Christmas Snowman & Penguin Activities | ESL ELL

 This resource is included in Seasons Unit for Kindergarten-Holistic English Series #28, just click on the Link to the complete resource: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Seasons-Unit-for-Kindergarten-Holistic-English-Series-28-8266053

 

This Christmas resource provides a complete, low-prep language sequence that helps English learners through flashcards, manipulatives, pocket chart activities, games, and worksheets, students repeatedly practice the Christmas language structures.

The activities support oral language first, then reinforce learning through hands-on practice and early writing. Because the materials work well for whole group, small groups, and centers, teachers can easily differentiate while keeping students motivated and successful.

 Flashcards

 Students use fun foam or magnetic letters to build the word “gift” while referencing the holiday flashcard. This tactile task strengthens letter recognition.

As the teacher calls out a word, students take turns tossing a soft ball to the correct flashcard on the board. This fun, active approach helps young learners strengthen listening skills.

 

The teacher uses a Christmas flashcard to guide a simple vocabulary conversation. First, the teacher points to the picture and asks, “What is this?” Students respond, “It’s a snowman.” Then the teacher points to the hat and models the language: “It’s a winter hat,” followed by another question: “What is this?” Students answer, “It’s a scarf.” To extend the practice, the teacher asks, “What color is the scarf?” This routine helps young learners build confidence using complete sentences

For this sorting activity, place one Christmas object on the board—for example, a gift. Students search through the holiday flashcards to find all the characters holding that object. As they place each matching card on the board, they practice speaking by completing a simple sentence such as, “The snowman has presents!” or “The penguin has a gift!” This activity helps young learners build vocabulary, improve sentence structure, and strengthen visual discrimination skills while having fun with festive images.

 

The teacher pulls a ribbon with several small Christmas cards attached. As each card is revealed, students name the object the snowman or penguin is holding—for example, “a present,” “a candy cane,” or “a winter hat.” This simple routine encourages students to observe details, practice holiday vocabulary, and speak in complete phrases.

For this hands-on puzzle activity, the teacher cuts the Christmas flashcards into three or four pieces to create simple character puzzles. Students work together to reassemble the penguin and snowman cards by matching the pieces correctly. As they build each puzzle, they naturally review vocabulary by naming the character and the objects it holds. This activity strengthens visual discrimination.

 

Worksheets

 Color-by-number worksheets. Students carefully follow the color key to complete the penguin and snowman pictures, reinforcing colors, numbers, and visual attention skills. This calm, focused activity is perfect for independent work.

In this hands-on worksheet activity, the teacher first dictates the colors for each part of the Christmas character’s body, and students listen and color carefully. Next, the teacher asks, “What’s missing?” Students identify the missing body parts on the snowman or penguin and draw them. They will cut the body parts words. Finally, students label each part of the body by gluing the word cards provided. This activity combines listening, coloring, labeling.

 

In this worksheet activity, students color the Christmas pictures and practice writing key holiday words by tracing and writing them on the lines provided. As they work, they identify and name each character, such as “penguin” and “snowman,” reinforcing vocabulary recognition and early writing skills. It is ideal for literacy centers for kindergarten ELLs.

 

Pocket Charts

Using a pocket chart allows students to interact with vocabulary in a visual and hands-on way. By matching picture cards and sentence strips, learners practice reading simple phrases, identifying Christmas objects, and building complete sentences such as “a penguin with a hat and a scarf.” This activity supports sentence structure, word order, and oral language development, while keeping young ELLs engaged and actively participating.

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Christmas Elephant Activities for Kindergarten ELLs – Worksheets, Flashcards, Games

  This resource is included in Zoo Animals Unit for Kindergarten-Holistic English Series 26 which can be found at this link: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Zoo-Animals-Unit-for-Kindergarten-Holistic-English-Series-26-8078353

The Christmas theme and the cute elephant instantly capture students’ attention. This makes it easier for young English learners to absorb and remember holiday words, colors, and objects. Activities with the elephant help students practice naming, identifying, matching, and describing—core early-literacy skills needed for language development.

Flashcards are easy to incorporate into  whole-group lessons, morning work, —giving teachers ready-to-use materials . There are full size cards and small cards. The activities work with both.

