Category: Preschool

Squish – 2.5 – Add A Little

Posted on by S. J. Little

 

Add A Little – 2 Year Old Curriculum – Unit 2.5

Squish

Developmental Focus: Colour Mixing / Secondary Colours

Want to learn more? Check out the Add A Little 2Y Parent / Teacher Guide

Disclaimer: All activities require adult supervision and discretion. Read more…

Muscle Moving

Stomp That Colour

Supplies:

  • 3 blank sheets of paper that are the secondary colours – green, orange, and purple. (You can add more colours later if desired.)
  • Tape that won’t damage your flooring

Prep:

  • Clear an area for active running-around play.
  • Place a piece of paper on your floor and step on it to check for slipperiness. If it is slippery, tape each paper to the floor.
  • Place all three sheets of paper on the floor with some distance between them.

Time to Play:

  • Invite your child to play a game with you.
  • Run around the area with your child.
  • Call out a colour, for example, “Green!” Run with your child to the green paper and stomp on it.
  • Repeat the game calling out other colours.

Brain Boosting

Sponge Painting

Supplies:

  • 2 small containers (washed plastic applesauce or cream cheese containers work well)
  • Paper
  • 1 unused dishwashing sponge
  • 1 paint smock, or old shirt you don’t mind getting paint on
  • Optional: newspapers or plastic tablecloth to cover the table
  • 2 colours of washable or tempera paint
  • Tip: Limiting to only 2 colours often results in a better overall painting experience. The child focuses more on painting and less on choosing which colour to use. For a more attractive final result, choose colours that mix well such as yellow and blue instead of colours that create brown when mixed such as red and green

Prep:

  • Cut the sponge into pieces approximately 2.5 x 2.5 x 7 cm, or 1 x 1 x 3 in. (see picture below).
  • Pour a small amount of paint into each container (one colour per container).
  • For crisper colours, use 1 sponge piece per colour.
  • Optional: cut the paper into approximately 22 x 28 cm, or 8.5 x 5.5 in. (half a letter-sized paper). This tends to encourage children to fill more of the paper with paint.
  • Optional: covering your table with newspapers or a plastic tablecloth to prevent staining.
  • Tip: After painting, the cut sponges can be rinsed clean and used again the next time you paint.

Time to Play:

  • Invite your child to sit at the table. Put a piece of paper in front of them and another piece of paper in front of you.
  • Demonstrate how to dip the sponge into the paint, then press it onto your paper.
  • Encourage your child to have fun painting.

Let’s Sing

The Colour I’m Seeing
Adapt this song by Amy Essen to whichever colour you are learning about.

 

Let’s Read

Colin Collects Colors
By: Jess McGeachin

Let’s Sing

Christian Song

Who Did Swallow Jonah?

 

Let’s Read

Bible Story

Jonah
Jonah 1:1-3:10

Beginner’s Bible Chapter:
Jonah and the Big Fish
Page 257

Christmas – 2.C – Add A Little

Posted on by S. J. Little

 

Add A Little – 2 Year Old Curriculum – Unit C

Christmas

Developmental Focus: Imaginative Fun

Want to learn more? Check out the Add A Little 2Y Parent / Teacher Guide

Disclaimer: All activities require adult supervision and discretion. Read more…

Muscle Moving

Snowman Bowling

Supplies:

  • 3-6 empty plastic pop bottles or water bottles
  • White paper
  • Tape
  • Markers – black and orange
  • Scissors
  • A medium or large ball

Prep:

  • Rinse the bottles and allow to dry.
  • Cut the paper into strips about 3 inches wide (1 strip per bottle).
  • On each strip of paper, draw a snowman face and tape it onto a bottle. This transforms the bottles into snowman.
  • If desired, place a line of tape on the floor for the children to stand behind when bowling, and place a piece of tape where each bottle should stand.

Time to Play:

  • Set up the bottles at one end of the room or hallway. Help your child stand a few steps back from the bottles.
  • Give your child the ball and encourage them to roll it at the bottles. The goal is to knock the bottles over.
  • Continue rolling the ball at the bottles until they all fall over.
  • Set the bottles back up to play again.

Additional Tips:

  • If the bottles tip over too easily, consider adding a small amount of water into each bottle. Securely close the lid and try playing again.
  • To make the game even more Christmas-y, consider decorating the bottles as Christmas trees rather than snowmen.
  • If you have more than one child playing, consider using two balls and/or setting up two separate groups of bottles to roll the balls at.

Brain Boosting

Package For You

Supplies:

  • One small bag, box, or blanket (to hide a toy in)
  • Various small toys

Time to Play:

  • Select one small toy. Hide it in the bag.
  • Approach your child and declare, “Package for you!”
  • Hand the bag to your child.
  • Encourage your child to guess what might be inside the package as they open it.
  • Be excited about what it is.
  • Put another toy in the bag to deliver, or encourage your child to wrap a toy to deliver to someone.

Extend the Play:

Get creative and have fun while you play together, consider:

  • Pretending to read the shipping address. For example: “This package is for Peter.”
  • If you have a playhouse, go to the door and ring the doorbell to deliver the package.

Let’s Sing

Shine Shine Christmas Lights

Find the words and actions here.

 

Let’s Read

Biscuit Gives a Gift
Alyssa Satin Capucilli
Pat Schories

A Christmas book that does not discuss Santa or the Nativity.

Let’s Sing

Christian Song

Jesus Came At Christmas Time

Find the words and actions here.

