One thing you can say about preschoolers is that they constantly learn new things. From the moment they get up in the morning to when they go to bed at night, preschoolers want to know who, what, when, where, and why. Play is the main way that preschoolers learn about and discover the world. Parents can help them learn at home by giving them various things to play with. Many activities used in a preschool in Silver Spring are also great for parents to try out with their kids at home.
To help your preschooler at home, you must keep learning fun and exciting through age-appropriate learning games and activities. In a preschool in Silver Spring, MD, learning activities range from reading drills to learning shapes and numbers to more artistic endeavors like painting, so it shouldn’t be any different at home.
It would be best to have plenty of room and a magnetic board. On one side of the room, put the magnetic board. On the other side, put the magnetic letters in a bowl. Say a word or sound that starts with or ends with a certain sound. Then, tell your kid to pick out the right magnetic letters and run over as fast as they can to stick them on the board.
Your child will enjoy this fun game, which also helps them improve their reading and gross motor skills. This fun game can be played with just a ball and some Post-It notes. You call out a letter, and your child throws a snowball at the correct one on the wall. You can change the game so that pictures are used instead of letters. Your child should press the picture, starting with the same sound as the letter being called out.
Make lines on the ground for hopscotch. You decide how many squares to use and what shape to place them in. Draw a letter of the alphabet in each square. You might want to draw the capital and small letters in each one.
You can play this game in a few different ways. One way is to call out a letter or group of letters and tell your child to jump on them while saying the sound of each letter. You could also tell your child to jump on the letters in order and sound them out as they go. You can also roll dice and tell your child to jump to the square that fits the number that was rolled. As they jump, have them count the squares and say the letter at the end.
First, use cardboard to make a wheel and paint each part a different color. Your child can spin the wheel and run off to find the right color when it falls on each part. When they finish the wheel, they win a prize!
While you work in the garden, this is a great time to teach your kids math and science ideas. They can also enjoy some fresh air. To keep track of plant growth, have them measure the water as they put it inside a watering can. You can have them count seeds, start adding up the days on a calendar, and write down what they see. You can grow a garden with kids on a shelf if you don’t have outside space. They can put small amounts of dirt into pots, count and plant seeds, guess which seeds will sprout first, and make notes.
Paint can be applied to a page in many ways, not just with a brush. Do some cool art with your kid by having them blow watered-down paint around the paper with a straw. Put some bubble bath into a jar with water and paint. Place a piece of paper on top and tell them to blow bubbles into the water. The bubbles filled with paint will make a cool and unique pattern on the paper.
Help your kids work together to make a short play with some dolls. They can change a well-known story or fairy tale or make up their own. Talk to them about the story and characters after the play and ask them how they came up with the ideas for the play.
Playing store is a fun way to help your child learn early math skills and see how numbers and counting are used in real life. Pick up some toys or food and use sticky notes to put prices on them. You can use play money or make your own paper money to try to buy and sell things. This will help your child learn how to use bills and coins to pay for things.
This is a fun fine motor project you can do with egg cartons. Cut the egg part of the boxes into strips, one for each child in your family. Let each kid pick out a caterpillar body and decorate it with crayons, paint, or different kinds of paper glued on. Kids might even want to add pipe cleaner legs to their caterpillars to make them more interesting. They need to draw or stick on a face, so remind them!
Cut several large holes into a piece of cardboard. Draw a target with chalk in your driveway, or choose a target outside, like a tree or the side of your home, and set the cardboard up over it. Try to get your kid to throw a plastic or small ball through the holes or at the board. Start your child very close to the goal, then move them back a few feet. Teach them how to throw sideways and backward. Make sure you cheer for them when they hit the goal.
From the time they are enrolled in infant care in Silver Spring, MD, kids learn and grow by doing arts and crafts, acting, dancing, and making music. The most important parts of creative tasks for preschoolers are trying new things, experiencing new things, and learning new things. Allow preschoolers to lead creative tasks, give them time and space, and praise them when they do a good job.
Pay attention to what your kids are interested in and talk about it with them. When you do talk to each other make sure you are taking turns. Show that you care about what they have to say and what they are doing. And always give them plenty of time to answer, even if they start repeating themselves don’t cut them off!
None of these Silver Spring preschool activities you choose to do at home have to be “educational” in the traditional sense. Rather than concentrating only on teaching the alphabet, you can decide to read aloud to your child, as a preschool teacher might do at circle time. The only goal with these preschool activities is to encourage your child to learn at home by sparking their natural curiosity.
MCCA has been recognized by the Maryland State Legislature for its commitment to Montgomery County issued a quality programs and special needs child care Proclamation in 2016 to MCCA for its commitment to Montgomery County child care for more than 50 years. MCCA was also selected as a 2018 nonprofit finalist for a MOXIE Award for boldness and innovation
MCCA is the oldest nonprofit licensed child care provider in Montgomery County and started its work in 1968 as a Community Action Project of the War on Poverty. Recognizing the need for quality child care programs in their neighborhoods, a group of local activists formed an association to establish centers in Montgomery County that would serve a diverse population and establish high standards for child care. Now, more than 50 years later, MCCA’s dedicated and expertly trained staff continue their tradition of providing high quality child care and play-based education for children.
Families with school aged children who can afford their child care expenses during the school year often struggle to afford the all-day programs they need when school is out for the summer. The Richard Krampf Summer Adventures Scholarship Fund was established to help provide children a safe and stimulating place to spend their weeks when school is out. Please contact an MCCA Director for details on how to apply.