What About Student Birthdays?
Posted by Diane Badden on 23 Jun 2010 | Posted in: Drawings and Giveaways, Holiday and Seasonal
“How do I celebrate student birthdays? And what about students with summer birthdays? I want to be fair. I want to be fun. This is going to cost money, isn’t it?”
On Saturday afternoon, the enthusiasm and concerns of a first-time teacher had me grinning from ear to ear. We were celebrating her uncle’s birthday. It was the first time I’d met Keily and we instantly connected, as teachers usually do. Keily is one of the lucky few who have landed a first-year teaching position for the fall. As we munched on our burgers, Keily sweetly peppered me with new-teacher wonders. Her questions were thoughtful and her demeanor confident—until the moment her aunt emerged with a brilliantly lit birthday cake. “Birthdays!” she sputtered. “I forgot all about birthdays! How do I do that?” I just had to giggle.
How do you celebrate student birthdays in your classroom? What are your biggest birthday-related challenges and how to you solve them? What about those summer birthdays?
One more thing! Since a birthday often means a present of some sort, all readers who comment on this post (until midnight EDT on June 30) will be entered in a drawing for a “birthday present” from The Mailbox.
Smiles,
Diane
152 Comments |
Subscribe
|
Email This
I cannot thanks enough for that blog.Thanks Again. Much obliged.
A school birthday celebration is NOT a legal indicator of the person’s birthday. I’m not an attorney, but I provide this statement to take the birthday of ANY member into account. I think a combined celebration for the summer birthdays cheapens those birthdays. Please provide INDIVIDUAL acknowledgement for a summer birthday, just as if it fell during the school year. Half-birthday for a person in that situation is a good idea, but remember that a birthday or half-birthday falling near Christmas may need other time adjustments so it it isn’t overshadowed. (Of course, you could also have a birthday which is on a weekend that year, or a Feb. 29 birthday when the current year is not a leap year.)
I am a grownup (and not an educator). Birthday; August 2. I was criticized when I was younger for not having enough activities with people my age, and it wasn’t helping matters when I had an out-of-season birthday.
My first graders and I celebrate the birthday child with a musical serenade! The birthday child sits in a chair and we stand in a circle around them. Then we sing and sign “On the Day You were Born” by Red Grammar.
I do every child in my K4 class the same. At our first group meeting they get a morning message written about them on the board, then they are giving a big Happy Birthday Sticker.. which my group LIVE for stickers!! The special birthday person automaticaly becomes the teacher’s helper and gets to be the line leader. I arrange ahead of time for the parent to bring in a special snack for snack time. If a parent is unable for whatever reason to bring in something then I will provide something so no one is ever left out of a in class birthday party. We sing “Happy Birthday” get a birthday crown and certificate. I have made it a rule (though not told to the kids or parents) that I will not attend parties outside of the classroom. TO make it fair.. I cant attend all them and do not want to show favortism or anything. We have a special day in class that is enough… the rest is for close family and friends.
To begin the day, the “birthday” student comes into the classroom and sees “Happy Birthday to ——-” on the board. We sing Happy Birthday and a pre-made kid-friendly birthday card is passed around for classmates to sign. During the summer I look for inexpensive gifts to give as birthday gifts (pencils, bracelets, etc.) Summer birthdays are celebrated during the last week of school. *A birthday chart remains posted throughout the year and new students are added to the poster as they arrive in our classroom. Students who had a birthday during the summer and were not previously at our school, are celebrated during the first week of school.
For the many years, I have students with summer birthdays celebrate on their 1/2 year birthday. Also at the beginning of the year each child makes a card and signs his name on the back of the card he/she made. When it is someone’s birthday, I pick one of the cards and everyone signs inside and then the student who made the card presents it to the birthday child.
Thank your for the great ideas for birthdays, I have found that children in my class like to make cards and pictures for their friends, so making a keepsake book is part of the party day celebration, along with a group project of making the cake/or cupcakes. We like to decorate the cake/cupcakes as part of celebration of eating the tasty treats. I use use muffin mixes, or from scratch to keep the sugar low. In our classroom, I try to schedule the child’s birthday around his/her turn, as “student of the week” so their birthday is special all week long giving us time to make the cards/pictures for the special keepsake book that parents love to look back upon.
For me, school starts in August. I split up the July birthdays during August and the June birthdays during May (which is our last month of school). What I do is give every student a birthday crown (made of a large cupcake diecut which has “Happy Birthday ____” and their birth month and date [not the year] written on it and then stapled to border trim - which is leftover that I haven’t used in years … or that can be bought at DollarTree.), I also give them a pencil that says Happy Birthday on it (also bought at the dollar store - in a box of 12), and a badge shaped sticker that says Happy Birthday (also bought at the dollar store).
It’s cost effective for me, the students LOVE it, and each child is recognized for their birthday. It’s also not that much effort on my part.
I put up the months of the year horizontally across the wall for my preschoolers - high enough to be out of reach, yet low enough to see each day. Each month I create themed birthday markers that I put under each month in order by date. We have fun seeing who has a birthday this month, next month, etc. We create a picture booklet for the birthday boy or girl - each child colors a picture card for this. And, I include a pencil and eraser for the birthday child, inexpensive, but they like it!
I celebrate each birthday in my class with a crown, a few special privileges,a small treat bag (pencil, eraser, birthday bookmark, stickers,party favors or anything small I can get plenty of, and a trip to the treasure box. If the family wishes, they may provide a special snack that day. (If not, I’ll bring popsicles or cookies)
For the summer birthdays, I have an “unbirthday” week when we celebrate all those, (including mine ;)who have a summer birthday.
My biggest challenge is when we occasionally have a student that doesn’t celebrate birthdays. I have to find a way for them to have a “special” day without it being a birthday!
In my first grade classroom we create a poster for the birthday student. The students sit on the floor with the birthday student sitting in a special chair in front of them, and start by singing “Happy Birthday”. Then, on the poster I write “Happy Birthday, ___” using his/her favorite color. We then think of ways the birthday student is unique and special. He/she calls on classmates and I write what they say on the poster using different colors. Once everyone has shared an idea, we all sign the poster for the student to take home. We spend just as much time on the poster as we would eating cookies or cupcakes. I think highlighting each student is a much better way to celebrate, and we practice using describing words! I love hearing students tell me where they’ve hung their posters at home. For summer birthdays, I celebrate the child’s 1/2 birthday since it’s during the school year.
We get to celebrate birthdays in my classroom. Parents send cupcakes or come in and help us celebrate. I have a birthday bag with goodies.
I have my children draw/write a birthday wish for the birthday child. The page says”Happy Birthday from your friend _____________.” My wish for you is _________.
The birthday child colors the cover of the book and it says: Today I am 6!
After each child draws and writes I bind all the pages together with the birthday child’s colored cover on the front. The birthday child takes home the special birthday wish book from their friends! It doesn’t cost anything and families treasure these special books!
I have a special birthday shirt that students can chose to wear. It is embroidered with fun birthday things…cake, presents, etc. It’s large enough to fit all students. Most love to wear this shirt over their clothes, though a few opted not to wear it. Our birthday kid gets to bring a snack (or I provide one if they don’t) and passes it out to the class. We sing happy birthday and wait for the birthday kid to eat a bite before the rest of the class can. I also give the birthday girl or boy a certificate and pencil. After our birthday snack is over we make the guest of honor a special book that I later bind together. Finally, birthday students are encouraged to bring a book to sign and share with our classroom library. We think of this student when we read it throughout the year. Summer birthdays are celebrated in the last few months of school. Birthdays are a big deal in our class!
I teach Kindergarten where birthdays are a biggie. At the beginning of the month, I put a small birthday cake cut out with the students name and birth date. Students look forward to each students birthday. On their birthday, I pin the small cake to their shirt and they let everyone know it is their special day. We sing a birthday song from Greg and Steve. Sometimes students send in treats which we eat during snack time. Over the years students have received books, prizes, or pencils. I have seen several good ideas and plan to use some of them next year. Thank you for the wonderful ideas.
I usually have each child write a “Birthday Letter” to the child who is having a birthday. These letters are compiled into a Birthday booklet for the special child. They love reading what their friends have written to them. This can be followed by singing HB to the child and having a special treat provided by the child’s family.
Two years ago, I found a really cool idea for celebrating birthdays. I copied the page and I use it for every birthday to make that child a birthday book. The page says, “Today is _____________’s birthday, and I will give him/her ________________. There is an area that looks like a present with a bow on top for the students’ names. I give everyone a page while the birthday child writes his/her name on the board and a list of things they would like and their fav color. Then I set the timer for 15 min and everyone, including me makes the child a page for their birthday book. The picture has to include a drawing of them handing the birthday child their gift. This is a big part of the fun too. The birthday child makes the cover out of 9x 12 construction paper. We gather around the birthday child and they “read” all of the their presents. We sing, have a treat and enjoy the time together.
My preschool class makes a birthday card for each child on their birthday…a simple large piece of construction paper folded in half with some stickers placed on it. Each classmate signs the card, which is then presented in the afternoon. Summer birthdays are celebrated on the 6 month anniversary.
I love the “lucky penny” (Tina, #118) idea, and will definitely add that feature.
In our classroom we make the birthday part of the writing curriculum. Everyone gets to make a card telling the birthday person the best thing about them. We have a musical bear that sings to them near the end of the day and they get a special birthday pencil and activity book. All summer birthdays get celebrated within the two months before summer or the first month of school.
