It’s hard to believe, but spring has officially sprung as of March 20. There’s a hint of new life, rejuvenation, and growth in the air, and we’re heading down the homestretch of yet another school year. Get your students twitterpated with learning by introducing these fun, free, and uplifting springtime activities into your classroom routine in the weeks to come.
As always, Premium eSparkers can assign these activities in Small Group Skills bundles, or play them as a one-off by following the links in this article.
If you’re new to eSpark, consider this a preview of the fun, playfully personalized approach to learning so many elementary teachers are using to supplement their math and reading instruction. Sign up using the link above to gain immediate access to eSpark’s full library of games, videos, stories, songs, and more!
Pre-K and Kindergarten
1. Where is Mama Duck?
- Activity type: Read-aloud story
- Skill: Ask and answer questions about a text
- Assign the Small Group Skill
Danny Duck explores the world for the first time on his own, but he spends the whole time looking for his mama. Little does he know, mama is always within reach to provide the love and protection he needs.
2. A Rainbow of Animals
- Activity type: Interactive story
- Skill: Identifying parts of a book, including authors and illustrators (and the contributions they make to a story)
- Assign the Small Group Skill
When those famous April showers mix with hopeful rays of sunshine, the result is a marvel to behold. In this interactive story with built-in prompts, we explore the beautiful rainbow of life found among the animal kingdom, from red ladybugs to green treefrogs, purple starfish, and everything in between.
3. Flowers
- Activity type: Read-aloud story
- Skill: Identify the front cover, back cover, and title page of a book
- Assign the Small Group Skill
We all know what April showers bring, and what better way to celebrate spring than with some May flowers? This nonfiction text teaches us all about what flowers are, what they do, and how they differ.
*As one of our licensed Capstone titles, Flowers is not available via direct link, but students will encounter it in their Reading Informational “Naming Parts of a Book” Quest, and it can be assigned alongside an instructional video and quiz via the above-linked SGS.
4. PETAL PICKER
- Activity type: Game
- Skill: Number bonds / decomposing numbers
- Assign the Small Group Skill
Speaking of flowers, what better springtime way for students to work on decomposing numbers and strengthening those early addition skills than by helping a busy bee write equivalent equations based on flower petals? Some would say this game is generating a lot of buzz!
1st and 2nd Grade
5. Ziggy to the Rescue
- Activity type: Game
- Skill: Using tools to compare length
- Assign the Small Group Skill
Spring fishing, new life, and a woodland adventure—this game has it all. Help Ziggy the dog escort a baby duckling back to its family by measuring to find the appropriately sized logs spanning several creeks along the way.
6. Grow a Garden
- Activity type: Game
- Skill: Dividing shapes / partitioning rectangles into halves and quarters
- Assign the Small Group Skill
Depending on where you live, March and April are traditionally two of the best months to plant your seeds and set the tone for your garden of choice. In this game, students will partition their garden spaces into halves and quarters, then choose which vegetables to plant in each quadrant.
7. Flying Home
- Activity type: Animated poem
- Skill: Identifying characters and events
- This activity is not currently included in a Small Group Skill
This fun little poem is a great way to incorporate the signs of spring into a classroom conversation about anything from rhyming to types of text to characters and events. Read aloud as a class or follow along with the voiceover and storybook animations.
Grades 3+
8. Share with Llamacorn
- Activity type: Game
- Skill: Dividing whole numbers
- Assign the Small Group Skill
9. Sequencing with the Titanic
- Activity type: Instructional video
- Skill: Sequencing events in a nonfiction text
- Assign the Small Group Skill
With the anniversary of the Titanic’s tragic demise coming in mid-April, this video offers a great opportunity to develop a key Reading Informational skill into that week’s lesson plans. Students follow along with an accounting of the story of the Titanic, then learn how they can apply the strategy of sequencing to put events in order.
10. Swallowed
- Activity type: Animated story
- Skill: Summarizing text
- This activity is not currently included in a Small Group Skill
Test-taking season is an unpleasant experience for some kids, and this story is a good starting point for conversations on the subject. Students follow along with Marty’s frightening descent into darkness, only to emerge in an unexpected place on the other side.
Spring into action with eSpark
Just as these springtime activities ushers in new life and new opportunities to grow and explore, eSpark can provide a similar boost to your classroom culture. With a unique approach grounded in the complementary foundations of play-based learning and evidence-based instruction, eSpark provides next-level personalized and differentiated learning opportunities for centers, small groups, and free choice time.
Click the link above to sign up for your free account today and join the growing ranks of eSparkers from around the world.
