Christmas Activities, Holiday Activities, English Holiday Bundle

This is a fun and engaging holiday bundle of lessons to get you through the last 5 weeks before winter break. These holiday resources were designed with a middle and high school English classroom in mind. There are 4 included ELA lessons to complete with your students during each of the following holidays: Thanksgiving, Christmas (before Winter break), and New Year's 2024! These are fun activities that will liven up your regular classroom routines and bring some festive holiday excitement into your classroom. Each activity is a student favorite in my classroom and is aligned with ELA reading and writing standards.

What is included in this Holiday Bundle:

Thanksgiving: Reflective Journaling:

This 8-week journaling activity provides students the opportunity to practice gratitude throughout the week and is a great activity to introduce during the month of November as we near Thanksgiving. This bi-weekly journaling activity teaches students to practice gratitude for all that they have in their lives instead of just one day out of the year. ;) I started this journaling practice in my classroom at the beginning of the month of November and will continue it into the 2024 New Year since my students genuinely enjoy this practice. This activity can be completed as a printable or digital assignment.

Christmas / Holiday Project: Creative Winter Writing Activity/ Project:

This is my favorite writing project to have my students complete anytime during the last few weeks before we go on winter break. This creative writing project includes a detailed slideshow that teaches students about the art of vignette writing. Students complete practice activities where they learn about the structure of a vignette and after they are guided through a step-by-step structured outline template where they craft their own vignette. The focus of their vignette is to write about one holiday tradition that they practice in their family/culture. On the last day of this project, students have fun sharing their vignettes with the class if they want to share. In my classroom, we bring our favorite holiday cookies and snacks to eat while we listen to the student performances. I love this activity because I am always pleasantly surprised by how many students want to share their vignettes and by how beautifully they turn out. I love that students enjoy the creativity involved in this activity. Plus, students with different cultures are provided the opportunity to share their traditions with the class in a really meaningful way. The note-taking guide during this project is for printable use only. The final draft of the vignettes can be printed or completed digitally.

Overview of lessons within this project: 

Day 1: Build background about vignettes + literary devices

Day 2: Complete brainstorm activities and craft holiday vignette.

Day 3: Make final revisions & edits, complete a partner activity, and share vignette presentations.

New Year's Resolution 2024 Character Activity

This is a fun and creative New Year's Resolution activity where students choose a character from any text they are reading (either an in-class novel or an independent reading book). Students complete an assignment where they fill out a New Year's Resolution form as if they are writing from the perspective of their character in order to practice character analysis and critical thinking skills. Students enjoy this activity because they are challenged to think creatively regarding what they think their character would choose for their New Year's Resolutions and goals. This product was designed on Google Slides and is intended for printable use only.

New Year Resolution Activity Printable ESL, New Year's Goal Setting:

This is a fun New Year’s Resolution lesson activity for middle and high school students. The purpose of this activity is to have students reflect on their school year so far, and create achievable academic and personal goals to finish the school year with. This is a great post-winter break activity that centers around social-emotional learning and personal growth. I love having my students complete this activity the first day we get back from winter break because it sets the tone for the second semester and students seem to really enjoy taking this time to reflect. This product was designed on Google Slides and is only intended for printable use only.

Printable and Digital Assignments:

All of the activities provided were created on Google Docs. +  Google Slides. Some of the activities are intended for digital use only and others are intended for printable use only.

I hope these holiday activities bring joy and fun to your classroom and keep you away from lesson planning during Thanksgiving and Winter Break!