I make a big deal out of birthdays. Many of my students don’t get much at home, so it’s important for them to get something at school. I normally make a crown for them to wear throughout the day, and a badge to wear. My birthday person is my helper in the morning, where they read our morning message. I also make sure that we sing Happy Birthday to them in the morning, and right before our snack time. If the parent’s offer to bring in something for their child, then I have them do it at lunch time (makes for a less hectic afternoon). If the parent does not bring in anything for their child, then I make sure that I have a special snack for the child, and a treat bag. Sometimes, even just a simple pencil and sticker makes the day seem so special to the kids. For the summer birthdays, I have an “end of year/birthday” celebration on the last full day of school. We do it the same way as the other birthdays, by singing happy birthday to each child, and giving them a special snack and gift.
As a summer baby whose half birthday is Christmas Day, I make it a point to make sure that each child has a special day.
The birthday child receives a birthday card with a lollipop or Tootsie roll attached.
They get to do their favorite job that day [most like being the grace helper or calendar helper]. I have a ribbon that announces to everyone that today is the child’s birthday. They can wear this ribbon all day and take a birthday sticker home with them.
Many parents bring in cupcakes, although this year my preschoolers weren’t big on cupcakes so we had Oreos on many birthdays.
The birthday child gets to pick the afternoon read aloud and sit next to his/her favorite person while the story is read.
I try to make birthdays special for each child.
My students usually bring in a treat for their birthdays. We share the treat after lunch. We also sing to the birthday boy or girl. I also give the student a sticker and a pencil. The students with summer birthdays celebrate their half birthdays. At our school we also have a “Birthday Bash” once a month. One day during the month the students who have a birthday or a half birthday that month get to eat lunch with the principal. They also get cake and ice cream. The students love the special attention and the yummy treat.
I give each child a birthday bag filled with cards, a hat, a special napkin for snack, books, pencils, etc. We have a board in our room that asks, “How Old Are You?” Each child has a caterpillar with their name on it by their age. When it’s their birthday their caterpillar turns into a butterfly and moves to their new age. They are growing and changing just like the caterpillars. They love this!
I always add the birthdays to our class calendar. This way they get to see who is coming up next. Our principal hand writes cards for every student in our school, so that is waiting for them on their desk when they arrive in the morning. I also have a birthday certificate, pencil, sticker and treat waiting for them. We always sing happy birthday at the end of the day and enjoy some sort of snack.
For summer birthdays, I have a scheduled day towardsthe beginning of June for a “summer birthday celebration”. Kids can bring treats to share and we play games too.
The ones during the school year we celebrate if the parents want to. The ones during the summer I send them a card and maybe a gift card. I also have a box wrapped as a big birthday gift where the lid comes off and the birthday children get to pick from that…
I teach 5th graders who want to celebrate but also be cool in the process! I have a poster with everyone’s birthdays posted. If their day arrives when we are in school, I post “Happy Birthday to ______” on the board and they receive a certificate/bookmark, Smartie candy and Free Homework or 5 Points Extra Credit pass. For my off-school or summer birthdays, I randomly choose a school day and have an “Unbirthday” day, same as the other with the same treats. This way everyone gets to celebrate during the school year!
We sing “Happy Birthday” to the student. They get a certificate and get to pick a special prize. Summer birthdays are always a challenge. I usually let the student pick a day during the year they would like to celebrate.
I do spend some of my own money on student birthdays. Small class sizes help with that! This past year, I gave each third grade student a special birthday pencil with a fun eraser topper. The class sings, of course. Parents sometimes bring snacks at the end of the day. Summer birthday students received the pencils at the end of the year.
I teach 6th graders and until this year we were in the middle school so we celebrated with our advisee groups instead of the whole class. As a group we sing a rowdy version of “Happy Birthday”! I give each student a special pencil and a piece of sugar free candy!
I love some of the other ideas shared though so this year it may be something new!!
wow do not think I could top any of these, we make a crown, we play their choice of game, music, dancing, they would be first to eat, and get their pick of the prize bin. of course singing HB is all part of it, the treat is either from the parent or we provide, and we are a year round program so we celebrate all bd’s ~♥
The best birthday that my teacher ever gave me as a student was in high school in my French class. She laid a simple index card on my desk. The clue was written on the index card in French. I followed the directions and found another card…and another, etc. At the end of the scavenger hunt, I discovered….a box of Twinkies to share with my classmates! That was amazing!
I celebrated 1/2 birthdays on the day when the child turned 4 1/2. e.g. celebrate July 10th birthday on January 10 and August 28,29,30,31 birthdays on February 28.
Wow! There are so many thoughtful and creative ideas listed here to celebrate birthdays! I think I will borrow a few of them and change what I have done in the past.
We sing HB to the student and I give them a birthday pencil, a bookmark, and a sparkly pin for them to wear that says “It’s My Birthday!” Parents sometimes send in a special snack that is eaten at lunch, although I would like to change that in the future to a non-food treat.
I have a birthday bulletin board with all the birthdays on it and each month I put birthday stickers in the calendar. On the birthday, the student gets to wear his/her sticker, the class signs a card I make on the computer, I give each student a birthday certificate w/fruit snacks taped on, a birthday door hanger goes on the classroom door, the student decorates a birthday visor, they can bring a treat to share if they want and we sing “Happy Birthday”. The office also calls down the birthday students and the principal gives them a card and pencil. 1/2 birthdays I do the last month of school.
During summer break I search for pennies with the birth year of my students coming into 5th grade in September. I glue the penny onto a birthday certificate. They love getting a “Lucky “penny as they refer to it. I also give them a pencil and a homework pass for one assignment. We usually celebrate it at the end of the day with cookies or cupcakes.
We start our the day with the students’ birthday being announce over the speaker. Then everyone sings happy birthday, the student receives a crown, bookmark, certificate and gets to pick a frog made from beads. I have made them, so they are all a little different. We clip them to their backpacks. The last month we celebrate tbe same way for summer birthdays. For example, if the students birthday is July 5th, we celebrate on May 5th, August 2 would be on May 2, etc.
I celebrate my students’ birthdays by giving them a certificate award, their names are announced over the intercom, we sing Happy Birthday to them and they can choose a gift from my birthday basket I have designated in my classroom.
I teach kindergarten, and we recognize birthdays during Morning Meeting. I do most of the usual things. In the Morning Meeting the birthday student receives a birthday crown and pencil,and we sing Happy Birthday. At the end of the day they receive a Birthday sticker and a gift from the treasure box. During the last week of school I choose one day to recognize Summer birthdays. I send a note to the parents letting them know that we will have a “Summer Birthday Celebration.” I also invite the parent’s of those students to send in a snack item if they would like to. I serve the goodies at snack time and we sing Happy Birthday to all those students. Each Summer birthday students receives a sticker and a treasure box gift at the end of the day. The parents appreciate the extra effort to let their child celebrate their birthday with their classmates.
I love to celebrate birthdays! I let the person who has a birthday choose a job for the day (aside from the normal “weekly” jobs students choose). They also get to pick a surprise from the Treasure Box. Each student who has a birthday gets their name announced in the morning with the school’s announcements. We sing Happy Birthday and celebrate with parents at the end of the day. I also send home a birthday postcard in the child’s Take Home Folder.
I teach kindergarten. I have a chart with all of the birth dates listed (because each child must learn his/her birthday during the year),so it is hard for me to forget. In the beginning of the year, I figure out the 1/2 birthday for each child born in the summer. On the 1/2 birthday or real birthday the child brings in a brand new book wrapped in birthday paper. The birthday child opens the gift at morning meeting and shows the book to the class. If the book is short, I read it and if the book is long, I pick a few pages to read. Then the book goes in the “Birthday Book Basket” (picnic basket with hinged lid decorated with ribbons). On the last day of school, each child picks a birthday book to keep (not the one he brought in). Also, before the book goes in the basket, the birthday child signs it. Also, the child gets a “Happy Birthday” sticker at morning meeting and, at the end of the day, a ring pop to take home. The parents and the kids enjoy this celebration over cupcakes and gift bags.
I teach third grade and have successfully avoided the treats/lack of parental follow through issues by doing the following instead of passing out treats.
-made 2 birthday chair covers (pillowcases would also work) to have on their chair for the day
-designed a “Have a sweet birthday” wrapper for a large candy bar
-classmates complete a page for the birthday book which I bind during lunch
-spin a spinner with favorite class games or activities (like 7 UP, statues, improv, etc) then we play for 10 minutes
-whole class reads a birthday poem or sings the HB song in a style (opera, country, rap, slow motion, etc)
For summer birthdays I make them wait till the last week of school then I send them out of the room for half an hour while the rest of us quickly assemble a surprise party where they get all the same things the others get. Some years it takes a loonng, long, time.
For religious objections, I pick any day out of the year and I hand the large candybar to the student and tell them how much I appreciate them.
Usually my students bring cupcakes, which I encourage instead of cakes. However, our counselor at school also gives my students a ribbon and a pencil, and I add a bookmark and a ticket to visit my treasure box, or for one day without homework. For that day, the student is also allowed to skip his or her assigned job (from the job wheel) and we sing the Happy Birthday song.
Birthdays in our class vary each year. Last year it was bubble gum. I have a small display board which had a caption reading, “POP in for your birthday!” I made a little boy and girl and used pink partially inflated balloons inserted in their mouths resembling bubble bum. Then I had a treasure chest with a gumball design filled with individually wrapped gumballs. On their birthday I added a small gumball machine cutout with their name/birthday and they could choose a gumball to enjoy at home. They also get to be helper/line leader all day. This year I am using a beach theme. My display board has a beach mat as background and the caption reads, “It’s Your Birthday, Have a Ball!” I am adding a large inflated beach ball pinned in the corner of the board and a beach bag filled with small foam water balls from the dollar store. The birthday child will choose a ball to take home on his/her birthday. Each year I try to have a different theme.
During our preschool year, we celebrate on or near each child’s birthday. The preschool provides a crown, book (use our Scholastic points), and a treat bag. The treat bag includes birthday stickers, birthday pencil, and something that the child chooses from the treat bucket to add to their bag. Parents are invited to send in special snacks for the day. During the last week of school, we celebrate our upcoming summer birthdays with a big party.
