While the writer of the following article has focused chiefly on using Valentine’s gift baskets as a tool for the teaching of reading skills, those same baskets might appeal to the parents of children with diabetes. Too often, children expect baskets to have candy (like an Easter basket). A child with diabetes should not eat candy. The baskets described in the following article are fun baskets that contain no candy. The many interesting geometric shapes in the baskets provide the sort of fun element that children seem to feel can only be found among a collection of toys or candies.
One writer living in Los Angeles County has an idea for Valentine’s Day gift baskets. She got the germ of her idea more than 15 years ago, when searching for some special Valentines. She then wanted Valentines that had more than a two or three word message.
At that time, the writer was planning to give a Valentine to each student in a Resource class at an elementary school. The writer knew that the students in that Resource class needed to practice their reading skills. The writer wanted her Valentines to motivate the students to tackle and read the written word.
After much searching, the writer finally came across some Valentines that were not your traditional Valentine card. The writer found Valentines that had been given the shape of a square. Each face of the box-shaped Valentine held a different Valentine’s message.
The writer purchased those Valentines and gave them to the Resource teacher. On Valentine’s Day, the teacher distributed the Valentines among her students. The writer later found one Valentine in the home of one student.
While baskets are usually associated with Easter, Valentine’s Day Gift Baskets could be used to encourage the most reluctant readers to find some element of fun in reading. Such baskets would have objects that were squares, pyramids and other geometric shapes. Each flat surface on those many geometric shapes could carry a different Valentine’s message.
A teacher might want to share such baskets with her students. The students would no doubt be curious to know what message was on each face of the various geometric shapes. The teacher might encourage each of her students to let others read the words on the many-sided objects in their Valentine’s basket.
The students who received such gift baskets would have additional material to read. Still, that material would be presented to them in a new and novel manner. In that way, the students would be more tempted to take the time to read all the words on each object in at least one basket.
By coordinating the Valentine’s messages with the material then being presented to the students, the gift baskets could serve as a wonderful supplement to any lesson taught in the classroom. In a resource classroom, the teacher normally focuses on the teaching of phonics. Thus phonetic sounds might show up on the Valentines in the baskets.
A phrase such as “I only have eyes for you” would reinforce a lesson on how a “y” could have a long “i” sound. A phrase such as “Let’s be good friends” could reinforce a lesson on how the “ie” combination can denote a long “e” sound. Each of the many Valentine’s messages would have the ability to strengthen the familiarity of the students to the sound for each letter combination.
One writer living in Los Angeles County has an idea for Valentine’s Day gift baskets. She got the germ of her idea more than 15 years ago, when searching for some special Valentines. She then wanted Valentines that had more than a two or three word message.
At that time, the writer was planning to give a Valentine to each student in a Resource class at an elementary school. The writer knew that the students in that Resource class needed to practice their reading skills. The writer wanted her Valentines to motivate the students to tackle and read the written word.
After much searching, the writer finally came across some Valentines that were not your traditional Valentine card. The writer found Valentines that had been given the shape of a square. Each face of the box-shaped Valentine held a different Valentine’s message.
The writer purchased those Valentines and gave them to the Resource teacher. On Valentine’s Day, the teacher distributed the Valentines among her students. The writer later found one Valentine in the home of one student.
While baskets are usually associated with Easter, Valentine’s Day Gift Baskets could be used to encourage the most reluctant readers to find some element of fun in reading. Such baskets would have objects that were squares, pyramids and other geometric shapes. Each flat surface on those many geometric shapes could carry a different Valentine’s message.
A teacher might want to share such baskets with her students. The students would no doubt be curious to know what message was on each face of the various geometric shapes. The teacher might encourage each of her students to let others read the words on the many-sided objects in their Valentine’s basket.
The students who received such gift baskets would have additional material to read. Still, that material would be presented to them in a new and novel manner. In that way, the students would be more tempted to take the time to read all the words on each object in at least one basket.
By coordinating the Valentine’s messages with the material then being presented to the students, the gift baskets could serve as a wonderful supplement to any lesson taught in the classroom. In a resource classroom, the teacher normally focuses on the teaching of phonics. Thus phonetic sounds might show up on the Valentines in the baskets.
A phrase such as “I only have eyes for you” would reinforce a lesson on how a “y” could have a long “i” sound. A phrase such as “Let’s be good friends” could reinforce a lesson on how the “ie” combination can denote a long “e” sound. Each of the many Valentine’s messages would have the ability to strengthen the familiarity of the students to the sound for each letter combination.
