CLICK HERE to find all of our snow and ice resources! If you are looking for a simple art activity to keep your toddlers and preschoolers busy this winter, our snowflake art collage is the answer. Young children will be working their fine motor skills while adding their own creative touches to these fun paper snowflakes. When finished, you can display them on the wall or hang from the ceiling!...
And, of course, many bunnies! We swapped out the green from our St. Patrick’s Day theme and brought in some pastel colors for our spring animals theme. It was raining like crazy while we were setting up the classroom, but I had to chuckle because that’s what spring is like in the Pacific Northwest! I love embracing each of our seasons! See those cherry blossoms through the window? We will be bringing some inside the classroom to explore....
☞ Scroll down to find a free cover for your music binder! You are cooped up indoors and need to get those kids moving. You might not even have a lot of space. This is when you turn on some music and get those wiggles out. Our preschool resides in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. It rains. Okay, it rains A LOT. And while we do take the children outside as much as possible, we still need more activities indoors to let them release that energy....
Inside: We use lots of hands-on ideas with our toddler hibernation activities. A cave they can actually crawl into, caves they can build with arch blocks, bears and loose parts in the sensory bin. It creates a very meaningful environment that they love! One of our winter themes is hibernation. Every age level in our preschool includes this in their winter curriculum. However, I wanted to keep it on a super simple and meaningful level for our youngest children....
Every fall, just after we return from summer vacation, we explore sunflowers. We’ve created large sunflower bulletin boards, have enjoyed sunflower sensory tables, and have enjoyed sunflower fine motor fun. Our preschoolers have loved our sunflower science unit, so we decided to try toddler science with sunflowers. I am happy we did, because they loved it! Here is my Privacy Policy
Inside: Add this Valentine’s Day counting printable to your circle time to build simple math skills. Keep toddlers and preschoolers engaged while reading books and singing songs! If you are looking for ways to work on counting skills during circle time, these numbered Valentine’s Day circle time props is perfect. Attach them to a cookie sheet using magnets, a flannel board using velcro, or tape to popsicle sticks to hold....
Inside: Looking for some easy kids Christmas snacks? Here are 20 tasty and fun ideas that are perfect for class parties, home parties, and lunchboxes! I remember as a child loving the various Christmas snacks and treats that were served at parties. I absolutely loved them! Then, when I had my own children, they’d help me make all sorts of snacks and we’d give them to friends and neighbors. Today, I love making Christmas snacks with my toddler and preschool students....
Inside: Looking for some preschool fall painting activities? This collection is full of easy and fun ideas you can do in your home or classroom! I was so excited to put together this collection of preschool fall painting activities. Lots of hands-on exploration with colors and texture! During our centers time we always have the art table available. We prefer as much process art as possible, but I admit that we might get a bit crafty over the holidays....
You know those times when you are looking for a simple activity that uses something you already have on hand? That’s exactly what this collection of toddler and preschool sponge activities is all about. Who knew that a common household item, a sponge, could be part of so many different skill-building activities? Your children will work on shapes, fine and large motor, color recognition, sensory, art, and much more. So grab those sponges and have some fun!...
Inside: These fall leaf activities add some seasonal fun to your Autumn time. Add some gorgeous fall colors to your home or classroom! One of the greatest parts about the fall time is all of the beautiful colors. I’m lucky enough to live in the Pacific Northwest, where the nature is gorgeous. As soon as the temperature begins to cool down, all of the trees begin rapidly changing colors. Seeing the leaves change from green to orange, yellow, red, and purple makes me crave decorating my classroom!...
Inside: Looking for the best toddler and preschool themes you can do in your classroom or at home? This collection is filled with playful learning activities for year-round fun. Free printable list included! Are you like I was, searching for themes that will work with toddlers and preschoolers? Do you have stacks of notes with ideas but not sure where to go next? Take a deep breath. I am hoping to help you with this collection of preschool themes....
Have you seen all the creative snowman art for preschoolers out there? For the past 13 or so Januaries, I have had so much fun with our snowman unit. And every year, I change things a bit. This year I wanted to try adding some texture to our snowman art activity along with a variety of loose parts. We first read the book Snowballs by Louis Ehlert. We then got to experience a couple of snow days....
This activity is part of our “at-home” series! Teaching beginning math skills to your toddler or preschooler at home can seem like a daunting task. I will admit, math in general can be daunting! But this does not mean that teaching preschool math skills has to be difficult. There are lots of amazing ideas for ways to naturally introduce this subject at home through play. The compilation below focuses on using common materials that you may already have at home to make the process even easier....
After teaching for as long as I have (almost 2 decades as I write this), I’ve done a lot of observing toddlers and preschoolers at the sensory bin. No matter how we set that bin up, no matter how many hours we’ve thought of ways to add on to it, no matter all the little details we are so excited to add, there is one must. There must be tools and materials that allow scooping and pouring....
Anything with magnets is loved by preschoolers. I love adding them to many of our learning centers, and it’s a great way to encourage hands-on exploration! For this light table activity I gathered our beloved Magna Tiles and added some magnetic pumpkins and wands. Super simple, yet thoroughly enjoyed by all of our students! Watch the video of our classroom in action: I’ve used them in the sensory bin, the block table, and as a table activity … so this time I decided to add them to the light table....
Inside: Teach color recognition skills with this fun spring sensory bin for preschoolers. Pastel pom poms and matching plastic eggs are a great addition to an Easter theme! Toddlers and preschoolers love to scoop and pour at the sensory table. Most of our sensory ideas include it for that very reason. But it’s also fun to add addition skill building. This spring color sorting activity involves inexpensive materials that can be purchased at the dollar store, along with your choice of filler....
Inside: This wooden snowflake craft is a perfect way to get a small group of preschoolers working together on one project. The result is a big snowflake that looks beautiful as a window decoration! I love hanging our art in the window. So, when I was planning our snow and ice theme, I thought about how fun it would be to hang big snowflakes from our classroom window. I already had some wooden paint sticks and knew I could add some good fine motor by having the children add small pieces....
I have an addiction to water bottles. Not just any water bottles, mind you, but Voss water bottles. They are the perfect size for little hands to work with, they are much sturdier than regular water bottles, and they can be sealed shut easily with hot glue. So when I am at any grocery store and see those bottles, I just might do a little dance. (While my husband rolls his eyes and chuckles....
Inside: Learn how to teach kindness to children during the Christmas season with The Kindness Elves! Our world needs kindness now more than ever. Let’s build a good foundation for our kids! The Christmas season can be such a “I want that” time of year. It seems like as soon as we’ve said goodbye to our last trick-or-treater, the holiday ads begin. For real. Don’t get me started on the lit Christmas trees adorning our department stores before we even carve our pumpkins....
Shaving cream and watercolors is our favorite mixture for kids finger painting fun. I know some of you might be cringing from the thought of hands (and arms) getting into that combination, wondering what about the mess? This is when I suggest taking it outside, just like we did with our mirror activity! And while I know this looks messy, the soap in the shaving cream makes clean up a breeze, especially if you can just hose it down when finished....
