Cute Monster Paperbag Puppets: Video, Monster Trouble: First in our KCC Kid's Creative Play Series for Kids

Make your own paper bag monster puppets for Halloween

In honor of my favorite holiday (Halloween) we explore Monsters. Special thanks to Alex Toys for providing the crafts and toys in this post. These Paper Bag Monster Puppets came in a kit but you could make your own with construction paper shapes and lunch or colorful party bags. Play a Monster Game too.

 Paper Bag Monster Puppets are fun for a 
Preschool or Toddler Birthday Party.

More Paperbag Puppets for Teaching (Presidents)

Creative Play allows children to forget about stress and school work and let their imaginations run wild. 

I'm a huge fan! The Play Connection, Inc. offers many opportunities through our Sensory Messy Classes, Costumes/Puppets and Kiddie Play Productions.

First, we made Paper Bag Monster Puppets. The kits includes 5 colorful paper bags but with the leftover supplies you can make even more with white or brown paper lunch sacks.

Paperbag Monster Puppets.

After monster making, we went on a CREATIVE PLAY adventure and filmed it for you! The monster in the video is wearing the Face Paint Kit by Alex Toys and his weapons of choice are the Connect a Giant Monster discs. 

We hope you'll join us over the next few weeks as I find my inner videographer and the kiddos explore their improvisational skills in our first video production, The KCC Kids Creative Play Series Videos. 

The KCC Detective Agency presents MONSTER TROUBLE.



Find the Undercover Spy Gear here. After tracking monsters, you can get some much needed target practice when you clean up in the bath with this Screaming Monster Tub Target.

Monster Bath Tub Toys.

Each month, we'll go on a fun adventure and share it with you. Stay tuned next month for our tribute to Thanksgiving and the Wampanoag Indians.

We'd love to hear from you! Do you have ideas for future KCC adventures? Do you want to join in the fun? Leave a comment below or subscribe to our posts.

Recommended Reading:

Monster Toilet Paper Roll Cardboard Tubes

Birthday Party Game Kids Love

Monster Birthday Book by Boynton

Kid Sensory Science: Play Based Learning How to Garden with Kids with Egg Cartons: Investigating_Detective_Hands-On Messy Play

Investigating Detectives: Kid Sensory Science and Gardening with Egg Cartons

Sensory Play is a big buzz word. Back in the day, all my play time was sensory play. I'd run around outside, get filthy making mud pies and sand ice cream, dash through the sprinkler, plop in the bath, (where I swirled Dad's shaving cream into Mom's shampoo painting Picasso's all around the tub) and head to bed one truly happy camper. Make a sensory science egg carton garden with your kids!

Gardening: The original Sensory Play Based Learning.

Today, lots of people don't like to let their kids get messy or to be seen in dirty clothes, the horror!

Start your seeds in egg cartons in doors in early spring.

I sweep the kitchen and bathroom floor several times a week, but you'd never know it. Anytime you stop by for a visit you'll find dried mud, bits of dandelions, grains of sand, tiny twigs, and a few dead bugs. And, at least two kids in dirty clothes. I often joke, I'm no Martha Stewart, but I'm no June Cleaver either. Ahem... If I had to pick a t.v. personality's home to compare ours too... I fear we resemble Roseanne the most, just not so crass.

Everyday is Sensory Play day! Last week, Jake was covered in mud he found in a hole in the backyard. I plan to make some mud paint for my next sensory post.

Amanda loves to investigate with her magnifying glass, ziploc baggies, and spoons from the kitchen drawer.

When our seedlings come up, we'll plant them in this little garden box we built together last year. We have healthy strawberry plants already!

Keep bunnies out of your garden with raised garden boxes.

Science projects cover the front porch, 'Please watch your step.' Our favorite toys are anything we can find growing in the yard.  

Bonus = lots of free toys!

A Whole lot of fun with the Tickle Me plant. 

By far, the best seed to plant with your kiddos!

If you want to follow our messy life, hop over to Kids Creative Chaos on Facebook and join the fun.