I love Mary’s (#96) ideas! I’m going to use the 1/2 birthday idea and the coupon idea!
I love birthdays but tend to have a difficult time with getting the celebration in, so this year–I’m going to plan ahead and have everything made and ready to go in a file folder so I can just pull it out on the given day for that child. This year I put a cupcake calendar card with child’s name and b-date on it to put on the calendar for the month–and that helped me a lot.
I teach 4th grade and wasn’t sure about wearing a crown–but I did it one year and they loved it–I just vamp it up for a 4th grader. I will be doing the crown again this year. I make a crown out of tagboard material and use part of a sentence strip to make it long enough. I personalize it by writing their name and other things that they love (favorite sports/animals, etc) all over it add sparkles, stickers, and little mini candy bar bites up on the points of the crown–so it is theirs to take home and eat.
I bought a cute Carson Dellosa birthday 2-sided cut out that I will hang over their desk for the day and will give them a choice of a coupon (from Mary’s ideas). BUT this time–I’m going to have each crown and several different coupons made and ready to go! The crowns will have names already on it, and then I can just add the candy and the special sayings unique to that child as I get to know them. On the first day of school we do a get to know you letter and I will put that in my file folder so I can reference favorite sports, animals, authors, activities to add to their crown.
Weekend birthdays will be celebrated the Friday before. Our principal gives students a postcard and pencil for birthdays each month. Parents are allowed to bring cupcakes/cookies which we do the last 30 minutes of the day.
QUESTION–which summer birthdays are celebrated??? The summer before school starts or the summer after school starts???
I love all the different ideas!
In my kindergarten classroom, I do most of the usual things to celebrate students’ birthdays, such as the birthday pencil and crown (this year it was a visor). One thing that hasn’t been mentioned is the birthday mini poster. I received these as a gift from Highlight’s magazine. The poster has a place for the child’s name and birth date on the front and a picture of a cupcake that is a scratch and sniff. After we sing happy birthday, I print “Happy Birthday from your Kindergarten friends”, on the back of the poster, sign it,and then pass it around the circle for all to sign. I was surprised to see how excited the birthday child was to receive this and how eager the others were to sign it.
On a related topic, how do other teachers handle passing out birthday invitations at school?
I easily forget birthdays. I have a chart too. I’ve tried a lot of things, but finally I found what works for me. I don’t celebrate them as they come. I have a big birthday party in January to celebrate every student’s birthday. Everyone feels included (summer birthdays too) During open house at the beginning of the year I tell the parents and students that if they wish to bring cup cakes on their (actual)they are more than welcome. Some kids do and some don’t bring anything. It is Okay with them becasue in January we have a big party. We prepare the party together. We work on a budget and then I go and purchase the hats, cake, ice cream, birthday bags/favors.
I really liked Suzan’s cake activity. I do many of the things mentioned. The one inexpensive gift I do is gum. Gum is usually not an allowed treat, but on their birthday they get to choose a blow pop or bubble gum and eat it in class.As for summer birthdays, its all about turning 6 in kindergarten. So, some summer birthdays I celebrate in August when school starts, and some we do in May when school is ending.
I teach preschool, 3 and 4 year olds, and the children celebrate their birthday on the given day or a day that is the closest. Summer birthdays are celebrated in May. Every other year I change gifts from the teachers. One year they get a pinwheel and then the following year they get a small birthday duck. They look foward to both of these gifts. We also make them a crown and give them a birthday napkin and certificate. They get to sit at the head of the table and their parents and siblings are encouraged to join us for the celebration. The parents are asked to bring in messy snacks and the child then passes out the napkins or plates, while the parent passes out the messy snack. It is a fun time for all.
I make a birthday graph the first week of school and this helps introduce our weekly graphs. I keep the birthday graph up all year next to our calendar/math centers, so the kids usually remind me of upcoming birthdays. I have birthday postcards I write out at the beginning of each month, so I am prepared for the special day of each child. When the birthday child walks in, the postcard and a pencil are waiting on his desk and the rest of the students sing “Happy Birthday.”
I celebrate birthdays in the classroom by giving them a small gift and the class sings to the student. But what about those students whose bitheday is over the summer? I was one of those students so I send them a birthday postcard and have their gift for them when they come to school in the fall. I let them know that I wish them a happy birthday and that they will be getting a samll gift when they come to school. I have had many parents say how important it made their child feel to get a birthday postcard from their teacher. Often the students will metnion that they got the card and how happy it made them feel. The look on their face is priceless. I wouldn’t trade that for anything.
In my second grade classroom there is a birthday box that the students can pick a present on their birthday. I have a card and birthday pencils on their desk,and I blow up balloons and tape them to their desk.
I am a preschool teacher who for the last two years has had a child with religious beliefs that doesn’t permit celebrating the childs birthday or attending birthdays. Therefore, I have had to keep the celebration to a minimum and have the child visit another classroom during the birthday childs celebration. Comments or suggestions would be helpful.
I have a poster with everyone’s birthday listed. On their special day they get to wear a crown all day and we sing happy birthday at circle time. If the birthday is on the weekend or over the holidays we celebrate the Friday before. School policy only allows for cupcakes or cookies along with juice boxes to be brought- small goodie bags can be passed out as well. I have a birthday box that I keep filled with books that I buy from the dollar section at Target and I allow them to look through the box and coose a book to take home. I include in the book a card and birthday badge. For summer birthdys we have a grand celebration during the last few weeks of school- allowing each summer b-day a day to themselves to feel special.
I worked in a preschool where we celebrated the children’s birthdays by creating a chest. Inside the chest we put huge stickers that the children could wear throughout the day to have everyone know that today is their birthday. We also had a crown that the children could wear. We then asked the parents of the birthday child to bring in a favorite snack of their child. The child would then help pass out the snack to their friends.
For the children that had a birthdays in the summer we would set aside a day especially for those children, t we would then have a big party in our room. We would play party games.All of the summer birthday children would be able to go in the chest and pick a big sticker.
I teach 1st and 2nd graders. At the beginning of each month I put a decoration the lockers of students that will have birthdays in that month.
I buy bulk birthday cards and give each child a couple of dollars or a gift certificate tot he Dairy Queen. I buys a selection of birthday pencils that they get to choose from. I used to give them a crown or button but some of the studenst weren’t too excited to wear them so I stopped buying those.
Like other teachers I also have a birthday chart indicating the dates of each child’s birthday. Those students with summer birthdays celebrate on their half birthday. Our fifth graders are required to write in cursive unless there are special needs to consider. So, along with the “Happy Birthday” pencil and a cake shaped “smelly” sticker, I include a coupon for a “no cursive” day. This goes over quite well, and students are always excited to hand in homework that’s printed! Other coupon ideas have been,1 free assignment, 1 free non uniform or casual dress day, write with a gel pen day, and a coupon allowing them to use the colored dry erase markers to draw something special on the board!
whooo!
what a hot issue,
in my case i train nursery school teachers. all i just advise them to do is choose a date especially, a schools special date and becomes a birth day for all and hence call it ”the school birth day day”
but trully am not sure as to wether am right or not.
so lost in my own opinion.
I have the children make a big “birthday cake” for the birthday child.
This is how it’s done. The class makes a big circle, the birthday child stands at the center of the circle. We ask him “how old are you today?” If the answer is 6, he is asked to choose 6 children from the class to be his “candles”. The “candles” then form a small circle aound him. They put their hands together then put the hands over their heads. The class in big circle hold hands (to form “the cake”) and sing “happy birthday to you” while go around the circle and the “candles” individually turn round and round in place. When the singing ends, the birthday child “blows” each candle. When a “candle” is blown, the “candle” goes out(squats).
This can be done indoor or outdoor. We once did it during a field trip. Every birthday child loves to choose and blow his candles. And other children love to be chosen as a candle. The children really enjoy it. And there’s no preparation involved
I teach 4th grade.
I list the class birthdays on a poster. I give the student a birthday pencil.
The day of the birthday, the student sits on a stool at the front of the class with a cowboy/cowgirl had on and chooses two students to record the answers to the questions students take turns asking about the Birthday Student. Each student is given a blank 4×6 index card to make a card that reflects the Birthday Student. I have already hole punched the card. I also make a card writing in the students favorite color their name and various positive character qualities and area they excel in. I put a key ring through my card, so the student can add the student made cards to it.
We then sing a special birthday song and I take a picture with the student and other classmates to use on the class DVD I make. Usually the parents bring in either donuts or cupcakes. The birthday student selects the students they want to help pass out the cards, napkins, and treats.
I celebrate summer birthdays The last 3 weeks of school; I can take more time then, because SAT testing in completed. I also do this when it is my birthday.
I am a Kindergarten teacher. We have a special birthday hat (Dr. Seuss style) that the birthday child wears while someone takes a picture of the child with me. This picture is saved for our year end scrapbook. As a class, we sing several versions of the birthday song. The birthday child is given a special time for show and tell. The topic is the child’s choice. The child is then given a special birthday bag, complete with balloon, bubbles, a book and a small toy. Each classmate draws a special picture or writes a message for the child, which is bound into a book. We encourage creative thinking for the birthday snack - a scoop of ice cream in a cupcake liner, a popsicle or a brownie provides a sweet treat without the excessive frosting that tends to accompany a cupcake treat!
I have done many different things for birthdays throughout the years and I have enjoyed reading about some new and exciting ideas for celebrating birthdays.
Our school has a morning assembly each morning (instead of the students being on the playground). We say the pledge, the principal gives announcements, including birthdays and each Ss will recieve a certificate and pencil by the end of the year. June and July birthdays are celebrated to the coresponding day in May and August birthdays are celebrated upon returning to school. This has cut down on parent competition w/birthday treats and we don’t have to worry about losing teaching time for a party. Simple store bought treats can be brought in by parents which we hand out at snack or just before the end of the day.
