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Teaching Patriotism
The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays, I love spending time with my family and making time to just enjoy summer. I think this is probably true for most people, but there is more to this holiday than barbecues and fireworks, it’s about pride and love for our country – Patriotism. There is something about the 4th of July that makes us all feel united in celebrating together, no matter what state we are from, what age we are, or what we look like. There are many many ways to teach patriotism to young children, and celebrating the 4th of July is a great reason to talk…
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Quick and easy 4th of July activities
Where did June go?! The 4th of July is approaching just a little too quickly, and I know I’m not as ready for the holiday as I’d like to be, so I thought I’d share some of my favorite ideas from last year to help us all prepare for upcoming patriotic parties and picnics! Check out this post from last year, it’s full of game, snacks, and crafts that are perfect for celebrating Independence day with little ones!
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Friday Freebie – Summer Graphics
Happy Friday! It’s been a week, let me tell you – but I’m off on another camping trip this weekend and looking forward to relaxing a little! I have two freebies for you today, I figured since I’m sharing graphics I’d give you papers and clip art so you can make something fun! This beachy clip art set is from Graphics from the Pond. I love the sketchy look, and it comes with background scenes. This would be great for learning activities or summer scrapbook pages! The summer paper set is from Teaching Super Power. The bright colors are perfect with the clip art set, and make me wish summer…
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Language and Comprehension activities for Preschool
It’s Wednesday, and here at Preschool Ponderings, that means time to focus on the standards. Every Wednesday I choose an Early Learning Standard and share a number of activities that can be aligned with that particular standard. Remember, the Standards that I use every day, and am most comfortable with are Ohio’s Early Learning Development Standards – you can review them here, however I’ve found that even if your State’s standards differ, many of these activities can still be aligned similarly. I’ve rounded up some great ideas today!Domain: Language and LiteracyStrand: Listening and SpeakingTopic: Receptive Language and ComprehensionThis standard is all about listening and understanding, for preschoolers it focuses on understanding…
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Water play with preschoolers
Most of the preschoolers that I know would be happy to play in the water all day, every day. If this is true for your students, then you are probably looking for ways to keep water play fun and exciting. If you do water play every day, you might try implementing a schedule with a different kind of water play each day – like this; Monday – Wading pools Tuesday – Water balloons Wednesday – Sprinklers Thursday – Ice play Friday – Squirt guns Doing something different each day gives children something to look forward too and breaks up the monotony. It also gives you some guidance when planning the…
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Water play with infants and toddlers
As the temperature heats up water play becomes more and more tempting. There are definitely safe ways to introduce water play for infants and toddlers that are tons of fun. As long as children are supervised when playing with water these activities are a great way to cool off and have a lot of fun! One great way to introduce water play is with sponges and small bowls of water. These are great for outdoor play because little ones can soak their sponges and then squeeze them right onto themselves. This is a great way to explore cause and effect. Here are some other great ideas for using sponges; Sponge…
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Friday Freebie – Ice cream writing
Happy Friday! It may be summer, but Fridays are still just as exciting. There’s something about knowing that the weekend is almost here that makes me feel great! This week has been all about ice cream. I shared Ice Cream Dramatic Play Ideas, gave you a new Ice Cream Recipe to try in the classroom, and shared my re-vamped Ice Cream Activities. Now I have a cute ice cream freebie for you too. This ice cream writing activity is from One Step Closer Teaching. It will help your students organize their summer plans, and give you a great writing project to share on an end of the year bulletin board.…
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Ice Cream Activities for Preschool
Have you ever explored ice cream in the classroom? It’s an irresistible topic, and a great way to engage children in activities that include a ton of academic topics. Here are some of my favorite ice cream activities to use with preschoolers; Ice Cream centers: This set includes 5 activities that are sure to keep your students busy (and probably giggling). Children can create their own ice cream flavor and write about the ingredients, answer questions about ice cream, graph their favorite flavors, and complete an ice cream glyph. It also includes a dice game where students get to roll the dice and collect cards to “build” an ice cream…
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Exploring life science in preschool
It’s Wednesday, and here at Preschool Ponderings, that means time to focus on the standards. Every Wednesday I choose an Early Learning Standard and share a number of activities that can be aligned with that particular standard. Remember, the Standards that I use every day, and am most comfortable with are Ohio’s Early Learning Development Standards – you can review them here, however I’ve found that even if your State’s standards differ, many of these activities can still be aligned similarly. I’ve rounded up some great ideas today! Domain: ScienceStrand: Life ScienceTopic: Explorations of Living ThingsThis standard covers all concepts relating to plants and animals (I know, that’s pretty broad). This…
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Making Ice Cream in the Classroom
I’ve always been a fan of homemade ice cream, and last summer I shared my favorite recipe – coffee can ice cream, which I love to make with my students because they get to be a huge part of the process, and because it doesn’t require access to a freezer. I’ve been experimenting with a new ice cream recipe that would be perfect for the classroom and I wanted to share it with you! This recipe only requires two ingredients (yay!) but you can add your favorite flavorings and toppings for something a little special. It also needs time to set up in the freezer, so this is the perfect…
