From the category archives:

Sensory

Counting ladybug dots in preschool

by Deborah J. Stewart September 5, 2010 Bugs

The children played a simple lady bug game today… The children matched the number of dots to the number of dots on the lady bug. Everyone had a turn giving it a try… They counted together as they worked together… The pom-poms made nice dots that felt good to the sense of touch… This was [...]

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Exploring a new art canvas in preschool

by Deborah J. Stewart September 3, 2010 Creative Art

These children are in their first week of preschool and today they explored painting on aluminum foil. Many of the children began their painting with one finger dipped in paint. It was interesting watching the children slowly make little fingerprints on their foil canvas. They were meticulously going back and forth from paint to canvas, painting [...]

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Flour and food color painting in preschool

by Deborah J. Stewart August 29, 2010 Creative Art

I am always on the look out for different art mediums that the children can explore. The children enjoyed the new texture of this homemade “paint” their teacher mixed up. The teacher mixed up some flour and water in a large bowl until it had a creamy consistency. Each of the children had a large [...]

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Finger painting fun by Carol Brooke

by Deborah J. Stewart August 23, 2010 Creative Art

There’s something quite intriguing about feeling paint on your fingers as you spread it onto your canvas. Do it yourself and try not to smile. Feeling the texture, seeing what happens when colors are mixed and the paint is spread across the canvas is important learning… Fun as it may be! You will need: -newspaper [...]

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We made corn on the cob in preschool

by Deborah J. Stewart August 14, 2010 Creative Art

One of the best parts of going to the Indiana State Fair is a tasty piece of corn on the cob. For this activity, the teachers set out some corn, yellow and green construction paper, and glue. The children glued their construction paper leaves and corncobs to the large sheet of blue construction paper… Then [...]

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Puffy ice cream cones in preschool

by Deborah J. Stewart July 28, 2010 Creative Art

The children enjoyed the sensory experience as well as the creativity of making these puffy ice cream cones… The teacher added some glue and food coloring to shave cream…. And then the children mixed it all together… Each child chose the color they wanted to use for the topping of their ice cream cones… They [...]

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Graphing and painting with oranges

by Deborah J. Stewart July 20, 2010 Creative Art

When painting with objects, I always print the word of the object on the paper so the children can see that word as they participate in the activity. In this case the word is Orange. We cut an orange in half and used one of the halves for creating orange prints on our paper. For [...]

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Farm week in preschool

by Deborah J. Stewart May 6, 2010 Creative Art

The children in this class spent the week exploring all about the farm. They explored a variety of activities including how to create the form of a tractor out of shapes. For sensory, the children drove tractors in (and around) the dirt. The children discovered the feel and shape of lima beans. The children then [...]

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Fine motor development in preschool with play dough and straws

by Deborah J. Stewart April 27, 2010 Physical Development

Play dough is such a wonderful resource for building fine motor skills. Wy and I sat down to play with some play dough recently. I cut the straws down so they were a little shorter then showed Wy how to make a ball of play dough and then stick the straws into the play dough. [...]

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Name sensory for young children

by Deborah J. Stewart February 28, 2010 Name Recognition

Create a name sensory card for each of the children in your class and then try the activities described below! What the teacher will do… Print each child’s name on a sentence strip using upper and lower case letters. Trace each letter of the name with a thick line of glue. Set aside to dry. [...]

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Musical instruments in the preschool classroom

by Deborah J. Stewart February 20, 2010 Music and Fingerplays

There are a variety of ways you can use musical instruments in the classroom. Create a music center and try adding… Baskets of musical instruments A CD Player A pretend microphone A mirror A little platform for a stage (square) Posters and books about music, composers, notes, and nursery rhymes. Staple together little books of [...]

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Wax paper finger painting for all seasons!

by Deborah J. Stewart February 12, 2010 Creative Art

This is a fun activity that can be adapted to any holiday or season or theme!  See the instructions below…. What you will need: Glue Finger paint or tempera paint (choose colors based on what theme you are exploring) Wax paper Yarn Scissors Hole punch Instructions: Gather the supplies Mix one part glue to two [...]

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Playdough in the preschool classroom

by Deborah J. Stewart December 3, 2009 Sensory

Playdough can be found in almost any preschool classroom. It can be homemade or store bought, and it comes in just about any color or can be made into just about any color you like.   What is the benefit? Playdough can and probably will make a mess on the table and floor but you [...]

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Water table fun in the preschool classroom

by Deborah J. Stewart November 10, 2009 Quick Tips for Preschool Teachers

A preschooler can enjoy water play as part of a small group or independantly. As a group, children use time at the water table to socialize, communicate, interact, and role play. For the child who enjoys a little alone time, the water table can be a relaxing and soothing experience.   Learning Opportunities The water table presents opportunities [...]

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