**This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. View our full disclosure policy here.**

And here are the details of each activity:

Here are the books that we used to begin each day:

I Love Frogs (Rookie Toddler) by Children’s Press
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Frog by Lucille Colandro
Jump, Frog, Jump! by Robert Kalan
5 Green and Speckled Frogs by Scholastic, Inc.
Frog on a Log? by Kes Gray

Roll and Feed Frog:

I broke out our Color Bug Catcher Game to work on number and color recognition along with some fine motor practice. Aubrey rolled the number and color dice. Then she used the gator grabbers to grab that number/color of bugs, and feed them to the frog. We continued to play until all the bugs were gone.

Letter Lily Pads:

This activity was definitely a favorite this week and we are still using it weeks later! It was really a fun way to work on letter identification and matching. First we worked together to make small balls of green play dough. Then Aubrey chose one of our letter ponds. She used letter stamps one at a time to smush the balls of play dough into letter lily pads. Last she had to match each letter lily pad to the same letter on the pond.

Pond Sponge Painting:

For our first froggy craft we created a sponge paint pond.  Aubrey used a sponge brush to stamp blue paint all over the page.  Then after we let that dry, she glued lily pads onto her pond.  Finally she used a sponge that I cut into a frog print shape to stamp green footprints all over her page.

Tear and Fill Lily Pad:

Aubrey is still working on her scissor skills so I have been trying to add in more scissor practice wherever possible. We have been using these Fiskars training scissors and they really help a lot! There is a little spring action that helps open the scissors back up each time. Aubrey did a great job with cutting little snips along the strips I had cut out. She then glued the bits on a blue piece of paper to fill a lily pad.

Tissue Plate Frog Craft:

Our last craft this week was a tissue paper plate frog.  I watered down glue so that it was easily spreadable. Aubrey used a foam brush to paint a paper plate with glue then added green tissue paper squares. Then she painted over the squares with more watered down glue. And to finish off the face she glued paper shapes to the face.

Color Frog Toss:

We started our gross motor activities off by filling a kiddie pool with blue ball pit balls for our pond. I threw in colored plastic frogs, then placed bins near the pool with color labels.  Aubrey jumped in the pool to find the frogs, then tossed them into the matching color bin.

Frog Hide and Seek:

Aubrey loves to play hide and seek, so we switched it up a little to match our theme this week with frog hide and seek.  We took turns hiding a little stuffed frog and counting to 10 before searching for our little froggy friend.

Frog Jumps:

Jumping is a great gross motor activity and really tires little ones out! For this activity I used painters tape to make 5 horizontal lines on the floor parallel to each other. Aubrey started at the first line and counted each jump as she frog jumped across. She also tried to frog jump as far as she could to see how far she could go in one jump.

Five Speckled Frogs:

Our next gross motor activity was inspired by the 5 Green and Speckled Frogs Song. We used the kiddie pool pond again and placed 5 little frogs on a wrapping paper tube “log.”  Then we sang the song and Aubrey used the pieces to act it out.  

Five Green and Speckled Frogs Song:
“Five green and speckled frogs sat on a speckled log
Eating some most delicious bugs, YUM YUM!
One jumped into the pool where it was nice and cool 
Then there were four green and speckled frogs.”
Repeat with 4, 3, 2, 1 frogs.

Lily Pad Leap:

This activity was a repeat from our spring theme last year, but there are so many easy ways to switch up this activity and add in different skills so I thought it couldn’t hurt to repeat it! For this fun outdoor activity, I drew lily pads (a.k.a. green Pac-man like shapes) and waves all over the ground.  Aubrey jumped from lily pad to lily pad trying not to fall in the water. Then I added letters to each lily pad and called out each one for her to jump to. You could do the same with other skills such as numbers, shapes, sight words, colors, or any other concepts you are working on.

Frog Theme Snacks:

Frog Pond Jell-O – Make a batch of blue Jell-O in small round containers. After Jell-O has set, add tootsie rolls and gummy frogs to create a pond.

Cucumber Grape Froggy – Cut two cucumber rounds for the frog head and body. Add two half circle cucumber slices for the hind legs. Add grape slices for feet and eyes.  Place candy eyes on top of the green grapes and use a food coloring pen to draw nostrils and a mouth.

Frog Pond Crackers – Spread blue frosting on graham crackers. Add tootsie rolls and gummy frogs to create a pond.

Fruit Pond – Fill a small round container with blueberries. Cut a kiwi into a small round slice. Cut out a notch to make a lily pad shape. Add the kiwi on top of the blueberries and place a gummy frog on top.

Frog on a Log – Cut celery into small sticks. Spread a celery sticks with peanut butter. Stick gummy frogs on top.

