Diane C. Ohanesian
Early Childhood Specialist, Parent Educator and Author
Hello! I’m excited to see that you’ve found yourself here! I know your day is long, that you’re incredibly busy, that the day is just slipping by too quickly... and that you might be able to use a little help! Try some of the activities below with your preschooler. And check back to see what’s new!
So what will you do today to add some fun and learning to your preschooler’s day?
Make Some Music!
An oatmeal container maraca! Soap box sand blocks! A coffee container drum! Instruments are easily made with containers you have around the house.
Fill the oatmeal container with rice and have your child shake it. Attach pieces of sandpaper to small soap boxes and ask your child to rub them together. Give your child an empty coffee container and a wooden spoon and have him/her drum away!
Once your child has explored the homemade instruments, you can try some fun and easy activities. Start by clapping out a simple pattern and see if your child can shake, rub, or drum it out on the instruments. Then have your child beat out a rhythm as he/she challenges you to duplicate it by clapping or with one of the instruments.
Later, you may want to record the musical sounds your child makes with the instruments. Guaranteed he/she will want to make more music!
(This activity supports auditory discrimination, patterning, and creative thinking.)
Did the Mail Come?
Kids love to get mail! Here's a way to make sure mail arrives weekly for your child to open and delight in. Ask your child to help you make a mailbox by decorating it with scraps of paper, stickers, small drawings, etc. Print his/her name on a rectangular piece of paper or strip of lightweight cardboard and attach it to the box. At least once a week, write a sweet message to your child, put it in an envelope addressed to him/her, and place it in the mailbox. Your messages might include “good job” messages about something he/she has done, “I love you just 'cause you're you” messages, or a note about something you noticed, such as puffy clouds in the sky you see out the window, or flowers growing in the garden, and encouraging your child to notice them too. Over time, your child may want to make a mailbox for you, and create message of his/her own!
(This activity supports creative thinking and print awareness.)
Build an Aquarium
You'll need a clear plastic food storage container for this activity. Also provide construction paper, child-safe scissors, and markers your child can use to create fish of all kinds. Help your child attached the creations to the inside of the container. Encourage him/her to describe the different “fish” in the aquarium to family members. How big will they get? What do they eat? Which is the best swimmer?
Later, take a trip to the library and bring home picture books about sea life. There's so much to explore under the sea!
(This activity support fine motor skills, early science investigations, early reading readiness skills.)
Photo Album Fun!
Photo albums aren't just for photos! Explain to your child that you are going to be “investigators” going on a science walk. Encourage him/her to collect things he/she finds along the way, including weeds, grasses, pieces of bark, leaves, etc. Bring them home and place them in the individual pockets of a photo album. If you can, offer a child's magnifying glass that your child can use to look closely at each object collected. Storing these items in the album will be an easy way to do lots of “scientific investigations” together! How are the objects similar? Different? Which is the largest? Smallest? Which is the softest? Hardest? Which is the most useful? Why?
The next time you're out for a walk, bring the album with you. See if your child can find the items that match those collected in the book! The possibilities for science fun and learning are unlimited!
(This activity supports comparing and contrasting, making associations, visual discrimination and an introduction to science explorations.)
What Can You Make With A.........
Collect a variety of household items and put them out on a tray. You might include a piece of paper, a plastic bowl, a spoon spoon, a crayon, and a roll of tape. Begin by showing your child something that can be made from these objects. For example, you might make a placemat from the piece of paper, put the bowl and plastic spoon on the placemat, print your child's name on the placemat with the crayon to personalize it, and trace around the roll of tape with the crayon to decorate it. Voila! A lovely table setting made from a haphazard collection of objects. Now collect another group of objects and see what your child might do with them. Later, let your child collect the objects and challenge you to make something wonderful from the collection!
An oatmeal container maraca! Soap box sand blocks! A coffee container drum! Instruments are easily made with containers you have around the house.
Fill the oatmeal container with rice and have your child shake it. Attach pieces of sandpaper to small soap boxes and ask your child to rub them together. Give your child an empty coffee container and a wooden spoon and have him/her drum away!
