10 Springtime Activities for Your Classroom

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?

Two pages of a book showing a baby duck looking for its mom under a truck and in a pond. The mom is watching from just out of sight.

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

The book cover for "A Rainbow of Animals" with a prompt asking students to click on the title of the book.

  • 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

The cover of a springtime activity book titled "Flowers," featuring a large picture of an orange flower in bloom.

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

An animated bee hovering next to the outline of a flower, with two pink petals and three orange petals waiting to be dragged to the correct spots.

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

A fishing pole next to two logs, with the prompt "Which log is longer?"

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

A springtime activity featuring a rectangular garden divided into four quadrants. One quadrant holds planted seeds and another contains a selection of seed packets.

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

We see a springtime activity featuring poem on the left third of the screen and an illustrated scene on the right with bees and flowers.

  • 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

A llamacorn holding a basket containing five flowers from its mouth, with five friends holding baskets and the prompt "Share them equally between my 5 llamacorn friends."

 

9. Sequencing with the Titanic

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

A small boy stands in the shadow of a looming snake, with a text passage at the top of the screen.

  • 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.

 

Additional resources

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