Tired of the same old Valentine’s Day for your kids? Create magical memories for your children with these Valentine’s Day literacy activities that make hearts and minds grow!
Homemade Valentine’s
Instead of buying pre-made Valentine’s Day cards, have your children write their own. Encourage them to write a thoughtful Valentine to a parent or grandparent that uses more descriptive adjectives and complex words to explain why they love them. These also extend to their classmates, siblings, and friends! Even if the cards are a little messy, the effort and personal touch will mean the world to grandparents, siblings, and friends.
Writing Poetry for Valentine’s Day
The classic poem “roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet and so are you” can be easily adapted to teach kids about rhyming. The last two phrases can be re-written with just about anything that rhymes with blue. Try helping your kids write their own Valentine’s Day poetry to give to their friends and family.
Secret Message Decoder
Turn your little ones into detectives with this Valentine’s Day literacy activity that introduces them to entertaining secret messages! They’ll love cracking the code while learning new problem-solving skills!
Start by assigning each letter a unique symbol, such as a heart for “A,” an arrow for “B,” and so on. Write a secret Valentine’s Day message for your child to decode, like “You are loved!” or “Be my Valentine!” Hand them a “key” showing what each symbol stands for and let them crack the code.
Once they’ve mastered decoding, let them create their own secret messages for friends or family to decipher. This activity is perfect for sparking creativity while also practicing problem-solving and literacy skills.
Love-Themed Word Games
Get creative with letter tiles: Grab some Scrabble tiles (or make your own!) and see who can spell the most heartfelt words before the timer runs out. Making up your own rules adds a personal twist and keeps the game lively for everyone. Set a timer and try to assemble 5 words that begin with the letter “L” for “love” or “V” for valentine within the allotted time. Or work together to use all of the letters to build a crossword of words that are all connected.
I “LOVE” the Alphabet
Begin with a word that begins with the letter “A.” For a Valentine’s Day theme you could start the game with the word “adore.” The next person chooses a Valentine’s Day word that starts with a “B” like “beautiful.” Then next “cute,” “darling,” “envelope,” “friends,” etc. until you cover the entire alphabet.
If you need to get inventive and stretch the rules a bit, that’s okay! The letter “x” can be a difficult one, so use the symbol for hugs and kisses “xoxo,” which is perfect for Valentine’s Day! Want to level up the game? Challenge everyone to remember the full list of words—it’s a memory test with a Valentine’s twist!
Love Languages Dictionary
One of our favorite Valentine’s Day literacy activities will have your kids learning about the many ways to express love while boosting their vocabulary!
Build a “Love Languages Dictionary” that features words for love in different languages, such as “amour” (French), “amor” (Spanish), and “爱” (Chinese). For added fun, encourage your kids to draw pictures or use stickers to illustrate each word. Try this: Next to “amour,” they could draw a heart or a couple holding hands.
Your kids watch their dictionary come alive filled with love—and they’ll pick up a few new words along the way!
First Letter, Last Letter (Valentine’s Day-Themed)
Perfect for spontaneous fun and it does not require any props or pieces. The game starts when someone says a word related to Valentine’s Day. The next person has to say a love related word that begins with the last letter of that word. If the game begins with the word “kiss,” then next word could be “swoon” and then next word could be “nice” and so on. Perfect for kids in grade 3 and up, or who can read and are comfortable spelling words on their own.
Beyond the candy and cards, Valentine’s Day opens doors to word play and vocabulary building. Ready to make learning an adventure?
Ready to spark your child’s love of learning? Connect with School is Easy today to discover more creative educational activities tailored to your child’s needs.
