For the LOVE of FCS

I LOVE celebrating the holidays with my students, each holiday brings a reason to decorate and have fun with your students! This year make Valentine’s Day in your classroom one of the loveliest days of all...try some of these heart-pumping standard-based activities that your students will be sure to LOVE!

Teach Heart Health! Use the holiday as an opportunity to teach your students a little anatomy and ways individuals can take care of their heart. Then prepare a heart-healthy snack to demonstrate cooking methods that increase nutritional value, lower calorie and fat content, and utilize herbs and spice to enhance flavor (8.5.14)! 

Check out the heartfelt resources from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.  Use these materials to teach National FCS standard 9.4.5 design instruction on nutrition to promote wellness and disease prevention. 

Click the image to view heart health tip sheets and resources.

Be cupid and introduce your students to the 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman in your personal wellness, health or life skills class! Start with introducing each LOVE Language then have students take the quiz (paper copy) to find out which of the 5 speaks the loudest for them! 

Then check out some sweet ideas from A Symphony of Praise blog for fun ways to speak the 5 Love Languages.  Turn these ideas into class projects to teach students to build and maintain interpersonal relationships (13.1.1) and analyze factors that contribute to healthy and unhealthy relationships (13.1.4). 

Image from A Symphony of Praise

If your students enjoy this topic, make it a larger project by checking out the The Teens Guide of the 5 Love Languages!

Valentine’s Day is a holiday shared by the young and old. Make this holiday special for your students who are learning about little ones! Host a Valentine’s Day party by arranging some preschool games that help build motor skills, providing a healthy kid-friendly snack (4.4.4: Plan safe and healthy meals and snacks that meet USDA standards), and/or playing a fun game of Valentine Bingo to demonstrate an activity that teaches language skills. 

Click for FREE Valentine's Day Bingo Cards!

While your students are busy making memories they will also be learning more about physical, emotional, social, moral, and cognitive development (12.1.1). 

Valentine's Day is all about design, the design of a flower arrangement, cards that convey feelings through design, decorations that spread LOVE with their design and much more! Bring this design element of the holiday to your classroom. Have students make a special gift for themselves or someone else by hosting a canvas painting party with a Valentine's Day focus.


Check out some of these darling design ideas by other bloggers for inspiration...

Image from Easy Peasy and Fun Blog

Image and idea from The Farm Wife Crafts Blog

Image and idea from Typically Simple Blog

As your student paint (small canvas can be purchased at Dollar Tree) and sip on sparkling grape juice, they will also be analyzing the effect that the principles and elements of design have on aesthetics and function (11.2.3).

Want to go more simple? Have students use their creativity to participate in a fun childhood craft, use Perler Beads to create a Valentine's Day design!

The LOVE doesn’t end there! Have your clothing and textiles class put their hand sewing skills to use by making small felt hearts and turning them into keychains or magnets! 

Image and idea from www.instructables.com

Students may also apply basic and complex color schemes and color theory (16.3.2) to create Mandala Dot Art wooden heart magnets! 

Don't forget to share the love with your career exploration or planning courses!  Valentine's Day is a cherished time to teach students about affectionate, people oriented, big-hearted careers!  Discuss and research the different careers that require compassion and love for others.

After teaching and discussing (1.1.6: Develop a life plan, including pathways to acquiring the knowledge and skills needed to achieve individual, family, and career goals) more about these specific careers have students make a Valentine for someone who is currently working in one of these careers.  Add a sweet treat to put the icing on someone's Valentine's Day!

How do you spread the LOVE of FCS 

in your classroom on Valentine's Day?