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Spider Preschool Activities, Photo by Paul Stein

Enjoy this preschool lesson plan all about spiders. The following activities will introduce children to spiders through fun facts, activities, books, songs, and crafts. This lesson plan works well in conjunction with a daycare center unit with a theme about bugs or Halloween.

Learning about Spiders

Basic facts about spiders:
Spiders have eight legs, an abdomen, and a thorax.
Spiders eat other insects.
Spiders produce silk to climb and spin webs to catch.
Spiders have either six or eight eyes.
There are about 40,000 spider species.

Preschool Spider Craft

Styrofoam Ball Spider
Materials: Medium sized Styrofoam balls, black tempera paint, wide black pipe cleaners, googley eyes, glue, scissors
Instructions: Encourage children to paint the Styrofoam ball black.  Allow to dry completely. Cut the black pipe cleaners in half. Next show children how to push pipe cleaners into the Styrofoam ball for the spider’s legs. There will be four on each side. Next, glue the googley eyes on the face of the spider.   

Spider Math/Manipulation Activity
This activity will help children practice counting and sorting. Cut out spiders from black construction paper, card stock, or felt. Attach a red sticker to half of the spiders to create black widow spiders. Encourage children to count the total number of butterflies. Then ask children to count the number of spiders without red dots. Next ask children to count the number of black widows. Children can then arrange the spiders on the felt board or sort construction paper spiders into two separate categories or piles.

Preschool Spider Song
“Sing a Song of Spiders”
Sing “Sing a Song of Spiders*” to the tune of “Sing a Song of Six Pence”.

“Sing a song of spiders,
Up in a tree.
Six shinny spiders,
Sliding down by me.

When they came near,
I began to run.
Sitting under spiders
Isn’t lots of fun!”

*By Jean Warren, Preschoolexpress.com

Preschool Books about Spiders
Here are some books about spiders to share with preschoolers:

Aaarrggh! Spider! by Lydia Monks [Sandpiper, 2007]
Are You a Spider? by Tudor Humphries [Kingfisher, 2003]
The Very Busy Spider? by Eric Carle [Philomel, 1989]
Diary of a Spider by Doreen Cronin and Harry Bliss [HarperCollins, 2005]
The Itsy Bitsy Spider by Iza Trapani [Charlesbridge Publishing, 1997]

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Butterfly Preschool Lesson Plan

Enjoy this preschool lesson plan all about butterflies. The activities below will introduce children to butterflies through fun facts, activities, books, songs, and crafts. This lesson plan works well in conjunction with a daycare center unit with a theme about insects and bugs.

Learning about Butterflies

Basic facts about butterflies:

The life cycle of a butterfly goes from egg to caterpillar to pupa/chrysalis to butterfly
A butterfly has six jointed legs, 3 body parts (head, thorax, abdomen), 2 antennae, eyes, and an exoskeleton.

Butterflies taste with their feet and sense with tiny sensory hairs.

Caterpillars eat leaves and help to pollinate plants

Butterfly Craft

Tissue paper Butterflies
Materials: Tissue paper in various colors, black pipe cleaners, scissors

Instructions: Cut the corners off of the tissue paper squares. Encourage each child to bunch the tissue paper in the middle and then wrap and twist the pipe cleaner together. The pipe cleaner then becomes the antennae.  Allow each child to create several. Decorate windows with them or create butterfly mobiles.

Butterfly Math/Manipulation Activity
Cut out butterflies from construction paper from felt in three colors or three different sizes. Encourage children to arrange/sort the butterflies on the felt board by color or size.

Butterfly Finger Play
“Butterfly”
Sing “Butterfly” to the tune of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”. Encourage children to hook their thumbs together and wiggle their fingers to look like a butterfly

“Flutter, flutter butterfly
Floating in the springtime sky
Floating by for all to see
Floating by so merrily
Flutter, flutter, butterfly
Floating in the springtime sky”.

*”Butterfly” taken from indianchild.com.

Books about Butterflies

My Oh My: All about Butterflies by Trish Rabe, Aristides Ruiz, and Joe Mathieu [Random House, 2007]
From Caterpillar to Butterfly by Deborah Heiligman and Bari Weissman [Collins, 1996]
Are you a Butterfly? by Judy Allen and Tudor Humphries [Kingfisher, 2003]
Goodnight Sweet Butterflies by Dawn Bentley, Melanie Gerth, and Heather Calhoon [Little Simon, 2007]
Where Butterflies Grow by Joanne Ryder and Lyne Cherry [Puffin, 1996]

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Enjoy this preschool lesson plan all about the Ocean. The activities below will introduce children to the ocean through fun facts, activities, books, songs, and crafts. This lesson plan works well in conjunction with a unit with a daycare center theme about the beach, fish, and ocean animals.

