Activities

Cut paper towel tubes in half lengthwise to create tracks. Give the children masking tape to create paths and give them small balls to roll down the tracks.

Cut paper towel tubes in half lengthwise to create tracks. Give the children masking tape to create paths. Give the children small balls to roll down the tracks.

Sing this song with the children to the tune of “The Farmer in the Dell” and encourage them to follow your motions:
We're marching all around,

We're marching all around,

Hi! Ho! The Derry-O!

We're march

Offer each child a musical instrument that you have made or bought at a store. Encourage the children to play the instruments. Play the song "The Ants Go Marching One by One" as the children move around the classroom.

Add a date stamp and stamp pads to the writing center so the children can stamp the date on their work.

Provide coffee filters, water-based markers, a cup of water and plastic pipettes.  Encourage the children to draw on the coffee filters using markers and use the plastic pipette to drip water on their drawings.

Use marshmallows and toothpicks to build structures. Take them apart and start again. This can be done in small group.

During small group, pair the children and supply the table with mini marshmallows and toothpicks or uncooked spaghetti noodles. Tell the children they will work with a partner to build the tallest tower they can.

Read S is for S'mores: a Camping Alphabet Book by Helen Foster James.In a large group setting, ask the children to share camping stories. Hot glue a magnet to the end of a long dowel to represent the stick used for roasting marshmallows.

Discuss use of manners with the children, such as saying “please,” “thank you” and “excuse me.” Create a class book entitled Magnificent Manners. This could be done in large group.

During mealtime, give the infant a spoonful of cool mashed potatoes if appropriate for age. Let him/her explore the potatoes on his/her highchair tray or small plate at the table. You can have the infant pick some up and eat off the tray or plate.

Give the children paper and different colors of masking tape. Tear off strips ahead of time and tape them to the table edge to make it easier to access them. Show the children how to tear the tape to make smaller pieces.

Place a brightly colored, multi-textured mat on the floor, and place the infant on it. Show the infant how to explore each item on the mat. Talk about the bright colors, using descriptive words, as the infant plays.

After reading Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox, create a matching game for the children to play. Using different color markers, trace a child's hand on paper plates.

Lay cards with pictures of the children's faces with different emotions face down. Each child takes a turn flipping over two at a time. If the child turns over two cards with the same expression, he/she keeps that pair of cards.

Use Hershey Kisses with numbers or letters written on them to create a matching game in the math center. Give each child eight kisses, ensuring that there are four matches in the set given to each child.

Collect a variety of plastic containers with lids. Include some screw-on lids and some snap-on lids. Clean them and put the lids in a pile that is separate from the containers. Have the children match the lids to the containers.

While in the dramatic play are draw a place setting on place mats for the children to match the dishes and silverware.

Print cards or pictures you have taken of classroom situations, such as the children not sharing, children playing alone or children attempting to enter play with others. Print solution cards and have the children match the pictures with a solution.

Create math cards using farm animals and the numerals zero to five. For example, create one cow in a barn, two ducks in a pond and so on. Then provide farm animal counters.