Get your pupils excited about nature by helping them connect to it with a simple art project. Prior to handing out the materials for this activity, hold a class discussion on the artist Andy Warhol. Explain to students that although Warhol is famous because of his "Pop Art," he also loved nature and enjoyed exploring themes related to it in his work. Hand out one piece of paper to each student and instruct them to use a ruler to create a grid of squares on the page. Using colored pencils, fill in each square with an abstract image reflecting one of the five recognized patterns of nature -- "spiral," "meander," "packing," "branching" and "explosion" -- that Warhol identified and used in his work.
Captivate young students' imaginations with an activity that allows them to expand on a book you've already read as a class. Instruct the children to pick their favorite book from books they've already read in your class. Explain that the goal of this project is to reflect on and analyze the story's contents, subject matter, characters or relationships and then determine a different outcome for the book's ending. Students are to create an ending that they wish would've occurred rather than the actual one. Use card stock to craft the front and back covers and colored construction paper for inside pages. Draw images depicting the ending they write, adding the pictures and text to the pages accordingly.
Increase your students' understanding of basic and advanced math principles by setting aside time for them to play math games. One game, "Tangrams," teaches early geometry concepts and is available both in online form at various education websites as well as a physical game board format. Kids can take their time when learning how to place the correct tile shapes together to form a larger shape, form or object. Children can also race to complete images against a timer or challenge a friend to see who can complete an image first.
One fun way to help students memorize important geographical information is to engage them in a creative activity. Begin this project by taping a map of the world to each work station. Make sure that every continent's name is clearly identifiable. Hand out one piece of 11-by-14-inch art paper to each pupil. Draw all continent shapes onto the art paper and glue a piece of matching color construction paper over each shape. Use a glitter pen to write each continent's name on top of its applicable area.