Recommended Reading:

Roots, Shoots, Buckets and Boots: Gardening Together with Children

Planting a Rainbow

Play Based Learning Linky full of Sensory Ideas for kids

It's time to join the sensory play based learning linky party, "Play to Learn". Link up your creative ideas and visit your favorites. We're working to get this off the ground with Nikki at Spectrum Psychological.

<div align="center"><a href="http://www.spectrumpsychological.net/1/post/2013/02/play-to-learn-february-blog-hop.html" title="Play to Learn Blog Hop"><img src="http://www.spectrumpsychological.net/uploads/1/4/9/5/1495826/3711599.jpg?1358187461" alt="Play to Learn Blog Hop" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

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How to make a Kitchen Stove for Kids Pretend Play from a Cardboard Box

Recycle Boxes and Bottle Caps for the Best Cardboard Play Stove Ever.

Is there anything better than cardboard box for creative play? A box is the best toy ever so we made a cardboard kitchen stove for kids pretend play. Here's a 'how to make' picture tutorial.

Cardboard Pretend Stove with all the Recycled and Upcycled bells and whistles, ahem, knobs and handles.

DAY ONE

First, measure a width of wax paper and trace onto cardboard front of your box. Nevermind, if a flap is in the way, we'll fix it later. Now cut out the window (for your oven door) and reinforce the flaps with duct tape. Tape the wax paper on the inside. You can also use plexiglass and duct tape. Get a cardboard paper towel tube and attach to top of oven door. This will become your handle. 

The difficult part is attaching the interior shelf. Get a glue gun and attach strips of cardboard to each side to serve as the ledge the shelf sits on. Make them 2-3 pieces of wide, glue together, and attach face side to the right and left walls of oven. Cut shelf to fit. I used flaps from another box. Now it will slide in and sit atop your pieces of cardboard. I also added "legs" for extra play durability. (The cat likes to climb in and sleep on our shelf!)

Now tape up the bottom and back side flaps of the box. Leave the top box flap up to serve a the area for a clock and knobs. See the photo above, I also added a flap from another box to hold this flap upright, otherwise it likes to fall closed. You are tired and worn out from all of the cutting, taping, and thinking. Sleep on it and save the rest for day two.

DAY TWO

See picture below. Now, trace the fast food cup holders on the top of your box. You may have room for four burners. Cut the hole about 1/2" smaller than the tracing. I used duct tape to attach the burners, but I encourage you to use hot glue and reinforce with tape... BUT NOT YET.

First, cover the sides and the door with some leftover wrapping paper. I used a glue stick on the box and secured the edges with tape. Then, cover your cardboard tube with foil. Cover your stove top with foil. Yes, the whole top. Poke a hole in the center of each opening and cut a small "x". You will have a slit opening with triangles. Fold the triangles in and tape on the underside to the "stove top". Now you can attach your fast food "burners". Tip: I cut the foil about 3" more than what I needed to cover the top of the stove and neatly folded it down forming a chrome edge. 

Go take a break; it will look better after you've had some time away from it.

When you return, attach your knobs (soda and milk lids glued together) and your clock front (Numbers printed off from a Word Document). Let these dry for at least 15 minutes. Remind the kids not to really turn the knobs these are the push to start variety :) We lost one on the first play!

Now, call the kids! It's time for a session of creative play. We save the little french fry containers, small cereal boxes, and juice containers to pretend.

And... the Mommy you are awesome hugs and rewards are worth the frustration :)  

Make a PAPER CHEF HAT

Make a cardboard kitchen stove.

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3 Easter theme Physical Education Activities for Elementary Kids using Eggs

Want to add an Easter theme to homeschool physical education activities for elementary school age kids? 

Use plastic eggs and egg cartons in the games. To make a fun preschool activity or silly Easter party game add some bunny ears. These 3 games work for a kid's birthday party  and are fun to play in Sunday School at church. We also have a fun pe game for Easter. Enjoy!

More PE Games

Plastic Easter Egg Games and Activities for PE/Gym.

Easter Egg Pockets Game                                                   
You need:  egg carton, markers, plastic Easter eggs, and 1 or more players.

How to play game: Any size egg carton will do, but cardboard egg cartons are easier to color with markers than styrofoam ones.