Let’s Read

Bible Story

Jesus’ Birth
Luke 2:1-21, Matthew 2:1-12

Beginner’s Bible Chapters:
An Angel Visits Mary
Baby Jesus Is Born
Shepherds Visit
The Bright Star and Three Visitors
Page 266-281, 286-290

Jesus Came At Christmas Time

Posted on by S. J. Little

I was trying to remember a simple Christian preschool song about Christmas to sing with my toddler. I ended up creating my own easy song to this catchy tune.

I hope you enjoy this song and that it sparks as much interesting conversation with your children as it has with mine.

This song is featured in my 2-year-old Add A Little Curriculum Christmas Unit. Check it out here.

Have a wonderful Christmas!

 

Jesus Came At Christmas Time

Tune: Praise Him, Praise Him (Composer Unknown – Pre 1974)

Song by: S. J. Little

 

Jesus, Jesus,

Jesus came at Christmas,

As a tiny baby.

Jesus, Jesus,

Jesus came at Christmas time.

 

Shepherds, shepherds,

Shepherds saw the angel,

And hurried to the stable.

Shepherds, shepherds,

Jesus came at Christmas time.

 

Wise men, wise men,

Wise men saw the star,

And traveled from afar.

Wise men, wise men,

Jesus came at Christmas time.

Looking for more original simple preschool songs for Christmas? Check out the following:

Baby Jesus, Welcome Lord

Shine Shine Christmas Lights

Simple Gingerbread Man Song

What Colour? – 2.4 – Add A Little

Posted on by S. J. Little

 

Add A Little – 2 Year Old Curriculum – Unit 4

What Colour?

Developmental Focus: Colour Recognition (Primary Colours)

Want to learn more? Check out the Add A Little 2Y Parent / Teacher Guide

Disclaimer: All activities require adult supervision and discretion. Read more…

Muscle Moving

4 Sides

Supplies:

  • Four sheets of paper, each a different colour (ideally focus on the primary colours this unit, so use red, yellow, and blue, plus one more)
  • Tape (or some other way to attach the papers to the wall)

Prep:

  • Clear an area for running
  • Tape one sheet of paper to each wall, ideally in the center of the wall.

Time to Play:

  • Explain to your child that you are going to play a game together. When you say a colour, you are going to run to the wall with that colour.
  • Call a colour, such as “Yellow!” Then run to the yellow wall, inviting your child to run with you.
  • Call another colour and run to that wall together. Continue playing in this way.
  • Once your child understands the game well, consider making it more challenging by adding specific actions. For example: “Crawl to blue” and “Stomp to red”.
    • Actions could include:
      • Run
      • Stomp
      • Crawl
      • Tiptoe
      • Take big steps
      • Take little steps
      • Fly
      • Run fast
      • Walk slow
      • Walk backwards (careful about this one in group settings)

Brain Boosting

Colour a Box

This activity is fantastic for your child’s fine motor muscle development (the muscles needed to write with a pencil). The benefit is increased if the crayons are short, though beware of choking hazards.

Supplies:

  • One large cardboard box or some other 3D object your child can colour on
  • Crayons (or washable markers, but crayons are better for development)

Time to Play:

  • Invite your child to colour on the box with the crayons. If it is a big box, they could sit inside the box while they colour.
  • Join in colouring with them.
  • Discuss which colours are being used as you colour.

Let’s Sing

I See Colors Everywhere

Let’s Read

Colors
Airlie Anderson

Let’s Sing

Christian Song

A Song About Joseph

Let’s Read

Bible Story

Joseph
Genesis 37, 39-46

Beginner’s Bible Chapters:
Joseph’s Colorful Robe
Pharaoh’s Dreams
Joseph Saves His Family
Page 71

Feel That? – 2.3 – Add A Little

Posted on by S. J. Little

 

Add A Little – 2 Year Old Curriculum – Unit 3

Feel That?

Developmental Focus: Hard vs. Soft

Want to learn more? Check out the Add A Little 2Y Parent / Teacher Guide

Disclaimer: All activities require adult supervision and discretion. Read more…

Muscle Moving

Soft Challenges

Supplies:

  • At least one soft toy per participant, such as a stuffed animal or bean bag

Time to Play:

  • Invite your child to copy you in several simple but challenging actions. Potential actions include:
    • Balance toy on head
    • Walk with toy balanced on head
    • Jump with toy balanced on head
    • Turn around with toy balanced on head
    • Throw toy up and catch it
    • Pass toy to a friend
    • Toss toy into a box or basket
  • Keep the mood fun and encouraging as you play together.

Brain Boosting

Tell By Touch

Supplies:

  • One opaque bag (alternatively use a box or wrap all the items in a blanket)
  • Several small items that are hard
    • Example: car, block, spoon, large puzzle piece, rattle
  • Several small items that soft
    • Example: stuffed animal, facecloth, headband, shirt, large pompom

Prep:

  • Place all the items in the bag

Time to Play:

  • Show your child the bag with the items hidden inside. Invite them to reach their hand in to choose one item.
  • Ask them if the item they choose is hard or soft.
  • For more advanced children, ask them to identify if the item is hard or soft before they pull it out of the bag. This encourages the child to use their sense of touch rather than relying on sight.

Let’s Sing

Play It Right

Let’s Read

Good Night Farm
Author: Patricia Hegarty
Illustrator: Thomas Elliott

Let’s Sing

Christian Song

God Made Me

For lyrics and actions, visit: https://sjlittle.ca/preschool/7-simple-christian-songs-for-preschoolers/

 

Let’s Read

Bible Story

Let the Children Come
Luke 18:15-17

Beginner’s Bible Chapter:
Jesus and the Children
Page 409