Pinterest and Oriental Trading Valentine's Day Ideas

I feel like I start every post with "Can you BELIEVE it's already (fill in with current date)?!" But for real... how is it almost Valentine's Day?

Disclaimer: This post contains sponsored content, affiliate links, and review products. Regardless, these are 100% my own opinions.





Valentine's Day is easily my favorite holiday of the year for classroom activities. I usually go all out with decorations and special centers and activities. In fact, last year, I did special February centers on rotation all month. February is crazy with Valentine's Day, Groundhog's Day, dental hygiene month, Black History month, President's Day, and sometimes Chinese New Year. That's a lot to cram into the shortest month of the year!

Oriental Trading has a ton of super cute and useful Valentine's Day materials for the classroom and teamed with my Pinterest finds... Valentine's Day is bound to be a blast. Take a look!

Here are some awesome Valentine's Day activities I found on Pinterest that use the materials I found on Oriental Trading's website. If you click the images, they will take you to the original post/site.

One of the things I grabbed from Oriental Trading was a set of Valentine's Day beads. I love using beads in my classroom. Currently I teach 2nd grade and we use lots of beads for number estimation, counting by 3s, 5s, 10s, etc. When I taught Kindergarten, beads were awesome to string on pipe cleaners and to practice fine motor. Here are some things I found on Pinterest to go with my set of Valentine's Day beads. (Remember, if you'd like to see the original post/site, click the image).

WAYS TO USE VALENTINE BEADS:

 

These are HUGE foam hearts. I saw them and originally thought of doing some sort of craft or presentation on them, which of course would be fine. However, Pinterest enlightened me on some other amazing ideas! Check it out!

WAYS TO USE GIANT FOAM HEARTS:

Can't step on the carpet game! LOVE this.

      

These doilies are so cute and I have always felt that doilies make great craft materials, especially for Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, and Christmas. I grabbed a set of the mini's from Oriental Trading and they come in packs of 100! I also decided to grab some colored card stock because the colors are pretty and the price was on point. I thought these would make nice Valentines for family members, but 100 is LOT... so I found some other ideas to use those leftovers.

WAYS TO USE HEART DOILIES:

 

 

I stock up on these every year because there are endless possibilities with them. They are also pretty tasty, so that's always a plus. Here are just a handful of activities for them.

WAYS TO USE CONVERSATION HEART CANDIES:

 

    

Another extremely useful staple for the classroom are straws. How adorable are these Valentine's Day polka dot ones! I especially love the idea of making friendship bracelets for Valentine's Day!

  

  

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST:

It's a classroom quilt!!! I can't express how much I love this idea. The pictures I snagged weren't great, so this is from the website. I also ordered a pack of Valentine's Day ribbon to go with this for students to have more to decorate with.

Still need more? How about some NO-PREP FREEBIES from my TpT store! 

Introducing The Crazy Daisies! Share the Love Giveaway and Blog Hop

You guys! I've been keeping a secret... for MONTHS. It's finally time to reveal the big news! My buddy Jodilyn of Daisy A Day Doodles and I are teaming up to bring you and your students (okay... and OUR students :P ) educational resources featuring Jodilyn's precious artwork. We'll be able to integrate art into our subject areas. And, really, two heads are better than one! We've been cooking up all kinds of great ideas and I can't wait to share them all with you.

But first... let's party!

Just in time for the TpT site-wide sale starting this week (WOOOOOO!), make sure you enter for your chance to win one of TWO $40 TpT gift cards!

Here's how the blog hop works:

1) Read through the post so you can learn about this new collaboration!

2) Read about the freebies and how to snag them.

3) Enter the giveaway.

4) Check out some Valentine's Day resources (some are free!!!).

5) Download your FREEBIE!

6) Click the "hop" button at the bottom to go to the next post and repeat! Each valentine is different so make sure you collect them all!

7) Share with your friends on social media so they can snag their valentines, too!