Cut lid off carton. Color each pocket a different color. Write a point value in each pocket. The points should be in increments of 10. So, if you want to use an egg carton with 8 pockets, the point values would be 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, and 80. The larger point values should be in the pockets around the outside edges, since these are harder to get the ping pong ball into.

Place the your egg carton on the floor. Stand about four feet back from the carton. To make it harder you can stand even further back.

Now, try to toss a plastic Easter egg into one of the pockets. Where the egg lands is the number of points you get. Then, the next player takes a turn. The first one to reach a score of 100 is the winner!

How to decorate Easter eggs and make homemade dye

Easter Egg Pass Game
You need: Plastic Eggs, Large Spoons, and an Easter Basket.

How to play game: Each player needs a large ladle or spoon. Each group of two players needs a plastic Easter egg. Player one starts with the egg balanced on his spoon. He tosses it to the other player, who in turn catches the egg in his spoon. The object of this game is to pass the ball back and forth without dropping it off the spoons. 

With a larger group of children, at a kid's birthday party, you can play a variation of this game by dividing in half and lining everyone up into a single file line and asking them to pass the egg down. 

When a whistle blows or you say, "On your mark, get set, go" the race begins and the egg is passed from spoon to spoon until it gets to the person at the end of the line. If the egg is dropped the team must start over. 

The last person drops the egg into an Easter basket at the end of the line to win. Or, try this variation: The fastest team wins or give each team an equal number of eggs and a time limit. When you blow the whistle, everyone must freeze. The team with the most eggs in their Easter basket wins.

In My Easter Bonnet Game
You need: Plastic Eggs, Easter Basket, 1 Easter Bonnet (Make one here) and enough bunny ears for all players.

How to play game: Before the game begins mark one of the plastic eggs with a tiny bunny face. For a preschool or Sunday school class let the kids make their own ears and bonnets beforehand.

Everyone sits in a circle like Duck, Duck, Goose only everyone is wearing bunny ears (Don't worry it is fun for older kids too). Place the basket of eggs with the bonnet in the center of the circle. One player is chosen to hop around the circle like a bunny. He chooses another player by tapping him on the shoulder. The second player, places his hands on the firsts shoulder (like a train) and they continue to hop around the circle adding to their bunny hop. The last player sitting grabs the basket and the bonnet. 

The bunny train circles him and then sits down. The player with the basket passes 1 egg to each of the other players. The player with the bunny egg must trade his ears for the bonnet. 

Now, the eggs are placed back into the basket, and everyone wearing bunny ears forms a new circle around the basket of eggs. The player in the Easter bonnet is now "it". This player must twirl around the circle and tap another player on the shoulder to twirl with him until all but one player remains again.

Play continues as before, and the person who gets the bunny eggs must trade his ears for the bonnet. Play continues until everyone has a chance to be "it".

If you can find the music for the Bunny Hop and Easter Bonnet songs, play them during the game to make it more festive :)


Recommended Reading:

Holiday Recipes and Games for Kids*

Egg Hunt Game for Physical Education

The Ultimate Homeschool Physical Education Game Book: Fun and Easy-To-Use Games and Activities To Help You Teach Your Children Fitness, Movement and Sport Skills*


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ADS DISCLOSURE: We've partnered with some wonderful advertisers who may sponsor blog posts or send us samples to test. Some companies pay us to review their products.

*We also use affiliate links, if you make a purchase we get a tiny commission. Kids Creative Chaos participates in the Amazon LLC Associates Program*, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a mean for blogs to earn advertising fees by linking to Amazon properties, including, but not limited to, amazon.com, endless.com, myhabit.com, smallparts.com, or amazonwireless.com. We also offer Tapinfluence, Google Adsense, SoFab, and Izea ads here. Thanks so much for helping us keep the lights on! :)

Edible Art: Sensory Play Paint with Spaghetti with Toddlers and Preschoolers

From our Sensory Play Messy Class for Preschoolers and Toddlers: Worm Painting with Spaghetti and Edible Paint Art

Sensory Play is a great way to help preschoolers learn. It also helps with disorders of the Autism spectrum when the child is allowed to explore the subject matter on their own without being pushed. This activity is messy, squishy, fun, and even edible! Enjoy!

