Inside: Grab your parachute for a fun preschool color activity with Legos. Super easy to set up anywhere and a great way to build color recognition skills! During our preschool Lego camp, I wanted some sort of color game using Legos. We play lots of parachute activities and I realized I could come up with a color sorting game using our small parachute. What was even more fun was that I turned it into a hide and seek adventure, too!...
A tradition I started from the start of my teaching profession was to give each student a preschool memory book that highlighted their year in our classroom. These books are handed out the last week of class and my preschool families appreciate them. I often hear from alumni parents how they still look back on these books and cherish those memories. These are so easy to maintain throughout the year and a sweet gift to give from the teachers....
Summer is a great time to get those hands ready for writing! Especially when you can provide simple and fun ideas that young children love. While putting together summer fine motor activities for preschoolers, I looked for a variety of ideas that would build multiple skills. This means not only are they strengthening their hands, but they are also working on other important skills such as gross motor, math, literacy, music, and more!...
Tape Resist Watercolor Snowflake Art I love to recycle, so when I cut out paper plates for our fall wreaths, I saved the centers, just knowing I’d find good use for them. During your snow and ice theme, bring some snowflakes inside! Well, watercolor snowflakes, that is. This is such a simple activity that even toddlers can do. A fun idea to add to your winter art collection! One of the first themes we explore after Christmas is snow and ice....
Toddler and Preschool October Theme Ideas Ultimate Collection of Light Table Activities Ready to plan for October? I’ve got a big collection of ideas for the home or classroom that build a variety of skills! Included are suggested themes, ideas for specific centers, and different skill-building activities. Get out your planners and add some of these hands-on ideas! Pumpkins Spiders Bats Owls. Squirrels Forest Farm Halloween Centers Apple Suncatchers (Free Template) Apple Stamping Process Art 3-Dimensional Apple Trees Two Ingredient Apple Prints Bubble-Wrap Printed Apples Toddler Pumpkin Painting Spin-Painted Pumpkins Painting with Pumpkins No-Mess Pumpkin Painting Color-Mixing Pumpkin Prints Pumpkin Magnets Muddy Pigs Art Golf-Ball Painted Pigs on the Farm Toddler Farm Painting Egg Carton Spiders Spin-Art Spiders Spider Web Art Paper Plate Owls Fall Process Art Using Corks 15+ Fall Paper Plate Crafts Apple Sensory Bin Apple Fine Motor Sensory Bin Spider Sensory Bin Farm Sensory Bin Farm Animal Washing Pumpkin Science Activities (Early Learning Ideas) Apple Science (Buggy and Buddy) Fall Science Activities Apple Stand Pumpkin Patch Fall Dramatic Play Ideas Apple Orchard Farmers Market Fall Coffee Shop...
Toddlers love to play on the floor, so I also put down our Speedway Race Track Rug and our Service Station Parking Garage. Setting up the toddler classroom for the first day of school can feel overwhelming. What do I need to put out? How much should I put out? What activities work best on that first day? Will the toys I choose for my toddler classroom be fun, engaging, and promote learning?...
Inside: Looking for some fun Valentines theme ideas? Check out what we did in our toddler and preschool classroom. Plus, I’ve included a free feelings packet printable that we used at our exploration table! Once we end our series of winter themes, we move into the Valentines theme. While we do talk about our feelings throughout the school year, this is a good time to add related activities. We have a table that is designated for checking our emotions, with some printable matching activities....
Inside: Add some counting to your toddler and preschool circle time with this Christmas bells printable. Works well with favorite books and songs! It’s easy to work on counting skills during circle time using books, rhymes and songs. In fact, it’s one of my favorite ways to build math skills! This Christmas bells printable is a fun (and easy!) way to work on counting during the Christmas theme. Simply download and cut out the bells to use the props during circle time!...
I love easy activities. They are usually the ones that our toddlers and preschoolers love most, too! So when I put together this easy apple art activity, I just knew it would be another hit, just like our bubble-wrap printed apples and our apple trees. The real fun is mixing the shaving cream and the paint together. Then, take the free apple printable (provided below) and press it into the fluffy mixture, creating a print!...