Froggy Pond Sensory Bin:

In this sensory bin: plastic frogs, foam lily pads, water, blue aquarium gravel, rocks, plastic insects

Rainbow Frog Sort:

In this sensory bin: plastic frogs, blue aquarium gravel, colored cups for sorting

Play Dough Pond:

On this tray: play dough, colored gems, plastic frogs , foam lily pads, lincoln logs

Jell-O Frog Excavation:

To prepare this fun sensory activity, I started by making 2 large packages of blue Jell-O according to the package directions.  Then before placing in the refrigerator to set, I added plastic frogs.  We waited for the Jell-O to set overnight.  Then Aubrey used spoons, scoops, and tools to rescue the frogs from the sticky pond.

Pond Water Bead Bin:

In this bin: TOOB Frogs, green foam lily pads, lincoln logs. water beads, bowls and cups

Want all of this week’s Frogs activities for tot school?  You can grab them here:
On my site : Frogs Plans & Printables On TpT: Frogs Plans & Printables

Or you can grab our entire year of themes and plans:
On my site here: Tot School Bundle On TpT here: Tot School Bundle

Then check out the rest of our 35+ themes on the Tot School Curriculum Main Page.

The post Tot School: Frogs first appeared on Mrs. Plemons' Kindergarten.

**This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. View our full disclosure policy here.**

Here were our plans for 5 Senses Week:

And here are the details of each activity:

Here are the books that we used to begin each day:

Hearing by Rebecca Rissman
Smelling by Rebecca Rissman
Seeing by Rebecca Rissman
Touching by Rebecca Rissman
Tasting by Rebecca Rissman

Listen and Color Animals:

For our first fine motor activity we worked on coloring to fill a shape. I printed a listen and color page then played this adorable Guess the Animal Sound video I found on YouTube. Aubrey followed along and colored each animal as their sound was made.

Scented Shapes:

This activity was perfect for learning about smells! I filled small cups with different colors of powdered Jell-O. I named a shape and Aubrey used clear glue to fill it in (more advanced kiddos could also try tracing the shape outline with glue.) Then she sprinkled Jell-O power on the glue and watched as it changed colors and smelled amazing! I helped her shake off the excess powder and she repeated the process to complete each shape.

Blindfolded Building:

Next Aubrey used her sense of touch to build a structure with blocks.  She put on a blindfold and tried using Duplos to build tall towers and buildings. After she was done she removed her blindfold to see how the structure turned out.

Texture Collage:

For this open ended art activity I gathered craft materials in various textures (ex. ribbons, beads, gems, paper scraps, feathers, yarn, pom poms, sand paper, etc.) Aubrey glued materials to a large piece of cardboard to create a tactile collage. We talked about how the different materials felt as she chose where to attach each one.

Edible Tracing:

Our last fine motor activity for the week focused on our sense of taste. I printed a tracing page with various line styles. Aubrey used cereal pieces to trace the different lines then ate each one after she finished!

Listening Walk:

For our first gross motor activity we went on a listening walk. I printed a checklist page and we listened for the sounds pictured on the page. Then we colored each box as we heard the sound. 

Sniff and Match Relay:

To learn about our sense of smell, I made scent bottles for a little relay match. I first soaked 5 cotton balls in cherry, vanilla, lemon, coconut, and mint extracts, and put each one in an empty sprinkle container. Then I also poured cinnamon, cocoa powder, and coffee in 3 more containers.  (I chose to cover each bottle with paper so the color wouldn’t give away the scent.) Then I placed pictures of each scent at one end of the room and the containers at the other end.  To play, the girls had to choose one container, smell the contents then run it to the correct picture. 

Blindfolded Walk:

This activity was a fun one for my girls to do together. I had them each put a blindfold on to move without using their sense of sight. They walked slowly and listened to my directions for where to go. Then we switched roles and they practiced giving directions to me.

Guess the Shape:

Did you ever write words on your friends backs as a kid? I remember doing that with my friends all the time! This was inspired by that activity and was a nice shape review as well. I gave each of the girls a set of shape cards.  Madelynn chose one card and used her finger to draw that shape on Aubrey’s back. She tried to guess the shape using the extra shape cards to point to as a reference. Then they traded roles and repeated with each shape.

Catch the Popcorn:

For our last gross motor activity we kept it simple with a fun and yummy game of catch the popcorn. Pop a bowl of popcorn.  Take turns tossing popcorn in the air and trying to catch it in your mouth. Easy Peasy!

* You may substitute puff corn or another snack if you feel more comfortable with your little ones eating that vs. popcorn*

Five Senses Snacks:

Oreo Eyeballs: Split 2 Oreos in half. Push an M&M in the center of each one. Peel and cut small pieces of pull and peel licorice. Press licorice into the cream.

Marshmallow Mouths: Cut apples into slices. Spread one apple slice with peanut butter. Stick marshmallows into peanut butter. Spread another apple with peanut butter. Stick apple on top of the marshmallows.

