DENTAL HEALTH MONTH

February is National Children’s Dental Health month. How timely with all the Valentine candy!
There’s a great website with lots of free activity sheets in English and Spanish to get you started. The daily calendar is my favorite.

https://www.ada.org/en/public-programs/national-childrens-dental-health-month

Here are some other websites with free lesson plans:

https://www.dentalcare.com/en-us/patient-education/childrens-dental-health/lesson-plans

https://www.dentalcare.com/en-us/patient-education/childrens-dental-health/lesson-plans

Vocabulary
What is a dentist? What is a hygienist? What is plaque? What is decay? What is a filling?

Brainstorm
Why do we need teeth? What do we use our mouths for? 

Guest Speaker
Call your personal dentist and ask her if she’d like to visit your class to discuss good oral health. You might be surprised that she’d be thrilled to be invited and will bring each of your students a toothbrush and toothpaste.

Tooth Puppet
Let children make a “happy tooth puppet” and talk about nutritious foods. What foods cause decay?

T-Chart
Have children make a t-chart of foods that are good for teeth and foods that harm teeth.

Dental Health (Stephanie Velasquez) 
Glue the cut out of a white tooth on a colored sheet of paper and place in a clear sheet protector. Let the children color the tooth with a dry erase marker to represent the “germs" on the tooth after they eat. Children use a toothbrush to erase the germs. 

This Is the Way We Brush Our Teeth
(Tune: “Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush”)

This is the way we brush our teeth, 
Brush our teeth, brush our teeth.
This is the way we brush our teeth
Every morning and evening.

First the fronts and then the sides.
Don’t forget the tops and inside.
First the fronts and then the sides.
Don’t forget the tops and inside.

This is the way we brush our teeth, 
Brush our teeth, brush our teeth.
This is the way we brush our teeth 
Two minutes twice a day.

Now we have happy teeth,

Happy teeth, happy teeth.
Now we have happy teeth
Give a great big smile!

WE REALLY LIKE YOU!

You can put a little LOVE in your classroom, encourage positive behavior, and expand vocabulary with this activity.

Materials: gift bag, index cards, safety pins or tape

1st Have children brainstorm words that describe good friends. For example: wonderful, nice, helpful, responsible, kind, honest, etc.

2nd Suggest looking up additional words in the dictionary or a thesaurus.

3rd Write the adjectives on index cards and place the cards in a sack. You will need one for each child.

4th The next day let each child select a word from the sack at group time. Pin or tape the word on them as you sing this song to the tune of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.”

We like you because you’re word .
We like you because you’re word .
We like you because you’re word .
We really like you!

5th Call the child by their word all day long instead of their name. For example, "Polite, would you be line leader?" If a child isn't behaving appropriately all you have to say is, "Do I need to take your word away from you?" They don't want to lose their word and will quickly do the right thing.

As a follow up make a book called "HOW TO BE A GREAT STUDENT." Let each child take their word and illustrate it and write (or dictate) a sentence about it.

RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS DAY

February 17th is officially Random Acts of Kindness Day, but these activities are a great follow-up to Valentine's Day! Start the day tomorrow by asking what "random acts of kindness" means. Brainstorm examples and then challenge each of your students to do at least 3 acts of kindness during the week.


Kindness Club

Write "The Kindness Club" on the board or a poster and have students write the names of classmates who do something kind for them.

Give each child "kindness tickets" to distribute to friends who do something nice for them.

*Thanks to Carolyn Kisloski for creating these tickets and poster for you.





https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1SnEagA4jljaHRsT05ZYmxPZlE/view?usp=sharing


Kindness Bracelet
Make bracelets from pipe cleaners. When they do a good deed they can get a bead and add it to their bracelet.

Kindness Book
Make a "Kindness Book" where students can record something positive a classmate has done for them.

Here are some other suggestions from randomactsofkindness.org:

1. Smile at one extra person.

2. Each lunch (or play) with someone new.

3. Make sure to say "I love you" or give someone special a hug.

4. Send a positive message or help someone.

P.S. Check out the KINDNESS IN THE CLASSROOM LESSON PLANS at
randomactsofkindness.org!

BRAIN BREAK CARDS

If you've enjoyed my blogs about the BRAIN, here's a special treat you'll definitely want to download.

Here are three pages of brain breaks that are quick, easy, and fun.


https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1SnEagA4jljNWNWalMwQjh5UnM/view?usp=sharing

It’s important for the teacher to model brain breaks and participate with the students. These activities have an additional benefit by reducing stress and boredom – in adults and children!

My suggestion would be to choose one at a time and practice it for several days. (Not all of these are going to work, so just throw the ones your students don’t like in the trash and move on to another one.) Glue popular activities to an index card or jumbo craft stick and save them in a bag. After a few weeks you’ll have a bag full of brain breaks.
*Older students will enjoy choosing a brain break and leading their classmates.