So, here we are! I'm Amanda, of course, and Jodilyn. The Crazy Daisies is part educational resources, part clip art! We’re putting our heads together to make learning fun for our students and YOURS. I am a 2nd Grade teacher in Florida. I also teache Musical Theater and Dance at a local theater. I'm passionate about reading and am a total dog-lover! In fact, Daisy is the name of my 5 pound chihuahua! I have a 5-month old son, Isaac, and if you've been following me for a while... you'll know that he is a total cutie! Jodilyn Blake @DaisyADayDoodles has been teaching for 8 years on the Indian Reservations of New Mexico. She has taught as a reading specialist, 2nd grade teacher on up to Middle school Language Arts. Her TPT shop has teaching resources along with her artwork. She has been doodling since she was 12 years old for fun. However, her doodles became digital creations in May 2015. She is relatively new to the clip art world, but she loves to share her joy.


By our powers combined, we wish you a Happy Valentine’s Day with free valentines featuring Jodilyn’s art and my witty puns!

To download the freebie, click the image at the bottom of the post and it will open in a new tab! Simply click the download button in the top right hand corner and it will download. Easy peasy! And don't forget to head to everyone else's blogs so you can collect them all! Aren't Jodilyn's doodles just PRECIOUS?! I'm obsessed with the typewriter.

And now for the fun part... THE GIVEAWAY!!!!!!

A special thanks to all of my fellow bloggers who are participating in this awesome event! Be sure to check out their TpT stores and blog hop posts... you might be able to snag a few more freebies and Valentine's Day resources! ;)


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Aw, I just love Valentine's Day. It is one of my favorite classroom celebrations with all the love and kindness just overflowing. I also love how easy it is to incorporate fun and engaging learning activities throughout our day! I have a couple of freebies in my store and a new item (on sale, by the way...), so while you're adding goodies to your cart for the sale, check them out!

Oh wait... looking for that freebie?! Okaaaaaay.... here it is! I LOVE THAT TYPEWRITER! <3 Again, just click the image below and it will direct you to the page to download from.

Thank you so much for stopping by! I hope you are as excited as we are with our new and exciting plans to provide awesome resources for you and your students. Make sure you are following us on Facebook and Instagram for updates on new collaboration projects and more freebies and giveaways.

And now, head over to Jodilyn's blog to snag her freebie! And leave a comment for her on her post. I mean, for real, her artwork is adorable.

Oh dear...

What happened to the first week of February? Where in the WORLD did it go?? This has got to be the fastest time has flown by for me. I feel just awful about neglecting my little blog the past couple of weeks, so I thought, what better way to hop back on board than with a Sunday Scoop! It is one of my favorite linkies, after all. Thanks, Teaching Trio, for providing this one. Love it!

HAVE TO DO:

1. One thing you may not know about me is that I sing. I used to be a Musical Theater major but wound up finishing my college years with a degree in Education. The goal at the time was to teach theater. I fell in love with teaching and although I do teach at a community theater, I wouldn't trade my regular teaching job for the world! My mom is a song writer and she's asked me to come over to her house and record a new song. Let's hope it is a hit!

2. Nothing like waiting till the last minute, am I right? I was SO pooped at the end of last week and when my principal said "plan elsewhere" over the intercom on Friday afternoon, I bolted and took a nap. My lesson plans were put on the back burner. Gotta get them done!

3. My husband's 30th is on Friday AND our class Valentine's Day party is that day as well. I have a lot of shopping to do to get ready! Friday is going to be a big day. Stay tuned for pictures and maybe even a video. My IG and FB pages will be covered with them. :)

HOPE TO DO:

1. I'm working on a fun new product and I'm hoping I can squeeze some work time in today. One can only hope.

2. Bra shopping is probably one of my least favorite things to do in the entire world. But it's that time.... I hope to get it done today, but I won't be unhappy if I don't. Sigh.

HAPPY TO DO:

1. I am just happy to be posting today! I feel so guilty for neglecting my blog for the past couple of weeks. I know that I will definitely be posting again on Friday this week. I've got some fun things to share that day!

