SPRING:
1)
Easter egg number
match: Using plastic Easter eggs, write one number from 1-12 or up to 18
on each egg. Also, write one number on the bottom of each cup in an egg carton.
Your child can match the eggs to the numbers in the carton. To increase
difficulty, write the numbers in the carton out of order!
2)
Easter
egg sensory in Easter grass: Create a sensory bin with plastic Easter
eggs, Easter grass or shredded paper, and any small Spring-themed toys to dig
for in the grass. Split the eggs apart and make it a matching activity, or
place small objects in the eggs so your child can open them to reveal what is
inside.
3)
Vegetable stamping:
A-Take a bunch of celery and
tie it together around the mid-point of the stalks or wrap a rubber band around
to hold the stalks together. Cut the bottom inch or two off of the stalks. Dip
in paint and stamp on paper: you have a flower! For a color matching activity
for toddlers, pre-stamp different colored flowers on paper and let them dry.
Using colored paper that matches the stamped celery flowers, make simple
butterflies-one to match each flower. Have your child land each butterfly on
its respective flower.
B-Using a bell pepper, cut off the bottom 1/2 inch.
Dip in green paint and stamp on paper to reveal a shamrock! You can make
flowers, as well, if the pepper has four bumps on the top rather than three.
Create a counting activity by writing numbers on a paper. Have your child use
the shamrock pepper stamp to stamp the amount under each number-1 stamp under
'1', 2 stamps under '2', etc.
4)
Seed Sort: Buy packages of
seeds at the garden store, and dump them all together in a bowl. Using small
cups, bowls or an egg carton, have your child sort the seeds. Arrange from
smallest to largest for an ordering lesson. Count how many in each group as
well for more learning. You can then plant them to see what grows and label
which seed grew into which flower/plant.
5)
Plant a garden:
using an egg carton or rinsed egg shells, plant seeds. When they begin to
sprout, you can transplant them into a pot or bed by burying the entire paper
egg cup (if a paper egg carton is used), or plant the entire half shell with the
sprout in it. The carton or shell will degrade in the soil and become
fertilizer.
6)
Egg Carton Amount Match: Using plastic Easter eggs
and an empty egg carton, create a number symbol-number amount matching game.
Write the number symbol on the top half of an egg. Represent the number amount
on the bottom half of the egg using dots, x's, or another small mark. 'Crack
open' the eggs and lay them on a table. Your child matches the top halves to
the bottom halves by counting the dots on the bottoms. (I left the egg bottoms
in the carton cups so my son picked up the bottom, counted the dots, and then
found the egg top that matched.) Place in the carton to store. (You can even
write the number words on the carton cups so that early readers can identify,
count, and read to match.)
***This plastic egg/carton match idea can be
expanded to match letters, create word families-the tops of the eggs having one
letter written on them and the bottoms having word endings written on them-or
two other great ideas from these mom bloggers:
This Reading Mama and
Ready.
Set. Read!.
7)
Color Match for Toddlers: Present 'cracked open'
plastic eggs to your older toddler and model how to match the tops and bottoms
by color. This is not only a visual discrimination activity, but also a fine
motor exercise if your child does the 'cracking' and attempts to reconnect tops
and bottoms as they make the matches. Make it a
language/communication experience by naming the colors as the matches are
made.
8)
Easter Egg Infant
Sensory: Using the plastic eggs, let your child explore them, discuss the
colors, how the tops connect to the bottoms, and fill a few to make shakers (see
next).
9)
Egg Shakers: I used dry
tri-color rotini pasta, and sorted it in front of my infant into three piles: I
only used a few noodles of each color, but made a pile of 'orange,' 'green,' and
'yellow.' I then put the green noodles in a green egg and closed it up, and
placed the orange in an orange egg as well as the yellow noodles in a yellow
egg. I talked to my child explaining what I was doing as I stuffed the eggs
with their matching-color noodles. You can use a piece of packaging tape or
scotch tape to circle the seam in order to prevent the egg from breaking open
and spilling noodles, but I left them unsealed and did not have too much of an
issue with noodles spilling out. If the noodles make there way out of the eggs,
it is just another sensory experience!
