Awesomely Educational Preschool Activities To Try At Home
You already know preschool as an early childhood education institution where young children can learn. But where else can kids build skills and develop new abilities? At home! Yes, your child's pre-K teacher has the training and know-how that it takes to create completely beneficial lessons. That said, she probably doesn't expect that your child stops the learning process the second that the school day is over. With that in mind, take-home activities can extend what your little learner is doing at school and reinforce those all-important first lessons. Don't worry, coming up with your own educational activities isn't necessary. Check out these easy ideas that you (and your child, of course) can try at home.
Science
Preschool science is all about discovery and exploration. Young children don't want to sit and listen to or watch an adult "do" experiments for them. These at-home activities put the child in the center of the learning process. That means your job is to supervise (making sure that your child is safe), but stay hands-off. What can your child do?
Learn about physics with a simple dropping object exploration. Your child can pick a few different everyday objects from around the house (these should be different sizes and weights). Avoid anything breakable. Have your child hold one object in each hand. Ask her to feel the items and tell you which one feels heavier, and predict which one will drop faster. Now let her drop them, watching which one hots the ground first. Compare and analyze what just happened (and how gravity worked).
Math
Pre-k math is much more than sitting in front of worksheets or memorizing flash cards. Your preschooler can get hands-on and learn about basic math concepts in imaginative, and active, ways. How can she do this? Try building blocks.
Even though building blocks may seem like simple play things, your child can also use them as math manipulatives. She can add or subtract the blocks, line them up and count them, learn about geometric shapes or build her visual-spatial abilities. If you have blocks that are different shapes or colors, use them to create patterns too.
Literacy
Expand on preschool early literacy lessons with an at-home library. Stock an easily accessible bookshelf with picture books for your child to choose from. Give her some space and let her page through them herself.
You can also hold your own interactive story time—at home. Choose a book, sit down with your child and read together. Point to the pictures and ask your preschooler open-ended questions, such as, "What do you think will happen next?" or, "Why do you think that happened?"
Take preschool home with a few simple content-based activities. Along with these ideas, you can also talk to your child's teacher, like those at Country Day School, and ask if she has any activities that connect to what's going on in class.
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