Ok, I’ve always had an issue with birthdays in my class. If it’s one student’s birthday all the students want it to be their birthday! We have had tears, tantrums, and bad attitudes galore. Last idea I got the idea to make birthday bags and it was AMAZING!
First, I posted a birthday board (this is getting a little revamp this year, but this is what it looked like last year). This gave students a reference to when their birthday would be coming. Each month had the students name and birthdate written on it.
We talk about what month it is all the time, so my students know the names of most the months and what month it currently is. This allows me to explain to students their birthday is still coming.
Then, I put bags with the students names on top of a cabinet at our morning meeting space. The bags on top of my cabinet help my students further understand that “My birthday is coming” or “I already had a birthday this year”. We talk through those scripts often. We also count down to birthdays at our calendar time.
What’s in the bag you ask? A couple balloons, a birthday sticker pack (yay fine motor skills!), and a puzzle I grabbed at the Dollar Tree. And I need to sneak their birthday crowns in there (I forgot them!) It’s nothing too crazy, but it’s a fun way to celebrate student birthdays at school. Of course we follow that up with a full blown party!
You can click on the picture to grab the editable Birthday Bag labels I used! Just add a text box to add student names! Then cut out and glue to a gift bag (I found a set of 3 bags for $1 at The Dollar Tree)!
How do you celebrate birthdays in your class?
That's a great idea! So, students who aren't having a birthday can see that their bag is still up there which means their birthday is still coming! Love it!
For my students, I try to wait until the end of the day, and then during resource class, that student will get to choose a couple "happy birthday" YouTube videos to play for the class. We will usually pass around a card and have everyone sign it. And then if the student brought in snacks we pass them out or I grab something to share 🙂 It's just a little mini celebration but they all enjoy it!
Thanks Brie! We have had low key parties in the past, but I've decided to go all out this year! They're going to love it. 🙂