Preschool learning activities

MATCHING:
On posterboard, trace around several spoons of various sizes, assorted kitchen gadgets, shoes, dolls, a large paperclip, etc. Have your child match real items to their outlines.

CLASSIFYING:
Give your child the bottom section of an egg carton and a small dish containing a mixture of raisins, square cereal, O's cereal, sunflower seeds, chocolate chips, etc. Have your child sort the items into the carton. Discuss the results. "You put all the dried fruit together." "Teah put browns together." Then put the mixture back in the dish and sort it a new way! Then eat it! Snack and play time!!

Magnet game:
Give your child a small basket containing a magnet and assorted items, both magnetic and non. Some examples are: paperclips, screws, plastic spoons, q-tips, etc.) Also include items that have magnetic parts (clothespins and pencils). Give your child some time to explore items and discover that some stick. Then have them test each item and sort into two categories: things that stick and things that don't.

SPATIAL RELATIONS:
Make a sandwich snack together with crackers and cheese.
Sing to "Down by the Station"
"Take a square cracker
put it on the bottom,
cheese in the middle,
and a cracker on the top.
Take a big bite now
of my cracker sandwich.
Crunch, crunch, yum, yum-
Now it's gone!

SEQUENCING AND SERIATION:
Play Go Where I Go with your children. The first child touches an object (the slide). The second child touches the same object plus a second object (the slide, the tree). The third child touches the previous objects in order, plus a third. When a child misses, he or she becomes the first child as the starts over.

Find four identical yogurt containers with clear lids. Place several nails in one, dried beans in one, salt in one, and leave the last empty. Glue the lids on. Have your child shake them and place them in order from loudest to quietest.

MUSIC:
(sung to "the ABC song")
Yes, I know my phone number,
555-1212.
555-1212,
555-1212.
Yes, I know my phone number,
555-1212.


Play the Hokey Pokey and encourage your child to name unusual parts like lip, elbow, hip, neck, etc.

Have fun playing and learning TOGETHER with your children this summer. Chores and errands will be there, but these precious times will fade away.