Crayons & Cuties In Kindergarten: 29 Things To Do On February 29th!

It only comes once every 4 years...might as well celebrate with a day of fun!

As a New York teacher, I had the past week off for Mid-Winter Recess, so I was able to catch up on a few things- plans, cleaning, laundry...and realized Leap Year is only 10 days away!

As I sipped some coffee- what a treat that was...it was still hot, in a mug and not 'on the go'...I started to think of 29 things we could do with the number 29 to celebrate this fun day!

Here is what I came up with!

I split them up into 'categories' that we could fit into our blocks throughout the day!

Math Related:

1. Write numbers for 29 seconds!

(Give them a piece of paper- or white board- set the timer and 'GO!' See how many they can write in 29 seconds! Gives some practice with number writing too!)

2. Build/Create with 29 pattern blocks!

(Have them count out 29 and see what they can make! They can record how many they used of each block, draw a picture of their creation, write about their creation, etc! You can 'time' them- 29 seconds or 29 minutes!)

3. Show 29 on ten frames!

(Make a BIG triple ten frame on the floor with masking tape or use one projected onto the board or distribute a page with 3 ten frames on it. They can put counters on OR plastic frogs!)

4. Sort 29 bears and tell how you sorted!

(I say 'bears' but my bin has all sorts of primary colored plastic animals. They can count out 29, sort them, tell their sorting rule and then do it again with a different group of 29!)

5. Compare the weight of 29 counters to different objects from around the room!

(Use a balance scale and fill one side with 29 counters- then put various objects from around the room [pencil, crayon, feather, connecting cube, pattern block, etc.] on the other side and talk about what happens!)

(and I realized I forgot a math one...order the numbers 0-29...how simple! Use number cards from your calendar, 100 chart, etc.!)

ELA Related:

6. Write letters for 29 seconds!

(Just like the numbers listed above, but with letters!)

7. Write your name for 29 seconds!

(Same as numbers and letters but with names! Great name writing practice- can talk about how longer names are written less than shorter names! Try it with just first names for a round and then first and last! Compare the two!)

8. Read/Write the Room for 29 words!

(Send them off with clipboards [or a hardcover book if you don't have enough] and have them find and write 29 words from around the room!

9. Find 29 words you know in a poem/passage/book!

We'll be using this frog passage!

It is filled with sight words we know and words we can sound out- plus it teaches us about frogs!

I am going to give them highlighters to highlight the 29 words they know!

You can have them circle or underline words too!

Using a poem- use highlighting tape!

10. Use 29 magnetic letters to make words!

(Have them pick the 29 letters or choose the letters for them! They can move the letters about to create sight words, CVC words, color words, vocabulary words, spelling words, etc! They can record the words on paper or a white board!)

11. Read for 29 minutes!

(This can be 29 independent minutes for upper elementary grades, a combination of whole/shared reading and independent reading minutes or a story you read aloud to them for 29 minutes! Set a timer and start reading!)

12. Write a story for 29 minutes!

(Same as reading- can be independent writing time, combination of shared/interactive writing and independent reading time or whole group shared/interactive writing for all 29 minutes!)

13. Write about what you will do when you are 29!

(Have them think about what they will look like, what job they will have, where they will be living, things they can do at 29 that they can't do now, etc! Write about it and draw pictures too!

You can even combine this with interviewing someone who is 29 years old!)

14. Make a list of 29 places you have been!

(This would probably work best as an interactive/shared writing list, but it could be done independently too! It could be vacations/places and/or 'everyday' places they have been to too!

Science Related:

15. Add 29 drops of food coloring to cups of water!

(This could be 29 of the same color and how it changes as they are added, mixture of different color drops and what new colors are made, experiment with different number of cups and how intensity is different as use more/less cups, experiment with amount of water in each cup and how it compares/contrasts to other cups, etc! Combine this with a class-wide science fair project too!)