Loud and Quiet Snack Sort:

Cut up snacks and place in small cupcake cups. Try each snack and listen to see if the snack sounds loud or quiet. Sort the snacks on the sorting sheet

Sniff and Guess Snacks:

Cut up snacks and put in small cups. Cover each cup with a paper towel and rubber band it to the top. Poke holes with a fork in each one. Smell each cup and try to guess what snack is inside, then open to find out.

Guess the Snacks:

Fill an empty wipe container with snacks. Reach into the container and choose a snack. Try to guess the snack by only using your sense of touch.

Match the Sound Bottles:

For a little sound science investigation, we played a match the sound guessing game. I filled 10 small bottles with 5 different items (pom poms, buttons, straws, jingle bells, beans, etc.) so that each bottle had a match. Then I covered the bottles with paper so that the contents were not visible and numbered them 1-10. Aubrey had to shake to find the bottles that sounded the same. When she thought she found a match, I helped her write the numbers, and guess what was inside. Then she opened them to find out and drew it on the response page.

Cocoa Cupcake Cloud Dough:

In this bin: flour, vegetable oil, cocoa powder, bowls, cups, silicone cupcake cups

To make this yummy chocolate scented cloud dough, fill a sensory bin with 6 cups flour, 1 cup cocoa powder, and 1 cup vegetable oil. Mix together until you reach a crumbly texture that holds its shape when packed together.

Colorful Treasure Hunt:

In this bin: black beans, colored gems, colored pom poms, and colored cups

Guess the Object:

For a little touch science investigation, we played a guess the object guessing game. I filled our sensory bin with 6 different objects. With a blindfold on, Aubrey reached into the bin to touch and feel a mystery item. She guessed what the item was and drew it. Then she took the item out to find out if she was correct and drew it again.

Jell-O Sensory Bin:

In this bin: Jell-O or Jell-O jigglers in ROYGBIV colors, cups, scoops, and fine motor tools    

I chose to make regular Jell-O for a more squishy messy experience. After each color was set, I cut them into small squares and placed them in a sensory bin in rainbow order. Aubrey used all 5 senses to explore the bin and we discussed how each sense is being used which a fun way to wrap up our 5 senses theme.

Want all of this week’s Five Senses activities for preschool?  You can grab them here:
On my site : Five Senses Plans & Printables On TpT: Five Senses Plans & Printables

Or you can grab our entire year of themes and plans:
On my site here: Tot School Bundle On TpT here: Tot School Bundle

Then check out the rest of our 35+ themes on the Tot School Curriculum Main Page.

The post Tot School: Five Senses first appeared on Mrs. Plemons' Kindergarten.

**This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. View our full disclosure policy here.**

Here were our plans for our Reindeer theme:

And here are the details for each activity:

Reindeer Theme Books:

The Itsy Bitsy Reindeer by Jeffrey Burton
Eight Jolly Reindeer by Ilanit Oliver
Olive the Other Reindeer by J. Otto Seibold and Vivian Walsh
The Great Reindeer Rebellion by Lisa Trumbauer
Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer by Rick Bunsen

Reindeer Dot Stamp Page:

First this week, Aubrey used our Do A Dot Art! Markers for fine motor practice. She focused on placing one dot in each circle on the reindeer to help build one to one correspondence then colored the reindeer and letter R.

Fruit Cup Reindeer:

This little Rudolph was fun and easy to make.  Before we started I used a utility knife to poke 2 holes in the bottom of a few plastic fruit cups. Aubrey painted the entire fruit cup brown then we waited for it to dry. Next she bent short pipe cleaner pieces around a longer one to create antlers.  Then she pushed the antlers into holes in the fruit cup and I added a little hot glue on the inside so that they would stay in. Finally I used hot glue to add googly eyes and a large pom pom nose. (I added a dot of glue and she was able to carefully push it into the glue without any problem, but you may want to do this part on your own!)

Feed the Shape Reindeer:

Next, we focused on shape identification. I taped shape reindeer cards to a box and cut slits in each reindeer mouth.  Aubrey chose a shape carrot card, found the matching shape reindeer and pushed the card into the slot. Aubrey named each shape and we talked about the attributes as she found the correct slots.

Reindeer Paper Plate Mask:

To prep this mask I cut out a semi-circle from the top center of a paper plate. Madelynn painted the plate brown. While we waited for it to dry she cut out cardstock antlers and a nose. I reinforced the antlers by taping a craft stick to the back of each one. When the plate was dry she drew a mouth with a marker and  helped glue the antlers and an additional craft stick to the bottom of the plate for a mask handle.

Reindeer Nose Match:

We used jumbo tweezers for this easy color matching fine motor activity. I filled a cup with large colored pom poms. Aubrey used her tweezers to grab one, match it to the correct reindeer, and name the color.

Reindeer Express:

Our first gross motor activity was so much fun! For this activity, Aubrey picked up all the toys in Santa’s workshop, pulled a box “sleigh”, then had to look at pictures on each house bin to deliver the correct gifts to the correct homes.

