Engaging Activity Ideas

Engaging Activity Ideas

Noun Sort Activity allows students to sort different noun cards into the categories of Common, Proper, Possessive, or Plural Nouns

Antonym, Synonym, and Homophone Search allows students to identify examples of each in an informational text (newspaper or magazine).

Character Creation allows students to identify character traits from a book of their choice.  They then make a drawing of the character, incorporating the different traits.

Cause and Effect Illustration allows students to identify a main cause and effect relationship in their independent reading book (automatically differentiated!), and create an illustrated T-Chart!

Comparing and Contrasting Moths and Butterflies is an activity where students read two selections on moths and butterflies, identify their similarities and differences by completing a Venn diagram, and then complete a final project, which is similar to a mobile!  The characteristics of the butterfly and moth are written on the back of each one, while the students get to color the front of them. 

Exploring Volume allows students to find the actual volume of different containers using cubic centimeters (base ten blocks are an ideal manipulative for this activity).  The activity can be differentiated by using different size containers for the activity (from a paper clip box to a cereal box).  

 Fact and Opinion Pictures allows students to find pictures in magazines and create statements of fact and statements of opinion about the picture.  

Fact and Opinion KABOOM! is a fun game, where students must pull statements from a container and identify the statement as a fact or opinion.  If they get it right, they get to keep the statement.  If they pull out a KABOOM!, they must put back all of their statements!

Internet Web Quests are so much fun for students!  They can consist of the student having a set group of questions and are then sent to find the answers using various websites.  Other web quests are a set of questions built around one website.  These are especially good for social studies topics!

This Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Project allows students to discover information about the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling through listening to a music video on You Tube, reading facts from the Fact Monster website, and filling out graphic organizers to demonstrate their understanding.  They then have to complete a final project of their choice, which has a checklist of requirements and a point system to score their project. 

Having students practice and apply their understanding of probability is more engaging through activities such as What's in the Bag?

Cause and Effect Scavenger Hunt allows students to identify cause and effect relationships in their independent reading books and then record those examples on a graphic organizer.  Just by letting them use a text of their choice that they enjoy increase the engagement!

Students identify cause and effect relationships that form a chain of events and then create a paper chain that shows the events linking to each other. 

Students love Idiom Illustrations!  They get to pick some of their favorite idioms and demonstrate their understanding of them through pictures!

In the activity, Me Through Metaphors and Similes, students differentiate between metaphors and similes by creating examples to describe themselves!  I always enjoy the students' thoughtful, fun ideas when they complete this activity.  Their final product, which is a book all about them using only similes and metaphors, is often one of their favorite pieces!