Getting Started with Cooked Spaghetti

Inspired Modern Art. Worm Painting?

Spaghetti Painting for Edible Art and Sensory Play feels like worms.

How to Make Spaghetti for Sensory Paint Play

• Cook up a batch of Spaghetti
• Strain it and pat it dry
• Mix some Edible Paint (Vanilla Pudding Paint with Gel food coloring works best with the Noodles but you can also try kool-aid paint and  milk paint for other projects.)
• Prepare to get Messy!
• Swirl the Spaghetti in the paint, then onto your paper.

Since most in the class are toddlers, I paraphrase the words to get thru it quickly, paying a lot of attention to the photos and asking, "What is that?".  We paired this with the Children's Book, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs

Books about Spaghetti.

Next, I gave each child a spaghetti noodle to study. Then, we stood up pretending we were squigly spaghetti noodles. Oops, spaghetti can't stand up, so we fell to the floor and squirmed like worms. We finished up with a game of Duck, Duck, Goose but why not try Worm, Worm, Catepillar?

Painting was a huge success. The sticky spaghetti is so fun, enjoy!

Recommended Reading:

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Worm Birthday Party Favors

Healthy Spaghetti Recipe

Worm Birthday Party Activity

Sensory Play: Plan your Curriculum and Lesson Plan

Sensory Play Lesson Plans Link Up

Do you have Sensory Play Activities on your blog? Are you looking for Sensory Play Activity Lesson Plans or Curriculum to do with your toddler, preschool class, or day care program? These sensory activities make it easy to plan your curriculum and prep those lesson plans. Check back often for our Sensory Play Linky Parties. Enjoy!

Are you looking for sensory activities to do with a baby, toddler, preschooler, elementary age, or teen child? We've got you covered with a linky party. If you have a blog or website, please link up your posts in the comments. 

Older children with sensory processing disorders, such as Autism benefit in the same way younger children do. Children can explore their senses with these sensory activities and become accustomed to the sensation of cold paint on their fingers, the sound of crackling paper, the smell of scented dough or spice paints, the taste of edible crafts, and the visual impact of it all. 

 

Recommended Reading:

Art Develops Critical Thinking

Learning and Playing Outdoors: How to Plan and Create an Inspiring Outdoor Environment (Practitioners' Guides)

Transdisciplinary Play-Based Assessment, Second Edition (TPBA2)

Winter craft ideas for Kids: How to Make Snow for Pretend Sensory Play in Ice Age and Christmas Village

Make Fake Snow with Wax Paper

This winter craft idea for kids focuses on how to make snow for your Ice Age Dinosaurs. In this DIY, you'll use wax paper. Enjoy!

Ice Age creative play with Dinosaurs, Diego, and
wax paper snow activity for kids.

We've shared many sensory activities for kids, but this winter one is the cat's meow! So, I've been saving a a bag of snow since my Grandmother passed away.  I inherited it with a few pieces of her snow village.  A few years ago, I used store bought snow for my village, as I wasn't ready to use hers or risk losing it around the cats and little ones. This year, I pulled it out and dumped it around my village.  It was as remarkable as I remembered. Enjoy!

 Winter Preschool Activity

And then, it wasn't... 

The cat kept climbing in it spreading it all over the floor. During the holidays, I brushed it under the table to clean up later. Later came, I began carefully picking up the pieces preparing to place them in a baggie for next year, when somehow the glistening bits of fake snow appeared more familiar than I'd ever known. This wasn't fake snow at all.  It was tiny pieces of shredded wax paper!  I made a collage with snowy scenes around my house so you can see how natural it looks.

Make Fake Snow out of Wax Paper.

Ice Age Dinosaurs, Sensory Snow Play.

Grandma's fake wax paper snow village versus real snow
covered pine trees in the landscape.

Sneaky Grandma, surprising me from the grave. I hadn't realized she was so creative. One year, on my parents twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, she volunteered to get SILVER vases for the table centerpieces.  She brought them just before the guests arrived, and I was astonished to see plastic glasses of some sort wrapped in aluminium foil. Not her crafty-ist moment. It felt a little tacky for what I had planned, but certainly creative. 

