Easy Preschool Crafts - Sand Play Dough

Good Morning,

Summer here in the US is coming to its unofficial close this weekend-- Labor Day Weekend. Schools will all be in full swing next week. I checked my files for easy preschool crafts and found this craft that one of my readers sent in to share. Give it a try with your kids!

This idea is a great one to help your kids create a souvenir of sorts from those summer beach days. It is also a fun idea to use in the winter when you want a diversion from cold and snow!

Let the kids help to measure and to stir and knead the dough, then let their imaginations create!

Sand Play Dough


Here is one that we like to cook with the kids and use to make great sand castles and sculptures.

Need: 2 Cups fine sand, 1 cup cornstarch, 1 ½ cups cold water.

Mix in an old pan. Stir 5-10 minutes over medium heat until thick. Let cool and knead for a bit. Store in a plastic bag or container until ready to use. This should yield enough for 6 children. Give children a paper plate and an assortment of small shells, stones, beads, straws, anything to decorate their creations. These will dry hard if left to set for a few days.

We call it a piece of Island when the children add shells and small tree branches.


If you have ideas to share, send them along and I'll post them here for all of us to use and enjoy.

Thanks,

Mary
marys.plans@gmail.com

P.S. If you would like to receive my free newsletters for ideas for your preschool class, enter your name and address at the site below:

http://preschoolplanner.com/preschool-activities.html

Back to School Preschool Ideas

Hello Again,

The summer is flying by at record speed it seems and it is time to think about back to school preschool ideas.

I'm not sure about you but I am a little behind getting ready because I've had so much fun watching the Summer Olympics from Beijing!

I do have some ideas to start the school year off.

Parents--Use puppets!

For parents with children just starting preschool I suggest using puppets and puppet role playing with your little one. Children love to voice their concerns through a puppet which is always a little safer. You can pretend to be the teacher or the child and act out the first day expectations. Always add that you come back after a short time and that there will be so many fun new things to do and children to meet.

Teachers--Pre-Open House

If possible, send a letter home to your new students introducing yourself. This can be done by email or snail mail. Even better is to hold a mini-open house before school starts so that the children and parents can visit, put a face with a name and know a few basic expectations.

Have a Poster Board up with each child's name on it. Ask the parents if there is anything special --likes, strong dislikes, allergies, etc. which you can put on this poster. This will stay up for the school year and if you are out and another person is helping, all these important facts are right there for all to see.

There are so many more ideas I want to share but running out of time and space for now.

You can also send me any special ideas or tricks you use and I will post them here.

Send them to me at marys.plans@gmail.com.

Until later,

Mary

P.S. PS: If you would like to receive my free newsletters for ideas for your preschool class, enter your name and address at the site below:

http://preschoolplanner.com/preschool-activities.html

Preschool Games Free - Indoor Volleyball

Good Morning,

I hope that you are all enjoying the Olympic Games! This is such a special event with all countries and athletes coming together to play their favorite sports with one another. I will be sharing preschool games free here on my blog the next couple of weeks for all to enjoy.

We all know that sports and being active are good for everyone. Here is an idea that Karen, one of subscribers, sent to me for an INDOOR VOLLEYBALL game. I like it because it is foolproof and everyone gets the chance to play and show their abilities.

Indoor Volleyball

Indoor volleyball is a great game for fun and exercise.
You will need yarn, balloons and groups of four children. The yarn serves as the volleyball net.
Cut a six to eight foot length of yarn.
Two children are needed to stretch out the yarn across the room; each child holding end taut, chest high.
Tie inflated balloon with yarn cut 2-3 foot length. Tie end of yarn near the middle of volleyball net yarn.
Balloon is now hanging from net yarn for two other children to bat or volley back and forth using a three minute timer. When time is done switch end holders and players. Doesn't matter if balloon is hit over or under the net yarn...balloons stay in the playing area!

Have fun!

Thanks again Karen for sending this in to share. Send me your ideas and I'll pass them along here in my blog.

You can reach me at marys.plans@gmail.com

Until next time,

Mary

P.S. If you like these ideas be sure to check out my Preschool Lesson Plans:

http://www.preschoolplanner.com/thefullstory.html

Preschool Olympic Ideas - Opening Ceremony

Hi there,

Today is quite an exciting day - 08/08/08 - Opening Day of the Olympics in Beijing China!

This is a perfect time to talk about the Olympics and how important they are to everyone worldwide.

Children love ceremonies and parades and I suggest you try the following ideas to introduce these games and the tradition of the TORCH.

Introduce the concept of the Olympic torch, the importance of the torch run, how it always starts in Greece, etc. Show videos from previous Olympic opening ceremonies including the lighting of the torch.

Craft- Making Torches

Materials- paper towel rolls, tissue paper (red, yellow and orange), paint, glue, markers, foil, wrapping paper

Give each child one paper towel roll and a few pieces of tissue paper. Have them rip or cut the tissue paper into long strips and glue the strips inside one edge of the paper towel roll. Decorate the tube by either painting it or covering it with foil or wrapping paper.

