March can be a long month, even if you’re lucky enough to have a long spring break at your school. It’s not quite winter and not quite spring, and it can feel like you’ve hit a wall of boredom right along with your students. Luckily, St. Patrick’s Day comes just in the nick of time to brighten things up.
To keep the March doldrums from setting in, try these fun projects to motivate your students with a little bit of leprechaun magic:
Magic Milkshakes
For a sweet treat, all you need is a blender, vanilla ice cream, milk and a little bit of green food coloring. The trick is to add the food coloring to the bottom of the blender when your students aren’t around. Let them gather around as you scoop the ice cream and add the ingredients, telling them a tall tale of how leprechauns leave their magic everywhere on St. Patrick’s Day. Once you push the button, what looked like a white milkshake will “magically” turn green, delighting your kiddos in the process. Serve leprechaun-sized portions in Dixie cups for a special snack.
Leprechaun Lava Lamps
For this fun, kid-friendly project, you’ll need clear, plastic bottles or jars with lids, cooking oil, water, green food coloring and Alka-Seltzer tablets. A large funnel is also helpful if you’re using bottles with small openings. Fill the bottle to the one-quarter mark with water, then add cooking oil to fill. Allow oil and water to separate before adding 12 drops of green food coloring. Once the dye breaks the surface and falls into the water, your “lamp” is ready. Add a tablet of Alka-Seltzer and watch the show as the colored water beads up into the oil, creating magical effects.
St. Patty’s Swirly Soup
Let your students serve up some magical, colorful soup! To do this, you’ll need plastic bowls, milk, food coloring, cotton swabs and some dish soap. To make the swirly “soup,” fill dishes with an inch of milk; then allow your students to add a few drops of food coloring to the surface. Dip the cotton swab into dish soap to turn it into a “magic wand.” When students touch the wand to the milk, the food coloring will magically mix and swirl to create all kinds of colorful effects. Of course, no humans are actually going to eat this soup, but you could try leaving it out for leprechauns while your students are at recess to see if any of the Little People come to get a taste!
All it really takes to make your St. Patrick’s Day magical is a little imagination and the ability to tell a great story. With just a few supplies, you can give your students a fun, memorable day that adds a little color to the tail end of the winter season.