10)
Decorate Foam Eggs: Using cutouts of egg shapes
(I found a pack of 8-9 in the dollar aisle at Target), provide stickers, glitter
glue/puffy paint and sequins or pom poms so your child can decorate Easter eggs
without using the kitchen. My son decorated one egg for each grandparent and we
sent them as a little 'Easter hello.' I placed a strip of magnetic tape in the
back of each egg before he decorated them so that we (and the grandparents)
could hang the eggs on the refrigerator-makes them more usable.
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AUTUMN:
1)
Pumpkin Patch Exploring what abounds in the
Fall is just plain fun. Visit your local pumpkin patch. Many are family farms
with markets attached. I love buying from the source! Ride the hayrides, pony
rides or 'cow trains' in our case and let each member of the family pick a
pumpkin to take home for Halloween. Grab a gourd or two as well. Many of these
farms don't charge admission so the price tag can be a bit more manageable for
those of us on a budget.
2)
Pumpkin
Guts After you get the pumpkins home, maybe you have an extra one you can
spare, or wait until you carve (if you do), but open one up. Cut it open and
let your child see what is inside. If you scoop out the insides, place them in
a bag, dishpan, or baking dish so your child can get their hands in them.
Children love playing with 'pumpkin guts'! Be careful with little ones who are
still mouthing everything, but they can touch too. This is a sensory activity,
a fine motor exercise (using those fingers to pull at the guts and seeds), and a
science exploration. If your children are too young to carve yet, this is a
great diversion to keep them occupied while the adults take care of the
cutting.
3)
Seed Estimation In
addition to #2 above, pick out some seeds and save them to count. You can have
your child guess (estimation) how many seeds they think are in the pumpkin. You
can then test that hypothesis by counting the ones that were saved.
4)
Seed Counting To extend #3, use the seeds in place
of stickers for the Sticker Counting activity listed on the Preschool Activities
page: Write numbers 1-5 or 1-10+ on a piece of paper, and glue one seed under
'1', two seeds under '2', etc. Children should understand not only the order of
numbers, but the associated amount of each number symbol (e.g. 1=*,
2=**,etc.).
5)
Paint-a-Pumpkin If you
are not carving the pumpkin that your child picked, or have an extra, let your
child paint the outside of the pumpkin. Tape newspaper to your table top, or
cut open a paper bag from your local grocery store as your drop cloth. Secure
the paper to your table with masking tape, and let your child use tempera paints
and a brush to create their own design on the pumpkin.
6)
Paint the Autumn Use Autumn colors to paint a
picture. Red, brown, orange, yellow: provide these colors, or any combination
of the list to your child and let them paint 'Fall'. Have them make extra
paintings to send to grandparents or other family. You could even frame one and
hang it up with your Autumn decorations every year.
7)
Make a leaf collage. With
the breeze loosening many leaves from branches, there are leaves to be
collected, and when we collect leaves, we take them home to make a collage.
Children need to learn how to glue. Starting at 2-3years old you can introduce
this. Using white glue, help your child place a dot of glue on a piece of paper
for each leaf they collected outside. I started by squeezing the glue myself
where my son pointed on the paper so he could see how much glue I was squeezing
out. Now that he is over 3, I hold my hand over his on the bottle and we
squeeze together. You can squeeze some glue onto a paper plate and your child
can scoop some glue using a craft stick or straw and then dot it on their
paper.
So many kids in my preschool classes did not have the skill of "a
dab'll do ya" or "dot, dot, not a lot." Your child will be gluing galore in
school, so teach them the skill with this activity that brings the outdoors
indoors. (You can also place the leaves between sheets of wax paper and iron
them in order to laminate the leaves. The directions for this are on many
sites. Once the leaves are 'waxed' you can glue them onto the paper.)
8)
Feed the Birds Place the remains of a cut
pumpkin outside for the birds and squirrels. You could put the pieces out on a
feeder platform if you have one. Children love watching the habits and
activities of animals. Grab the binoculars and watch!