Learning about the Ocean

Basic facts about Oceans:

About ¾ of the Earth is covered by the ocean.
There are five oceans: Arctic Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Southern Ocean
Some animals that live in the ocean: fish, octopus, walruses, whales, dolphins, sharks, crabs, seahorses, coral reefs, sea lions, sea turtles, shrimp, and jellyfish
Ocean animals eat plankton, seaweed, other fish, crabs, shrimp, oysters, clams, etc..

Ocean Craft

Ocean Sponge Paint Craft

Materials: Fish shaped sponge (or cut fish shapes from sponges), sponge roller with a wave pattern, light blue construction paper, dark blue paint, paint in various colors.

Instructions:  Create an ocean scene using sponges and a sponge roller. Instruct the children to roll the sponge roller in dark blue paint across blue construction paper to create the waves of the ocean. Then show them how to dip their fish sponges in various shades of paint and sponge them on to finalize the ocean scene. Allow to dry.

Ocean Sensory Table

Fill a sensory table with sand, shells, plastic ocean animals such as (fish, whales, octopus, etc.) and water.  You may also add dried seaweed and provide snorkeling masks. If using snorkeling masks, only allow the children to put the mask in the water and of course supervise extremely closely. Encourage the children to feel the items in the sensory table. Provide children with buckets and shovels so that they can collect items from the ocean.

Ocean Song

I Went Swimming in the Ocean

Sing “I went Swimming in the Ocean” to the tune of “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad”

“I went swimming in the ocean
On a summer day.
I went swimming in the ocean
And kicked, and splashed and played.
After lunch we looked for seashells
I found three or four
You can hold one up to your ear.
And hear the ocean roar.
Hear the ocean roar
Hear the ocean roar.
You can hear the ocean roar, roar, roar
Hear the ocean roar
Hear the ocean roar
Hear the ocean roar, roar, roar”.

*”I Went Swimming in the Ocean” taken from preschooleducation.com.

Books about the Ocean

Over in the Ocean by Marianne Berkes and Jeanette Canyon [Dawn Publications, 2004]
Hello Ocean by Pam Munoz Ryan and Mark Astrella [Charlesbridge Publishing, 2001]
Jennifer Ward by Jennifer Ward [Rising Moon, 2000]
I’m the Biggest Thing in the Ocean by Kevin Sherry [Dial, 2007]
In the Ocean by A.J. Wood and Maurice Pledger [Silver Dolphin Books, 2001]

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Valentine’s Day or Saint Valentine’s Day, which is celebrated on February 14, is the traditional day on which people express their love for each other through Valentine’s cards, gifts and other acts of thoughtfulness. Celebrate Valentine’s Day in your daycare center by reading age appropriate stories that focus on the symbols of Valentine’s Day and by implementing Valentine’s Day-themed activities.

Consider the following reading lists and resources for free Valentine’s Day worksheets, coloring pages, and handwriting practice sheets for your child care center:

Reading List

Valentine’s Day Board and Picture Books Baby-Age 3

Elmo’s Valentine (A Chunky Book) by Stephanie St. Pierre and David Prebenna [RandomHouse, 1997]

Be My Valentine by Beatrix Potter [Warne, 2002]

It’s Valentine’s Day!: A Rosie Rabbit Book by Harriet Ziefert and Laura Rader [Sterling, 2005]

Be Mine, Be Mine, Sweet Valentine by Sarah Weeks and Fumi Kosaka [HarperFestival, 2005]

Valentine’s: A Book to Touch and Feel by Sugar Pixie [Little Simon, 2003]

Princess Valentine by Megan E. Bryant and Nancy Gale Carlson [Worthwhile Books, 2010]

The Great Valentine’s Day Surprise (Lift the Flap Book) by Susan Jane Tanner [HarperCollins, 1995]

Very Best Friends by Ann Braybooks [Golden Books, 1999]

My Little Valentine by Carol Roth and Jennifer Beck Harris [HarperFestival, 2002]

Rhyme Time Valentine by Nancy Poydar [HolidayHouse, 2002]

A Valentine Bouquet by Eleanor Hudson and Laura Bryant [Little Simon, 2000]

Be My Valentine (Rugrats) by Molly Wigand, Louis Del Carmen, and James Peters [Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon, 2000]