Reindeer Run:

For our reindeer run activity, I printed reindeer action cards and numbered them 1-6 on the back. Then I gave Aubrey a large foam die to roll. She rolled the die, found the number then completed that reindeer action.

Reindeer Training:

What kid doesn’t love a fun obstacle course? Aubrey and Madelynn are always setting up their own obstacle courses so they love when I set up fun themed courses for them. Here is what I set up for our “reindeer training”:
-Cones to gallop through the forest
-A mat to roll in the snow
-Pillows to practice leaps
-Toys and a bag to fill Santa’s sack
-A small box with rope attached and a line of tape to pull Santa’s sleigh
-A tunnel to climb through the chimney and help deliver the presents!

Pin the Nose on Rudolph:

For this pin the nose on the Rudolph activity, we put a little twist on the normal pin the object game. Instead of taping the nose on the picture, Aubrey dipped her nose in petroleum jelly, tried to pick up the pom pom without using her hands, then stuck it to Rudolph’s nose (a laminated picture with more petroleum jelly on the nose part).

Reindeer Ring Toss:

This game was simple to set up because I found this inflatable reindeer ring toss game on Amazon. Super easy to set up and also fun to play with the whole family on Christmas.

Reindeer Snacks:

Peanut Butter Reindeer Cookies – Roll 1” balls of peanut butter cookie dough. Pinch the bottom of each ball and flatten into a little triangle shape. Bake 7-8 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately press two mini pretzels into the tops of the cookies for the reindeer’s antlers. Press brown M&Ms in for eyes and 1 red M&M for the nose.

Rudolph Pancakes – Make large and small pancakes. Stack one small pancake on top of the large pancake at the bottom. Cut another small pancake in half to use for ears. Add a strawberry for the nose, bacon for antlers, and chocolate chips on top of halved marshmallows for eyes.

Reindeer Cookies – Spread Nilla wafer cookies with chocolate frosting. Add red M&Ms for noses. Add candy eyes. Add broken pretzel pieces for antlers.

Reindeer Brownies – Bake a batch of your favorite brownie recipe (or use premade!) Spread chocolate frosting on top. Cut brownies into rectangles. Attach pretzel antlers, M&M noses and candy eyes.

Reindeer Toast – Toast a piece of bread then cut into heart shape. Spread with peanut butter. Add a blueberry for the nose, pretzels for antlers, and chocolate chips on top of halved marshmallows for eyes.

Rudolph Sensory Bin:

In this bin: Rudolph finger puppets, artificial snow, artificial trees, and foam snowflakes

Reindeer Puzzle Bin:

In this bin: reindeer puzzle, red and green rice

Reindeer Play Dough:

On this tray: chocolate play dough (recipe below), jingle bells, pipe cleaners, googly eyes, sticks

Chocolate play dough recipe:
1 cup chocolate frosting
About 3 cups powdered sugar  

1. Mix in a stand mixer, adding powdered sugar gradually.
2. Add a bit more or less sugar until your dough isn’t sticky.  

That’s it! So easy!

Sleigh Bell Sort:

In this bin: green shredded paper, colored jingle bells, reindeer sleigh cards, fine motor tools

Reindeer Feeding Bin:

In this bin: oats, pipe cleaners (bent into reindeer shapes), cups, bowls, scoops

Want all of this week’s Reindeer activities for tot school?  You can grab them here:
On my site : Reindeer Plans & Printables On TpT: Reindeer Plans & Printables

Or you can grab our entire year of themes and plans:
On my site here: Tot School Bundle On TpT here: Tot School Bundle

Then check out the rest of our 35+ themes on the Tot School Curriculum Main Page.

The post Tot School: Reindeer first appeared on Mrs. Plemons' Kindergarten.

**This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. View our full disclosure policy here.**

Here were our plans for our Thanksgiving theme:

And here are the details for each activity:

Here are our favorite Thanksgiving books that we used to begin each day: How to Catch a Turkey by Adam Wallace
The Thankful Book by Todd Parr
Ten Thankful Turkeys by Angela Muse
Thank You, Thanksgiving by David Milgrim
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Turkey by Lucille Colandro

Light Table Turkeys:

Aubrey started Thanksgiving week learning about shapes, colors, counting and symmetry with this turkey building activity. I printed a turkey body and taped it to our clear tray on top of a light pad (aka our cheaper version of a light table). Then I gave her a bin full of translucent pattern blocks to create feathers for the turkey. As she played we were able to incorporate so many different skills. We talked about the colors and shapes she used, practiced counting the number of blocks, sorted colors, tried to make patterns, and discussed symmetry.

Turkey Dot Stamp Page:

Next, we used our Do A Dot Art! Markers for fine motor practice. Aubrey focused on placing one dot in each circle on the turkey. This helps her build one to one correspondence for counting as well.