Opening Ceremonies - using the torches from the craft to perform a torch relay run throughout the school or schoolyard. Put all the torches together in the same place to mark the opening of the Games.


Let me know how you like the ideas and also send me yours to share on the blog.

You can reach me at marys.plans@gmail.com

Until next time,

Mary

P.S. If you like these ideas be sure to check out my Preschool Lesson Plans:

http://www.preschoolplanner.com/thefullstory.html

Preschool Ideas - Ice Adventure

Hi there,

We are always looking for new preschool ideas.

This is one that can be done outside on a hot summer day or inside when the weather keeps you indoors. It encourages socialization skills, sharing, and fun--what could be better?!

Thanks to Debs for sending this in to share with everyone.


What's in the Ice? An Ice Adventure

Here is an activity the children really enjoyed and can be used in or outdoors.

During the morning session the children were encouraged to put plastic insects and bugs into tupperware containers. They filled them with water and put them into the freezer .

When they were frozen we put them in the water tray with childrens' tools (plastic hammers, screwdrivers) water cans, etc. There was a good level of interest, conversation and turn taking. The children enjoyed this activity and had lots of fun finding the bugs.

NOTE: If you have half days you can freeze the bugs one day, and do the activity the next.


If you have ideas to share, send them along and I'll post them here for all of us to use and enjoy.

Thanks,

Mary
marys.plans@gmail.com

P.S. If you like these ideas be sure to check out my Preschool Lesson Plans:

http://www.preschoolplanner.com/thefullstory.html

Preschool Creative Activities - Jungle Animals

Hello,

I want to thank all of you who have been sending me your favorite ideas! There are so many to share with so I'll start here.

Amanda sent me this one and I'm sure it will become one of your favorites to use as well. It can be adapted in so many ways and used for years!

Theme = Jungle Animals. Knowledge and understanding of the world.

Turn your library/ book corner into a jungle animal habitat pick one animal per week. Draw or print out a set of foot/paw prints and place them on the floor. Each set of prints should lead to a visual clue. Works best with 3 - 4 clues. The last set of prints should lead to the habitat and before the big unveil you should discuss with the children which animal they think it is based on the clues they have found.

Examples are 1. Animal = Lion. Paw prints discuss is this a large animal or small animal?

Clue 1 = Relates to the country where the animal lives. So could be a map with a paw print on the country and a foot print or magnifying glass on Britain.

Clue 2 = Relates to what the lion eats could be an antelope hidden in some green shredded paper tombola style.

Clue 3 = relates to the animal appearance so this could be a lions mane or tail for the children to wear for the remainder of their search. Then on to the Lion's den.

Discuss with the children the clues they have found and get ideas from the children as to which animal it could be. End the session with a story about a Lion as this will reinforce their knowledge. Afterwards the children should be able to tell you what a lion looks like where they come from and what they eat.
This is a fabulous activity which the children never seem to tire of. Takes a fair bit of prep but can be used as part of your curriculum plans for years to come. Great cross curricular activity encourages the children to use their fine manipulative skill, gross motor skills, develop concentration, develop recall, increase knowledge and understanding of the world, co-operate with friends and you can even incorporate it into your global citizenship planning with endangered species and climate change etc.

Hope you enjoy this and can store this in your file to use over and over!

Until next time,

Mary
marys.plans@gmail.com


P.S.: If you would like to receive my free newsletters for ideas for your preschool class, enter your name and email address at the site below:

http://preschoolplanner.com/preschool-activities.html

Preschool Science Activities - Earth Science

Hello,

Now that the children are home from school in the US for summer break, parents and caregivers are scrambling for ideas.

Here are a few preschool science activities about plants and gardening that my classes have enjoyed. They involve walks outside, observing, thinking-- stirring the imagination to understand the plants that they see everyday. Best of all--they can create their own snack when they're done!

Flower Hunt
Take students outside and ask them to bring in any flowers they can find. Talk about why flowers are different colors, shapes, and sizes, and why they smell different. Ask students if they like flowers or not and why.

How Plants Work
Walk your students through the life cycle of plants. Ask them if they have ever seen the roots of plants. Show them what the point of roots are and how plants use light to create energy. If you can, pull up a plant and show the roots to students.

Edible Plants
Do your students know that fruits and vegetables are actually plants? Describe how different foods come from the ground, and why that makes them healthy. Show different kinds of fruits and vegetables and ask students to name them. Help them understand that all kinds of edible plants grow just the same as traditional plants like trees and flowers.

Snack Time: Flower Sandwiches
Give students flower cookie cutters and two pieces of white bread. Let them choose their filling. They can pick between jelly, peanut butter, honey, or whatever else you can think of. They can stick a Twizzler in between for a stem if they like.

Give these earth science ideas a try when you hear the famous line--"I'm bored!" Have fun and enjoy!

If you have some ideas to share, send them to me and I'll post them here for all to see and use.

Mary
marys.plans@gmail.com

P.S. If you like these ideas check out my Preschool Lesson Plans:

http://www.preschoolplanner.com/thefullstory.html