Teachers can guide students to use frames like “The elephant has a ___ gift” or “The elephant is holding a ___ ornament.”

This boosts oral production in a playful, safe way.

Flashcard Runway. Place flashcards in a line like a runway.

Students walk down the “runway” and stop at a card to say the phrase: . Great for: confidence, movement, speaking.

Mystery Santa Bag. Put the flashcards in a bag. Students reach inside, take a look, have the class guess it before pulling it out.

Team Relay Race. Teams line up. Place flashcards on the board. Students stand at the opposite end. Call a flashcard → first student runs, picks it up, says it, and returns. Use my flashcards.

Worksheets help students see, trace, match, and use the new Christmas words many times, which strengthens long-term vocabulary retention.

Word Formation Tracing Worksheet. English learners practice early writing skills while reviewing Christmas vocabulary. Students trace the Christmas words. This activity works perfectly for literacy centers, morning work, or small-group practice during your holiday lessons.

Christmas Elephant Cut & Paste – Body Parts Worksheet. This is a review of the parts of the body while working with a cute Christmas Elephant theme. Students color the elephant, cut out the body-part words, and glue each label in the correct place. This hands-on task supports early reading as children match simple words like head, ear, leg, and trunk to the picture. Perfect for independent work during your holiday lessons!

Listen & Color – Christmas Ornaments Worksheet

In this activity, students listen to the teacher’s instructions and color the ornaments accordingly—for example, “Color two ornaments red.” This simple task helps young English learners practice listening comprehension, color vocabulary, and following directions.

Draw More Cookies Worksheet. Students help the Christmas Elephant by adding more cookies to the plate.

Color by Number Worksheet. This color-by-number activity helps students practice number recognition and color words. A perfect independent activity for morning work, or a calm holiday lesson!

Christmas Elephant Tracing Paths Worksheet. Students trace each path to help the Christmas Elephant reach the matching Christmas item. Tracing different lines and patterns strengthens fine-motor skills.

Christmas Elephant Printable Booklet. This easy-to-assemble booklet lets students color, read, and learn Christmas vocabulary with a fun Christmas Elephant theme. Each page features a simple sentence and picture, helping young learners practice early reading skills. Perfect for  a festive take-home activity!

Christmas Elephant Feed Me Box Game. Students cut out the items from the worksheet and “feed” them into the Christmas stocking box as they name each item.

Christmas Elephant Spinner & Mat Game. Children spin the Christmas Elephant spinner, say the word aloud, then find and cover the matching picture on their mat.

Picture–Word Matching Dominoes. Students match them end-to-end like a domino train.

Great for vocabulary recall + reading. It’s encourages speaking as students name each picture they match.

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You’ll find fresh ideas for every unit, from vocabulary games to hands-on crafts—all designed to support young ELLs in fun and meaningful ways.

 

 

Thanksgiving Sharks Activities for Kindergarten ELLs

 This resource is included in the Sea unit for Kindergarten English Language Learners at this link: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Sea-Unit-for-Kindergarten-Holistic-English-Series-29-8348964

Students learn Thanksgiving words to expand foundational English vocabulary in a fun way. Activities are designed with simple visuals, large images, and clear vocabulary, making it easier for beginners to understand without needing long explanations.

Vocabulary Introduction with the flashcards. Show them one by one and teach the vocabulary (cornucopia, turkey, pie, hat, etc.). Students repeat.

Teacher: What is this?

Students: It’s a shark!

Teacher: The shark has a cornucopia!

Touch and Show” Game.Place the flashcards on the the floor. Call out: “Find the shark with the pie!” Students run, touch, or point to the correct card.

Small cards for Sentence Practice: “The shark has…” Students make simple sentences: “The shark has a turkey.”  Add actions or gestures for extra fun.

Feed the Turkey Game. Students choose a small card, name the Thanksgiving vocabulary, and “feed” it to the turkey by placing it in the turkey’s mouth. For this game prepare the box using the template provided.

In this creative worksheet, students color and decorate the shark to turn it into a Thanksgiving character. They can add Pilgrim clothes, Thanksgiving foods, or festive items to complete the picture. Then they finish the sentence “My shark is a ______.” This activity builds vocabulary, encourages creativity, and helps students practice simple descriptions in English.

