I am always looking for Preschool Ideas online. For those of you who don’t know, I am the owner of a small home daycare. I like to run my daycare as more of a preschool and want to make sure my kids are continuously learning. Every month, I send home a calendar which lists our weekly themes as well as the letters, numbers, colors and shapes that we will be working on throughout the month. Here are a few of my beginning of the year Preschool Ideas.
Letters
This month the kids learned the letters A, B, and C. I love to have them turn the letters into fun crafts!
A is for Alligator
B is for Bear
C is for Caterpillar
I also printed out A, B, and C letter worksheets throughout the month. Some of the sites I printed from are as follows:
The Measured Mom, Action Alphabet, Classroom Jr
I visit these sites quite often for all kinds of preschool ideas.
Preschool Ideas For Apples
Last week’s theme was apples so of course we had to make an apple tree. All you’ll need to make this adorable craft is a sheet of white construction paper, brown construction paper, red construction paper, green washable paint and a mesh pouf bath sponge. Cut out a trunk from your brown construction paper and have your child glue it to the white paper. Pour some green paint onto a paper plate. Have your child dip the sponge onto the paint and then press it onto the white paper to make the leaves of the tree. When they are finished making their tree, set it aside to dry. Once the tree is dry, cut out little circles from the red paper and have your child glue them to the tree to make the apples. This craft is super easy to make and they come out so cute! Best of all, the kids have a blast making it!
Here are some of the other apple projects we worked on, along with the links to the pages I found them on:
Apple Pickin Match – I had the kids cut out the squares, working their fine motor skills. I then had them count the dots in each square on the tree and then glue the correct number in each square.
Apple Patterns – Again, I had the kids cut out the squares on the worksheet. We went over each set of patterns and I had them tell me which object came next. They then glued the correct square at the end of each pattern.
Apple Stamping – For the apple stamping, I cut an apple in half and poured some green washable paint on a paper plate and red washable paint on another plate. The kids then took turns dipping the apple halves in the green and red paint and pressing them onto white construction paper. Super messy and super fun!
Supplies
I purchase almost all of my daycare supplies through Discount School Supply. They are very reasonably priced, especially when purchasing in bulk, and I love their products and customer service.
Paint: The paint we use for almost every project is Colorations Washable Finger Paint. The colors are nice and vibrant and it really does wash off of everything really easily.
Brushes: I love the Colorations Chubby Paint Brushes. The handles are perfect for little hands and the bristles hold up really well. We’ve had the same set for almost 3 years now!
Paper: Kids love to draw and color which means we go through A LOT of paper. The best option I have been able to find to keep up with their creative minds at a low cost is this pack of Manila Paper from Discount School Suppy. For just under $8, you can get a pack of 500 sheets. This paper holds up great to everything – markers, crayons, and paints. When it comes to crafts, you will need stronger paper. My first choice is Colorations Heavy Weight Construction Paper. This paper is pretty strong, and holds its color really well.
Crayons: I just love Melissa and Doug’s Jumbo Triangular Crayons! They are the perfect size for the kids and are really sturdy. Also, there is no paper wrapping around them, which I think is great! Little kids just tear the paper right off crayons anyway. These crayons keep me from having to pick up a million tiny pieces of paper every day! They also color really well and come in a great selection of colors.
Markers: When it comes to markers, I am a Crayola girl. I’ve honestly never purchased another brand. I guess when you find something that works, there’s just no reason to change it.
I hope you found these Preschool Ideas helpful! I will continue to post more throughout our school year so please check back often!
