Showing posts sorted by relevance for query preschoolers. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query preschoolers. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query preschoolers. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query preschoolers. Sort by date Show all posts

Art Activities for Preschoolers

Easy Preschool Art Activities


Preschool art activities don't have to be all finger painting and paper plate crafts. We've collected some art activities for preschoolers that include sensory fun. Read on for easy preschool art activities that are destined to become mini masterpieces.

This post contains affiliate links.

Art activities for preschoolers.
Art activities for preschoolers.

Bubble Painting is a fun, sensory way to introduce your preschooler to art. They can experiment with color mixing, layering, and layout. Scoot on over to Kelly Noel's Living the Dream blog for more details.

art activities for preschoolers bubble painting
Bubble Painting Preschool Art Activity from Living the Dream.


Another fun way for preschoolers to experience sensory art activities is to let them play with food coloring and shaving cream. Skip over to our post on how to paint with shaving cream


Coffee Filter Mobiles. All preschool teachers adore coffee filter crafts. Remember the days of the milk carton crafts? Wonder what we'll all switch to when coffee filters become a thing of the past? These coffee filter and cardboard paper towel tube painted mobiles are self-explanatory. We found them posted here but are sure they originated somewhere else. Please leave a comment if you know the original source.



Coffee Filter Mobile Preschool Art Activity.


Art, like sensory play, develops critical thinking skills and hand eye coordination. Click here to learn about how art can aid in brain development.

Handprint and footprint art is a staple in the world of preschool. Introduce your preschoolers to Pointillism with these beautiful fall handprint trees from Arty Crafty Kids.


Handprint Art Activities for Preschoolers
Handprint Tree Preschool Activity from Arty Crafty Kids.

The Jammy Jigsaw offers up an art activity for preschoolers that serves double duty as a science project. This salt dough bone necklace is the perfect companion art project for a lesson on dinosaurs.

Salt Dough Bone Necklace Art Activity for Preschoolers from The Jammy Jigsaw
Salt Dough Bone Necklace Art Activity for Preschoolers from The Jammy Jigsaw.

Looking for more art activities for preschoolers? Visit our Pinterest Board, Preschool Scavenger Hunt.


Recommended:


For activities and games to play with preschoolers check out our Circle Time Handbook on Amazon.



Seasonal Books for Kindergarten 2015

Winter Holiday Books for Preschoolers and Kindergartners


The weather is getting colder. Children are dreaming of snow and the holiday season, and teachers and caregivers are looking for fun, new books to share with their students. These 2015 seasonal books are great for preschoolers and Kindergarten too. Enjoy!

We were given three adorable children's books for review, and they are perfect seasonal books for your little ones. One focuses on the joys of snow, one talks about Yetis, and the other focuses on Hanukkah... and Santa.

The Thing About Yetis Book for Preschooler with Companion Craft
The Thing About Yetis is a perfect book for preschoolers.

The Thing About Yetis is Vin Vogel's debut book as author/illustrator. It is an adorable book about a fuzzy Yeti. What's a Yeti to do? Like children, Yetis get bored in the winter months.

If you have cabin fever, you'll need something to do to. After you read the story, grab some paper, markers, and cottonballs and make your own Yeti as a companion book project. Just grab some tracing paper and trace the picture on the book cover or let the kids freehand it.

Make a cottonball Abombinable Snowman Yeti Craft.
Make a cottonball Abombinable Snowman Yeti Craft.

What's that you say? You don't have a book to trace? Well, you can get one at the library or buy one on Amazon: The Thing About Yetis*, or (if you are a resident of the U.S.) leave a comment to win your very own copy!


Winter Holiday Books for Preschoolers and Kindergartners
Dear Santa, Love Rachel Rosenstein is a cute book to teach about holiday traditions.

Dear Santa, Love Rachel Rosenstein is written by the actress, Amanda Peet and her friend, Andrea Troyer, with illustrations by Christine Davenier. This is a Santa story with a twist. Rachel Rosenstein's family doesn't celebrate Christmas

Published by Double Day, this picture book is full of vibrant illustrations that small children will love. It is cute, funny, and it describes some Jewish traditions. However, be prepared to explain why Santa doesn't visit all children- that can be a tricky subject. 

If you want to have a multi-cultural discussion with companion craft activities this book is a great launching point. Little Rachel runs into some friends who also don't celebrate Christmas. They celebrate Diwali and Chinese New Year. 

Recommended:

Star of David Cookies

Max and Marla take many adventures. In this latest Peguin Young Readers picture book, by Alexandra Boiger, Max and his pet owl, Marla, are hopeful Olympians. The limited palette illustrations are primarily beautiful shades of blue that don't even need words. Children of all ages will enjoy the story, but the target audience is for preschoolers ages 3-5.