And now, the snow.

What an easy project for your snow globes, snowman in a jar, I -spy Christmas ornaments, or just for an ordinary day of creative play with plastic animals or Legos.  We decided to play Ice Age with ours.  I'll save Grandmas, just thinking how she took the time to craft it makes me smile.

So, grab your wax paper.  Do not cut it. Tear it into tiny shreds and store in a Ziploc bag for your kiddos. So easy, so fun and perfect for SENSORY PLAY!  Thanks, Grandma!

What will you pretend?


Recommended Reading:

National Geographic Little Kids First Big Book of Dinosaurs (National Geographic Little Kids First Big Books)*

Dinosaurs! by Gail Gibbons*

ADS DISCLOSURE: We've partnered with some wonderful advertisers who may sponsor blog posts or send us samples to test. Some companies pay us to review their products.

*We also use affiliate links, if you make a purchase we get a tiny commission. Kids Creative Chaos participates in the Amazon LLC Associates Program*, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a mean for blogs to earn advertising fees by linking to Amazon properties, including, but not limited to, amazon.com, endless.com, myhabit.com, smallparts.com, or amazonwireless.com. We also offer Tapinfluence, Google Adsense, SoFab, and Izea ads here. Thanks so much for helping us keep the lights on! :)

8 Best Christmas Holiday Games for Parties for Adults and Kids

8 Activities for Christmas Parties

Looking for Holiday or Christmas Party Games for your Office or School Event? These are some of the 8 BEST EVER holiday GAMES for Parties. Even Santas like to play holiday games and do fun Christmas activities when they get together... And eat. They also like to eat. Scroll down for more of the best holiday games. Enjoy!

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.

Here are some more of the best CHRISTMAS games ever! You can play them in a Banquet Hall, outside in warm weather, (or cold if you like) and in your living room.  

We were busy planning a fundraiser for Santa's Elves of Indy, when we partnered with Oriental Trading Company to help raise money to purchase Christmas gifts for local families. Chick-fil-a of Avon, Indiana was kind enough to donate a banquet tray to help feed our volunteers and the Santas. 

Before the big day, we practiced by playing many silly games like Elf Bowling and Soccer. We used some of the games on this list of Christmas party games to play with the kids .  

We like games that can translate to preschool, elementary, teens, and adults with little tweaks and variations. If you enjoyed our post "Have the best Christmas party ever," you'll like this one as well.

Christmas and Holiday Games for Office Parties or Family Get-togethers.

Fun Games for Holiday Parties

• Group Scavenger Hunt 

Divide into teams: Team Rudolph, Team Dasher, Team Frosty, Team Elf- you get the idea. 

Make a list of things to find and return to Santa (you) to win the game. Look for things around the office, school, house, where ever you hold you hunt and make a list, check it twice, and then print out a copy for each team. Teams can be of 2-6 players.

• Christmas Ornament Bowling

Need a fun ice breaker or silly game to get great Instagram shots 

or You Tube videos? Try ornament bowling! To set up th 

game: Use rolls of wrapping paper. Unroll them to form each 

"bowling" lane.  Use miniature Christmas Trees or Decorative 

Santa Figures as the bowling pins. These Christmas decorations 

are the perfect theme for this holiday party game.

• Icebreaker Game for a Party

How about this Sticky Note guessing game: Who am I?

Write one holiday thing or decoration word on each sticky note. Choose words like: Snowman, Christmas Tree, Santa Claus, Sleigh, Rudolph, Menorah, Danny Kaye, Elf on a Shelf, Bing Crosby, or Yukon Cornelius, even movie titles.

Players go from party guests and ask one question. The answer must be a yes or no answers. "Am I alive?" "Do I wear a red hat?"
Play continues until each player solves the mystery of "Who am I?"

Instead of sticky notes or paper taped to people's backs, try writing names on Dollar Store Santa Hats with Glitter Pens. Guest can keep them as party favors!

Fun hats make for silly games and fun pictures with kids and adults!