I teach kindergarten; I have a box and lid that I’ve decorated with a festive birthday paper and put a fancy bow on the top. I’ve filled it with Scholastic book bargains or gently used books found a garage sales or Goodwill/ARC. The birthday student chooses a book and I always write a special message on the inside cover of the book with the date.
My school covers this for me. Each Monday all Birthdays for the week are announced during our weekly assembly. We sing our special birthday son to all and the principal passes out a pencil to all. Summer birthdays are covered during the first and last weeks of school.
I teach preschool. Our school has several birthday vests that we keep at school that the birthday child can wear while at school.The child may chose a friend to go with them to the office to get a vest to wear. I also have a special birthday sign that I attach to my marker board with magnetic tape for each child’s special day. At the beginning of snack time, I ask the child what their two favorite colors are and I use those colors to draw a cake on a plate with the appropriate number of candles. We sing to them as a class and I take pictures with my digital camera. The child then makes a wish and “blows out the candles and eats the cake” with a marker eraser. We then have snack(parents are allowed to send in a special snack if they chose to or bring it during snack time.) The child also gets a special treat from a treat box. I then email pictures of the “day” to the parents and I put a birthday page with the pictures in their “end of the year memory book”. I let the parents chose when to do summer birthdays. They have a choice to celebrate a “half birthday” or one of the days during the last several weeks of school. Parents seem to really appreciate the choice and the pictures.
I teach in a preschool so my children come year round. The children and their parents decide what they are going to do for their birthday. Some provide lunch and cake for the class, others send in cake and ice cream. I have a birthday prize box for the child to pick a gift. We sing Happy Birthday and they also get to pick our story. We have chapel each week and all the children with birthdays that week go up and everyone sings to them. Then they each get to tell if they had a party, what kind and their favorite gift. They also get to help lead the songs for chapel that day.
I teach toddlers and we celebrate first with a birthday sign on our home base door so everyone knows we are celebrating a special someone. The birthday child gets to wear a birthday hat and receives a birthday star sticker. Generally, the children will bring in packaged treats to share with their friends and we all sing “Happy Birthday”. Each birthday child receives a book from the center to take home as theirs.
I am a first grade teacher and first graders love to celebrate for any occasion especially birthdays. I wanted to do something that was unique but also inexpensive. So I make my birthday student a balloon animal. They absolutely love it! For those of you that are thinking “great idea” but I don’t know how to make balloon animals, neither did I. This is how I learned. I went to you tube and typed in how to make balloon animals. You will find videos from how to make the simplest balloon dog to the more advanced. You will need to buy a balloon pump and a bag of balloons. There is about one hundred balloons in a bag. I think it cost me about $12.00 for both items. The best place to get these is at a store that specializes in party supplies. It really is a lot of fun.
I buy a 99 cent birthday card and have all the students sign it. We all sing “Happy Birthday.” The birthday child is the line leader and paper passer all day. I also have a birthday box filled with little things (bracelets, bouncy balls, pencils, suckers, etc.) and the birthday child gets to pick something. The last week or two of school we celebrate all the summer birthdays (one each day.)
I teach year-round, full day preschool. For birthdays, the birthday child gets a sticker and a sign for his locker. I let the children pick out 2 stories for group time and he gets to choose if he wants “cha-cha-chas” while the class sings Happy Birthday. Finally, the class makes a list of words that start with the same letter as the birthday child’s name.
I teach first grade self-contained ELL. All of my students are learning English as their second (or third) language. As each new month arrives, I write the students names and birthdates on small cut-outs and put them on the calendar so kids can see when they have birthdays. Birthday kids get a HAT (crown), where I write their name and their age. I get these at teacher supply stores, but you can make your own if you choose. For SUMMER BIRTHDAYS, we celebrate half birthdays. For example, if Alfonso’s birthday is July 25, we will celebrate it 6 months early (on January 25) and then I write on his hat 6 1/2 years. We sing Happy Birthday in English and Spanish (and other languages in the classroom if kids can teach us!). I also pull on their ears 7 times (one for each b-day) and then pull another for good luck. This is custom where I grew up and the kids think it is hilarious! They also choose a prize from the BIRTHDAY BOX. I watch for deals through the year and try to spend $1 or less on each prize….bubbles, books from Scholastic, pencils, etc.
I teach 2nd grade and as a surprise for my students. I write Happy Birthday on their desk with a dry erase marker and draw balloons or hearts or something. I do this before the students arrive to class. It is really great to see their faces when they come in the classroom. We also have parents that bring in cupcakes that they eat at lunch. For summer birthdays, I pre-buy birthday cards in bulk (They have a 24 pack at Ross stores for like $3) and I mail them to my students who have summer birthdays.
I teach preschool. The parents bring in a special snack for their birthday. I have made a fake cake out of styrofoam circles a patching putty with candles. I also make wooden numbers and paint them for each child. We celebrate summer birthdays the last several months of school by letting them have their own special day. This year we are having a parent come in on the special day and read their child’s favorite book.
I teach preschool and the children only come a couple days of week. I found it hard to celebrate each child’s birthday close to their actual day and I was frustrated because I would miss many summer birthdays and early fall birthdays. This year I decided to have one great big birthday party for the whole class. Everyone wore a birthday hat, birthday name tags and everyone received a gift. I decorated the classroom for the party and my centers were around birthday themes. We also had one great big birthday cake with everyone’s name on it. The children absolutely loved the birthday party and I plan on doing it this way again next year (I may even bring in a clown or some other special birthday party guest). The parents told me their children talked about the party for days before and after. A huge success and no one was missed.
I teach in a preschool classroom. Since we are in “school,” all year long we celebrate students birthdays on their actual day. In the morning the student receives a birthday crown. At our morning meeting the student gets to pick out a birthday wand (a variety of pointers, in my classroom collection, that I get back) and a birthday book (I have a collection of books about birthdays and they just pick one out for me to read, I get them back). Students use the wand during morning meeting to help with calendar time, weather time, and morning message. They then get to sit in their king or queen chair next to me while I read their chosen birthday book. During snack students can bring in a treat as long as it is store bought. We sing the birthday student happy birthday in a silly way and I usually let them blow out a few candles. During centers that day each student makes a page for their birthday friend and I create a book for the birthday child. Birthday students also get a certificate and prize out of the prize bucket! Lastly students get to take the classroom birthday book home and illustrate and write about what they did for their birthday having their parents help them. My families love to get involved and then the book acts as an ongoing class book that the students love to read and remember their birthdays!
On the day of each birthday my students wear a button that says “Birthday Girl” or “Birthday Boy”. Right after our lunch recess, we celebrate with a snack brought from home. It is usually cupcakes or cookies. Although our district is encouraging healthy treats, the sweets seem to be the preferred choice. We practice good manners during the snack time by waiting until the birthday student has taken the first bite before the class eats the snack. We always say please, thank you, no thank you, etc. while the snack is being passed out. I give each student a plastic pencil box from Walmart (50 cents during the back-to-school shopping time) and a page of stickers for decorating the box. The pencil boxes come in a variety of colors so I let each student pick the color they prefer. Our school secretary and librarian give out birthday pencils so the pencil box is perfect. We sing happy birthday to each student in a silly way. I stand behind the birthday student and hold their hands out in front of them and wave their arms like a crazy orchestra conductor as the children sing happy birthday. When done, I ask the child how old he/she is and then ask if he/she wants his/her age in hugs or smacks. Smacks are kisses on the forehead. As you can guess, most choose the hugs. We count the hugs or smacks out loud.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading everyone’s ideas for birthday celebrations and plan to incorporate a few new things. Thanks so much!
I teach High School, and have found that my students LOVE to celebrate their birthdays! (I ask their birthdates at the beginning of the year & note if any students don’t celebrate their birthdays for religious reasons.)
Like elementary teachers, I announce birthdays on my board, decorate paper cupcakes for my students birthdays, and give them a pencil and a bookmark. I buy these in bulk, and I believe that the expense is well worth the students’ appreciation. Some will say they don’t want them, and I don’t let it hurt my feelings if they give them away to another students.
I teach in a very impoverished area, and often times students say that is the only thing they received for their birthday… sometimes I am the only one to remember them.
Remembering birthdays is a great way to make a personal connection with students, and it’s a simply way to show you care - as long as you stay organized and keep up with it!
I teach a self- contained class for children with special needs K-2. Birthdays are big events for us. Some of my parents bring in cupcakes, etc. but whether they do or not, our class bakes birthday cupcakes for the birthday child. This gives us different teaching opportunities! We have switches and adaptive devices so that each child can participate in the mixing and measuring. (Lucky for us we have a kitchen as part of our classroom suite!)I also hang a birthday flag and bring a birthday balloon to the child–and of course we sing.
We celebrate birthdays not just in the classroom but in the whole school. We have a birthday bulletin board in the main hall of our school. Each month I select a theme and decorate the board with the names of all students, faculty and staff celebrating their birthdays that month. They look forward each month to see what kind of crazy thing I have come up with to celebrate their special month. Everyone receives a special “Happy Birthday” cookie at lunch on their birthday from the Principal who also acknowledges each birthday during morning announcements. For students who have summer birthdays, they are celebrated on their half birthday throughout the year.
I am a preschool teacher and birthdays to these little ones mean everything. Each child, on their birthday, brings in birthday plates, napkins or cups to have snack on. I make a crown for each child out of foam and add die cut shapes to it. The children usually wear it all day. I also have them bring in their favorite book and we dedicate a circle time to the birthday child by singing happy birthday and reading their story.
