Winter Holiday Pencil Toppers

1. This is a fun classroom activity to do for a holiday. Students create fun holiday pencil toppers. Students choose a seasonal symbol such as a turkey, Santa, or dreidel. How about a Christmas tree or an angel? Craft a tiny gift package or shape an ogre. Conduct a classtoom discussion about holiday traditions. How have the celebrations changed over the years?
2. For round toppers, roll out Crayola Model Magic® modeling material until it is smooth. Cover a small foam ball with the sheet. Trim any excess compound with modeling tools and shape into the design. On just shape Model Magic® modeling compound into any design,such as a little square for a gift box.
3. Use bits and "snakes" of Model Magic® to add details to the pencil topper. Make new colors or marbled effects. Just blend two or three pieces together and knead until the desired color is acheived.
4. Press a Crayola Colored Pencil into the bottom of the topper. Model Magic™ dries to the touch overnight and dries completely in 2 to 3 days. It sticks to the colored pencil. Happy holidays!

LA: Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.

LA: Read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grade level text complexity band independently and proficiently.

LA: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher led) with diverse partners on grade level topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

LA: Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.

LA: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace.

VA: Intentionally take advantage of the qualities and characteristics of art media, techniques, and processes to enhance communication of their experiences and ideas.

VA: Select and use the qualities of structures and functions of art to improve communication of ideas.

VA: Select and use subject matter, symbols, and ideas to communicate meaning.

VA: Know that the visual arts have both a history and specific relationships to various cultures.

Have available a variety of children's books focused on holiday celebrations practiced in the local culture.

Students self-select a holiday celebration to investigate. After completing the Winter Holiday Pencil Topper, students prepare to present their research to classmates. The presentation may be oral, an audio-recording, an original poem, etc.

Students create an additional pencil topper focused on the main character in a recently read chapter book. Students present an oral book report on the read, using the pencil topper character during the presentation.

Students consider creating a Holiday Pencil Topper for a Mother's Day or Father's Day celebration. What symbols will you use to dedicate to a parent or significant adult in your life?