9)
Eeeww! Mold! For the truly daring, you can put on
your 'Ms. Frizzle' hat (teacher from The Magic School Bus books) and explore
decay. My very patient teacher colleagues put up with me doing this in one of
my preschool rooms. The kids were intrigued by watching a pumpkin decay over
time. It was an investment of a couple of wee. It's easier in a classroom than
a home to take this on, but you could place a mini pumpkin in a gallon sized zip
top bag, and place the bag into a plastic container or bowl. Observe each day
how the pumpkin looks, take pictures, and even make it into a book at the end of
the process. We often explore how plants grow in the spring, but not often do
we touch on decay. It's interesting to watch, if you are so inclined!
Definitely do not let your child touch the moldy pumpkin without latex gloves
on their hands. You could keep this outside in a garage if you have
one.
10)
Compare, Contrast and
Classify If they are available, purchase a few gourds and mini pumpkins for
a compare/contrast activity. Discuss with your child the similarities and
differences of each. You can even chart the characteristics of a couple using
descriptive words. Classification is a key skill for future science and math
lessons in school, and children love to play 'guessing games', so have them
study the mini pumpkins and gourds and tell you about them: What colors/markings
are on each? Which are small or large? Arrange them into groups by size, or line
them up from smallest to largest. I would even jump on-line and search 'gourds'
and 'pumpkins' to see what else we can learn.
11)
Try a 'pumpkin
rubbing.' Lay a piece of paper over the side of a pumpkin, and using
the side of a crayon, rub the crayon the paper to reveal the texture of the
pumpkin. (Just like a leaf rubbing.)
12)
Apple Stamping If you picked some apples while at
the farm/orchard, cut one open and paint with it. We cut the apple in half, and
then cut one half into quarters, so that a full print and a half print can be
achieved. Push a plastic fork into the apple pieces as a handle, dip the apple
into paint, and stamp it on paper several times. Dip it back into the paint as
needed to achieve a good print. After the painting dries, your child can add
painted or drawn stems and leaves, if desired. You can extend this by using
other items to stamp such as celery stalks, corn on the cob (roll the cob) or
acorn squash.
13)
Infants and Toddlers Even the littlest ones can
explore the fruits of Fall. Find some bumpy gourds, pieces of hay, Indian corn,
or apples, and let the little ones feel the different textures. My daughter was
enthralled with a bumpy gourd we picked up at our favorite orchard/farm market.
I let her sit in the grass and touch the gourd. It was a great sensory
experience for an infant.
14)
Pretend
Play At your local craft store you can find autumn-colored leaves on a stem,
plastic pumpkins, etc. I have some of these items in a bin in our playroom. It
adds a new element that is seasonal. My son likes matching the leaves by
colors-he piles them up based on which leaves are only red, which have red and
orange, and which have red, orange and yellow. Let your child use their
imagination with some indoor-friendly objects of the Fall.
15)
Nature Walk A great time of year to walk around
your neighborhood, state park, or local wooded area to look at all the colors!
Pick up some leaves for #7 above, talk about what colors you see, look for
animals, acorns, trees that stay green, etc.
16)
Library Time If you don't have an extensive
children's library in your home, or even if you do, head to your local library
to grab a few seasonal reads. Libraries always arrange a table or area of
interest for the current season or holiday. You can find a few books on leaves,
cute stories for Halloween, or attend a storytime! Definitely reinforce the
Fall activities with reading.
17)
Dryer
Sheet Ghosties: Take a used dryer sheet, lay it flat on a table, and place a
balled-up kleenex, piece of tissue paper, or paper (wadded up into the size of a
ping pong ball) in the center of it. Wrap string or a rubber band below the
kleenex 'head', and draw a face. You can tie string to the rubber band and hang
them, or let your child play with them. If you make multiple ghosties, you can
use them for counting, a tossing activitiy (see how far the ghost flies: #18
below) or play.
18)
Ghostie
Toss: Make #17 above. Place a piece of masking tape, or a yard stick on the
floor as the starting point. Your child should stand at the tape line and toss
their ghostie. (This can be done indoors or out depending on your preference.)