I have a “Birthday Box.” In this box, I have a plastic Happy B-Day Banner, a pad of stationery in the shape of a birthday cake (can get at any teacher’s store); some laminated sentence strips and a calendar chart that we get out the 1st week of school & complete with all birthdays listed according to month. We have a birthday celebration once a month; children celebrating can have a parent bring in cupcakes (not cake that has to be sliced & served) or some other treat; I usually provide the drinks (2 gallons of Hawaiian Punch is only $5.00); on the child’s actual b-day, I make them a “Hat” by stapling a piece of the birthday stationery at the top of the sentence strip with the words: “Smile if you know today is my birthday.” I put the child’s name in permanent ink on the sentence strip (remove it with rubbing alcohol later) and fit the strip around his/her head like a king or queen’s crown…..summer birthdays are celebrated along with the June birthdays for a goodbye/promotion/birthday celebration. Also, each child gets to come up to the front of the class and tell what s/he would like for their birthday and ideas are put on the board…each student then gets a photocopy of a birthday cake that says, If I were to give you something for your birthday, it would be (they then fill in the blank from the list on the board) AND then draw a picture of what they would give to the birthday child…..the birthday child gets this to take home as a remembrance of his/her Kindergarten or 1st grade birthday (never tried this in any other grade)…..
I teach Kinder or 1st depends on the year. On my school supply list I list a box of cake mix, frosting and cupcake liners. On my wish list I ask for applesauce. Over the years parents have donated an electric mixer and cupcake baking trays. On the child’s birthday the child and I make cupcakes for the class. I have the parent send 4 eggs and I use applesauce instead of oil. I use a Kindergarten kitchen to make the cupcakes. It’s a great bonding moment for me and the child and often times, it’s the first baking activity for them. I have also asked a parent to come and make them with their child and when I have an assistant I have her work with the child as well. It’s a good use of 20 minutes. Every child remembers it as a “favorite” moment in their year in review. For summer birthdays, we start celebrating the first week in May at one per week and if there are several we celebrate in pairs. Our school is out by the end of May.
I hang color lunch bags labeled by month in my room. All students are listed on their birthday month bag with the date. The summer birthdays pick an “un”birthday within the first week of school and it goes on the month’s bag in (parenthesis) and that is the month/day we celebrate. I have a summer birthday too, so I pick a day and month and I bring treats. They love that!
The birthday student selects a sticker strip of their choice, and they get a pencil, and a “get out of one assignment free *not test or quiz* coupon” from me.
They bring in treats if they want and we sing either happy birthday or happy “un”birthday.
It helps to celebrate throughout the year - not all summer birthdays the last week of school!
I teach 1st grade and we love to celebrate birthdays! We sing to each birthday child at our morning meeting and he/she receives a birthday crown, pencil, balloon & bookmark. We celebrate with birthday treats at either snack time, lunch or at the end of the day(whatever works for the parents, they usually join us or send something in. Children with summer birthdays pick a day in late May or in June to be able to celebrate in school with classmates. I have laminated birthday cakes for each month above our windows. At the beginning of the school year, each child decorates a candle with his/her name on it to put on their cake.
I teach Kindergarten and this past year I had many summer birthday’s to celebrate. I decided to make those summer celebrations 1/2 birthday celebrations during the school year. I was thrilled with the response from parents & students. I send home an All About Me poster the week before a birthday or a 1/2 birthday. The student becomes star student and birthday student for the week. That special student is also line leader. A parent can bring in a birthday snack or drop it off for a special treat near the end of the day. As a class the birthday/star student gets to “read” the All About me poster to the class and serve the special snack. Earlier in the day everyone writes a birthday note and birthday boy or girl gets a lovely booklet. I also give a birthday certificate and a pencil (Oriental Trading). I also found very inexpensive star student and birthday stickers at the dollar bin at Target.
This past year I changed things up for my 5th graders. On each student’s birthday, I encouraged the children to bring a gift for our area women’s shelter. We donate to the shelter throughout the year, and the students know the needs of the children in the shelter. The kids really loved the chance to share with someone who doesn’t have as much as they do. A treat brought from home makes it a perfect day!
At the beginning of the school year, I pair the children up. They interview each other. They then use the information to create a Birthday Bag for their partner. I collect the bags and organize them according to birthday month. When it is the child’s birthday, I put a few treats, a Birthday pencil, and a Birthday bookmark in the bag. When the students come in that day, the child’s birthday bag is on his/her desk. At lunch students are allowed to share cookies or donut holes (if parents wish to provide them). On my monthly calendar, there is a cupcake icon on each birthday during that month. I also have a Birthday sticker which can be worn if the student wishes. For students who have a summer birthday, I do the above in Aug. for July/Aug before school starts birthdays, and in the first week of June for the students who have June birthdays after summer vacation begins.
I teach 6th grade. I celebrate birthdays by writing the name and birth date of each of my students on a paper cupcake and hang it on the appropriate day on my bulletin board calendar. One their birthday each child receives a piece of candy and the cupcake from the bulletin board. I give students with summer birthdays their treats in May on the day that corresponds to their birthday ie. May 11 for a June 11, July 11 or August 11 birthday.
I had an old birthday poster with a clown on it and balloons for each month to write on. I cut out the clown and laminated it. On one of the first days of school, I give the students a paper balloon to decorate any way they choose. The only requirements are that I can clearly see their names and birthdays written on them. I have those laminated and file them. At the beginning of each month, I attach a piece of yarn to each balloon for that month’s birthdays and tape them to the wall above the clown with the strings all meeting in his hand like he is carrying the bunch of balloons. I put June and July birthdays with the May bunch.
I also have a Mystery Prize box of dollar-store items that we use for our “Homeworkopoly” game (Google that - it’s great!). The birthday honoree gets to choose from that box for his/her gift. I love Trish’s idea of making a special book for each child from his peers, and I think I’ll add that, too. The families usually send treats, so we sing and celebrate that way, too. Summer birthday kids have a choice of celebrating on their 1/2 birthday or in May. While I try not to spend too much time on birthdays, I also try to make each child feel special!
I have a poster that I list all student’s names and the date of their birthday (each balloon has the title of the month). When the birthday arrives for a student I give them a pencil,bookmark, a birthday card (printed on card stock) and 5 tickets. Tickets are used in the classroom like money and are earned for a variety of good deeds, working well in a group, a group turning in all assignments for the day, etc. The tickets are then used to purchase items in the class store. Summer birthdays are celebrated during the first week of school so I do not miss any birthday.
I have a birthday poster in my class. But each year the first week of school a birthday graph is made. The students have to do a survey, using a tally chart, then use a bar graph to record all birthdays. After the graphs are completed I fill in my poster. Parents are allowed to send in a treat, but we cannot sing Happy Birthday. On the day of your birthday or the Monday or Friday of your birthday week students get to have lunch in the room or out at the picnic tables with their best buddy and the teacher.
I teach preschool so we really like to celebrate birthdays! On their special day the birthday child gets to be the magic helper…meaning they get to do all the helper jobs! They get a birthday crown, a card that I make and the other kids in the class sign. They get to choose a little treat from the birthday box (standard small toys). We also like to sing happy birthday in silly ways (really fast, really slow, as ugly as we can, dancing, jumping, etc.) Then they share their treats for snack time. It is always fun. I also have summer birthday kids celebrate at school on their half birthday, it is fun and always gets the other kids thinking about when their half birthday is.
At the beginning of each year I print off a Happy Birthday “label” for each student that gets wrapped around a candy bar. (I get three labels per page, landscape style.) I’m able to change the name for each student so that it is personalized. I also include my name and a “wishing you a great day…!” that gets wrapped around the back of the candy bar. I put the date in pencil at the bottom edge of the label and put them in a file folder according to the birthday month. So when November rolls around I can check my folder and pull out the students who have a birthday in November and be ready when the date arrives.
In my 3rd grade class, we also make a birthday graph at the beginning of the year. I highlight the dates on the monthly calendar as well. I buy 2 dozen “Happy Birthday” pencils each year. We sing to the student, unless the parent objects, and they are welcome to bring any treats to pass out to the class.
I make a card for each birthday with a large piece of construction paper and allow each student to sign it throughout the day. The kids love it - the signers and receivers! So many kids do not receive any birthday anythings from home - it amazes me!! I have also allowed the birthday child to choose from the treasure box or I have given a special pencil along with their card. My fourth graders and now sixth grade all have enjoyed this.
Also, as I clean out closets at home, I have found birthday crepe paper and a pink and a blue birthday pin on ribbons that I think I will incorporate into my class this next year. Maybe decorate the students desk with the crepe paper and they can wear the birthday ribbon all day at school.
I purchased a small birthday beanie bear that the student gets to keep on his/her desk for the day. They also get to wear a birthday sticker and use a brand new birthday pencil. I have seen teachers buy birthday bulletin border and cut it to be a crown to wear for the day, also.
I teach 5th grade; so, sometimes there is not a lot of time to allow for “celebration.” At the beginning of the year, I teach the kids how to sing “Happy Birthday” in sign language, Spanish, and the restaurant version. Students get to sit in the teacher chair, which is a tall director’s chair and choose one version to have the class sing to them. Some years, I have been able to eat lunch with them on that day, too.
I teach full day kindergarten and I celebrate every child’s birthday unless parents wish otherwise. For summer birthdays we celebrate them in May and June.
