Don’t Miss these 10 St. Patrick’s Day Ideas!
In March, everything is green, lucky, and—let’s be honest—a little bit chaotic. If your classroom is anything like mine, the mere mention of a leprechaun is enough to send your students into a total frenzy of ‘traps’ and ‘pots of gold’ talk. It can be a real struggle to keep the learning on track when that holiday energy is at an all-time high!
That’s why I’ve put together a list of 10 St. Patrick’s Day ideas specifically for grades 1-3 that lean into the magic of the day without losing “time on learning”. These are my tried-and-true favorites that will keep your students engaged and learning, even if they’re convinced there’s a leprechaun hiding in the coat closet!
Blueprints to Trap a Leprechaun
Instead of making the trap (and the mess), have students tap into their STEM skills act as “Engineers.” Group or partner up students and have them create a detailed blueprint and write a sequence paragraph using transition words (First, Next, Then, Last) to explain how their invention works.
Acrostic Poems
Use words like IRELAND or SHAMROCK to create acrostic poems. To tie in social studies, require that at least 2-3 lines include a fact about the holiday or the country.
Pot of Gold Measurement
Give students “gold coins” (plastic or paper) and have them estimate, then measure, how many coins long various classroom objects are (their desk, a pencil, a folder). If you need some green and gold coins to add to your next Amazon delivery, try these.
Coin Themed Science Experiment
Tap into science on St. Patrick’s Day! Give students dull, oxidized pennies and various liquids (vinegar/salt, water, soapy water, juice). Have them hypothesize which will clean the “gold” best. It’s a great intro to chemical reactions and oxidation.
St. Patrick’s Day Read Alouds
Reading high quality children’s books to your class on or around St. Patrick’s Day is an easy win. Check out any of my favorites from my 28 years of teaching on St. Patrick’s Day:
- Whiskers Finds His Luck: A St. Patrick’s Day story with Whiskers the Cat
- There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Clover
- Jamie O’Rourke and the Big Potato
- St. Patrick’s Day by Gail Gibbons (non-fiction)
- Tim O’Toole and the Wee Folk
Irish Step Dancing “Watch & Respond” (Video & Physical Education)
Show a 2-minute video of professional Irish Step Dancers (like Riverdance or a kids’ competition).
After watching, have a “Move Like a Dancer” break where kids try to keep their upper bodies perfectly still while moving their feet. Then, have them write three “action verbs” and three “adjectives” that describe the performance (e.g., leaping, clicking, fast, powerful).
If you need a video, this one from CBC is great. He interviews the girls and then they demonstrate how it works!
Keep reading for more ideas for St. Patricks Day!
Green Carnation Science
Place white carnations in green-dyed water. Have students keep a Science Journal over 24 hours to draw and describe how the plant’s tubes (xylem) pull the color up to the petals.
Shamrock Scavenger Hunt
Hide 10–12 paper shamrocks around the room. On the back of each, write a curriculum-based question (e.g., “What is $12 + $15?” or “Find the noun in this sentence: I saw ten gold coins”). Students work in pairs to find the symbols and solve the “riddles” to earn a small prize (like some plastic coins, stickers or a green pencil).
Gingerbread Man and the Leprechaun Loose at School Mapping (Literature & Geography)
Read The Gingerbread Man and the Leprechaun Loose at School by Laura Murray on St. Patrick’s Day. This book is a fun mashup where the Gingerbread Man has to chase a leprechaun through the school.
Have students create a “treasure map” of your actual school building or classroom. They have to mark “X” where they think a leprechaun would hide and use directional words (north, south, left, right) to write instructions on how to get there
Ready-to-Go Activities from Teachers Pay Teachers!
Wouldn’t it be easy if you could have something already created to use the first week of school?
You’re in luck! My St. Patrick’s Day activities are designed to save you time and keep students engaged.
And they tackle writing, phonics/decoding and math! Check out the options and click on any images to see them at Teachers Pay Teachers.
Need a writing prompt for St. Patrick’s Day? Grab this dollar deal! Students will write about what they would like to find at the end of the rainbow, and how they would prepare for a leprechaun’s visit. Includes lined writing paper and checklists for accountability so all you need to do is print and copy!
Students need phonics centers practice with decodable words! For phonics on or around St. Patrick’s Day, try this activity with decodable digraph words on gold coins for your centers! This engaging activity will have students grabbing coins from the pot of gold and reading the words. This resource aligns with what we know about the Science of Reading (SOR). Options include:
- Pot Of Gold Consonant Digraphs
- Pot of Gold CVC Words
- Pot of Gold VCE Syllables (silent e)
- Pot of Gold Sight Words: Fry 1-100
Maybe your students really need some extra word problem practice! This resource also includes a data and graphing freebie! It will meet the needs of everyone in your class, whether they need to work on addition or subtraction word problems and includes single and double digit practice!
Some activities are print and go (no prep except making copies) and some are cut and match word problems and answers. All have answer keys!
Other blog posts you may want to check out:
- 5 Minute Magic: Building Phonemic Awareness
- 10 Tips for Unlocking Success in Elementary School Math
- 6 Ways to Use Riddles to Enhance Your Teaching
- 5 Easy Ways to Start the 2nd Grade Day
- Unlock Reading: Fun Ways to Teach CVC Words
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