Monday, November 29, 2021

Christmas Countdown: A Fun Way to Keep Your Students Learning!

December is one of the most fun- and most challenging- months of the year!  There are so many great activities to do- but the KIDS are so excited that it is hard to keep them focused and working hard!  This Christmas Countdown is a great way to take advantage of every opportunity to keep students learning.  

I am a firm believer in positive reinforcement!  So, I came up with this fun idea for a whole class behavior incentive for December using a Christmas Countdown themed punchboard.  

How to Create a Christmas Countdown Punchboard:


A picture of a completed Christmas Countdown Punchboard.
The board is easy to make with a few basic supplies: foam board, disposable cups, tissue paper, rubber bands, a glue stick, and a hot glue gun. Add a cute heading and some clipart at the top using glue stick. Then, hot glue the cups to the board.
Supplies needed to create a Christmas Countdown Punchboard
Next, fill the cups with reward slips for the students to earn.
Picture of some of the Christmas Countdown reward slips

Cups with reward slips inside
Glue the circle pictures to the top of green tissue paper and then rubber band the paper around the cups. Be sure the reward slip and the top picture match!
Punchboard cups are covered with tissue paper and icons.  This cup has a gingerbread man on top.
Now the board can be displayed and your students can start earning the rewards!  There is a different reward for each cup- enough for at least 12 days.
Students color in a picture with clues they earn in class for good behavior.
Work on one reward cup at a time. Each student receives their own page to color in with the matching picture. When the whole-class exhibits great behavior, they all earn a coloring clue!  
Store the Christmas Countdown coloring clues in a cute box.
I recommend using a cute Christmas themed box to store the clues.  You can read the clues out loud to your class, or choose a student to read it to them. You can reward any behavior that is important to you.  

Some behavior ideas might include:
  • listening carefully to teacher directions
  • working without distractions
  • walking quietly in the hallway
  • lining up quickly and appropriately

When they color an entire picture (the clue box is empty for that picture), then they get to open the matching punch box cup and reveal the class reward!  Once students have enjoyed the reward, you can begin working on the next cup. Your students will love making memories with this project, and you will love how it keeps them focused! 
Excited students and the word yes
Want to learn more about this Christmas countdown resource?  You can check it out in my TPT store!
A picture of the completed Christmas Countdown punchboard










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