During the first week of school I introduce the book “Happy Birthday To You!” by Joy Cowley. It is a book about colors and has a repeating text. I also have made a pocket chart version for literacy centers and each child makes a small book version to add to their book basket. We talk about birthdays and months of the year. Each child decorates a small cake and we graph it and leave it up for at least a month or so. When I take it down I add the cake to a small memory book for the child. We also add a birthday cake on the calendar for each child for the month. During the month we count how many birthdays we have for the month, how many days till someone’s birthday, and whose birthday comes first, next and last for the month. I have a monthly snack calendar and birthdays are always put on the calendar. I always send home a note at the beginning of the year letting parents know how I celebrate birthdays in my room. Since some families do not celebrate birthdays this gives parents time to communicate their wishes with me. On the day of the child’s birthday or the next school day I make a crown for the child, a card and a large birthday sticker to wear and give a birthday pencil. The child may wear the birthday cape inside the classroom and they pick a prize from the treasure box. After recess and before writing we have their birthday snack that is store purchased (school food policy)by the parent. I usually ask parents to send in a small snack like juice boxes and yogurt or crackers but they like to bring in cupcakes. I leave it up to the parents. If a parent cannot afford or has forgotten I always have snack available just in case. We sing happy birthday, I take a picture of the child and then everyone may eat. We then brainstorm words about the child and make a “wordsplash” (web graphic organizer). Then we do a shared writing about the child. Children then individually write about the birthday child and I put the pages together to make a book for the child to take home. I enjoyed all the great ideas and will add some to my collection.
We use a chart, and the date is posted on our classroom calendar using a special cupcake icon with their name on it. Parents are invited to bring in a birthday snack, but as a team our teachers decided that treat bags would stir competition. Even students with summer birthdays celebrate. They can chose a date 5 or 6 months away from their real B-day. The students recieve a birthday certificate and pencil. The class sings Happy Birthday to them before we share the snack.:)
I teach first grade and birthdays are a big deal for my students. I get birthday crowns for the children. On their day, they wear their own crown with name and birthday on it. Most of my students bring in a birthday treat, so sometime during the day we sing happy birthday to the child and enjoy the treats. I make everyone wait until the birthday child has taken the first bite before they can enjoy the treat. As far as gifts go, the children get a birthday pencil, bookmark and most years a regular large balloon to blow up when they get home. For summer birthdays I let each child pick a day, usually the last month of school to celebrate their day, that way everyone gets their own birthday celebration.
I too make a birthday graph with ellison cut out cupcakes which I have each child decorate during the first week when we are getting to know each other. I post this graph where we all can see it during the year, this helps me to remember their birthdays as well. At the beginning of the year, I make each student a crown from birthday borders I get at the dollar store and another cut out from the school machine usually a star. On the special day, We all sing happy birthday with a goofy dance to go with it. Privately I give them a certificate I printed for free online and a pencil I ordered inexpensively from oriental trading catalog. For summer birthdays, I set aside one day near the end of the year. At our school we do an alphabet countdown for the last 26 days of the year starting with Z- zebra day and ending with A - All done day. On S day we celebrate all summer birthdays. Some years we sing the song and do our dance so many times we can’t help but fall over laughing. So much fun for the little ones.
To ensure each summer b-day has their own “special” day, we celebrate 1/2 birthdays. I read Happy Birthday Contrary Mary and the child does the following: chooses a b-day crown, mixes up the words to Happy Birthday on our birthday chart, and chooses friends (one for each year) to represent candles. I try not to get “tricked” singing the mixed up version. In Kindergarten, they are able to sing the words by the second semester for my birthday.
They get a certificate with candy/toy, take home the birthday bag/journal, and we celebrate during snack with a treat from parents or treat we’ve made in the class.
Somtime during the day we take a class picture with the student holding a sign saying “It’s my birthday!”. I print out a 4 X 6 picture and glue it on a triangle banner made from poster board. I punch holes on one end and put curly streamers through them. Then students in the class sign the banner. I found a hat box that I covered with birthday material. I stock up on a variety of books and store them inside the birthday box. The birthday student chooses a book for their gift which I sign on the inside telling them Happy Birthday!
I got “promoted” to third grade this past year (after 21 in K) and wasn’t sure what to do about 9-yr.-old birthdays. So I went with my heart. Every child, no matter what the age, wants to be recognized. First, I graphed the birthdays of the class before the year began, so everyone could be aware of the birthdays coming. As we reached each birthday, I gave the child a card, plus an Accelerated Reader book that I had gotten from Scholastic at their dollar sale. The class always sang “Happy Birthday” to the child, also. When the end of the year was coming, I counted how many summer birthdays there were and gave each child a day to be celebrated before the end of the year.
I remember when my daughter was in 1st grade. Her teacher had all of the students draw a picture and write something positive about each member of the class at the beginning of the year. She then bound all of these together and presented them to each student on their birthday. We still have that book even though 1st grade was 13 years ago! For younger children, a picture and maybe one word (which could be written by the teacher or assistant) would suffice. I think it’s always nice to hear positive things from your peers.
My school has a policy that we do not celebrate individual birthdays with treats, drink, and parents everytime one of the kids has their special day. So, we have scheduled birthdays once a month. We do summer birthdays at the end of August. Then, each month, we have about a 20 min. party where the parents of the children (for that month) coordinate to bring in the cupcakes, drink, paper products, and/or a goody bag for the class. We sing happy birthday to all who had/will have a birthday for that month. Then, the class chants, are you one, are you two, etc. until we get to their new age and they yell, “Stop!” My kinders think this is the greatest fun. We briefly discuss what they did/will do for their birthday plans and then we eat the treats. The remainder of the class has to wait to eat their treats until the birthday child(ren) take a bite first. The parents either bring in or send in the coordinated treats and clean up when it is done.
On our monthly calendar I list all of the “special” days and events that will be coming up and have each child’s notated. If it is their birthday month they always know how many days it is until their special day (you can bet they are counting all month long!). We also sing Jack Harman’s Birthday song which the children love. On their birthday children get to wear a sticker that says…Today is my birthday!
The principal announces the birthdays on the intercom each day and the children go to the office after announcements for a small gift. I decorate the desk, using bulletin board paper, with a message from me and ask each student to sign during the day, like a card. We sing “Happy Birthday” and give a pencil and sticker.
I like the birthday bag idea and will include that in my celebration. Also, we celebrate the summer birthdays during the month of May, each child has their own day.
For the first birthday of the year, I read a book like Happy Birthday Danny Dinosaur or Five Little Monkeys Bake a Cake. We talk about how birthdays are special and might be celebrated differently in different cultures.
Parents are invited in to read on their child’s birthday. As per school policy, there is no food celebration. Names are announced over the PA system and I give everyone a birthday certificate, pencil and a “no homework” pass. We celebrate June July birthdays on the half birthday.
This year for birthdays I gave the students a birthday bag, pencil, ruler,sharpner, and a card.
The class sang Happy Birthday and the birthday student brought in snack that day or close to thier birthday as possible. Summer birthdays were celebrated either at the beginning of school or end depending.
Last year I was not able to celebrate birthdays due the religious beliefs of a student but I did the snack w/o the song, if was not as much fun.
I thank everyone for the interesting ideas they shared and may rework my birthdays this year to include new ideas.
As always thanks Mailbox and collegues for inspiring ideas.
Many of our parents sent treats to celebrate their child’s birthday. But, as many have noted, parents started to try to out-do each other. It got to a point where clowns, balloons, flowers, even singing telegrams were becoming common. With the new healthy eating/physical activity initiatives, I started letting the birthday student choose from a list of activities instead of eating treats. Some choices are: 15 minutes of extra recess time, extra gym time, participating in one of our activity DVD’s which include dancing, exercising, creative movement, or even taking a “nature” walk. This has become very popular with the children and the parents.
I make up a birthday bag for each student. I put a pencil, birthday sticker, birthday bookmark, and a sweet treat in each bag. I have a monthly birthday lunch with all the students who have a birthday that month. They can invite a friend. We eat, visit, and open our birthday bags. When that is finished we play Uno together. They always love to put “dirt” on the teacher.
I teach preschool in a private pres-5th grade school. My collegue and I got tired of parents outdoing each other with ultra sweet birthday treats and felt bad for the child whose parent did nothing. We’ve created a new way of celebrating, which doesn’t involve parents at all. (They actually appreciate this) On or near the child’s birthday (half-birthday for the kids born in summer) the child decorates a birthday crown and wears a birthday pin. Our dramatic play area is set up like a birthday party complete with banner, table cloth, party hats, cups, plates etc. Each of the children make a birthday card at my writing table which contains: stencils, stickers etc. At snack time we sing the birthday song and each child spreads frosting on a graham cracker (great for fine motor skills!) It’s so simple, the same for everyone and most important: the kids love it!
Birthdays are important to 5-6 year olds, so I want them visible throughout the year. At the beginning of the year, I have the students help make a “birthday graph” by placing their “cupcake” over the month of their birthday. Both Jack Hartman and Jean Feldman have terrific songs for birthday practice. (Music, music, music!!!) We keep this as part of our calendar for about the first month, using it as graphing, counting, comparing #s, learning bdays, etc. practice skills. Later, I move the cupcakes to the correct month over the b.board (b/c I need the calendar space), but continuing to recognize by month and placing the cupcakes on the calendar each month. We have a birthday cake hat I ordered with removable candles on the top that we wear for a nontraditional bd song, and each child gets a small bd gift bag.
At the beginning of the school year, I put everyone’s name and birthday on a poster. On the day of the student’s birthday we sing Happy Birthday to them. I give them a magnet to put on their desk that says Happy Birthday. I give them a birthday bookmark and pencil. If child the won’t be at school during their birthday, we celebrate the the last day they are there. I really like some of the ideas I read and hope to use some of them this year.
At our uniform school a special dress day along with daily announcement(and Happy Birthday song), a ribbon and, children usually bring in a treat for the class to share at morning recess. I read here and will incorpoate into my third grade class this year, writing with a gel pen for the day and, a specially decorated Birthday chair. My daughters have alreay started drawing up plans to decorate the chair.
I go along with Wendy when we celebrate birthdays in my class. I give each child a pencil, special bookmark, desk card and sticker to wear. We also sing HB to the child during milk break. Our principal announces all the birthdays for each day on the morning announcements and delivers a gift (School logo water bottle, key chain or simple backpack) to the birthday child. We also have one day each month where every child with a birthday that month gets a special cupcake for lunch. On the birthday lunch day, senior citizens come and serve cake to everyone. Only the students wearing a special birthday sticker get a cupcake. I like the idea of a birthday card signed by all the students, too. Usually the birthday child brings a treat for the class. If not, I step in with a treat. It seems to work for us.