Turkey Feather Sticker Sort:

Peeling stickers is a great fine motor skill (especially for long car rides and restaurants!). For this sorting activity I printed colored feathers, then gave Aubrey small dot stickers to sort, match and cover each feather.

Turkey Feather Number Order:

For our next fine motor activity, Aubrey worked with pinching clothespins. She clipped the number feathers in order around the turkey body starting on the left side and working all the way around the body.

Marble Paint Feathers:

For our last fine motor activity Aubrey created this marble paint turkey. First, she painted a paper plate brown. Next, I covered the bottom of a shallow tray with shaving cream. Then, I added a few drops of liquid watercolor. Aubrey used a paintbrush to swirl the colors together then gently stamped 2 feather pages on top of the shaving cream. I helped her use a popsicle stick to scrape off the excess cream.
After those dried, Aubrey cut out the feathers and face pieces, glued the cut outs to the face, and attached the feathers behind the paper plate.

Thanksgiving Food Sort:

For our first gross motor activity we focused on sorting by color.  I set up bins with colored turkey labels on each one. Then I gave Aubrey a bin full of different colored play food and she ran each one across the room to feed each turkey the correct color.

Turkey Hokey Pokey:

We love a good you tube kids song around here, so when I searched for Thanksgiving songs and found this adorable Turkey Hokey Pokey video, I knew we had to use it this week. Aubrey was cracking up as she put her turkey wings, drumstick, etc in and out.

Musical Feathers:

This was another favorite activity of Aubrey’s.  I printed feathers with numbers 1-10 on them, then laid them out in a circle.  I put on some music and had her dance around stepping on each feather.  Then I stopped the music and had her pick up a number and try to identify it.  

Turkey Toss:

I found this cute fall tree door decoration at the craft store and thought it would be a fun way to practice color identification. I taped the tree to our door then added the colored leaves. Aubrey chose a colored feather card, identified the color, then tried to toss the turkey at the correct color leaf. Actually hitting the correct color was pretty difficult, but she loved throwing our stuffed turkey over and over again trying to hit the right leaf!

Turkey Wobble:

Okay I couldn’t resist one more fun video/song for our Thanksgiving theme. If you’ve never heard of Go Noodle or Koo Koo Kangaroo, you should just stop what you’re doing and go check them out right now. They have loads of awesome videos to get your kids dancing, moving, and having a great time. One of my favorite videos of theirs is the Turkey Wobble. It’s no secret my girls love learning new dance routines so this one was so fun for them. And its pretty hysterical to watch!

Thanksgiving Snacks:

Donut Hole Turkeys: For these yummy treats, we pushed 5 pieces of candy corn into the top of a donut hole for feathers and 2 pretzel sticks into the bottom for legs. Then we stuck 2 candy eyes, ½ an orange Reese’s pieces, and a piece of red gummy candy on the front of the donut hole with a dab of icing for the turkey face.

Turkey Pretzel Bites: To make these little turkey bites, I melted a few pieces of chocolate for 15-30 seconds then poured the chocolate onto pretzels (on wax paper) to fill centers. After the chocolate set a bit, we added candy corn feathers, candy eyes and Reese’s pieces.

Kix Corn on the Cob: This snack was easy peasy! I taped the pointy end of an icing bag down a few inches. Aubrey helped fill the bag with Kix cereal. Then I secured the bottom with a twist tie. Finally I wrapped the bag with a square of tissue paper and secured with another twist tie. This was a great snack to take on the go!

Rice Cake Turkey: This easy turkey was made with a mini rice cake, veggie straws for feathers, 2 pretzel stick legs, 2 candy eyes, ½ an orange Reese’s pieces, and a piece of red gummy candy on the rice cake for the turkey face.

Turkey Sandwich: This cute little turkey was my favorite for our last day of Thanksgiving week. I helped Aubrey skewer beef sticks and cheese cubes to make 6 feathers. Then we pushed the feathers into the side of an Uncrustable sandwich. Last we added candy eyes, a triangle of cheese and a red pepper to the top of the sandwich for the turkey face.

Thanksgiving Sensory Bin:

In this bin: brown paper shreds, Little People Thanksgiving Set

Thanksgiving Dinner Bin:

In this bin: popcorn kernels, plastic plates, bowls, cups, forks, and
play food

Cranberries & Water Play:

In our bin: cranberries, water, slotted spoons, cups and bowls

Turkey Play Dough:

On this tray: brown play dough, pipe cleaners, foam shapes, googly eyes, colored feathers

Build a Turkey Sensory Bin:

In this bin: popcorn kernels, turkey bodies, feathers, pipe cleaner legs

Want all of this week’s Thanksgiving activities for tot school?  You can grab them here:
On my site : Thanksgiving Plans & Printables On TpT: Thanksgiving Plans & Printables

Or you can grab our entire year of themes and plans:
On my site here: Tot School Bundle On TpT here: Tot School Bundle

Then check out the rest of our 35+ themes on the Tot School Curriculum Main Page.