Life is always about the journey, not the destination!

Winter Holiday Books for Preschoolers
Winter Holiday Books for Preschoolers.

Recommended:

Owl Crafts for Kids
Make a Snowman Craft for Preschoolers
Craft Snow*
How to Make Fake Snow
Mariah Carey Christmas Book Review

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! :)


Easy Edible Glue or Paste Recipe for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Kid-friendly Recipe for Edible Glue for Toddlers and Preschoolers 


We make this kid-friendly recipe for edible glue for toddlers and preschoolers in our messy play class. It is easy to make, the kids can even help make the edible paste. Enjoy!


Easy Edible Glue Recipe for Paste Preschoolers Toddlers Babies
Easy Edible Glue Recipe for Paste Preschoolers Toddlers Babies.

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, Ideas for Preschoolers and Toddlers
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.



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
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.
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.



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!


14 Circle Time Activities and Ideas for Preschoolers



Thanksgiving Crafts: Footprint Headband Native American hat craft for kids

Native American Headband Craft to make with Footprints for Preschool

This is an easy paper footprint craft to make to teach preschoolers about the first Thanksgiving with Pilgrims and Native Americans. Enjoy!

Native American Indian Headband Paper Craft for Preschoolers with Footprint Feathers
Footprint headband hat craft to make.







Gobbles and Giggles Class










Oh What fun! I taught a Seasonal Celebrations class with a Thanksgiving theme. We traced our feet onto colored construction paper. This is a great tactile activity for toddlers and preschoolers, as well as, a fun way to learn colors.


Kids love to use scissors! Half the fun was cutting the paper into pieces while the Mommies and Grandmas cut out the feet.


Thanksgiving Crafts: Footprint Headband Native American hat craft for kids
Thanksgiving Crafts: Footprint Headband Native American Hat Craft for Kids.

Make a headband from small strips of paper, attach it with staples or tape, then hand the kiddos a glue stick and let them get busy sticking those feathered feet onto the band. It's a nifty twist on the traditional, Native American headdress. 

We read, "Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving" and Played Broomstick TossWe hugged the turkey dubbed, Princess Emma, goodbye.

Thanksgiving Activities and Crafts for Preschoolers and Toddlers.
Giant Balloon Turkey.


Recommended Reading:

Paper Bag Indian Dress

Turkey Races Game

Turkey Marshmallows

Thanksgiving Is for Giving Thanks (Reading Railroad)



Pin it! Scavenger Hunt for Preschool Activities Weatherman's Day

Preschool Weather Ideas from Pinterest

Bet you didn't know there was a National Weatherman's Day (or person to be politically correct). So, when is Weatherman's Day? Tell your preschooler, this U.S. holiday is observed February 5 of each year. It recognizes people in the field of meteorology, weather forecasting, and even storm chasers. Observed for John Jeffries one of the first weather observers of record in the United States. (Wikipedia)

Weather Ideas for Preschool.
Weather Ideas for Preschool.


For this Pin it! Scavenger Hunt, the winning preschool activities  pin was pinned by Dawn Marelli (you knew it was) in the keyword category WEATHER for National Weatherman's Day. The featured blogger with a cute weather idea for preschool is Queen Vanna at the queen says a little about a lot of things.


Here are 3 fun ideas for Preschool Weather lessons!

Teach Preschool made rain in a jar! What an easy activity for preschoolers to learn about weather science.

Make Rain in a jar from Teach Preschool blog.

Hop over to Fantastic Fun and Learning blog for a roundup of weather science experiments for preschoolers from the Kid Blogger Network.

Fantastic Fun and Learning blog has a round up
of weather science experiments from the KBN.

After all that weather science, your preschoolers will need a weather craft. This rainy day umbrella is the perfect preschool weather craft. You can find it at Brook's Child Care on Tumblr.

Rainy Weather Umbrella Craft from Brook's Child Care on Tumblr.
Looking for more Weather Ideas for Preschoolers? Check back often for more fun posts! For more weekly preschool pinning fun ideas join our board Pin it! Scavenger Hunt.


Recommended Reading:


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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!


Sensory Spaghetti game for kids and preschoolers.
Getting Started with Cooked Spaghetti
Spaghetti Painting or Worm painting
Inspired Modern Art. Worm Painting?


