Making It To Summer Part 2: End of Year Gift & Summer Games

Hey friends!  I'm back to Part 2 of my Making It To Summer series.  This series will give you some ideas and links to products that will help you make it to the final bell signaling summer vacation!

Today's ideas are to help you get those end of year gifts ready as well giving your kids all sorts of games and activities to keep them busy over summer vacation and hopefully keep that dreaded "summer slide" from happening (too much at least)!

For the past few years, I have been giving my kiddos buckets for part of their end of year gift.  In the past, I've gotten sand pails from dollar tree, but this year, I thought ahead (way ahead) and got Easter buckets at Walmart.  They were a few cents cheaper and had fun designs that I knew my kids would enjoy.

I used my Cricut Explore and some vinyl to make the letters to put my kiddo's names on their buckets.

Now - to fill those buckets!!  First off, I get a book from Scholastic Reading Club using my Scholastic points.  I go for those $1 books and this year I got a variety of books to help meet the variety of interests and reading abilities of all the kids.  I also ask parents for things such as bubble wands, KoolAid, funky straws, sidewalk chalk, playdoh, etc. that I put in their buckets as well.  That way it is full of things to keep them busy and having fun all summer!

Then, I get to add some more educational and fun goodies.  First up, is a Summer Fun Practice Pack.  I copy and staple this booklet front-back and it includes math and language arts activities as well as summer themed writing prompts. 

Knowing my kiddos - they'll spend plenty of time covering the cover before they get to working on the inside.  The LOVE coloring Melonheadz kids on their monthly mClass math booklets and BAT booklets.

Then comes the games!!  There are lots of card games that are included with direction cards to tape on the bag of cards and there are also 4 different BINGO cards that can be used with the place value and clock cards included with the set.

What kinds of cards and games are included you ask?!?!

Number Cards - single, double, and triple digit

Game ideas - Even/Odd Sort, Adding & Subtracting 2 ore more cards, ordering largest to smallest or vice versa, comparing using greater than/less than

Double/Triple digit cards can also be used for BINGO

Clock Cards

Game Ideas - memory, BINGO

Money Cards

Game Ideas - memory, BINGO

Letter & Sound Cards

Game Ideas - Sound Check, BANG (like POP, ZIP, whatever you may call it), I spy letter sounds

Sight Word Cards

Game Ideas - Tricky Words Slap

With each set of cards, there is a directions sheet that students tape to their bag of cards so they have game ideas and directions.  These are great games to play with siblings, babysitters, and parents.  With a variety of games, they won't get bored playing the same thing over and over again.

Let the kiddos make their game cards!!  We take one day (of our 10 Day Countdown) to make our cards for the games.  In the past, I've done them all in the morning - but this year, I'm thinking of doing the spelling and language arts cards in the morning and the math cards in the afternoon.  It helps their little hands!

For a better preview of what is included, click the image above to go to my TPT store.  Download the preview for a better view.

There are even tags you can attach to the buckets!

Head over to my TPT store to grab this and get started on your end of year gifts!  

Now, if you stayed with me this long - I've got a surprise for you! This set will be on sale in my TPT store through Thursday - so grab it while it's on sale! I hope this will help you get your End of Year gifts ready and that you'll join me again, next Tuesday for Part 3 of my Making It To Summer series!