Valentine’s Day Early Readers Ages 4-8

Happy Valentine’s Day Mouse by Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond [Balzer + Bray, 2009]

The Biggest Valentine Ever by Steven Kroll and Jeni Bassett [Cartwheel Books, 2006]

My Fuzzy Valentine by Noami Kleinberg and Louis Womble [Random House, 2005]

The Day it Rained Hearts by Felicia Bond [December, 2006]

Valentines are for Saying I Love You by Margaret Sutherland and Amy Wummer [Grosset and Dunlap, 2007]

Roses are Sweet, Your Feet Really Stink by Diane DeGroat [HarperCollins, 1997]

The Best Thing about Valentines by Eleanor Hudson and Mary Melcher [Cartwheel, 2004]

Clifford’s First Valentine’s Day by Norman Bridwell [Cartwheel, 1997]

Little Critter: Happy Valentine’s Day, Little Critter by Mercer Mayer [HarperFestival, 2005]

The Great Valentine’s Day Mix-Up by Saxton Moore [Price Stern Sloan, 2009]

Fancy Nancy: Heart to Heart by Jane O’Connor and Robin Preiss Glasser [Moody Publishers, 2004]

Free Valentine’s Day Preschool Worksheets and Printables

There are many worksheets for Valentine’s Day that you can print out and use for your lesson plans and activities. Worksheets should include coloring pages, handwriting worksheets, and printable craft patterns.

The following websites provide free Valentine’s Day printables:

First-Preschool: Coloring pages, card, patterns, crafts and worksheets.

A to Z Teacher Stuff: Valentine’s Day printables, coloring pages, activities and word searches

ABCTeach:  Free Valentine’s Day worksheets and printables

DLTK’s Crafts for Kids: Valentine’s Day recipes, worksheets, coloring pages, crafts, games and puzzles

All Kids Network: Free color Valentine’s Day printable worksheets

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Creative activities for the children in your child care center should foster creative development. Creative activities should promote expression, encourage spontaneity in material usage, and introduce children to textured materials.

A leaf mural is a creative activity that supports creative development and teaches children in child day care centers about seasons. Begin by introducing the children to the concepts of autumn/fall. Read age appropriate board books and picture books that feature the season fall. Take the children on a nature walk. Discuss the signs and symbols of autumn. Let the children collect fall items like leaves, acorns and pine cones. Discuss the colors, textures, smells.  Bring them back to the class and sort all of the items. You may save these items for other fall crafts.

Fall Mural Materials

• Large and small leaf patterns (several for each child)
• Construction paper
• A variety of tempura paint in fall colors (gold, brown, orange, and red)  in shallow dishes
• Painting sponges
• Coarse salt
• Bulletin board letters which spell “It’s Autumn” Or “Welcome to Fall”
• Bulletin board

Activity Preparation

• Cut out leaf patterns
• Cover the craft table in butcher paper
• Distribute leaf cutouts and stamps
• Put paint in shallow dishes
• Add salt to the paint and mix well

Activity Procedures
Invite the children over to the craft table.  Let them know they will be creating a leaf mural. Demonstrate how to dip the sponges in the paint and sponge paint the leaves. Let the sponge paint their leaf cutouts. Arrange the leaves randomly on the bulletin board. Add the bulletin board title of your choice.

Autumn Leaf Mural Lesson Objectives

Objective 1
To provide the opportunity for expressive activities through by allowing children to create designs on leaves using a sponge.
Verbal Cue A: Today we are going to color the leaves!
Verbal Cue B: I have lots of colors for you to use the leaves to make a design.

Objective 2
To encourage spontaneity in material usage by allowing the children to choose colors and to mix the colors they choose
Verbal Cue A: Which colors would you like to use first?
Verbal Cue B: I like the way you have chosen your colors!

Objective 3
To introduce textured materials by adding coarse salt to the paint to be used by the children.
Verbal Cue A: Would you like to add salt to the paint?
Verbal Cue B: Let’s see what it looks and feels like after we add salt to the paint.

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Summer is officially over, but the fun doesn’t end when preschool begins. Your licensed daycare center can utilize this handy, creative and free lesson plan to teach preschool aged children about the season fall.

Autumn Art Activity: Handprint Wreath

For this activity you will need: 1 handprint pattern; 1 acorn pattern; brown, yellow, orange, red, and green craft foam, poster board, ribbon, and glue. Cut handprints and acorns from foam in assorted colors. Cut a wreath ring from the poster board. Glue the hands randomly around the ring. Glue acorns randomly amongst the foam hands. Then attach the ribbon for hanging.

