Thank goodness for music! Seriously, music can be such an important part of our classroom, as I shared in a recent music and movement video. In that video I shared my beloved music binder that is jam packed with pages of lyrics I have collected the past 20 years. I have this binder divided by seasons and holidays, making it easier to find them while planning our circle time activities....
During our Thanksgiving theme, we focus on being thankful. Each year we make some sort of thankful art that we display at our Thanksgiving feast. While I was searching for this year’s idea, I came across a colorful preschool thankful turkey craft from Preschool Daze. I loved it because it also involved shape recognition (circle) and sequencing by size. This preschool thanksgiving craft was also loved by the parents. Of course, we put them in the preschoolers’ memory books so that they could be enjoyed for many years!...
The children loved using the nets, as I suspected. But they also used their hands to make the ocean animals swim. Catching fish and other sea creatures using nets is always fun. You might remember our ocean sensory bin that our preschoolers loved so much. I used a similar idea, but adapted it for our younger children by using jumbo sea creatures. They were the perfect size for their hands!...
Inside: Get into the festive spirit with these 15 toddler and preschool Christmas cooking ideas. These can be done in the classroom, and are also a fun way to bond over winter break! One of the things that makes holidays so special to most is the food. Winter has a ton of amazing flavors- peppermint, gingerbread, chocolate… and I guess fruitcake, if anyone actually likes that. Sharing the cooking experience with your kids is an amazing way to create memories with them....
15 of the Best Toddler Valentine Crafts For Preschoolers: Valentine’s Day Skill Building Activities Have you tried to find toddler valentine crafts only to see they are way too complicated? I am always searching for ideas on Pinterest and am amazed at how many ideas are tagged for toddlers but really are more for preschoolers. So, when I put this toddler valentines craft collection together, I paid close attention to the details....
CLICK HERE to find more outdoor learning activities! When I went searching for easy chalk activities, I was amazed at how versatile chalk is! A big box of sidewalk chalk goes a long ways, indoors and out, in the sensory table, for art projects and science experiments. I make sure we keep chalk on hand throughout the year in our classroom for our toddlers and preschoolers. 25+ Favorite Chalk Activities that Build Skills Spray it: After writing letters on a vertical surface, spray them with water....
Fine motor development is an important part of the toddler and early childhood years. In order to learn how to draw and write, the hands must be strong enough to hold writing tools. Fine motor is also necessary for independence. Think about zipping a coat, buttoning pants, opening a door, getting a glass of water. These all require fine muscle control. Bonus: I’ve created a free printable checklist for you to download....
This Christmas sensory play activity has so much going on, and yet it’s really easy to assemble! We use our favorite dyed rice recipe (I go into detail in my pom pom sensory play post), add different types of stars, and it’s ready to go! The best part of this activity is all the different textures, sizes, and fine motor going on. Toddlers and preschoolers love this hands-on idea!...
It’s so easy to get caught up in the cookie cutter crafts during holidays. I know, because I am guilty. And I still do some crafts, although I want our children to put their own touches on their work. But process art is what I prefer most. I think my students would agree. That is what I love about this easy pumpkin painting activity. It’s about the process. It’s about the fun of mixing colors and using a pumpkin to stamp the paint onto paper....
We then work on moving the parachute up and down. We love music and movement with our toddlers! We all know how energetic these little people can be. Parachute games for toddlers channels that energy in creative ways. They are focusing on the rhythm, they are learning how to move with a group of children, and they are learning how to listen. Have you noticed as soon as you take out the parachute you are surrounded by happy children?...
Every year our toddlers and preschoolers make a homemade Mother’s Day gift that I hope will be a sweet keepsake for years to come. Our white clay necklaces with watercolor boxes were such a hit with the mommies, but this year I decided to try something a bit different. A dear teacher-friend had donated some wooden pieces and showed me how her preschoolers made Mother’s Day fairies. I fell in love with them immediately and knew this is what I wanted to make....
We welcome December each year with a gingerbread theme that always includes an ornament. We’ve made play dough gingerbread ornaments and rich brown clay gingerbread ornaments. This year I tried something completely different: a gingerbread ornament that is also a suncatcher. I wanted something colorful that could be either added to a Christmas tree, or hung in the window to brighten those dreary winter days. I also wanted an ornament that the preschoolers could reposition the pieces....
Painting with Bubble Wrap What you will need: Tempera paint in the colors of the rainbow Paint brushes Bubble wrap Paper The Process: Here are more rainbow activities you will want to try: Bubble Wrap Rainbows with Toddlers 10 Rainbow Activities Here is my Privacy Policy
What you will need to put into the sensory bin: Table salt Purple chalk Lavender plant pieces Funnels Scoops Making the lavender scented play dough: This is our favorite play dough recipe, but we double this since we have 10-16 children. 2 cups flour 1 cup salt (for this particularly activity, you will use the salt you mixed with the chalk) 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 2 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar 2 cups cold water Food coloring...
Inside: This collection of spring sensory bins invites toddlers and preschoolers to explore different colors and textures. Each bin is filled with hands on exploration and will go nicely with your spring theme! You can find all the details here: Alphabet Flower Sensory Bin This is a great time of year to explore using our sense of touch with all the textures available. If you are looking for some new spring sensory bin ideas, you will love this collection!...
WATCH: Favorite Winter Circle Time Ideas When planning preschool circle time ideas, we make sure to include kids songs, stories, and learning activities. Circle time is a great way to help build language and social skills while also learning new concepts. Each day our preschoolers hear at least one story, sing songs and/or recite finger plays, have the opportunity to hold and flip though books, and have short discussions. Some days we also have one sharing person and we will also play a large group game or involve all the children in some sort of activity....
👉 Free pumpkin shapes printables! Scroll down towards bottom of post to get the link to download. I get so giddy when October arrives! There are so many fun fall activities to choose from, indoors and out. One of my favorite themes this month involves pumpkins. As soon as I see them in the grocery stores, I am ready! So I put together this huge collection of pumpkin theme activities as a resource....
Inside: Put together a simple toddler Valentine’s Day craft turning paper plates into colorful suncatchers. These hearts look beautiful hanging in the window! A few years back we made some Valentine’s suncatchers that were made from plastic plates, and while I loved them, I wanted something even simpler this year. Something with materials we already had on hand. I already had a stack of cheap paper plates from the spring suncatchers we made last year, so I thought why not use them for Valentine’s Day suncatchers?...