Our school celebrates the student’s birthdays every Friday. They are presented as a slide show on our closed circuit television announcements. The child holds a blow up birthday cake while sharing their name, birth date, and new age. For example, “My name is Mandy, my birthday is October 27, and I am/will be 9.” We celebrate summer birthdays on their half birthday. Our school’s principal also gives the students a ribbon and pencil on their birthday. In my classroom, children can bring a snack to share with the class. Due to the expense of giving a gift to all my students, I’ve been hesitant to start giving everyone something. I think this year I will try some of the suggestions I’ve read here!
I have a brightly painted chair in my room called the “birthday chair”. When it is your birthday, you can sit in the chair for the day. It is a low-key [and low-calorie!] way for the kids to feel special. Of course, kids who have b-days that fall on the weekends/summers/holidays, etc., are able to pick a school day to sit in the chair. When visitors come into the class they always comment on the student sitting in the chair.
For a couple of years, I gave my kids a slip of paper at the beginning of the year that asked for their name, birthdate, and the type of candy bar ( choices were listed) that they’d like to have for their birthday “present” from me.
At the beginning, it wasn’t a big deal, I felt like the kids thought of it as a special treat, which is what it was meant to be. The second year, the kids had a different attitude…as if they were owed it in some way. My feelings were different with that bunch of kids I guess.
Then a lot of information began to be distributed about feeding kids sweets, the amount of time kids were sedintary, and of course issues on their weight.
These were the things that made me rethink the candy bar idea. This past year, I did nothing special for the kids, but I feel like most everyone else on this post, kids need to be recognized for their birthday. Some kids brought their own treats for the rest of the class, others were taken out for lunch, some had big parties, but the ones whose parents didn’t send anything and the kids acted like their birthday was not special in anyway. Those were the ones that bothered me the most this year.
So, I’d like to do something this coming up year as well. Since our weekly assemblies include a recogniton of kids in many ways, birthdays included, on a monthly basis, I think the announcement of birthdays during the week during morning announcements may be a huge undertaking…but I’m still toying with that idea. Our school is not that huge, about 450 kids, but still.
I think I will get pencils and small sweet treats again this year. I liked the idea Ms. Mercer had about simple celebrations wih this.
Thanks for the nudge everyone gave to this topic.
I give each child a birthday sticker, pencil, and certificate when they first arrive. The whole class sings HB to them while the child does a crazy birthday dance. They are recognized on school announcements too. Summer birthdays are handled the last week of school. I also have a monthly birthday bulletin board that not only recognizes the student, but helps me not to forget anyone!
all birthdays are displayed on class birthday train and everyone celebrates on the date or closest to it.i always make the birthday child a crown and give them a small gift with a certificate.they usually bring in a cake to share with all of the preschool classes and may provide an extra snack for our class. happy birthday is sung in assembly and around the blowing of candles.just finished celebrating our summer birthdays so everyone is happy about turning 4!
Thanks for the great ideas. I can’t wait to try some of them this year. I am definitely going to do the no uniform day or make It’s my birthday! T shirts for my children to wear. I am going to encourage the high fives and hugs too! It will easier with a birthday t shirt for people to tell whose birthday it is. I love the idea of crafting a birthday crown when they arrive in the morning. I am going to start collecting supplies right away and put them into a container to use just for this. I’ll check at Burger King to see if they will donate cardboard crowns then I’ll reverse them to the blank side. What fun!
My third graders get to write with a gel pen or rainbow pencil all day on their birthday. Summer birthdays are celebrated on the half-birthday date. Since our students wear uniforms, students get to have a “dress up” day (no play clothes,but they don’t have to wear their uniform). Parents may send in a small snack if they choose, but I insist it be individually wrapped so those that choose to take it home with them instead of eating it at school can do so.
You can make a list at the beginning of school, then place all of the birthdays that fall into January, February and so on. Once that month comes up you celebrate all of the children’s birthday that come in that particular month. They get to sit at a table set up just for them with hats, cake, ice cream. The other children receive cup cakes and ice cream. Parents of the birthday children can visit.
Parent Involvement Activity
You can also have parents make cupcakes and a cake (one parent can make the cake and the other parent can make the cupcakes (just give a head count for the cup =cakes) and one parent can bring the ice cream.
For the children that have birthdays that fall during the summer. have their birthday party on the last day of school and as close to the last day of school and you could plan a cook out along with the party. Again have the parents help with that as well.
I have a BIG box filled with books (most I have gotten at yard sales that are brand new or very gently used) I have it wrapped with laminated birthday paper–the kids just take off the lid– and I put it on the birthday person’s desk…they open it up and then pick which book they would like!
I also made a t-shirt with puffy paint that says, “It’s my birthday!” the birthday child gets to wear the shirt for the day!
The birthday person gets to use a supply box filled with markers (this is the favorite treat!)
We pass around a homemade birthday card that everyone signs…and the birthday child gets to pick who gets to color it!
We do summer birthdays either on the children’s half birthday….or I do them one day at a time the last two weeks of school.
oh yeah….
I also like to get crayons on sale at the beginning of the year…usually 10 cents a box and buy a bunch of them… I put a birthday sticker on them and give a brand new box of crayons to the birthday boy/girl.
I give each student a b-day treat bag with a birthday pencil(school provides) noisemaker and certificate(from dollar tree)and a pack of fruit snacks which are cheap(i mean like .50 for a box of ten) when on sale with a doubled or tripled coupon. It’s easier to buy enough for each student that way u have them on hand.
Birthdays are a great time to focus on a single child all day long. A couple of pitfalls to avoid as a new teacher would be: 1. Set guidelines for parents so they don’t go overboard with goodie bags and decorations or even bring in a clown. At first this didn’t seem so bad but then I had parents trying to outdo the previous party either because their child begged them to or they felt obligated in some way. 2. Avoid wait time while a cake is being cut by telling parents to bring something that is individually portioned like rice krispy treats,brownies,special cookies, iced donuts with sprinkles or ice cream cups with sprinkles to shake on top. I ask them to avoid cupcakes-they look festive but they are hard for young children to handle and they don’t like them that much. 3. Avoid hurt feelings by telling parents to send birthday invitations in the mail and not asking us to put them in folders at school if they are not inviting everyone in the class. I do all of this by printing a note for each child (except summer bdays)on computer stationary at the beginning of the year. I leave a blank space for the child’s name and the date we will be celebrating their child’s birthday during the month. Then, at the beginning of each month I fill it out and send it home to the families whose children have birthdays. I encourage parents to send in supplies in the morning so that we can have the party during our morning snack time just before recess (this keeps us from having to wait until a parent arrives with items just in the nick of time or late). They may of course join us if they like. We discuss party manners in advance, how to eat over the plate or use the napkin as their “crumb trap” and not play with food. How we wait until everyone is done before we clean up and we don’t ask for more; we wait until it is offered. We make sure to let the host know we enjoyed it and thank them for including us in their special day. The parents are always so impressed when they see the good manners and the children cleaning up after themselves.
I call my kindergartners “The Big Dogs” so whenever I can I use things that have a dog theme. Check out Birthday Express/Celebrate Express for some great themed items. Before the children arrive I decorate the birthday child’s desk with a fun laminated doggie placemat, a doggie birthday cardboard standup and a special dog pencil to use for the day and take home. When they arrive they get a birthday sticker and choice of a birthday crown/hat or puppy ear headband to wear. At calendar time they get to add magnetized paper candles to a paper cake on the white board (you could also draw one or have them draw right on the board) while the class asks…”Are you 1?” and the birthday child answers, “No.” “Are you 2?” “No.” until they finally get to the correct number of candles/years and can answer, “YES!”. I got one of those goofy animals that sings a silly birthday song when you press the foot on clearance and they love to make him sing and move. When the treat has been passed out the class surrounds the birthday child in a large circle and sings Happy Birthday to them followed by the snack.
I teach 3rd grade and we love birthdays! Usually I discreetly check to see if the parents/guardians are bringing a treat and I always have a back-up treat, usually cookies. We try to celebrate summer birthdays at the 1/2 year and everyone gets a special card on her/his birthday. Additionally, I have a task chair that spins so the birthday kid sits in the chair, the kids sing “Happy Birthday” (the cha, cha, cha version - of course)and on each cha, cha, cha I spin the child in the chair. At the end we do 3 cheers and it all feels so great! I do love being a teacher.
I am pretty low key with birthdays even though I teach Kindergarten. We sing to students and I give them a card and a pencil. They also get a sticker that lets everyone know it is their birthday. We make a birthday book. Each student draws a picture for the student. At the top it says “happy birthday to” and they write his/ her name. At the bottom it says “From your friend,” and the students writes their name. I staple them together with a construction paper cover and back. It’s not fancy but they like it. And with some months where you might have a birthday a week it cuts down on the work load. I have also seen teachers who have a birthday bag students can take home. It has birthday books to read with family as well as a notebook to record their birthday experience which can be shared with the class. I might try that this year. Although I generally have students without a lot of parental support so I am always mindful of not excluding those students. As far as summer birthdays, I have never included them until this year. On the last day of school we had a special treat and sang happy birthday to those with summer birthdays.
I teach Kindergarten and I always give each child a card, pencil, and a crown for their birthdays. I also go to the dollar store at the beginning of the year and purchase one or two items for every child…usually a coloring book and crayons. I also have every child in the class sign a card. The parent usually comes in and reads a story or does some birthday craft with the kids. For summer birthdays, we celebrate on the half-birthday. This way every student has their birthday in school!
