Stocking Stuffers!

This week I stared the CUTEST holiday project with my kids and I just have to share it with you! This project was created by my friend Susan over at T.G.I.F. It's really amazing and it's FREE! It's a wonderful community building project. The kids make their own stocking and then all through the month, they can leave each other little notes in their stockings. At the end of the month, they get to read all of the notes their friends left in their stocking!

Click HERE to see Susan's original project and download your own copy. I made a couple of little tweaks. First of all, I copied all of the stocking onto bright colored paper instead of traditional Christmas red and green to make my little Hanukkah celebrants feel a little more included. Then instead of gluing the stocking onto a paper and adding a separate envelope, I just sealed an envelope and then cut it in half and taped it to the back of each stocking. That way it looks like the actual stocking is being stuffed.

I gave each student a sheet of the little notes to keep in their folder and a class list. We talked about how sad it would be if someone had an empty stocking at the end of the month. So we agreed that we would write at least one note to each person in the class. Then we could send a second note to anyone after that. So they're keeping track on their little class lists. So far, so good! 

How cute is that little elf tree?! He was $30 at CVS, but it makes me happy. I put out this little stocking stuffer basket on the counter for the kids to leave their finished notes in. Then at the end of every couple of days, I actually stuff the stockings. I had to hang them kind of out of their reach and this way I also get to monitor the notes and make sure no one gets a less-than-nice note. I've actually started looking forward to this part of the day. Their notes are so stinkin cute!

As I was going over the directions, I had one little girl who kept waving her hand in the air and I kept telling her to wait thinking if she'd give me a second I would answer her question. Her little hand just kept popping up and popping up. Finally, I called on her. She wanted to know if I was going to have a stocking so they could write notes to me! How sweet is that?? So of course, I had to make one.

I noticed a nice little side effect of the project today too. We were talking about how and when to use commas and a couple of them were so excited to tell me that you use them in a letter, like for our stockings!  

We're all loving it in room 852 and I can not wait to see their little faces when they open their stockings at our winter party!