The post Tot School: Thanksgiving first appeared on Mrs. Plemons' Kindergarten.

**This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. View our full disclosure policy here.**

Here were our plans for About Me Week:

Tot School Read Alouds for an All About Me Theme

The Skin You Live In By Michael Tyler
Eyes, Nose, Fingers, and Toes: A First Book All About You By Judy Hindley
The Feelings Book By Todd Parr
Me and My Family Tree By Joan Sweeney
The Family Book By Todd Parr

Fine Motor All About Me Activities for Tot School

Tear and Stick Names:

Aubrey started all about me week focusing on her own name. She is still working on recognizing all of the letters in her name, so for some fine motor practice she worked on tearing paper and gluing it in the letter outlines. This was much more challenging than I thought it would be so I ended up ripping a lot of the pieces smaller for her while she worked on picking up and gluing them one at a time. Lots of new skills went into this activity!

Roll and Paint Body:

Next we worked on identifying the parts of our body.  I printed a body outline and color/body part dice.  Aubrey rolled the two dice, then used watercolor paints to paint that body part the correct color.

Emotion Play Dough Mats:

This week we also learned about our emotions with this play dough mat.  Aubrey used the pictures at the top as models to create lots of different emotions and use new vocabulary to describe how her person was feeling.

Shape Family Puppets:

Finally we learned about our families, so we created the members of our family as shape puppets!  Aubrey used foam sticker shapes to create people by sticking them onto a craft stick.  I helped her use markers to draw a face and details and glue to add yarn, buttons, etc. for hair and other details.

Build a Home:

Another family activity we did was building houses for our families.  We started with family counters and built a little family.  Then Aubrey used fine motor tweezers to grab blocks and build each family a house.  This was great for strengthening her grasp as the blocks were a bit slippery and tough to hold on to.

Gross Motor All About Me Activities for Tot School

Sort the Hands:

I love gross motor activities for this age because they always seems to keep Aubrey interested for longer periods of time. After reading The Skin You Live In By Michael Tyler, I printed hands in different colors, dumped them on the floor and labeled a few baskets.  We took turns running back and forth with one hand at a time and dropping it in the right basket. Super easy set up and her big sister even joined in too!

Color Hokey Pokey:

Next to practice our body parts, we played the hokey pokey.  To switch it up a bit I tied a different colored rainbow scarf on each part of the body (hand, foot, tummy, and head.) Then I played the hokey pokey song and instead of saying “right hand, left hand, etc.” I said “orange hand, red hand, etc.” This made it easier to identify parts, and added a little extra fun for Aubrey as she waved the scarves around.

Feelings Face Hop:

We brought our next gross motor game outside to practice identifying feelings.  I drew faces with different emotions on the ground with sidewalk chalk. Then I called out an emotion for Aubrey to run to. When she got there she had to act out that emotion. After playing that way for a while I had her hop from face to face and name each emotion along the way.

Color Family Trip:

This color family trip activity was such a fun way to practice sorting by color and identifying family members all while getting some energy out. Using washi tape in rainbow colors, I created roads on the floor with a mixture of straight and zig zag lines. Then I taped a matching colored house at the end of each color road and filled a bin with colored family counters.  Aubrey had to find all of the family members of one color, load them into a toy truck, then follow that color road to deliver them to the correct house.

Race and Wipe Name:

For one more name activity we played this race and wipe game.  I wrote the letters in Aubrey’s name on our sliding glass window with dry erase markers. (I started with just 2 letters multiple times, then we worked up to more.) Aubrey stood back a few feet, and I called out a letter. With an eraser in hand, she ran to the window to erase the letter, then ran back.

All About Me Snack Ideas for Tot School

Pancake Faces – First make a batch of large circle shaped pancakes. (Use a store bought mix, or your own favorite recipe.) Fill a small tray or cupcake tin with cut up bananas, strawberries, blueberries, clementines, chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, etc. Use pieces to create pancake faces.

All About Me Cookie –  Make a batch of your favorite sugar cookie dough or use store bought mix/ready made dough. Roll out dough on floured surface ¼ to ½ inch thick. Cut into people with cookie cutters. Bake, cool completely, and decorate with frosting, sprinkles, choc chips, jelly, and candy eyes.

Feelings Toast – Toast a slice of bread. Spread with peanut butter. Add candy eyes and chocolate chips. Put jelly in a decorator bag or Ziploc with a small corner cut off. Use jelly to create mouths, eyebrows, etc. to show different feelings.

Snack Family – Use various types of crackers, pretzel sticks, cheese, cheerios, mini marshmallows, and jelly to create all of the members of your family. Put jelly in a decorator bag or Ziploc with a small corner cut off to use for adding small details and/or writing names. 

