Unschooling and Valentine’s Day
Valentine's Day may or may not be your cuppa tea.
It's ok.
You may LOVE Valentine's Day and want to recreate some of the fun you remember from your own school days.
No matter which way you fall with this, here are a few ideas to spread the love a little... and give the unschooled kids a little nod to the tradition.
Here are my TOP 10 Valentine Ideas
+ a Bonus Idea!
#10. History.
Let's start here. According to the research, Valentine's Day doesn't have the sweet origins that many of us believed... that came later. YouTube can help you learn about the true start for Valentine's Day. To be honest, some of the videos are a bit dark and... kind of disturbing! Some kids may not mind it at all and enjoy knowing all the different possibilities. Parents may want to screen the videos so you're not caught offguard!
Here are a few of possible origin stories:
- In an attempt to bring Christianity to the Pagan communities, celebrating Valentine's Day was to replace the Roman festival of
Lupercalia
or - A Catholic priest name Valentine offered to marry couple even though the Emperor made it illegal. When the priest was discovered, he was sentenced to death. A few other possible tales come from this story...
- Couples whom he had married sent him notes and flowers of support (to the first Valentine)
- He fell in love while in prison and sent a note saying, "From Your Valentine."
- More at the History Channel on this.
This video also gives the history of the Candy Hearts, card-giving, and more.
Here's a link for other
Valentine videos for Kids.
Including, Curious George, Charlie Brown, Peppa the Pig, etc.
#9. Valentine Jokes!
Leave riddles on the bathroom mirror!
See if they can guess!
What did one elephant say to the other elephant on Valentine’s Day?
I love you a ton!
Is your name Chapstick?
Because I think you're da balm!
What did the pickle say to its Valentine?
You mean a great dill to me!
What’s Cupid’s favorite band?
Kiss!
What did one cat say to the other on Valentine's Day?
You're PURRRRR-fect for me!
What do you call the world’s smallest Valentine’s Day card?
A valen-teeny.
What did the one sheep say to the other?
I love ewe!
What did the calculator say to the pencil on Valentine's Day?
You can count on me!
Knock Knock!
Whoʼs there?
Olive
Olive who?
Olive you!
Knock Knock!
Whoʼs there?
Arthur
Arthur who?
Arthur any more chocolates left?
Knock Knock!
Whoʼs there?
Howard
Howard who?
Howard you like a big hug from me?
Knock Knock!
Whoʼs there?
Justin
Justin who?
Justin time for Valentineʼs Day...I love you!
Need a few more Valentine Jokes?
50 Jokes from Parade Magazine
65 Jokes from Pioneer Woman
#8. Heart Marshmallow Tinker Toys
STEM activities are all the rage - and we've been playing with these things for decades! Long before they were called "STEM!" Anyhoo... still fun.
I've never seen the heart-shaped marshmallows (except on Pinterest!) but we've done this with regular mini-marshmallows.
#7. Valentine's Day "Grazing Board"
Charcuterie boards aren't just for fancy people!
Make a kids' version with all their favorite foods. Think red/pink theme and it will be a HUGE hit!
#6. Convert Gingerbread House to Valentine House!
Did you have big plans for that Gingerbread House Kit you grabbed at Target?
Or maybe it was in the Clearance aisle after Christmas, and you couldn't resist the sale price!
Regardless of why you still have a Gingerbread House kit in your pantry, Unschooling Mom Ava Love Hanna shared how she converted hers to an adorable Valentine House! She just needed sprinkles and Valentine candies to morph into the holiday. (Yes, the characters are made out of the frosting provided in the $8 kit from Trader Joe's!) This got me thinking that you could buy up several and work on your housebuilding skills - a new Holiday House every month!
If you make a Valentine house this year - or if you make one on any of the other holiday months (Ava says these kits can be kept for a YEAR!) - share the photo in the comments or tell us about it!
#5. Valentine Food!
You can't go wrong with chocolate - at least at my house! But there are so many yummy options! You could use cookie cutters to cut pieces of watermelon or cucumbers, sandwiches, rice krispie treats, pepperoni for your pizza! Time to get creative!
#4. Valentine Games
Here's a collection of Minute to Win It Games using Candy Hearts.
Or try some Valentine's I Spy
You can create Heart HopScotch games with Construction Paper.
Or Tick Tack Toe with red/pink M & Ms - or red and white TicTac Breath Mints!
#3. Valentine's Day Science!
You really can't go wrong with a Volcano for Valentine's Day ! And this crafter's link will give you a video to see what all this entails. Plus the ingredient list and suggestions - even a video link.
But don't stop there - Valentine's Day is a great way to explore science!
#2 Donuts for Valentine's Breakfast!
Last minute moms unite! We can always hop over to the donut shop to Valentine Up the breakfast while the kids sleep in. This mom has some printable cards for you to use!
#1. Show Your Love!
A truly unschooling-aligned activity! Write what you love about your child onto a heart (cut from construction paper or foam). This crafty mom put the hearts on their child's door, while others put them around the house for their child to discover!
This could be fun to do for the week leading up to Valentine's - or declare it Valentine's Weekend, or all of February can be Valentine's Month!
Or add what you love about them onto post-it notes and hang on the mirror in the shape of a heart!
Great Ideas at Pinterest!
Do you need a little help in the Creativity Department?
I've collected so many ideas for you to play with over at Pinterest. You can look it up as Unschooling Mom2Mom or use the button to go straight to the Valentine Board!
Your kids are going to have so much fun!
- Valentine-related Science Experiments
- Valentine Stories
- Valentine Jokes
- Valentine crafts
- Valentine foods
- Valentine Ideas to Connect You & the Kids!
Leave comment if your family had some favorites!
BONUS!
LOVE LANGUAGES!
Let's add one more way to connect with the kids! Valentine's Day is the perfect time to see what their Love Language is - and isn't! They can learn what everyone in the family's Love Language is too. It will really be so enlightening - and fun to find out!
Fun Valentine's Memes
Feel free to Pin!