Autumn Cooking with Preschoolers

What better way to learn about and celebrate autumn than with a cooking lesson that features pumpkins!  Roasting pumpkin seeds is a quick, easy, and fun activity for preschoolers.  If you can incorporate a trip to a pumpkin patch, do so.  Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Cut the top off of one large pumpkin and let the children remove the seeds with their hands. Rinse the seeds in a colander/strainer and sort the seeds from the pulp.  Lay the seeds on a paper towel and let the seeds dry completely. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray, sprinkle the seeds on the cookie sheet in one layer, and sprinkle the seeds with salt. Bake for 20-30 minutes and let cool. Pumpkin seeds are a great snack!

Autumn Cognitive/Math Activity

Autumn object sorting is a great way for child care centers to teach children about classification and counting. First, collect 5-10 of each of the following objects: mini pumpkins, apples, leaves, construction paper scarecrows, leaves, and plastic corn on the cob.  Put all of the items into a large laundry bag. Have children take turns drawing an item from the bag and sorting them into groups. Next have the children count the number of objects in each group.

Preschool Books about Autumn

It’s Fall by Linda Glasser [Millbrook Press, 2001]

Why do Leaves Change Colors by Betsy Maestro and Loretta Krumpinski [Collins, 1994]

Leaf Baby: Baby Seasons Board Books by Mary Briggid Barrett and Eve Chwast [Red Wagon Books, 1998]

Arthur Jumps into Fall by Marc Brown [LB Kids, 2006]

I Know It’s Autumn by Eileen Spinelli and Nancy Hayashi [HarperCollins, 2004]

Fall Physical Activities

Children love jumping in crunchy fall leaves. This activity enhances their gross motor skills by allowing them to practice rebounding activities and projectile management through a rebounding and raking activity. Collect a large assortment of fall leaves. This is a good time to take the children on a nature walk and discuss the features of autumn. Take all of the leaves you have collected and place them in a kid-sized plastic swimming pool.  Also scatter some leaves around the pool. Invite kids to jump in the leaves and practice raking the scattered leaves into piles.

A fall themed lesson plan for preschoolers should be creative, fun, and cover all areas of development. A large part of child care jobs is to expose ideas in a variety of ways, so that children are more apt to remember the concept.

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All child care services must incorporate some type of learning through play. Your child care business should focus on a strong preschool curriculum that builds learning opportunities directly into play so that learning develops at the same pace as the growing child. Children by nature are curious, active, and eager to learn and try new things. To keep them that way, preschoolers need a readiness curriculum that encourages “playful learning.”

Different types of play support many different types of development:

• Singing, with movement develops memory and language, social participation and imitation, rhythm, rhyme and body awareness
• Undirected playing encourages social skills, such as cooperation, taking turns and following instructions
• Hands on letter play builds pre-writing skill. The teacher shows children how to make letters with dough, wood pieces, or magnetic stamps. They learn letters (and numbers) in multi-sensory active play.
• Coloring and drawing with small crayons help children develop a good pencil grip and developmentally appropriate pages make for easy coloring and drawing. Building structures and simple shapes with wood pieces leads naturally to drawing success.

At its core, play is a physical, kinetic activity. Sitting at a table playing a literacy game, for example, can be a great opportunity to build fine motor skills. A teacher could give a child of preschooler age plastic tweezers and cover a table with paper-cut out letters and ask the students to pick out all of the B’s, or the letters in their name. Not only are her students building their letter identification, they are practicing the skills essential for later writing development.

Gross motor play, including outside time, is full of pretend play and physical activity. This type of play is often easiest for an adult to enter without disrupting the flow of the activity. Adults should observe for a few moments before entering the game, and then ask, “What are we playing?” A simple verbal cue can set the stage for the pretend story at hand. Very quickly, she will find herself running, laughing, and enjoying as much physical development as her young playmates.

In pretend play, children use their imaginations and generate different ideas and images. This helps them to learn to think of different ways to solve a problem, either in a creativity task or in daily life. Children who have good pretend play ability can think of more things to do in a situation (like being at the doctor). This ability is usually independent of intelligence. Pretend play also relates to ability to understand the emotions of others and to take the perspective of the other. This is probably because children take many different roles when they play. For example, they pretend to be the mother, baby, boy, girl, teacher, dentist, etc.

Do not discount the importance of learning through play. Play allows children to learn through their natural curiosity about the world at large. Daycare providers should take advantage of the opportunity to facilitate this type of learning by offering play activities that foster creativity, imagination, and problem-solving skills like negotiation.

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