Using a measuring tape or yard stick, measure how far the ghostie flew. Count
as you measure, pointing to each number on the measuring tape, so that your
child hears the number order. Have them count with you!
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WINTER:
There are many craft projects our there on the internet particularly for
holiday-themed creations. I tend to pick projects that teach something (a skill
or concept) rather than just being 'cute'. Cute is nice, and generally there
are steps that need to be followed which helps teach 'following directions', but
I enjoy art projects and craft projects that allow my child's creativity to be
exercised. Below is a list of my favorite holiday/winter-themed activities. I
can not take credit for creating all of these ideas: teachers share and I am
sure some of them were passed to me by great teachers that I had the opportunity
to work with during my time teaching. I hope they will be enjoyed by you and
your children as well. They are simple (that's how I operate) and easy to
do.
1) Hand-Print Wreaths: Draw a circle on piece of construction paper.
Have your child spread out their fingers and paint their hand with green paint.
When coated, place their hand on the circle to make a print. Continue this
method around the circle until the circle is covered by green hand prints. You
can glue on a red bow after the paint has dried and frame it. Give it as a gift
to family or keep it as a decoration in your own home. Include date and
age!
2) Santa Beard Hand Print Picture: Use the same process as above,
but make a print of the hand using white paint, with the fingers pointing to the
bottom of the paper. Paint a circle of 'skin color' on top of the hand print
(hand is the beard), and when all is dry glue on a hat (cut out of paper),
cotton ball for pom pom on the hat, and draw a face. Another great option for
home decor made by your child, or stamp a bunch of them to use as Christmas
cards-fold the paper in half, create the Santa print, and write inside then
send!
3) Hand Print Ornament in plaster, or paper. Trace your child's
hand, if you are using paper (or if they are old enough they can complete this
on their own), cut out the hand print. Using a hole punch, punch a hold in the
'top' of the hand print ornament (the palm is the top in this case) and tie a
little piece of ribbon through the hole as a hanger. Your child can also make a
hand print, cut it out after it is dry, and decorate with glitter (while paint
is still wet), or other craft materials.
4) Footprint Reindeer: Using brown paint, paint the bottom of your
child's foot with a paintbrush and stamp their footprint on paper-the toes will
be the 'antlers' so you know how to place the print. Add a red puff ball and
face after the print is dry to create a 'Rudolph'. Again, this would be a great
option for homemade Christmas cards.
5) Chain-Link Christmas Countdown (or Hannukah): Make a chain out of
strips of paper to count down to your respective holiday, and rip off one link
each day to count the remaining days left until the 'big day'!
6) Candy Calendar Counting: 25 candy pieces in a jar, your child
gets one each night as you countdown to Christmas. You could use this activity
to count down to the new year instead.
7) Pine Cone Collection:
A) Sort them by size, count them.
B) Arrange them from smallest to largest.
C) Paint with them by dipping one side in paint and stamping or
rolling them on paper.
D) Make into bird feeders to hang outdoors: Spread peanut butter on
the pine cone and roll it in bird seed.
8) Shave Cream and Glue 'Snow': I first learned this combination
from a teachers' magazine called "The Mailbox" back in 2004. Mix one part shave
cream (not the gel, but plain non-menthol shave cream) and one part white glue
in a disposable bowl or paper plate using a craft stick or plastic spoon. When
mixed, your child can scoop the mix onto construction paper and make a snow
scene, or a snowman.
A) For snow scene, cut out squares, rectangles and triangles to make
paper buildings and houses. Glue the pieces on the paper to create a 'city'
scene. Then the child can scoop the 'snow' onto the buildings, ground,
etc.
B) For a snowman: Cut out small shapes like black circles for pieces
of 'coal', and a long orange triangle as a 'carrot' nose, etc. Have child scoop
the 'snow' onto the paper in three circles to create a snowman, add the paper
pieces to make a face and hat, etc., you can add craft sticks or small pretzel
rods as the arms.
When dry, this feels like dried snow. It dries puffy and foamy!