• Santa Belly Limbo? Office Party

Add a Holiday or Christmas twist to a fun icebreaker game for the office. Have each player describe two of the worst Christmas gifts they ever received. Make sure one is true and one is a lie. Now, have another player guess which one is true! This is a fun way to get to know co-workers.

• Candy Canes Game

Have you ever played the game spoons? Try using candy canes instead! The kids will like this game. Winner eats all!

How to Play Spoons

• Fill the Stocking Race

Find the largest Christmas stockings you can (I found mine at Dollar Tree). Fill it with empty wrapped boxes. Have players race to unwrap them all. The first one done wins! 

Play the race to wrap game first, and then you won't have to do any upfront prep! See, what I did there? Yeah, my lazy meter is always on guard.

• Hot Christmas Potato Game for Adults

Each guests bring one wrapped item from a Dollar Store. $1 limit! Play hot potato to Holiday Music. When the music stops everyone unwraps the gift, and shares what they got with the crowd.

• Snowball Contest

You need baskets of new socks in all sizes. Each team rolls their basket of socks into "snow balls".  When all of the socks are rolled into balls let the snowball fight begin. 

Use a table or chair with a white table cloth to serve as each team's home base hideout. 

You can also make a snowman, and use his belly button as a bull's eye. The team with the most bull's eyes wins!


I sure hope you have the best Christmas office party ever with these fun holiday games!  Happy Holidays :)  from KCC

Recommended Reading:

Holiday Games and Recipes for Parties

Games for Youth

Melissa and Doug Christmas Box Of Questions Game

Fun PE Games for Kids: PE Activities Gym Exercise

 PE Games for Elementary Homeschoolers

Getting PE time in as a homeschooler is difficult. Sometimes, you have to get creative. Kids love to play tag! These physical education games for elementary focus on old favorites, but each one has a new twist. Learn the country of origin of many pe activities for kids. Kids will love to play these fun PE games indoors or outdoors. Enjoy!

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.*

Fun PE Games for Kids: PE Activities Gym Exercise.

14 Circle Time Activities and Ideas for Preschoolers

Preschool Circle Time is for Group Lessons, Games, and Interaction

Running out of ideas for Preschool Circle Time? Every preschool program needs circle time for group interaction. This is a time to build structure into the program, so the children know what to expect each day. It is great to offer circle time at least twice a day- once in the morning, and once just before time to go home. These ideas will help build a sense of togetherness, (community) a time for sharing, and a fun learning environment for the kids. Enjoy!

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.

Elementary Circle Time Games, Activities, and Ideas for Preschoolers and Toddlers.

 14 Ideas and Activities for Circle Time

1.  Dance Freeze - Play some music or sing a song. Everyone dances willy nilly. Suddenly, stop the song, but don't sing to the end of a verse, that is too predictable. Everyone must freeze in their position. Is one leg up? Are they doing the worm? If they move, they must sit frozen in that spot, criss-cross applesauce and wait to see who can freeze the longest. No blinking or twitching allowed.

50 SIMPLE GROUP GAMES for CIRCLE TIME

2.  Bug in a Rug - This is an oldie, but a goodie. Everyone sits in the circle. Before you begin to play, explain EXACTLY how the game works. Grab a blanket or a big beach towel. Now, pick one child to leave the room or wear a fun blindfold. Teacher picks a student. Shh! Just point at the child, grab their hand and take them away from the group. Now, point at another child and then to the "rug". Hide the child under the "rug." Bring the other preschooler back. Can they guess who is missing? 

3. Pass the Movement - I played this for years with preschoolers and school-age children in summer camps, but I didn't give it a name. I found the name at Preksharing Blog. She says it is adapted from a book published in 2011, but we used to do this years ago in summer camp and afterschool programs. Just goes to show, great minds think alike! It is simple to play. Teacher starts with a movement. Perhaps, you wave your hand in the air. Now, the person sitting to your right must wave their hand and add a movement like wiggling their nose. The next person to the right, does those movements and adds one of their own. It is a "WAVE" of different movements.

4. Shake the Sillies Out - Need a game to get kids' moving?  Find some Dragon Tunes from the cartoon, Dragon Tales, and every morning, "Shake the Sillies Out"! Just play the song, and follow the instructions. Kids love this one!