Getting Started Start with the basics: Show your children how to use rhythm sticks with these basic motions that start with one hand and then two. (Source: Learn, Play, Imagine) Children love percussion instruments, so the first ones we use are rhythm sticks. They are easy to hold and simple to use. And there are so many benefits! So now you are looking for easy ways to use rhythm sticks in the classroom....
Favorite Classroom Supplies from Thrift Stores and Garage Sales baskets flower vases wooden items for loose parts play wooden toys kitchen gadgets storage containers boxes tables chairs shelves small bowls utensils hand puppets books keyboards phones tools book holders wood puzzle boxes stickers wood spools items to count and sort sorting bowls writing tools writing materials organizers beads from old necklaces handbags scarves sunglasses multi-cultural materials Legos board games Disney figures Fisher Price little people plastic animals...
This is a 2-step process, so you will need a couple of days to get it completed. Spring is a great time to take a nature walk with your preschoolers, noticing all the new colors. Such an easy and fun way to work on color recognition! As you are going on your walk, give each child a small container and collect leaves and flowers that have fallen to the ground....
Inside: Help your toddlers build fine motor skills with this super easy toddler pumpkin painting activity. Simply wash the paint off and start again! Pumpkins. Paint. Cotton swabs. Easy. Fun! That’s exactly what this toddler pumpkin painting activity is all about. Hands-On Toddler Pumpkin Painting {Super Easy} October means pumpkins where we live, and as soon as we add them to our classroom environment the children are so excited! We’ve done lots of pumpkin painting activities, including a color mixing activity and painting pumpkin shapes inside a plastic bag (seriously fun!...
We have a lot going on in our preschool during December, so we wanted an easy yarn wrapped Christmas tree activity at our fine motor table for our preschoolers. I’ve seen very similar activities all over the internet, so I won’t take credit for it. In fact, it was my wonderful co-teacher who thought to add it to our fine motor table. (To see similar yarn-wrapped Christmas activities, scroll down towards the end of this post....
We display them in baskets. There is something about jingle bells during Christmas that is so festive! Yes, they can be used as an instrument while moving and singing to music. But how about some Christmas Fine Motor Fun with jingle bells? We have a variety of sizes from teeny tiny ones (not for toddlers or those who still put things into their mouths) to jumbo bells that barely fit in the palm of small hands....
Inside: We put together a fun spring toddler water table that was inspired by a favorite book, Pete the Cat: Five Little Ducks. We added droppers as an extra fine motor strengthening tool, and it was a hit! If you don’t have a water table, try it in the bathtub or sink! Our toddlers love water. Every single year! We provide it indoors and outdoors and it’s a great calming activity....
Inside: Looking for an simple yet super fun gingerbread man painting activity? Brush paint on gingerbread shaped ice with watercolors! Easy for toddlers and preschoolers. We just finished our last week before winter break. That means finishing our gifts, making our homemade gift bags, practicing songs for our singalong …. We needed something calm. And ice painting is always a fun, calm activity! So fun that I’m finding ways to include it in many of our themes!...
Preschoolers love water. Give them a tub of water and a cup and they will fill and pour water over and over again. So why not add on to this with some fun hands-on learning? I’ve put together a variety preschool water activities. Activities that allow them to: Feel Squeeze Pour Poke Explore These activities can be done year round, in the classroom or at home. With one child or many children....
Inside: Add some hands-on learning with over 50 different fun fall printables that preschoolers love! Teachers, are you planning your fall theme? Parents, are you looking for a quick fall activity to do this week at home? Well, here you go. 50+ free fall printables. Yes, free. And fun. And educational! In this collection you will find math, literacy, colors, shapes, fine motor, science and music. All perfect for fall....
We used some letter stones that worked well with this construction theme. Learning is much more fun when it’s part of play! When it’s hands-on and invites kids to use their creativity and imaginations. When they can touch the materials, move them around. That’s exactly what this alphabet construction sensory table delivers. These types of activities are perfect for preschoolers who are starting to recognize letters in the alphabet. They might only be able to recognize a few of the letters, and that is okay!...
