I don’t know about you, but St. Patrick’s Day is one of my favorite holidays to celebrate with my kiddos! I love using holidays to sneak in lots of fun learning opportunities! And this shamrock counting busy box activity is definitely one way I do that!
What are Busy Boxes?
Busy Boxes go by many different names. They’re called task boxes, task bins, busy bags, busy bins… You get the idea. But no matter what you call them, they are WONDERFUL to have in your classroom! They small boxes or tubs that have activities in them that your kiddos can do independently. You put everything needed to complete the activity in the box so that they can grab one, take it to their spot, and stay busy working on it without having to get up and down!
My favorite boxes to use are these adorable colored photo cases! But you can also use pencil boxes, tubs, or even Ziploc baggies!
When Do You Use Busy Boxes?
I use Busy Boxes to keep my kiddos busy during transition times. Our district serves breakfast in the classroom each day, and when they are done eating, they can get a busy box. I’ve also used them during centers, arrival time, and for early finishers! You can also use them with a small group. Anytime you have a few extra minutes, and you want to keep those little hands occupied, these are great activities to pull out! No matter how you use them, the important thing to remember about Busy Boxes is that your kiddos should be practicing skills they already know! If you give them something brand new, they won’t be independent with it, and that’s really the whole point of Busy Boxes!
Shamrock Counting Busy Box
This St. Patrick’s Day Busy Box is a great example of how simple it is to use Busy Boxes in your classroom! First, you’ll need to decide if your kiddos need visual counting support or not. If they do, you can use counting cards with dots so they no exactly how many objects go on each card. If they don’t you can give them cards with blank ten frames, and they can create the sets of objects on their own!
Once you decide which cards your kiddos need, just print, laminate and cut! Put the cards inside the plastic box with the counters their going to use. When I give this counting activity to my kiddos, I use these adorable shamrock mini erasers! But you can also use green play dough and your kiddos can make their own shamrocks to count!
All that’s left is to add the label to the top of the box, and it’s ready to go! As we say in my classroom, it’s easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy!
St. Patrick’s Day Busy Box Activities
This counting activity is only one of ten Busy Box activities in my St. Patrick’s day set! There are activities for letter recognition, letter sounds, letter and number tracing, counting, colors, and more! You can check them out HERE!
I’ve also got St. Patrick’s Day circle time games, writing center activities, and question of the day! You can fill your room with shamrocks and leprechauns for this fun holiday! You can read all about my St. Patrick’s Day circle time games HERE!
I’d love to hear from you once you’ve used this fun activity in your classroom! Make sure you come back and leave me a comment to let me know how much your kiddos loved it!