How to Have a Not So Mushy Valentine's Day in School

How do you celebrate Valentine’s Day in school? Read romantic stories? Haul out the lace doilies, red ribbon and pink hearts for making cards? Splash L-O-V-E all over the place like glitter? Do you have boys retching and gagging over “all the mushy stuff”? I know we’re supposed to be gender neutral, but most teachers have encountered not the stages of grief, but the stages of love. And sorry to say, they are often split along gender lines.

First you get the kindergarteners who are not ashamed to walk down the hall holding hands and declaring their true love. My 5-year old niece put on her Back to School goal board: “Become Julian’s wife”! Her father quickly made her erase it (it was that, or get the shotgun)!

Then, you get the 7-9 year olds who think any expression of love is gross, saying “Eww” when their parents kiss and pretending to barf at lovey dovey scenes in books or movies. When approaching middle and certainly high school, love once again rears its ugly head and brings a whole new set of worries.

Bring On the Books

As always, the solution for librarians and classroom teachers is…bring on the books! For younger students, there are the traditional Valentine’s stories, with familiar characters like Franklin, Splat the Cat, Pete the Cat, and Amelia Bedelia. Luckily, most of the stories center on friendship and not really love. Characters are engaged in helping friends and classmates decorate the classroom or craft Valentine’s cards or make a friend feel better, such as when Franklin drops all his cards in a puddle.

Not So Mushy Valentine Books

For the not so mushy Valentine fans, there are the “anti-Valentines” like The Yuckiest, Stinkiest, Best Valentine Ever or A Crankenstein Valentine. I wouldn’t recommend letting kids write sentiments like Roses Are Pink, Your Feel Really Stink. But did you know that there was a Victorian tradition called “vinegar Valentines” with crabby verses meant to discourage unwanted overtures? Julian, beware!

Chapter books might focus on love/hate relationships or solving a mystery. The kids don’t mind a Valentine’s party as long as there are cupcakes. Speaking of which, are you allowed to give out candy or other treats? Maybe not. Our principal sent out a dictum outlawing Valentines with candy such as lollipops attached. Teachers lambasted him, saying that most purchased Valentines for kids included candy. We enacted a “healthy snack” policy several years ago and who objected the most? The teachers! Two of them had a screaming match at a faculty meeting about whether goldfish crackers were baked or fried! One sent home rice crispies treats as unacceptable, but allowed things like granola bars…which are loaded with sugar. But, I digress.

Run Around the Gym

One way to get boys involved is to have them engage in physical activity. Our PE teachers sponsor Heart Healthy Day (which used to be called Jump Rope for Heart). Kids jump rope and participate in other sports to raise money for the American Heart Association. Read more about it here:

Heart Healthy Day

Do Arts and Crafts

Valentine arts and crafts don’t have to be mushy. Students can make Valentine cards for first responders or service members. They can create placemats for residents of nursing homes or hospitals. If you can’t devote class time to crafts, check out local stores. Many feature cards with superheroes, legos, minecraft or monster themes.

Play Games

A surefire way to capture students’ attention in a non-mushy way is to play games. Yes, yes, you can make them academic, especially if the principal is walking around the building hunting for contraband lollipops. Reinforce math skills with Valentine math games. Or, try ELA games focusing on synonyms, antonyms, rhyming words, author’s purpose, etc.