seasonal activities
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Creative ways to use pumpkins in preschool
Pumpkin exploration is synonymous with Halloween in preschool. But if you’re ready to try something other than painting pumpkins and sending them home, then check out this list!
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Preschool Halloween Materials
It’s October, and in my world that means it’s Halloween all month long! I’ve always loved to incorporate seasonal materials into the classroom. I think that really fits with the idea of creating a more home-like classroom environment. Many families incorporate seasonal decor into their homes, so it makes perfect sense to do the same at school. Here are some of the supplies and materials that I love to have on hand because there are so many different ways to use them. All links are affiliates! Large plastic bowls – These can serve so many purposes; toss beanbags into them for gross motor practice, store materials for activities, hold the…
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Gross Motor Activities with Apples
Sometimes we have to get a little creative in order to support gross motor skills, but when it comes to exploring apples, there are tons of ways to incorporate practicing these skills! Here are some of my favorite ideas. Apples are ball-shaped (for the most part) which makes them perfect for tossing and catching – gently of course! They can also be rolled back and forth or used in games like bowling. Apples with stems can be tied to a piece of yarn and hung from a tree so children can practice reaching and pulling (or “picking”). They make excellent items for relay races – balance them on wooden spoons,…
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Fine Motor Activities With Apples
You can’t escape the apple theme this time of year, and for good reason! Apples are a wonderful way to explore the science behind plant life and nutrition, but they can also be a great way to exercise some fine motor skills. Here are some of my favorite ways to use apples: Use a rotating apple peeler (like this one – affiliate link) to encourage wrist movement. It’ll fascinate the children and make quick work of slicing all of those apples so that you can taste them or bake with them. Of course, it does have a sharp blade, so this is a one-on-one activity that should only be done…
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September Preschool Lesson Plans
We have been squeezing the last bits of summer out like it’s our job over here – but it’s quickly coming to an end. As we look forward to September, I know that life isn’t about to get any less busy! I wanted to really dig into one of those resources that makes planning and prep so much easier. Let’s take a look at every single item included in the September Month of Preschool set. I’ll list it all below, and any products that are also available as individual resources will be linked so that you can go see specific images of those. For a video of how to use…
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Preschool Lesson Plans and Activities for June
We’re halfway through the month of May already – I can’t even believe it! Many of you are almost done with school for the year, but I also know that a large group of you will continue working with all of your littles through the summer. It was really important for me to continue these Month of PreK sets for every month of the year so that you would be supported no matter what your school calendar looks like. Here is the great big list of everything included in the June Month of Preschool set. This set has 5 exclusive activities that are only available in the June Month of…
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Summer with a First Grader
Yesterday I shared how I planned for our summer learning last year. Go check out that post! Last summer my girl had just finished kindergarten and my goal was to make sure that she didn’t lose any of the skills that she had learned during her first year of school. This year my goals are a little different. I want to really dig into the things that she finds fascinating and show her that she can take on her own learning. I also want to build a true love of reading for both fun and out of curiosity. Last year we kept one theme for a whole month, but this…
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Planning for Summer with Elementary School Kids
I’ve been hard at work at planning for our summer fun (and learning), but before I share what this year’s plans look like, I wanted to share how I put everything together last year. Here’s the post on how I organized all of it! If someone asked me to choose ONE word to describe myself it would definitely be the word “planner.” I truly love to organize my thoughts, lay them out on paper and fill in any missing pieces. It helps me feel in control and gives me the structure that I need. When it came to figuring out what our summer will look like, I started with daily…
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April Preschool Activities
April is getting close, and with the Easter holiday at the end of the month, it’ll sneak right up on you! I wanted to share all of the great materials that are included in the April Month of Preschool set because there are a ton of Easter activities that you can use right now, along with other spring themes for the next month. Here is everything that you’ll get in this one amazing download: This April set is 242 pages of amazing resources! you can download a preview HERE for even more information.
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Making Leprechaun Traps
Designing and building leprechaun traps has become one of our favorite traditions. I think the planning and creating is just as much fun as the anticipation of seeing if they’ll actually catch anything! This is one of those projects that really evokes my favorite memories of the kinds of activities that I loved as a child – the opportunity to use any and all materials to create something that I can see in my mind. That’s definitely a major reason that this stays on my plans year after year. Here are some of the supplies that I make sure to have available when it’s time to build our leprechaun traps:…