Note!  You can watch me demonstrate these on this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtLKKrJ4KSs

BRAINY RECALL

Have you ever heard the saying: "Work smarter, not harder." That's what I like so much about the brain research. There are some very simple strategies that you can easily integrate into your day that can improve learning in powerful ways.

According to brain research children need to recall information throughout the day. (Think of it as that extra pat on the back or a second helping of dessert.) Here are a few tips for having children recall information after you’ve read a story, taught a lesson, or at the end of the day.


Thumbs Up Thinking
If you’ve learned something new you can stick up your thumb. If you’ve learned more than one new thing you can stick up a finger for each additional thing.

Visualize
Have children close their eyes and reflect on what they did well and what they learned. 

Partner Share

Have children turn to a friend and share something new they learned.

Toss and Tell

Take a bean bag or wadded up paper ball. Ask a review question and then toss the ball to a student. The student answers the question or says something they learned and then tosses the ball back to you. Continue as time permits.




Catch a Star
Ask children to think of something new they learned or something they did that made them feel proud. Tell them to reach up and grab a star and then put it in their hearts.

Close Your Eyes and Smile
Have children close their eyes. If they can see something new they learned they can open their eyes and smile at you.

Fist List
Children make a fist and then hold up a finger for each new thing they learned that day.




Kiss Your Brain
Write “Kiss Your Brain!” on a poster and tape it to your door. Before children leave for the day they must say something they learned and then kiss their brains.

Chant 

Start a beat for this chant by slapping thighs and clapping hands. Go around the room as you say the chant and children respond:
Hey, Hey, what do you say?  
What did you learn in school today?

BRAIN TOYS

Today you’ll find are some simple props your students can use for brain breaks. I’d make one each week and use it every day for a different movement.

Streamers - Staple strips of tissue paper (18” x 1”) to a straw and invite children to follow along as you make cross lateral movements to music.
*Make rainbows across your head with your right hand and then your left hand.
*Make big circles in front of your body with your right hand and then your left hand.
*Make “lazy” eights (8 on it’s side) with your right hand and then your left hand.
*Clasp hands and make rainbows, circles, and lazy eights.

Hint! Children can also use surveying tape of 3’ sections of toilet paper as streatmers.

Paper Ball Juggling - Begin by having children wad up a piece of scrap paper.
*Can they toss it and catch it?

*Can they play catch with a friend?
*Can they toss it, clap, and then catch it?
*How many times can they toss it without dropping it?
*Can they toss it from the right hand to the left and vice versa.
*Add a second paper ball and let the fun begin!
Hint! You can make inexpensive juggling scarves by cutting net fabric into 12” squares.


Paper Plates – Give each child two paper plates.
*Can they clap them to the beat, make rainbows, use them like cymbals, or make other movements?
*Place the plates on the floor and put a foot on each plate. Now you’re ready to skate by sliding your feet.


Drum Sticks - Who doesn’t want to be a drummer? Children can use cardboard rollers from paper towel rolls, popsicle sticks, or pencils like drumsticks to tap the beat of the music.

               

*Make pattern cards for children to follow along. Vertical lines mean tap the sticks on the table or floor. “X” means to cross sticks and tap. __ means to hold sticks up and pause.

ABRACADABRA

Use your finger like a magic wand as you wave it and say, "Abracadabra!." Explain that when you say a word, they must become the word. When you say, "Freeze!" they need to stand still until you wave your wand and say another word. For example, "Abracadabra! You're frogs!"


ANIMALS
Call out different animals for children to imitate.

Frog – Jump up and down.
Bird – Flap arms.
Mouse – Tip toe.
Horse – Gallop in place.
Monkey – Scratch under arms and bounce up and down.
Giraffe – Stretch arms high in the air and walk on toes.
Elephant – Arms together and swing like a trunk as you bend over.
Flamingo – Stand on one foot and balance.
Snake – Wiggle up and down.

Hint! Glue pictures to cards and hold them up for the younger children. Write words on flash cards for the older students.


SEASONAL WORDS
Use holiday or seasonal symbols to stimulate children’s brains and imaginations.

Scarecrow – Children flop arms around.
Bat – Flap arms.
Cat – Arch back and meow.
Pumpkin – Arms around head.
Spider, witch, Frankenstein, etc.


VOCABULARY WORDS
Reinforce vocabulary words by having children dramatize their meaning.

Seed – Bend down.
Roots – Stick out legs.
Stem – Stand up straight.
Leaves – Stretch out arms.
Flower – Arms around head as you smile.


PARTS OF SPEECH
Call out adjectives, adverbs, nouns, and verbs for children to dramatize.

Anxious, Brave, Curious
Slowly, Quickly, Angrily
Fire Fighter, Nurse, Chef
Chatter, Build, Sleep, Exercise

*Creativity can really blossom with this activity because there's no right or wrong way to do it.

MAGIC WAND!

How about making a magic wand out of a chop stick.  Dip the end in glue, roll in glitter, and ABRACADABRA!