Getting Active:

16. Hop in place for 29 seconds

(You could even let them 'leap' for 29 seconds!)

17. See where 29 steps takes you!

(We do with for the 100th day, so it would be fun to do it with '29' too! We always mark our spot in the hall with a big foot, but since this is 'LEAP' year, a lily pad is definitely in order!

18. Run outside (or in place) for 29 seconds!

(If it's warm we'll be running outside...but if the snow is still covering the ground, it will be inside and in place!)

19. Do 29 jumping jacks!

(I love watching kids do jumping jacks! I think they will begin to lose stamina as we get closer to 29- I know I might too!)

20. Do 29 sit-ups!

(Pair them up and get them going! It's counting practice too! Can't handle '29?' How about do sit-ups for 29 seconds instead?!)

Getting Crafty:

21. Use 29 scraps of paper to create something!

(Pull out that scrap bin and let them count out 29 scraps OR give them paper and have them rip it itno 29 pieces and then use them to re-create something! I love letting kids be creative with no 'right' way of how it should end up!)

22. Use 29 crayons to color a picture!

(You can print something off the internet, use a coloring page you have or let them choose a page from a coloring book (dollar store!) to rip out and color! They can count out 29 crayons (there are sure to be some repeat colors, but with so many variations of the colors, you could wind up with 29 different shades!) and then use those 29 to color!

We'll be using this page to help us remember our day of '29' fun!

23. Create something with playdough for 29 minutes!

(My kids L-O-V-E playdough...maybe we'll have to make a batch of homemade green dough for the day!)

24. Make a necklace with 29 beads!

(I have a ton of pony beads left over from our Thanksgiving retelling bracelets that we will be using! If we have Cheerios or Fruit Loops left from our 100th Day, maybe we'll make editable necklaces!)

Miscellaneous/Fun:

25. Collect 29 signatures!

(We can collect a majority of these just from classmates, but then grab some others from friends in the lunch room, school staff we see throughout the day, etc! All that name writing is a great way to sneak in extra name writing practice too!)

26. Build/Create with 29 Legos!

(I had purchased 2 huge bags of imitation Legos from Amazon last summer and they L-O-V-E using them during indoor recess and choice time! They WILL NOT mind this challenge of creating with 29 pieces! It can be timed and/or have them switch pieces with a friend and see what someone else can create with the same pieces you had just used!)

27. Stack 29 cups, blocks, etc!

(How high can we go before it crashes?! Is it stronger if we make a wider base? We'll find out! You can make it academic by writing sight words on the cups/blocks too and they need to read the word before they can stack it!)

28. Partake in 29 random acts of kindness!

(I know we can use more kindness in our classroom! This will be a perfect day to be aware of how kind we can be to others! We'll be charting our acts to make sure we hit 29! It could be a simple as a compliment to another, helping someone zip a coat, telling the secretary 'thank you' or watching their teacher buy the security guard a cup of coffee!)

29. Make a snack with 29 items!

(No celebration is ever complete without a snack! Just like the 100th day snack, we'll make a trail mix by counting out 29 pieces of snack foods such as Cheerios, Fruit Loops, Teddy Grams, Chocolate Chips, Raisins, Chex Cereal, Kix Cereal, Pretzel Sticks, Goldfish Crackers, etc! They can choose the quantity of each as long as when finished there are only 29 goodies in their bag!)

Think You Want To Do A Day of '29' Fun?

It'd be hard to take notes on all of what I wrote here, so I put it all together in this FREE download:

If you are interested in the pages I described/showed in the post. you can find the supplemental pack here:

We'll also be sporting our fun Leap Year Crowns that day:

If you want to get a 'JUMP'-start on your 'random acts of kindness' count, head on over to my friend Brenda's Facebook page (Tejeda's Tots) and wish her a 'HOPPY' '10th' Birthday on February 29th!

AND if you are looking for some great 'Leap Year' Deals, be sure to check out THIS POST!