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In my school, each classroom has a bulletin board in the hallway. Mine is located dead center at the end of the main hallway. I had taken down our Winter Writing Projects with the super-cute, paper-pieced snowmen holding them. I had put up red butcher paper. And that was it. My mind was blank and the board was blank. I had no creative ideas. Pinterest even let me down. Just when I was about to call it a wash, cover it with green paper and move on to St. Patrick’s Day, an idea struck. Spoiler alert: It was the Valentine’s Day math activities this post is all about!
As I told my students while I scurried around the room grabbing for construction paper in the traditional colors of love along with scissors, glue sticks and markers from our classroom supply center, “There are many nights when I spend countless hours planning lessons and activities… and then there are times when I am walking down the hallway staring at a blank board, an idea strikes and we need to drop everything to make it happen.”
I cut the paper down to various sizes and each of them made a Valentine. They then measured the length and width to calculate the area and perimeter. On the inside, they wrote what they know about those concepts.
Since my students enjoyed the project so much, I decided to whip together a similar quick math learning center for the week.
Read below to get the procedures for how to implement these two Valentine’s Day math activities in your elementary classroom!
Valentine’s Day Card Area and Perimeter Activity
As I mentioned above, there are many nights when I spend countless hours planning lessons and activities… and then there are times when I am walking down the hallway staring at a blank board and an idea strikes and we need to drop everything to make it happen. This was one of those lightning bolt moments!
How to Do it in Your Elementary Classroom
Here are the steps for how to do this activity in your classroom:
- Hang red butcher paper on your bulletin board using staples. You can also add a border to your bulletin board to dress it up a little bit.
- Print and mount letters on your bulletin board that spell “Area and Perimeter Valentines.”
- Gather pink, purple, and red construction paper, white paper, scissors, glue sticks, and markers.
- Cut the construction paper down to various sizes. The colorful paper will become the valentines.
- Hand out one piece of construction paper, one pairs of scissors, one glue stick, and a few markers to each student.
- Invite students to make a Valentine using the materials.
- When they are done making the Valentine, have them mount their Valentine on a white piece of paper.
- Next, they will measure the length and width to calculate the area and perimeter. They will record their results on the white piece of paper.
- On the inside of the Valentine, have them write what they know about those concepts (area and perimeter).
- Hang the final products on your bulletin to create a fun and festive February bulletin board display.
Valentine’s Day Task Card Math Center
Here are the steps for how to do this activity in your classroom:
- Gather a paper cutter, scissors, construction paper (pink, purple, tan, white, and red), a glue stick, markers, rulers (one per student in the center), and a recording sheet for each student.
- Cut out 10 rectangles with different dimensions from the construction paper using the paper cutter.
- Cut out 10 hearts from the construction paper.
- Glue the hearts on the rectangles.
- Label the cards A-J.
- Disperse the cards around the classroom.
- Put the recording sheets and rulers at the math center students will be working on it at that point.
- Explain and model how to complete the task for your students before they begin math centers. Students will select a card, sketch a diagram, measure the card, record the dimensions, and solve to find the area and perimeter.
Additional Valentine’s Day Resources
We hope you found these valentines day math activities helpful! If you did, you may also like these Valentine’s Day resources!
- Highly Engaging February writing prompts for Elementary Teachers
- Valentine’s Day Project Based Learning Task
- Perimeter and Area Task Cards activity for 2nd-4th Grade
- Valentine’s Day Picture Books that Make Great Read Alouds
- Presidents Day Activities for Elementary Teachers
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- Read more about: SEASONAL IDEAS AND ACTIVITIES FOR ELEMENTARY TEACHERS
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