If you’re looking for fun and easy ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day with your students, then you’ve come to the right place! We’ve got just what you need to get your classroom Valentine ready and your students excited about learning!
Get Your Classroom Ready
Get your class ready for Valentine’s Day by decorating your classroom! We have some Valentine’s Day-themed decoration ideas that are sure to make your heart happy!
Asking your students to help create decorations for the classroom is a great way to start your array of Valentine’s Day Activities.
Use the front page of our I Love You to Pieces Card to create colorful confetti hearts.
- Print off the card template and cut out the center of the heart.
- Using clear contact paper, stick a piece on the backside of the heart so that the sticky side is in the middle of the heart on the front side.
- Students stick small pieces of tissue paper all over the inside, being sure to cover up all of the stickiness.
- Stick the confetti hearts to your window for a beautiful stained glass effect!
If you have a lightbox, our themed LightBox Insert: Happy Valentine’s Day will set the right mood!
Pair it with our Decorative Love Heart Pennant Banner or print out a Valentine message using our Love Heart Letter and Number Pennant Banners!
Learn Fun Facts About Valentine’s Day
Did you know that Bishop Valentine was sentenced to death for refusing to stop marrying Roman soldiers to their beloved? Or that Mr. Richard Cadbury was the first person to create chocolates specifically for Valentine’s Day?
Watch this fact-filled video and ask your students to create a fact page all about the day! Use either our ‘Facts About…’ Template or 10 Fun Facts Template to showcase what they learned about the holiday.
Or why not have your students read how other cultures around the world celebrate Valentine’s Day and answer a set of comprehension questions when they are done.
Valentine’s Word Scramble
Who doesn’t love a good word scramble? Especially when it is paired with a set of riddles!
This is a great way to have your students work on vocabulary and spelling – all at the same time!
To extend students’ learning, why not have them choose one of the words and write a fun acrostic poem.
Conversation Heart Activities
Conversation hearts have been a Valentine’s Day staple since 1866. The messages on these delicious treats might have changed over the last 155 years, but their popularity definitely hasn’t. For most of us, it’s just not Valentine’s Day without them. So why not bring these fun treats into the classroom for your students to enjoy!
Looking for a more permanent version of the fun treat? Print out our conversation hearts on cardstock and cut them out to use over and over again!
Here are five easy activities using conversation hearts that we think your students would love to do in the weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day!
1. Alphabetical Order
Putting words in alphabetical order can be tricky for many of our students, so why not have them practice using these fun treats? Print off a set of our Conversation Hearts on cardstock and cut them out. Then throw them in your reading center for the perfect center activity!
2. Rhyming Words
Rhyming words are an important foundational language skill for students to understand. This activity is an easy and fun way to help your students notice and work with sounds within words.
Have them choose a conversation heart randomly and list as many rhyming words for the word or phrase that appears on their heart.
3. Patterns
You don’t have to be able to read to enjoy conversation hearts! Use them with your Pre-K and Kindergarten students to explore patterns.
Have your students create different patterns, such as ABAB, AABAAB, or AABBAA, using the colors. Once they are done, have them switch places with a partner and try to continue their pattern!
4. Sentence Writing
Do you have reluctant writers in your classroom? This activity is sure to get them writing! Have your students choose a conversation heart randomly and write a silly sentence that includes the word or phrase that they chose. For your intermediate students, specify which type of sentence they must write – simple, compound, or complex! For an added layer of fun, why not give them a die and tell them odd numbers are compound sentences and even numbers are complex sentences. Then have them roll with each heart to determine which type of sentence they write.
Only have a few minutes left of class? Randomly draw a conversation heart and write an elaborate sentence as a whole class. Keep a running record of the word count for each of your sentences and make it a class competition. Your students will be begging to play in no time!
We also have some fantastic teaching resources that will help explain and reinforce the different types of sentences to your students.
5. Color Sort & Graph
Are your preschool students still learning their colors? Or maybe your primary students are working on graphing. Then you will definitely want to make note of this activity!
Have your students sort a set of conversation hearts by color. Then, depending on their ability level, have them create a tally chart and graph using their data. As an extension, have your students write a math word problem for their graph for a partner to solve. Use one of our graphing templates to make this activity a breeze!
Share the Love – Gratitude Wall
Start Valentine’s Day with a grateful heart. Use the day as inspiration for your students to pour their hearts out with gratitude-filled hearts for their classmates.
Why not ask your students to think about something they’re grateful for that another student has done?
“I loved it when Sarah helped me with reading last week!”
Ask each student to write one thing they’re grateful for on a heart from our Share the Love – Gratitude Love Heart template and display them on your wall with our Start Each Day With a Grateful Heart – Gratitude Quote Poster.
Take a look at our Gratitude Teaching Resource Pack for more inspirational ideas.
Compliment Box
Who doesn’t love being complimented? An unexpected compliment can make even the cloudiest days seem sunny!
Why not put together a Compliments Box with our Compliment Box Decorations and Compliment Cards? Your students will love the opportunity to anonymously give their friends a smile with a kind word. Read them at the end of the day and see their faces shine!
Make a Card
We couldn’t write a blog about Valentine’s Day without including a card activity! Or, how about three card activities?
These card templates make creating Valentine cards a breeze! All you need is either colored paper and/or one of our downloadable templates!
Read more about these Valentine’s Day activities in our blog The Best Valentine’s Day Craft Activities for Kids.
Tell Your Librarian You Love Them
Have you heard that February 14th is also Library Lovers’ Day? That’s right!
Use the day as an opportunity to show your school librarian how much they mean to you! Our Why We Love the Library Heart Template is a heartfelt Valentine’s Day activity that will encourage students to talk about what they love about their school library. Accompany it with one of our editable Display Banners!
Make a Valentine’s Day Bag
Why not have your students make a cute Valentine’s Bag to collect valentines from their classmates this year? They are easy to make and so cute to look at!
These bags and many more ideas can be found in our blog 13 Valentine’s Craft Ideas and Decorations for the Classroom.
Love Yourself Love-Heart Chain
Sometimes it can be more difficult to think about what we love about ourselves. Promoting self-care and respect for oneself is one of the best lessons a teacher can give a child.
Ask your students to write what they love about themselves and their abilities and create these beautifully positive Love-Heart chains to display in the classroom!
I used the Self Portrait Worksheet and the love hearts from the second page of our Why We Love The Library Heart Template!
Read a Lovely Story
Reading a sweet story is the perfect afternoon activity for your students on Valentine’s Day. There are so many lovely books out there that discuss feelings, appreciation, and love! I’ve chosen just a few favorites to share with you:
Groundhug Day by Anne Marie Pace
Caring animal friends scheme to make sure Groundhog can make it to Moose’s Valentine’s Day party. Hit two February holidays at once with this title!
Click, Clack, Moo I Love You! by Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin
Duck’s vision for his Valentine’s Day celebration includes streamers, hearts, glitter, and a good time for all. An unexpected guest helps it come together.
This is NOT a Valentine by Carter Higgins
Can a valentine be a valentine if it isn’t flowery and pink? Let this ode to friendship help you and your students decide.
Have a Sidewalk Mural Photoshoot
This is one of my favorites!
Create a mural in your school playground with sidewalk chalk and have each of your students pose in the picture. Print out each picture to send home to their families!
Source: @fpenaartstudio
While you may not have the artistic abilities for the above photo, it doesn’t really matter – the options are endless when it comes to sidewalk chalk!
If you don’t have chalk, a whiteboard mural will do just as well!
Don’t forget to share your students’ work and tag us on Instagram at @teachstarter_us!
Check out our full collection of Valentine’s Day Resources for the classroom.
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