Once your child has explored the homemade instruments, you can try some fun and easy activities. Start by clapping out a simple pattern and see if your child can shake, rub, or drum it out on the instruments. Then have your child beat out a rhythm as he/she challenges you to duplicate it by clapping or with one of the instruments.
Later, you may want to record the musical sounds your child makes with the instruments. Guaranteed he/she will want to make more music!
(This activity supports auditory discrimination, patterning, and creative thinking.)
Did the Mail Come?
Kids love to get mail! Here's a way to make sure mail arrives weekly for your child to open and delight in. Ask your child to help you make a mailbox by decorating it with scraps of paper, stickers, small drawings, etc. Print his/her name on a rectangular piece of paper or strip of lightweight cardboard and attach it to the box. At least once a week, write a sweet message to your child, put it in an envelope addressed to him/her, and place it in the mailbox. Your messages might include “good job” messages about something he/she has done, “I love you just 'cause you're you” messages, or a note about something you noticed, such as puffy clouds in the sky you see out the window, or flowers growing in the garden, and encouraging your child to notice them too. Over time, your child may want to make a mailbox for you, and create message of his/her own!
(This activity supports creative thinking and print awareness.)
Build an Aquarium
You'll need a clear plastic food storage container for this activity. Also provide construction paper, child-safe scissors, and markers your child can use to create fish of all kinds. Help your child attached the creations to the inside of the container. Encourage him/her to describe the different “fish” in the aquarium to family members. How big will they get? What do they eat? Which is the best swimmer?
Later, take a trip to the library and bring home picture books about sea life. There's so much to explore under the sea!
(This activity support fine motor skills, early science investigations, early reading readiness skills.)
Photo Album Fun!
Photo albums aren't just for photos! Explain to your child that you are going to be “investigators” going on a science walk. Encourage him/her to collect things he/she finds along the way, including weeds, grasses, pieces of bark, leaves, etc. Bring them home and place them in the individual pockets of a photo album. If you can, offer a child's magnifying glass that your child can use to look closely at each object collected. Storing these items in the album will be an easy way to do lots of “scientific investigations” together! How are the objects similar? Different? Which is the largest? Smallest? Which is the softest? Hardest? Which is the most useful? Why?
The next time you're out for a walk, bring the album with you. See if your child can find the items that match those collected in the book! The possibilities for science fun and learning are unlimited!
(This activity supports comparing and contrasting, making associations, visual discrimination and an introduction to science explorations.)
What Can You Make With A.........
Collect a variety of household items and put them out on a tray. You might include a piece of paper, a plastic bowl, a spoon spoon, a crayon, and a roll of tape. Begin by showing your child something that can be made from these objects. For example, you might make a placemat from the piece of paper, put the bowl and plastic spoon on the placemat, print your child's name on the placemat with the crayon to personalize it, and trace around the roll of tape with the crayon to decorate it. Voila! A lovely table setting made from a haphazard collection of objects. Now collect another group of objects and see what your child might do with them. Later, let your child collect the objects and challenge you to make something wonderful from the collection!
- (This activity support creative thinking and fine motor control.)
Build an Aquarium
You'll need a clear plastic food storage container for this activity. Also provide construction paper, child-safe scissors, and markers your child can use to create fish of all kinds. Help your child attached the creations to the inside of the container. Encourage him/her to describe the different “fish” in the aquarium to family members. How big will they get? What do they eat? Which is the best swimmer?
Later, take a trip to the library and bring home picture books about sea life. There's so much to explore under the sea!
(This activity support fine motor skills, early science investigations, early reading readiness skills.)
You'll need a clear plastic food storage container for this activity. Also provide construction paper, child-safe scissors, and markers your child can use to create fish of all kinds. Help your child attached the creations to the inside of the container. Encourage him/her to describe the different “fish” in the aquarium to family members. How big will they get? What do they eat? Which is the best swimmer?
Later, take a trip to the library and bring home picture books about sea life. There's so much to explore under the sea!
(This activity support fine motor skills, early science investigations, early reading readiness skills.)
