It's back to school time again and I am getting excited about all the preschool learning opportunities Olive will have this year. She will not be attending preschool, but as an elementary school teacher, I am fully prepared to plan tons of fun preschool activities for her.
We are starting the year with PUZZLES.
She's very interested in them right now so it's the perfect way to start our year.
These are the 5 puzzles we are currently discovering.
We are learning about:
colors
shapes
animals
animal sounds
body parts
comparing/contrasting
matching
similarities differences
These are some of the toddler appropriate questions we are using to discover:
Where are the RED puzzles pieces?
What sound does a cow make?
Where are the eyes on the lion?
Does the lion have feet?
Match the green crayon to something else that is green.
Do you see any letters on the puzzles?
Which ones?
Talking points with the puzzles:
We talk about life at the zoo or in the barn
We sing songs together about the animals
Pretend play with the animals
Stack the puzzle pieces
Line the puzzles pieces up
Match colors across the different puzzles
Pretend play with the animals
Stack the puzzle pieces
Line the puzzles pieces up
Match colors across the different puzzles
We pull out her real crayons to make connections to her puzzle pieces
Olive is doing great with her puzzles.
The two piece puzzles are a bit of a challenge for her right now. She can find the matching colors, but putting the two pieces together is harder for her. I'm hoping to introduce letter puzzles, colors, puzzles with more pieces and numbers as the year goes on.
Do your kids enjoy puzzles?
The wooden ones with chunky pieces are really toddler friendly.
Happy Back to School to YOU!!
I'm joining up with some smart ladies to do a Back to School Blog Hop today!
3+ Ways to Show Love to Your Kids in School from Garay Treasures //
I'm joining up with some smart ladies to do a Back to School Blog Hop today!
Count Me In Giveaway from Abiding In Grace //
Free Homeschool Pre-school Printables from All Kinds of Things //
Back to School Tips for Moms from Our Pretty Little Girls //
Back to School Boy Style from BYBMG //
Tips for Using Your Local Library from Our Life on a Budget //
Discovery Puzzles from Polka-Dotty Place //
10 Bible Verses to Encourage the Student Athlete from While I'm Waiting //
First Day of School Printable from Morning Motivated Mom //
Preparing an Anxious Child from Almond Place //
Tips to Stay Organized With School from Living In This Season //
As a preschool teacher puzzles are so important for the early learning phase. I wish more of my students came in with a love for them. Yet they know every show on television. I love your picks for this blog hop.
ReplyDeleteYou are such a great mom Whitney! Love the learning that puzzles allows and I love how practical it is using something you have.
ReplyDeleteFantastic Whitney! I just love that you are incorporating so much learning time simply with puzzles. Excellent ideas.
ReplyDeleteI love these ideas! I appreciated your prompts for the puzzles. It's so easy to forget that there are SO MANY questions that can pop up with one simple toy. Colors, counting, shapes, noises, and songs. What fun! Elizabeth is just now getting more into puzzles too. We need to incorporate a few into our usual play routine. Thanks for the inspiration!
ReplyDeleteAwesome ideas! She is going to be the smartest kid in her class when she goes to school! :)
ReplyDeleteJust pinned! We love puzzles - so, so fun!!
ReplyDeleteElizabeth
allkindsofthingsblog.com
I love this lesson plan! Haha, the teacher in you! Such a great way to talk and teach during one activity. I feel like I'm always repeating the same stuff, colors or letters, that she gets bored.
ReplyDelete