In these worksheets, students read the color word on each shark and color the picture correctly. This activity helps young learners connect written color words with their meanings. It’s perfect for building confidence in early literacy and color vocabulary.

Class Printable Shark Book. This printable book features a shark holding different Thanksgiving items. Each student colors one page, following the simple vocabulary on the picture. When the class finishes, all pages are assembled into a group book that students can read together. This activity promotes teamwork, reading fluency, vocabulary review, and pride in creating a shared class book.

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You’ll find practical classroom ideas, engaging worksheets, and freebies to make your lessons even more fun and effective. See you there!

Thanksgiving Counting Hats 1–10 Activities for Kindergarten ESL

 This resource is included in the Clothes Unit. CLICK here: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Clothes-Unit-for-Kindergarten-Holistic-English-Series-12-6483533

The Thanksgiving Counting Hat 1 to 10 resource develops number recognition, counting, and basic vocabulary in English. The Thanksgiving hats and images make learning relevant to the season. The resource is print-and-go, simple to use in small groups, centers, or whole-class activities.

Students practice counting objects from 1 to 10, matching numerals and quantities using the flashcards.

By associating numbers with pictures, students strengthen their understanding of number words in English and improve pronunciation through repetition.

Order the Number small Cards. Mix all the number cards and spread them on the floor or your desk. Students will look carefully at each card — count the hats on the pilgrim and read the number word. Start with number one and place the cards in order up to ten. Then, say each number out loud: one, two, three, four…

Write the Number Word and Numeral. Slip the Thanksgiving flashcards into clear plastic sleeves and give students dry-erase markers to practice writing! Students look at the picture, then write the number word and the numeral on the card. This activity allows for hands-on writing practice and easy cleanup — just erase and reuse!

Students can also use the Thanksgiving flashcards to trace the numeral and the number word directly on the plastic sleeve using a dry-erase marker.

Feed the Pilgrim! – Counting Activity. Place the Pilgrim box or cutout in the center of the table or carpet area. Spread the small number cards face up in random order. Call out a number word (e.g., nine), or show a quantity card. Have students find the matching number card and “feed” it to the pilgrim by placing it into the pilgrim’s mouth. Continue until all numbers 1–10 have been fed to the pilgrim.

Read and Color the Pilgrim’s Hats. These worksheet helps students review colors and numbers 1 to 10.

A Worksheet for students to cut and paste the Thanksgiving-themed quantity pictures next to the matching numeral and number word. Then, they will trace the numeral and word to practice writing and color the pictures as dictated by the teacher.

Thanksgiving Counting Board Game. In this interactive board game, students move along a path numbered 1–10 using Thanksgiving-themed player pieces. When they land on a number, they say it out loud and collect the matching Pilgrim card with hats showing that quantity.

Thanksgiving Numbers Pocket Chart. This fun pocket chart activity helps students match number words, numerals, and quantities with a Thanksgiving theme! Students take turns placing the cards with Pilgrim boys, numbers, and words in the correct order. 

It’s a hands-on way to encourage teamwork and oral practice as students say each number aloud while matching. Perfect for small groups, centers, or whole-class review!

Build the Number Words. Students use the letter tiles to spell the number words shown on the flashcards. They look at the Pilgrim number card, say the word, and then arrange the tiles to spell it correctly.

Make and Describe Your Pilgrim Hat. Give each student the Pilgrim hat template to color, cut, and assemble. Encourage them to choose their favorite colors. Once finished, have students present their hats to the class using simple sentences such as: This is my Pilgrim hat. It’s black and green. This Encourages speaking confidence through short oral presentations.

Thanksgiving Counting Booklet. Each page features a large numeral, the number word, and a cute pilgrim with the matching number of hats to color.

Students can color, read, and assemble their own mini book to review counting and number words. It’s an engaging way to reinforce number recognition, one-to-one correspondence, and color vocabulary — all with a festive Thanksgiving theme!

Find engaging Thanksgiving activities for your English language learners. I've gathered interactive games, worksheets, and creative ideas to make this holiday both educational and exciting! Follow my Pinterest board for Thanksgiving resources here:

Thanksgiving ESL/EFL Resources

Save time and bring festive learning into your classroom!