1. Write Compliments
What better way to encourage kindness around Valentine's Day than by having students write kind words and compliments to each other? And as an added bonus, this doubles as a Valentine's Day gift!
You can have students write their names on a blank sheet of paper and start writing compliments, or use this no prep compliments book that includes sentence starters that inspire ideas and help students write more meaningful, thoughtful compliments.
2. Conversation Heart Writing
3. Write a Valentine's Day Poem
4. Make A List of Kind Things
5. Person I Admire Essay
Valentine's Day is a great time of year to reflect on the people in our lives who have inspired, encouraged, and loved us. Have students think about someone important to them and write an essay explaining why that person is admirable. Then, students can give the essay as a thoughtful gift!
If you have students who struggle with writing, then this Scaffolded Person I Admire Resource will help guide your students through the process of writing a 5-paragraph essay about someone important to them.
6. An Edible How-To Writing Activity
Food makes everything more fun! As a class, make one of these edible Valentine's Day treats:
Then, have your students write a how-to paper that provides instructions on how to make the edible treat.
7. Valentine's Day Opinion Writing
3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students always need more opinion writing practice. Take advantage of Valentine's Day and give students an opinion writing prompt that will engage them.
Possible Valentine's Day Opinion Writing Prompts:
- What is the best Valentine's Day candy?
- Is it better to receive chocolate or flowers for Valentine's Day?
- Why is kindness important?
Struggling students will find this scaffolded opinion writing resource helpful.
8. Have Students Write a Thank You Note
9. Tell Vanessa's Story
I Walk With Vanessa is a wordless book that shows the story of a lonely student that is eventually befriended by others. Share the thoughtful illustrations with your students, and then have them write out what happened.
Find more fun ways to utilize wordless books in your classroom here, or check out these other books that teach kindness and empathy.
10. Valentine's Day Words to Make a Valentine's Day Story
Provide upper elementary students with a list of Valentine's Day-themed words and have them integrate all of the words into their own Valentine's Day story! This is a good way to get a little vocabulary building in as well. You can give students words like:
- admirer
- bouquet
- carnation
- celebration
- considerate
- fond
- harp
- poetry
- tenderhearted
11. Create a Valentine's Day Squiggle Drawing and Story
Squiggle stories are a fun, no prep writing idea that 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students love.
To write a squiggle story, give students a sheet of paper with a random squiggle on it. They create a Valentine's Day drawing that incorporates that squiggle. Then, they write a short story based on their drawing.
This no prep resource includes plenty of squiggles and "prompts" to help direct students' writing. And best of all, it can be used all year, not just for Valentine's Day.
You might also like these ideas for cultivating kindness in your classroom.
Try Out This Valentine's Day Freebie
20 Valentine's Day Themed Task Cards that review fraction skills!