1. Start the day with breakfast toast in the shape of hearts, top with a layer of strawberry jam.
2. Stick a valentine in your child’s lunch box, or in his/her backpack to find later.
3. Ask relatives to write letters or emails expressing love for your kids. (mail is fun to receive and to keep)
4. Have kids send pictures of themselves to their grandparents inside heart shaped frames made of poster board.
5. Help kids cut red hearts, write a name on each heart of someone they love or who loves them. Tape the hearts to a ribbon and hang it on their bedroom wall as a banner. They can add hearts as they think of more loved ones in their lives.
6. Cut out a large red heart shaped valentine. Help kids write adjectives on it to describe people they love: kind, pleasant, generous,helpful.
7. Have a loving time with your kids baking heart shaped cookies. Wrap them in red cellophane and deliver them to relatives or elderly neighbors.
8. Have each member of the family make a valentine for the other members, telling them why they love them. (older children or parents help the younger kids)
9. Put each family member’s name in a bowl. Draw a name. Take turns saying something positive about that person. Keep drawing until all the names have been drawn .
10. Cut a large heart shaped valentine into as many puzzle pieces as there are members of your family. Have each person write his or her name on the puzzle piece. Assemble the puzzle, stating the obvious: each person is an important part of the family’s heart.

Be sure to check out the free activity sheets we’ve prepared on Bingnote.com to help you and your kids . They reinforce the 8 ‘Builder-Uppers’ in Arlene Richards‘ book, That’s Bingzy! Let me know how you like them.

Helping you share the love,

Mary Taylor, www.theschoolmarm.com