Holidays and Seasonal

Inexpensive and Easy to Make Mother’s Day Ideas

Are you looking for easy to make and inexpensive projects for Mother's Day (or Father's Day or Grandparents Day or basically anyone appreciation day)? As upper elementary teachers, this event usually gets overlooked so we came up with a list of some tried and true gifts we made over the years. Come see if one of them will work for your class this year.

Mother’s Day tends to sneak up on us every year, so this year, we’ve made an effort to show some of the best Mother’s Day ideas we’ve created over the years. It’s funny how we always know when Mother’s Day will be, but it’s in that rush near the end of the school year, so it tends to be something we can do quickly and fairly inexpensively.

While we’ve called this post “mother’s day,” we are very careful to include all types of parent roles throughout the year. It is important to know who is in your classroom and know if there are parents, guardians or even foster parents. Have these conversations early.

So, what types of projects do we do for any parent or guardian appreciation do we create? Read on.

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How to Celebrate Halloween In the Classroom

by BrainNinjasWP

Are you looking for ways to celebrate Halloween in your upper elementary classroom? We gathered up some of our students' favourite activities for you to try. Come take a look!

Halloween is such a special time for many students. In past years, we’ve had parades and assemblies and handed out candy. There was a time when bobbing for apples was a good idea. Now, since the pandemic, the thought of countless students scrambling to bite into an apple floating around in a tub full of mouth germs…ugg.

Our classroom is usually bustling with parent volunteers who help out at different Halloween-themed stations. Still, some years, there might not be as many parent volunteers available as you need, so it’s nice to have easy alternatives in your back pocket.

If your school and students are celebrating Halloween, here are some generally easy ways to have a little fun.

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How to Get Your Classroom Set Up in One Day

by BrainNinjasWP

Are you stuck in a time crunch with one day to set up your classroom? Yes, it can be done. Get down to the basics and leave everything else for later. Come read about how we've set up our classroom in one day.

It was the first day we were allowed to reenter the school after a major renovation. It was a disaster. Before the end of the previous year, we packed up everything and carefully labeled it. Nothing was returned to the classrooms. Students would be arriving in ONE day! Yup! You heard that right.

What a nightmare! Fortunately, we worked with the most amazing staff on the planet. We planned out a solution to bring everyone’s anxiety level down to a manageable level. We hosted a walking set-up bus.

What is a walking set-up bus? Keep reading to find out.

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How to Celebrate Asian Heritage Month in Canada

by BrainNinjasWP

How will you be acknowledging Asian Heritage Month in Canada? We pulled together resources that you can use in your upper elementary classroom to learn about the contributions of Asian-Canadians throughout history. Come read the whole post.

Every year in May we celebrate Asian Heritage Month. It started in the United States in the 1990s but eventually, it made its way to Canada. We recognize the history and value of Asian Canadians across the country. Asian Canadians strengthen Canadian society, whether they have been here for years or have newly arrived.

Explore Asian Heritage Month in Canada with us.

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Easy to Use Classroom Activities for Earth Day

by BrainNinjasWP

Are you looking for activities to do with your upper elementary class? We pulled together Earth Day themed lessons and activities (but they can be used any time of year) for your upper elementary classroom. Come check out the resources, books, and ideas to use right away.

Every day in our classroom is Earth Day. It’s part of our science lessons to learn about energy conservation, so it’s easy to make sure we talk about the importance of conservation regularly.

One year a fellow teacher thought it would be a great idea to print a little paper globe for each student in our school (that’s several hundred) and write a “thank you to the Earth” type sentence.

I don’t often speak up at meetings, but I couldn’t resist this one. Isn’t it counterproductive to teach students about conservation by wasting all that paper?

Everyone agreed, but NO ONE had any suggestions on what we could do instead. And that’s how we came up with this list of Earth Day activities (and why you should try some of them).

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Quick and Colourful Activities for Holi the Festival of Colours

by BrainNinjasWP

Are you looking for upper elementary classroom activities you can use to learn more about the Holi Festival of Colours? We've gathered resources and books that are perfect for your classroom. Come take a look.

Learning about different traditions allows students to explore people and their cultures around the world. And it’s a cheap way to travel! We collected activities for Holi so you can travel with your students.

Holi is an ancient Hindu festival that originates and is widely celebrated in India. Although different regions of India have their own traditions and variations, they all share one thing, it’s so much fun! As people have moved around the world, settling in other countries such as Canada they have brought this celebration with them.

Many non-Hindu people around the world also celebrate Holi. In fact, this tradition has inspired all kinds of different events. It is often used to support all kinds of good causes, like children with chronic or life-threatening conditions and is incorporated into many different types of fundraisers.

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