5. Circle Time Collaborative Painting - I like the idea of painting circles in collaboration like the one from Art Project Girl in the link. You know, where Teach lays out a big sheet of paper and painting supplies and everyone paints concentric circles? What if we do it as a part of Circle Time? Pass the painting, and make a PROGRESSIVE PAINTING. 

This idea teaches patience. Everyone must wait their turn. It builds excitement too. Lay out a large painting tarp, sit the children in a circle on the tarp, give each child a cup of paint and a brush. No painting unless it is your turn. To make it less frustrating, pass two large poster boards around starting at opposite ends. Children are allowed to paint only 1 circle or shape of their choice per turn. While they are painting, teacher shares an art lesson on shapes!

Collaborative Concentric Circle Painting from Art Project Girl.

6. Click, Clack, Moo Story Starter - You know the story about the unhappy cows in the barn? They have a typewriter. They are making demands. An electric blanket would be nice. What else might the farm animals want from the farmer? 

Click Clack Moo Story Starter Circle Time Game.

Play a Circle Time Game where each child is given an animal. Before the game, print out cards with farm animal pictures on one side and their name on the other. Each child draws a card from a hat. Give this example to the kids: What does the (insert animal here) pig want? "Dear Farmer Brown, the barn is smelly. Please send air fresheners." Have each child come up with their own idea for what the animal on the card might want from the farmer.

7. Animal Movement Game - Take the game above one step further. Get the kids moving like the animals. Ask, "What does a pig say?" Now, "How does a pig move?" The children take turns walking around the circle like the animal on their cards. 

8. Quiet Mouse, Still Mouse - When Circle Time is done, keep children in a circle to release them to the next preschool activity. The teacher explains, the child who sits as quiet as a mouse (the quietest) get to line up first. Continue until everyone (or almost everyone, I don't like to single out those who can't sit still or quiet) is in line.

9. Calendar Time -  Sing "Sunday, Monday, Tuesday Wednesday, Thursday Friday, Saturday. Suunday, Munday... TUUESday" Emphasize the current day of the week. Sing the song and then check the calendar. Who can find today on the calendar? Here's another days of the week song sung to the Addam's Family theme. 

10. Alphabet Shopping - Using the first letter of each child's name, pretend to go shopping for an item that begins with that letter. For example, “Jake will buy a jump rope.” Go around the circle until everyone has had a turn. This helps with letter recognition. For more ideas like this visit Early Childhood News.

11. Talking Stick - Bring in a cane, or recycle a cardboard wrapping paper tube. The kids can help decorate the "Talking Stick" with Washi or Duct Tape, Glitter, or Feathers. During Circle Time, grab the stick. Now, explain to the group that this is a talking stick. Only the person who holds it may speak. This is a great tool to use for Show and Tell or other situations where children take turns sharing. More lessons in patience and turn taking.

12. Birthday Day of the Week Bags - PreK Pages Blog has a fun idea for Day of the Week Bags. Make a brown paper bag for each day of the week. Give it a colorful label, and fill it with the names of classmates who have birthdays on this day or other special things that happen on this day of THIS week.

   13. Pictures with Facial Expressions - Hold up magazine pictures of facial expressions. Ask, "What is this person feeling." Have the children take turns making the face. After you play this game, have the kids draw themselves like this emotion art lesson.

14. Play Duck, Duck, Goose? - This old standby might be boring to you, but it is likely new to the toddlers and preschoolers in your class. Change it up each day. After they get the hang of the game, add a creative play element by acting it out. Have the kids act and walk like the animal as they toddle around. Walk and Talk like the animal. For older or school-age children, change the theme to pig, pig, cow or ghost, ghost, vampire.

Recommended Reading:

50 Easy Group Games for Preschoolers

Rugs for Circle Time

Circle Time Handbook with Reproducible Pages

Teen Group Games for Camp

Preschool Circle Time Activities

Chicken Art Project for Preschool

Preschool Circle Time Songs

Nature Based Circle Time Activity

How to Play Four Corners Group Activity

Follow us on Instagram for more fun ideas every day!