Veggie Family – Cut up cucumbers, carrots, peppers, tomatoes, and cheese. Use veggies and cheese to build family members on an empty plate.

All About Me Activities for Tot School Sensory Play

Build My Name Sensory Bin:

In this bin: upper and lowercase letter beads, black beans, gator grabber tweezers, name practice page

Build a Body Sensory Bin:

In this bin: red water beads, my body puzzles and mats

Name the Feelings Sensory Bin:

In this bin: Eggspressions playset, white beans

My Family Sensory Bin:

In this bin: shredded paper, family photos, family name cards

Build a Family Sensory Bin:

In this bin: family counters, kinetic sand

Want all of this week’s all about me activities for tot school?  You can grab them here:
On my site : About Me Plans & Printables On TpT: About Me Plans & Printables

Or you can grab our entire year of themes and plans:
On my site here: Tot School Bundle On TpT here: Tot School Bundle

Then check out the rest of our 35+ themes on the Tot School Curriculum Main Page.

The post Tot School: About Me first appeared on Mrs. Plemons' Kindergarten.

**This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. View our full disclosure policy here.**

Here is a look at our second set of 6 seasonal themed baby bins:

Here are the details for each of our activities:

Summer Theme Read Aloud:

Aubrey loves all of the lift the flap books from Karen Katz, so this week’s summer story was Baby Loves Summer by Karen Katz.  She loves all of the flaps to lift, and I love all the vocabulary it introduces.

Sun Theme Sensory Bin:

In this bin: yellow rice, penne pasta, yellow pouch lids
Aubrey used the materials in the bin to scoop, play, explore, and build suns.

Ice Cream Scooping:

In this bin: cotton balls, toy ice cream cones, scoops, spoons, and bowls

Cotton Candy Puffy Paint:

Our craft this week was made with this yummy puffy cotton candy paint. Aubrey helped me mix a small batch of puffy paint with equal parts shaving cream and white glue in a bowl. I divided it into 2 bowls and dyed one pink and one blue with food coloring. I also rolled a small piece of white cardstock to form a cone and glued it to the bottom of a sheet of paper for the cotton candy cone. Aubrey used the puffy paint to paint swirls of cotton candy on top of the cone.

Ice Cream Play Dough:

In this sensory bin: Funfetti playdough, buckets, sand toy ice cream set

This ice cream play dough is seriously amazing. It smells delicious and actually scoops like real ice cream! Best of all it is taste safe so even your littlest kiddos can play without any worry.

Here’s the super simple recipe:
-1 cup funfetti frosting (white or colored)
-About 3 cups powdered sugar

1. Mix in a stand mixer, adding powdered sugar gradually.
2. Add a bit more or less sugar until your dough isn’t sticky.

That’s it! I  used the pre-colored pink frosting for our “strawberry” so I didn’t have to mess with food coloring. So easy!

Duck Race Sensory Bin:

In this sensory bin: water, cut pool noodle, small rubber ducks, squirt guns

For our last bin, I cut a pool noodle the length of the bin and placed it inside to divide the bin into 2 “lanes.” Then we placed one rubber duck in each lane.  We each used a squirt gun to squirt the duck and race to the other side of the bin. Aubrey also had fun just spraying and splashing with the ducks in the bin even without racing.

Want all of this week’s seasonal themed activities for baby bins?  You can grab them here:
On my site : Baby Bins: Seasonal {Plans and Printables}
On TpT: Baby Bins: Seasonal {Plans and Printables}

Or you can grab our entire year of themes and plans:
On my site here: Baby Bin Bundle On TpT here: Baby Bin Bundle

Then check out the rest of our 35+ themes on the Baby Bins Curriculum Main Page.

The post Baby Bins: Summer first appeared on Mrs. Plemons' Kindergarten.

**This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. View our full disclosure policy here.**

Here were our plans for our carnival theme:

And here are the details for each activity:

Carnival of the Animals:

We started off the week listening to the music from Camille Saint-Saëns’s and moving like the animals in Carnival of the Animals by Jack Prelutsky. This book has a poem for each animal accompanied by a classical musical movement. After reading each poem we listened to the song and Madelynn pretended to be each animal in the circus.

Carnival Predictions:

Our next story was Little Elliot Big Fun By Mike Curato. Before reading, we practiced making predictions.

I asked “After looking at the cover, what do you think this story will be about?”  Madelynn: “The elephant is going to the fair.” Then I asked: “What will the elephant do in the story?” Madelynn: “He’s going to go on the rides.”

Carnival Comprehension:

Next we read Olivia and the School Carnival By Tina Gallo. After reading, we talked about the things the children made for the carnival.  Then I asked Madelynn what she would like to make for the school carnival and had her draw it on the response page. Madelynn said she would make a piggy race.

Carnival Comprehension:

  Our last read aloud was Daniel Goes to the Carnival By Angela C. Santomero. After reading, we talked about what it means to be afraid, and why Daniel was feeling afraid. Then I asked Madelynn if she has ever been afraid of something and had her draw it on the response page. She said she was afraid of ants.

