think they are super fun!!
Time to Shop
I hope that something here grabs your attention to help you with an afternoon or two of February lesson planning. You can find all of these resources at my TPT store and by clicking the pictures below! Happy February!