We do it all! Cake,crown, parents, gifts…my school takes birthdays seriously:) All the kids in the school give high fives and hugs to the birthday kids - way fun
On the day of the student’s birthday, I place a certificate on the student’s desk and throughout the day I let them be my helper (if they want to). And the last week of the school year I do the same for my student’s whose birthdays are in the summer.
I give my students a birthday crown to wear on their birthday plus the principal gives them a pencil and a birthday sticker. We have afternoon snack so I try to schedule a student’s snack day on or close to his/her birthday. I normally ask for healthy snacks except for birthday snack days when I allow parents to send cookies, cupcakes, etc. as a special treat. Before snack time, we sing Happy Birthday and I present the birthday boy/girl with a certificate. I celebrate summer birthdays during the last week of school before we leave for summer vacation. I schedule one child per day so they can still have a special day that is just theirs.
When I taught kindergarten each student would receive a crown with a card and happy birthday pencil. We sang happy birthday during morning meeting and almost every parent would send cupcakes or some other birthday treat. In 4th grade, birthdays were not as big of a deal and I gave happy birthday bookmarks to students and we still sang happy birthday during morning meeting. Some parents would send treats. I have always recognized birthdays in my weekly newsletter as well. For summer birthdays I celebrated half birthdays instead.
In my family day care home we cele brate the birthday child’s special day with a snack treat brought from home. During circle time the birthday child wears a special birthday hat and sits in a special chair. Each of the children take turns giving him/her 5 of something (if turning 5, four of something if turning 4). What they give is simple, it could be 5 high fives, 5 hugs, 5 somersaults, 5 donkey kicks, 5 spins, 5 big jumps…. After each child has had a turn I give the child a small gift, usually a book and something like a car or stuffed animal and then we sing that special birthday song!
I’m in a year-round preschool, so we celebrate every birthday on, or as close to, the special day as possible. I always liked the idea of celebrating a half- birthday if you’re off for summer. The center provides cupcakes for the class for snack. We make a birthday crown for the child to wear. I try to put together a birthday book or banner for the child from the entire class. We also sing “Happy Brithday” all day long– supplementing the song for our good morning song, pre-meal harvest, when they wake up from nap, and just because. It’s a bid deal for young kids, and even without a present from the teacher, I try to make sure they feel extra-special.
I once came across an idea that tried with my third graders. The class presented the birthday boy/girl with a giant birthday card. On the day of the student’s birthday I would tape to the board a mid-size sheet of poster paper. The birthday boy’s/girl’s name would be written in large print in the center of the paper. As students arrived to class, each one would write a positive attribute about the student whose name was on the poster paper. At some point in the day the card would be presented to the birthday student and the class would sing Happy Birthday. He/she would read all the positive comments from his/her classmates. A great way to really make the child feel special on his/her special day and have a keepsake to remember the day.
Birthdays are HUGE in preschool. Each child gets a birthday crown, parachute ride, birthday badge and certificate. The Parents provide a special snack and work in the classroom. The child gets to have their snack on a birthday mat and this year they will get to wear a special hat during snack that has candles on top. We also all sing Happy Birthday to them.
I let the entire class pick something from the treasure box on birthdays. Just small trinkets. But always a hit.
I was a summer birthday and I remember being forgotten by the majority of my teachers while growing up. So… in order to make sure everyone gets a turn, I spread their birthdays out during the winter months by celebrating “half” birthdays. I send a note home reminding parents that their child’s special day is coming up and if they would like to, they may send a treat for the class, but I make sure that they understand that it is not required. I try to encourage healthy snacks, but the majority send cupcakes or cookies.
Each student gets a certificate, book, sheet of stickers and of course a birthday crown. We make a big deal out of their birthday by letting them be the line leader and classroom helper. We sing Dr. Jean’s birthday song and then they get to add a candle to the birthday cake for the month. The cakes stay up all year on the bulletin board so they can see their candles.
Oh and I almost forgot. Their favorite part of the day is when the other students draw pictures for them to put into their birthday books. The birthday boy/girl tells the class what her wishes are for his/her birthday and then the other students draw pictures to go into the book. They make a wonderful keepsake.
In my first and second grade class we celebrate each child’s birthday as close to the actual date as possible. Summer birthdays are celebrated in May. Each child gets a birthday card signed by all of the children in the class, along with a birthday pencil. We sing happy birthday to the birthday child and cheer their name during our morning meeting. Also the birthday child takes home the birthday pouch, with contains a book about birthdays and journal). They are to read the book with their family that night and to write about their birthday in the journal. The birthday pouch is returned to school the next day and the child reads their journal entry aloud to the class during our morning meeting. We are a food-free school so treats are not a part of our holiday celebrations. Parents are welcome to be a guest reader on their child’s birthday.
I teach Preschool. For birthdays each child is allowed to bring in a treat, usually suggest small cupcakes or small cookie to share with the class. They are given a crown and a certificate and sticker. We sing “Happy Birthday” to them while they sit in a special birthday chair. The chair was decorated by a parent several years back and donated to my class. So it is considered our “SPECIAL CELBRATION CHAIR.” As for gifts, I have a collection of books that I use for birthday gifts, which are put in a special birthdy bag along with a balloon and piece of candy and a special little treat. This is done for every child’s birthday. Summer birthdays are celebrated the last month of the year. We call these “Unbirthdays” The kids love it and understand that it’s not their “real” birthday. They get excited over the fact that they can celebrate their special day with their friends while still in school.
Parents usually send in a small treat to share with the class…cookies or cupcakes. I give the student a birthday certificate with a pack of gum attached.That student gets to be the line leader of the day. I also write a Happy Birthday greeting on the white board for them. This year I started surprising them with a message on one of the Smart Board pages we used during the day!
I recognized all of my students birthdays even the ones in the summer months.I always get parents involved with the party in the classroom.We buy a cake,icecream,etc.@ sing happy birthday song.
I teach fifth grade, so I want to recognize the kids but keep it low key. I buy Happy Birthday Bookmarks at the beginning of each year. Then, I buy something from Oriental Trading Company for the gifts. I usually get those little wrist band bracelets because the kids really seem to love those.
On the day of the child’s birthday, I put the bookmark and the gift on the student’s desk before school. that gets their day off to a happy start. If students want to bring cupcakes or other treats, I’m fine with that. We just have them during snack time. Other years, I’ve had students bring cupcakes and eat them in the cafeteria during lunch. That keeps the classroom from getting messy. It just depends on the school and what rules exist there.
For summer birthdays, I give out a bookmark and gift the last week of school for all the summer birthdays.
the birthday student receives a birthday crown or a set of paper glasses..they choose. i have also done the certificate as these are really cheap at the beginning of school. i try to make it so the student’s snack day is assigned on his/her birthday, so if the parent wants to bring in cupcakes, etc they can. summer birthdays are usually forgotten…oops! maybe i can remember them this year!!
I’m a pre-k teacher. Birthdays are a big deal. We give the birthday child a signed certificate to commemorate the day as well as a big sticker to wear that lets everyone know that the student is now “the big #5.”
A majority of the parents want to bring food — pizza, cupcakes, etc. I leave it up to the parents if they want to celebrate their child’s summer birthday before school ends for the year. Of course, most of them do.
At the beginning of the school year I have students complete a questionnaire. On it I ask students when their birthday is as well as their favourite donut/muffin. On the day of their birthday I buy them their favourite donut or muffin, place a candle on it, everyone sings “Happy Birthday,” and students blow out their candle. With regards to summer birthdays, I celebrate students’ half-birthdays and everyone sings “Happy Half-Birthday.” This way everyone has a special day!
I use birthday certificates from the store. As I recieve new children, I fill one out for them. At the beginning of the year, I fill these certificates out so that they are ready to use. I tape a pencil to them and put one on the students desk before school on his/her birthday. A couple of years ago, I made a chair cover from cotton duck fabric. I used fabric markers and drew balloons on it. I wrote Happy Birthday on it. I did this on both sides of the chair cover. I put this cover on the child’s chair and they get to use it all day. During circle time, we sing “Happy Birthday”. For summer birthdays, I use the chair cover on a different child’s chair every day on the last week of school until all summer birthdays are covered. Same goes for the certificates and pencils.
We celebrate every birthday, even the summer ones. The children bring in a special snack. The month of May is usually cup cakes ALL month!!
I have done many different things, a birthday crown and certificate, a treat bag with trinkets in it, a birthday box filled with birthday themed books and fun sheets that they take home and bring back, a birthday book in which each child writes a page about the birthday child and I put it all together into a book. However, this year I am doing a birthday lunch. I will bring in a special table cloth and celebrate all birthdays of the month. They will simply bring their normal lunch into the classroom on a designated day and each lunch with me. Crazy as it sounds, they LOVE eating in the classroom with the teacher! My school is big into healthiness so I will not add a cupcake but probably would have otherwise! I take a picture of each birthday child and put it up on my birthday board for the year. We celebrate summer half birthdays at our school.
Birthdays are a difficult thing to deal with. I try to recognize the day and keep it low key at school. There are several families in our school that do not celebrate birthdays as a special day. If the child’s birthday is during the school year, I always plan for the child to be the V.I.P. that day and bring the snack (we have a snack everyday since the Kindergarteners are at school a full day). This allows the parents to do what they would like to celebrate. I always have a large birthday sticker for the students.
We celebrate birthdays as close to the actual date as possible. The dates are assigned to work around special school events. Summer birthdays are celebrated on the child’s half-birthday. Half-birthdays are MUCH more exciting than picking a random day close to the end of the year to celebrate! Each family is encouraged to send in healthy treats and treats are optional. The children may also bring in pictures to share and a special toy/item to show-and-tell. The entire celebration lasts about 15-20 minutes. Upon arrival in the morning, the birthday child is given time to decorate their own birthday crown with stickers, markers, crayons, etc. This is their favorite part of their birthday day!