Sensory Play Edible Art Painting with Spaghetti for Preschool and Toddlers

Spaghetti Painting for Edible Art and Sensory Play.
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



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

Turkey in the Straw, Turkey in the Hay Fun Thanksgiving Song for Preschoolers

Cute Song for Thanksgiving: Turkey in the Straw


One of my favorite childhood memories is when my brother's second grade class learned the song, Turkey in the Straw. He sang that song until the Fourth of July! It is such a cute Thanksgiving song for Preschoolers and Early Elementary Students.









Recommended Reading:

Thanksgiving Game for Preschoolers

Thanksgiving Song for Preschoolers



Black History Art Projects for Children: Expressionist

For Black History Month, Introduce Children to Amazing African American Artists with Expressionist Art Projects and Activities

Did you know there are some very well-known works of art crafted by little known Black Artists? Isn't it time to change that? These Black History Art Projects introduce students to less known famous black Americans. For Black History Month, or an anytime lesson in Black History or African American Art, we scoured the web for some beautiful art projects that children can easily reproduce on their own. This posts focuses on Alma Thomas, an American Expressionist Painter. Enjoy!


Black History Art Projects for Children: Expressionist



This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.*

Looking for a Homeschool or Classroom Curriculum on the Expressionist movement? We've created a series of printable rtf free lesson plans and worksheets that include video links, online educational games, reference material, and components for science, math, and language arts. Enjoy! Expressionist Movement Free Printable Assignment suitable for grades 3-6.



Black History Art Project based on Artist Alma Thomas Expressionism
Mayhem's interpretation of Alma Thomas' Expressionist Artist Painting.

Black History Art Projects for Children recreate Alma Thomas
Black History art projects for children:
Expressionism based on the work of Alma Thomas.


Tips: Laminate or frame these images to create gift quality modern wall art.

Famous Black Artist: Alma Thomas, Expressionist Painter

We recreated the works of Alma Thomas with torn paper. This project works well with children of all ages. With each grade level raise the level of difficulty. Preschoolers to Highschoolers will enjoy, tearing the paper and choosing which colors to include in their array.



This as a fun black history project for preschoolersYou can also use tempera paints and a thick brush or cut up sponge squares to dab on the paint. Have them use their thumbs to make the marks on the paper, or pre-tear construction paper into squares to save time. Let them paste the colors onto their paper as they choose. Please don't correct their work! It is amazing to see what each child sees. Let them wow you with their creativity.

We searched and found these fun, easy, and unique Black History Art Projects for Children:


african trade beads black history crafts
African Trade Beads from Crayola.com
black history art projects for children North Clarion
Black History Art Project for Children: Construction Paper Freedom Quilt
from North Clarion Elementary.
black history art projects for children: Art for Kids by Elan Ferguson
Black History Project from Art for Kids by Elan Ferguson.
Jake's interpretation of the painting below. He doesn't like to fill the entire page. 


Alma Thomas, Expressionist Painting for Black History Art Project. 
This image may be subject to copyright issues. It appears here for educational purposes only and is linked to the source, WikiArt Visual Art Encyclopedia.

Black History Arts and Crafts

art activities
art lessons
art lesson plans
activities for preschoolers
(Brown vs. Board of Education)

Black History Facts for (today, by month) June, etc.

Free Printable Black History Facts for elementary students


Recommended Reading:











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! :)


Thanksgiving: Turkey and American Indian Craft Popsicle Sticks for Preschoolers

These Turkey and Native American Indian Stick Puppets are so simple and fun to make they are perfect for preschoolers. 

We always have construction paper and popsicle sticks. So, for Thanksgiving, I grabbed a bag of craft feathers and we started creating. The plan was to make Wampanoag Indians to celebrate the first Thanksgiving in Plymouth. The feathers begged to become a turkey. Afterward, we pretended they were puppets and made a holiday play.

Thanksgiving: Turkey and  American Indian Craft Popsicle Sticks for Preschoolers

We made snowmen and reindeer too. Run to Joann's and buy a bag of fall-colored feathers. Use colored craft sticks or recycle Popsicle sticks. Tacky glue works great. Construction paper, mini-googly eyes, and the smallest pom poms ever!

Native American Stick Puppet for Preschool
Great for Wampanoag Indian Lessons and Curriculum.
Trace a small kid's cup for the head and turkey's body. Then glue on extras as appropriate. It's so simple and lends itself to creativity.

Native American Indian and Turkey Craft for Kids with popsicle stick and feathers. Fun puppets or fridge magnets.
Easy Popsicle Stick Turkey Craft for preschoolers.

I use them for a thanksgiving puppet show with a shoe-box backdrop. Little hands love to move them around the fridge as magnets.


Recommended Reading:

Crafts for Kids: A Month by Month Idea Book

Crafts for Thanksgiving (Holiday Crafts for Kids)