St. Patrick's Day Frenzy!

St. Patrick's Day is one of my very favorite holidays.  Why?  There are so many reasons!

• It comes at a dreadful, dreary time of year and adds a little spark to our life. 
• My grandfather on my mother's side came from Ireland.  It's a nice time to think about our heritage, and a great excuse for a geography lesson!
• I like the color green.  It's a good color for me.
• I love corned beef and cabbage and all the fixings!
• This one is bittersweet.  My dad passed away exactly 10 years ago on St. Patrick's Day.  Read more about my dad with this blog post about heroes.  I miss him terribly, but St. Patrick's Day is always a day for happy memories about the man who was a huge part of my life.

It's amazing how much great stuff there is out there with a St. Patrick's Day theme!  

For example:  Check out these:  25 Free St. Patrick's Day Items for grades 1-2 at Teachers Pay Teachers.  There's plenty of free stuff for other grades, as well as some great stuff that hardly costs a cent.  (I have a few at my Teachers Pay Teachers site!)

I made this freebie today... I don't think we can get enough practice on story problems, and it just makes it a little bit more fun to stick to a theme!  Download my free St. Patrick's Day Math Problems here!

Look at the St. Patrick's Day books I've found!

                       

              

Teacher 2 Teacher is having a linky party for St. Patrick's Day freebies... check it out!

If you're a fan of Pinterest, there is absolutely tons of St. Patrick's Day ideas, activities, games, and crafts.  You'll find some on my March Board, but don't hesitate to just search St. Patrick's Day, and you'll find a plethora of ideas!

Of course, it's a nice time to talk about the homes of our ancestors and immigration.  Of course, it's a great opportunity to bring out two of my students' favorite things:  maps and flags!  Brain research proves that children will remember information if they can connect it to something they know.  If they know they are of Irish heritage, it can help them remember where Ireland is on the map.  A nice discussion could come from the route they might have taken to get to where the family is now!  Parents might be able to share some information, too!  There are some great stories out there about previous generations of the families we work with!

  

Here's one of my favorite books about immigration!  It presents the information in a way the little ones can understand.  It also makes Neil Diamond echo in my head, but I'm ok with that!

Then, of course, there is Irish music!  Those of us in the Boston area love The Irish Rovers, but since they do mostly Irish drinking songs, you might find more traditional Irish music more appropriate for the classroom!  Personally, I don't find it to be St, Patrick's Day without hearing When Irish Eyes are Smiling, My Wild Irish Rose and Danny Boy.
                          

I've also been known to give each child an "honorary Irish name" for the day.  If you put an O' or a Mc in front of anyone's name, it sounds Irish, right?)  I'm not sure if the O'Klein family or the McSanchez family would agree, but it's just for a day, right?  Of course, back in my pre-marriage days, my name was Miss O'Bondelevitch for the day!

Have a wonderful St. Patrick's Day!  Unfortunately, it's on a Saturday this year, but I figure I'll celebrate it all week!  (I already prepared green clothes for the whole week!)

Sally