9) Write a Letter to Santa: dictated or actually written by your
child if they are old enough. Help them sign their name and mail it off. Some
post offices have a postmark for the 'North Pole', but letters have to
be received by a certain date-based on availability. I take a picture of the
letter to save for years to come.
10) Coffee Filter Snow Flakes: fold them in half and quarters, then
cut out notches and shapes. Unfold and tape to windows, or around the
house.
11) Read Gingerbread
Baby by Jan Brett and bake gingerbread baby cookies. I use
All Recipes and
Food Network for most of my recipe searches.
Either will have a gingerbread recipe...honestly, I have a mix right now, but
maybe next year I will venture to make my own!
12) Make Play Dough and use cookie cutters to cut out. You can let
the play dough dry (after using a straw to punch a hole in the top of the shape,
and paint to make ornaments. Just tie a ribbon through the hole.
13) Read Seasonal Books: group books related to Christmas, Hannukah,
etc, and winter together in a basket to make them the center of attention over
the holidays and cold months.
14) Snow Melt/Ice Melt Demonstration: If you live in a climate where
snow is present, grab some and place it in a plastic container or a bowl. Bring
it inside and allow your child to periodically check it as it melts. You can
make a simple chart with the time and whether it is still snow or water, and
keep a running list of each time you check the snow to watch how long it takes
to melt. If you do not have snow in your area use an ice cube from the freezer.
Place the cube in a cup or bowl and observe it every few minutes writing down
the observations on a chart.
15) Iceberg Model: If you happen to read about ice and icebergs, or
read a book about animals that live in cold climates like the Antarctic, you can
make a model of an iceberg using a cup of water and an ice cube. This model
displays how the majority of the iceberg actually floats under the water. This
idea came from a Scholastic children's encyclopedia and I used this model when
I was teaching in a first grade classroom.
16) Attend Events in Your Local Community:
A) Tree lighting ceremonies.
B) Caroling
C) Christmas/Holiday parades.
D) Live nativity scenes.
E) Zoo lighted displays.
17) Create Homemade Gifts: I had my children each complete a finger
painting at about 6 months old. It was called "First Painting". They each
painted on multiple sheets of paper so that I could frame them and hang one in
our home and send a copy to each set of grandparents. I made a little label on
the computer and then glued it to the painting that stated: NAME, TITLE, DATE,
AGE. This makes a cute little keepsake for you as well as a great gift idea for
family!
Additionally, I took pictures of each of my children completing their
painting and printed them off in wallet size. I picked up a few acrylic
wallet-size magnetic frames from a craft store, and included a magnet with my
child completing their painting as part of the gift as well. We had to have one
for our fridge at home too!
18) Discuss 'Giving' Over the Holidays: We give our children gifts,
and give to others, so talk about that. Give to
Toys for Tots, or clean out some of your
used toys to donate to
The Salvation
Army or local thrift stores-include your children in this process. Your
child may not understand why he/she is not getting to keep the toy you are
buying, but over time they will learn that giving is important. You could even
sell the older toys that your child no longer plays with and talk about giving
the money to a charity or church as you choose. We always talk about making
others happy by giving to them during this holiday (and throughout the year) as
well.
19) Visit Santa...a no-brainer for those of us that celebrate
Christmas and include Santa in the celebrations. It is ok if your child does
not want to sit on his lap. Remember, he is a 'stranger'.
20) Other Make-It-Yourself Gifts:
A) Paint pottery (ornaments, plates, mugs, etc) at a local
paint-your-own store. Include date and age!
B) Buy a patio stone kit from a craft store and let your child make a
creation. Include date and age!
C) Decorate a wooden frame with paint, glitter or other craft
materials and include a picture.
D) Bake cookies and give them as gifts.
21) Graham Cracker Gingerbread House:
Using graham crackers, frosting, and candy pieces, create a house. Use the
glue to stick the graham cracker walls together. (You can use a milk carton or
small box for more support-stick the graham crackers to the box using the
frosting.) Decorate the house with candy pieces to create a winter
scene.
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