Before I get into sharing this activity, I should probably start out by saying that I sort of have this thing for hot air balloons. I’ve always loved them and what they represent: adventure, travels, hopes, dreams. If anyone happens to be a thirty-something like me, they might vaguely remember this movie from childhood in the 80’s about a race around the world in balloons. If not, it was basically the Chipmunks cartoon version of “The Amazing Race.”
I must have watched it a hundred times as a kid. Maybe that’s where my hot air balloon obsession first started, I don’t really know. It was always the #1 thing on my bucket list to get to ride in one, and my husband’s clearly a keeper since he made it happen a few years ago (even though he’s not a huge fan of heights)! To say I was excited was an understatement. If you’ve ever seen that old clip of Kirsten Bell on The Ellen Show when her dream of seeing a sloth in person comes true, I may or may not have had the same level of a reaction. Here we were!
Total dream come true! Now I’m sure you don’t need any further proof of my infatuation, but just in case- here’s how I decorated my daughter’s nursery a couple years back:
Okay, okay, so you clearly get it…I like hot air balloons! So much that I’ve even found a way to bring ’em to my classroom. My students really enjoyed getting to make their own balloons with this writing craftivity. I love that they’re the first thing I see when I walk into my room.
It makes for a great display at Open House during Back to School season, especially with a bulletin board heading like, “We’re Going Places!” These balloons would also be a fun addition at other times of the year (first week of school, an extension of a read aloud, paired with a Growth Mindset lesson, etc.). From the fall to the spring and any time between, you can’t go wrong with this writing activity.
Here’s what’s on each side of the balloon:
My Goals
Students write down some personal goals (school-related or unrelated to school…up to you, boss)! This particular student chose a goal for school:
How I’ll Get There
I have the kids make a plan as to HOW they will specifically work to achieve their goals.
When I Grow Up
Pretty self-explanatory, but here is where my little go-getters write what they hope to be when they grow up.
Blank Balloon
Students draw an illustration of how they visualize themselves achieving their goals.
In the past I’ve always used mini plain white cups for the baskets, but this year I tried these new designed Dixie cups with fun designs and positive messages. They fit the theme perfectly, and I wasn’t mad about the fact that they cost less for twice the amount of cups!
As far as the templates go, there are 3 different options for students to write their responses so that you could customize for your grade level or individual students: regular lines, dotted lines, or no lines.
If you want to jump on my hot air balloon-lovin’ bandwagon, you can get the templates and detailed directions for assembly by clicking right here. And thanks to requests from my bilingual teacher friends, these same templates are now available in Spanish too! Both English and Spanish versions can also be found in my TPT store.
And just in case you feel like you didn’t get enough hot air balloon images in one blog post, I can’t help concluding with this one. Keep lifting up those students of yours!
What an adorable project! I love the goal setting aspect too.
Thank you so much! I feel that it’s so important to make time for goal setting in the classroom.
I love seeing this activity and I truly love your personal connection. Your husband is a keeper for making your dreams come true! I also love that Chipmunk movie. I had all 3 chipmunks as stuffed animals when I was little. True confession (because I’m also a thirty-something) ????
Thank you so much for this, Rachel! I was a little hesitant to include an obscure childhood movie reference because I thought there would be a good chance that no one would have any connection whatsoever to it. So good to know that I can count on you, haha!
What a fantastic display, my kids would love it!!!
Thank you so much! My kids definitely loved it!
Looks adorable!
Thank you, Jen!
Super cute!!!
Thank you so much, Diana!
I know you made these balloons for other reasons, but they actually go perfect with Read Across America Week. This would make a great writing activity to go along with the Dr. Seuss book, “Oh, The Places You Will Go!”. They make for a super cute display.
Jamie
Teaching Tidbits and More with Jamie
I absolutely agree! They are a perfect addition in the classroom for Read Across America Week. I definitely had the story “Oh the Places You’ll Go” in mind when I first started having students create these.
This actually brought tears to my eyes. They grow up so fast, and I remember my own children doing things like this in school, but not quite this creative.
I teach middle school and sometimes wish I could teach the young ones and do cute projects like this. Thank you for sharing. Love it!
Thank you so much for your heartfelt response. I’m trying to soak up every moment with my own children while they’re still young for this very reason. I have so much respect for middle school teachers, I could not do what you do!
I love this! I also watched the Alvine movie a 100 times as well!!
Thank you so much! I’m happy to hear that I’m not the only one who remembers this movie!
I am a mom of a kindergartener and we did this in his class! His teacher was able to talk about goals throughout the week and I helped with sentence frames and writing portion. This is a great project! It is hanging up in the classroom and looks absolutely adorable. I constructed the cups with the kids’ photographs of outstretched arms and grouped them up to make for a super cute picture!! (Before stringing the balloon on!)
Hi Cristine! I am so excited to hear that they worked out well in your son’s class! That’s wonderful that you helped out his teacher too. I am always so appreciative of parent help in assembling the balloons- a huge time saver!
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