If you are not following me on Instagram, get on it! There was a really neat Freebie loop last night that you can still snag the goodies from. Click below to follow me on IG and tap each picture to get the freebies in everyone's profiles. I got some GREAT things to add to my Valentine's Day resources that I will certainly be using this week. Have fun and happy weekend!

Share the love and tag a teacher friend for this awesome freebie loop! Temporary links to the freebie are in each participant's profile. Tap the picture to go to the next freebie and like and follow them all! #freebieloop #freebies #teachersofinstagram #teacherfreebies #teacherspayteachers #teachersfollowteachers #iteachtoo #iteachsecond

A photo posted by Amanda Smith - Daisy Designs (@daisydesignstpt) on Feb 6, 2016 at 3:59pm PST

What Are Your Party Plans? A Valentine's Day Linky!

I just finished up planning for this week. I am usually more ahead of the game than this, but I still hadn't quite decided on all the things I wanted to do for our Valentine's Day Party! I think I finally came up with a plan and I thought, I wanna know what ya'll are doing, too! So....

Link up your blog posts at the bottom of my post to share with others your classroom party plans! And keep reading... there's a freebie for you in this post! (Maybe like 20 freebies!).

Our day will start with making our mailboxes! I have a few students this year who I know will not be able to bring any sort of home made mailbox from home, which is what I had my students do last year. So this year, we will be making them in the classroom. I decided on a paper bag mailbox, to save on money and time. Here are some pins I found that I'm going by!

This pin is from greylikesbaby.com. Obviously these were not made by kindergarteners, but you get the idea. Click the image to pin it yourself and see the original pin.

I am planning on whipping out my handy dollar store sorting trays (AKA, chip and dip trays), to put different craft supplies in to really jazz up the mailboxes. I'm thinking stickers, stamps, markers (best teacher ever!), glitter glue, pom poms, and plastic gems. Any other suggestions? Maybe ribbon!

Here's a picture of my sorting tray being used as a center. I can't wait to fill these babies with fun craft supplies!

Then moving on to Valentine's Day centers!! I will have some help that day, with my sister-in-law coming in to volunteer! She wants to be a teacher, too. :) She's going to help the kiddos decorate Rice Krispy Treats with icing! I scored some free pink, red, and white icing tubes at a teacher supply store so that will help! I got the recipe for the treats off of Kellogg's website! Click the image below to see it.

I also will have a high school volunteer who comes to my classroom every other day. He is great with the kids! I am going to have him run a Valentine's Day Bingo center, with this awesome freebie I found from Tamsyn Fegan's TpT store! Click the image below to get it for yourself!

I found it through an awesome Instagram loop where I scored 20 FREEBIES for February! Click the image below to go to my Instagram and find the matching picture! Then just click through to get your goodies! (This is much easier on a phone, by the way...).

Here's the freebie I linked up! Click the image below to snag a great morning work or center activity for this fun week!

FREEBIE!

I also have a para on that day for about an hour, so I thought she could run a craft center! I found these adorable paper plate hats on Pinterest and since I have a plethora of paper plates that are collecting dust, I thought this would be a great one to add in on our special day!

Here's a picture of the original pin. Click the image to pin it yourself and to see the original post from alphamom.com.

So with Autumn running a Rice Krispy Treat center, my high school volunteer running a Bingo center, and my para running a craft center, what will I be doing? Oh, you know, just a Valentine's Day Minute to Win It Center!!!

I found this pin today from makoodle.com, and I just about jumped out of my chair! There are 5 Minute to Win It activities for Valentine's Day! My kids will freak out!! Click the image below to check them out and pin it yourself!

And then of course, there will be my favorite part of the day: exchanging valentines! And of course, eating those delicious Rice Krispy Treats!!!

What are your Valentine's Day plans for your class this year? Use the image below in your post and be sure to include a link to this original post! I can't wait to read all of your great ideas!! BLOG POSTS ONLY PLEASE! :)

An InLinkz Link-up