My toddlers have been obsessed with farm books this year. Have you found that to happen with your little ones? They get so hooked on one type of book that they want you to read it over and over again? And it’s not just farm books. Finger plays and songs, too! So, I came up with what I had hoped would be a fun sensory art activity. Muddy pigs. I was inspired by my no-mess pumpkin art that is going crazy right now....
Inside: Put together a simple Valentine’s Day fine motor activity using water and droppers. The squeezing motion is a fun way to get the hands and fingers ready for writing! If you are looking for a super easy way to strengthen fine motor activities during your Valentine’s Day theme, this is it! We love using droppers with water to get the hands and fingers ready for writing. We’ve used them at our water table in previous activities, such as when we washed farm animals, when dropping watercolors onto paper towels (so fun!...
Inside: This hanging rainbow art activity for toddlers is a fun way to work on color recognition while sorting collage pieces. When finished, display from the ceiling for a fun decoration! I love getting our toddlers and preschoolers involved in group activities. Especially those that end up with something we can display in our classroom, like this hanging toddler rainbow. In the past we have made a giant color wheel to hang on our wall, so this time I wanted to try something on a smaller scale....
Inside: How to make a super easy fall wreath with Toddlers and Preschoolers, using a paper plate! A fun keepsake to hang at your Thanksgiving get-toge ther. Every holiday I love to display keepsakes my (now grown) children made in school. I cherish them! I have a special drawer that holds all these treasures, and every time I pull one out to display, I silently thank the teacher that made it happen....
Through their various phases of development, children grow their capacity for comprehending instructions. Naturally, a three-year-old will be able to follow instructions that a two-year-old cannot. From 1 to 2 years of age, children are able to follow one step instructions at one time. This includes singular actions such as “throw the ball”. As children grow closer to late 2 to 3 years old, they are typically able to follow two step instructions at once such as “throw the ball, then run to me”....
One of my favorite ways to teach shapes is through hands-on exploration. In fact, teaching preschoolers shapes using the sensory bin is one of my preferences. Our toddlers are exposed to shapes through sensory play, too! I’ve shared how we’ve taught shape recognition with magnets during small groups. And we’ve also played shape sorting games during circle time. We’ve even added shape activities to our art table, such as when stamped with blocks!...
My secret to a more successful toddler and preschool circle time is using props. In fact, if you’ve been following me for awhile, this is no surprise, as I’ve talked a lot about it. Why? Because just like many of you teachers, I struggled with getting my students engaged during circle time. Truly, I was so frustrated that I just wanted to skip that part of our day. Fast forward a few years and I stumbled upon using circle time props such as puppets and flannel boards and I noticed I was getting their attention more easily than before....
The truth with preschoolers is, you don’t need to be continuously purchasing brand new materials to introduce them to in order to keep their minds stimulated; the variety in concept behind the material is what allows children to remain engaged. Toys and regular objects can become a whole new experience with a bit of creativity! The compilation below revolves around toy cars (which you probably have a few of lying around) and will inspire you to see your resources in a new light!...
Inside: Learn about the colors of the rainbow while making this tasty fruit salad with your preschoolers. A fun circle time activity! Rainbow Fruit Salad for Preschoolers Full disclosure: I was provided a copy of End of the Rainbow Fruit Salad for review. This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. Reader Interactions More about the book “End of the Rainbow Fruit Salad”: Authors: Eluka Moore, Larry Puzniak and Marianne WelshIllustrated by Kristen GauWebsite: Kitchen Club KidsConcepts taught: Basic counting skills, color recognition, rhymes I’ve also reviewed their book Garden Safari Vegetable Soup....
More: 10 Ways to Strengthen Scissor Skills Summer is a great time to work on scissor skills with these fun sun themed cutting cards! They are small so that they will fit more easily in young preschoolers’ hands and are a great way to build fine motor skills. Plus, these cutting cards are a nice, calming activity that can be done during quiet time. Sun cutting cards printable (scroll down to find the link to the download) Scissors...
Inside: Looking for toddler and preschool November theme ideas? We’ve collected an assortment of ideas and printables for the classroom! Ready to plan for November? Get out your planner because you will want to add some of these activities to your day! Each hands-on activity engages the children while also building a variety of skills. I also helped create toddler and preschool fall lesson plans if you are wanting to save precious time....
Inside: This preschool spring sensory bin goes nicely with the garden theme, especially if you’ve read the book Too Many Carrots. We’ve added tongs, gardening gloves, and stuffed carrots for a fun fine motor activity! It all started with a book I fell in love with, and some carrots I found in the dollar section of Target. In fact, when I found the carrots, there were only 6 left. And I cheered....
Contact paper is one of the most useful craft supplies for the classroom. It is your best friend for creating all sorts of suncatchers and fun collages. However, there are actually a lot of color learning and fine motor activities that can be done using contact paper in addition to these beautiful art activities. These contact paper activities will motivate you to introduce all sorts of new learning activities with sticky paper!...
30 Outdoor Art Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers There are days when the outdoors is calling your name. But it’s so nice outside! What to do? Move those art materials outside and try one of these awesome outdoor activities! Your kids will thank you. There is something about losing the walls and the ceiling that is so rewarding. Another plus? Who cares if the paint drips! Everything just feels less restricted when it’s done outside....
Inside: This Christmas color sorting activity is super easy to set up, and it’s a fun way to work on fine motor skills with toddlers and preschoolers! We love using jingle bells in December, as I shared when we used them for painting. Actually, we use them all over our classroom! Our love for jingle bells starts when we add Christmas music to our day. We give each child wrist jingle bells and they shake them to the beat of the music....
Inside: Classroom organization takes time at the beginning, but makes curriculum planning so much easier! Here are our favorite storage tips. I am not an organizer. I want to be. I really do. But that is not my gift. Thank goodness other members of our teaching team are gifted at classroom organization. In fact, in my 18 years of teaching, this is the first time we are starting a school year completely organized....
Inside: Working on a vertical surface is important for building toddler fine motor skills. An easy way to do this is rolling paint up and down paper using brayers. Toddlers love the rolling motion! When my toddler classroom first got its easel, I was super excited. Great! Now they have an new area to paint on! I had no idea just how important working on a vertical surface was. I mean, I knew it would help build toddler fine motor skills....
Inside: This fun ladybug craft is easy for preschoolers to make, and is a fun suncatcher for the window. Perfect for the bug-themed art table! When we were putting together activities for our bug theme, I knew I wanted some sort of ladybug craft. I wasn’t quite sure how we’d make them until I spotted some clear plastic dessert plates in the dollar store, and the idea came quickly. Suncatchers!...
Stickers Threading Legos or Duplos DIY Clothespin Drop DIY Color Sorting Trays Magnetic Letters White Boards Transferring Activities Markers Books We have baskets of books stashed in several areas of the room as well as in our book corner. We use books as our transition to each circle time, too. We even keep a basket of books outside the bathroom so children have something to keep them occupied if the bathrooms are already being used....
Inside: We love to kick off winter with a toddler and preschool snow and ice theme. Even if the temperature in your area is mild, these activities will invite your children to experience cold with fun hands-on ideas. Free printables included! When we return from winter break we jump into our snow and ice theme. Even though we don’t always get snow in our area, this theme allows us to explore different temperatures in a variety of ways....