Tracking Print:

Our last book was this letter C for Carnival alphabet reader. Madelynn identified the picture then pointed to each word as she read. Since we switched to the more difficult version she is working on learning new sight words each week. Afterwards she colored all of the pictures in.

Color by Sound Ice Cream:

This week we focused on ending sounds so we started with this color by code activity. Madelynn looked small pictures in the larger picture, and identified the ending sound. Then she followed the directions to make each spot the correct color.

Carnival Sound Stamping:

Next, for more letter practice we used our dot stampers. We started out stamping inside the letter to make a C. Then Madelynn had to find the upper and lowercase c’s in the carnival booth, stamp them and make the “C” sound each time. Then she stamped the other letters different colors and tried to make the sounds for each one.

Pop the Middle Sound:

  To practice identifying tricky vowel sounds, I set up this carnival themed water balloon toss game.  First I drew 5 large circles with sidewalk chalk and labeled each with a vowel. Then I filled a bucket with water balloons.  Madelynn chose a CVC word card, identified the middle sound, then tossed a water balloon into the correct circle.

Carnival Name Craft:

For this week’s name craft we created a bunch of name balloons.  First, Madelynn cut the balloon pieces out. Then she wrote the letters in her name on each balloon. After she finished writing, she glued the balloons in order to spell her name. Then she cut and added yarn strings under each balloon to make a bouquet.

Carnival Journal Writing:

  For our journal this week Madelynn chose to draw her favorite carnival ride. She said “I like the fun house.” So I drew lines for each word, then we worked on writing the sounds together.

Carnival Number Writing Tray:

Our first math activity this week was a carnival themed number writing tray.  To make this fun sensory activity I filled our shallow tray with sprinkles. Madelynn used ice cream number cards as a model and chose which ones she wanted to practice.  Then she used a sugar cone and/or her finger to write numbers in the pretty themed tray.

Ducky Grab and Color Graph:

Our math focus this week was graphing and analyzing data. For our first activity I used permanent marker to color dots on the bottom of small rubber ducks.  Then I placed all of the ducks in a small bin of water. Madelynn chose a duck and recorded on the graph. She continued grabbing ducks until all the  duck colors were graphed.

Bucket Toss Graphing:

Our next carnival game was this bucket toss game.  I filled a bin with small ping pong balls. Then, Madelynn tossed the balls one at a time into the buckets. When she finished tossing, she counted the number of balls in each bucket and graphed them on the recording sheet.

Scoop and Graph Popcorn:

Our last activity was a yummy rainbow popcorn graph.  Madelynn used a small cup to grab a scoop of rainbow colored popcorn.  Then she sorted the colored pieces onto the rainbow popcorn graph.  Finally she recorded the number of each color, then used the graph to answer the questions. And of course ate her delicious snack when she finished.

*You can also dye your own popcorn following these instructions.

Popcorn Number Sense Mats:

We used these mats to practice numbers 11-20 this week. First, Madelynn identified the large number. Then she made it with play dough and counted the popcorn in the ten frame. Next, she used a dry erase marker to practice writing the number, and finally counted out pieces of popcorn to fill the bucket with the correct amount.

Popcorn Sensory Bin:

In this sensory bin: Popcorn, plastic popcorn boxes, pretend salt shakers, fine motor tools, scoops, cups

Popcorn Stamping Craft:

Our first craft this week turned out super cute.  First I printed popcorn box pieces on colored cardstock. Madelynn cut and glue the pieces together.  Next she scrunched up a small piece of tissue paper to use as a stamper.  I filled a tray with yellow and white paint and she stamp the tissue in both colors to stamp delicious buttery popcorn on top of the box.

Balloon Inflator:

For our science experiment this week we made our very own balloon inflator. First Madelynn poured about ½ cup vinegar into an empty plastic water bottle. Next, I helped her stretch a balloon out a bit and insert the funnel. She filled balloon about halfway with baking soda. I carefully stretched the balloon around the neck of the bottle without letting the baking soda fall into the bottle. Then Madelynn lifted the balloon up and shook the baking soda into the bottle. Finally she watched in awe as the balloon inflated!

Cotton Candy Puffy Paint:

Our second craft this week was yummy puffy cotton candy paint. Madelynn helped me mix a small batch of puffy paint with equal parts shaving cream and white glue in a bowl. I divided it into 2 bowls and dyed one pink and one blue with food coloring. I also rolled a small piece of white cardstock to form a cone and glued it to the bottom of a sheet of paper for the cotton candy cone. Madelynn used the puffy paint to paint swirls of cotton candy on top of the cone.

Duck Race Sensory Bin:

In this sensory bin: water, cut pool noodle, small rubber ducks, squirt guns

For our last carnival themed game, I cut a pool noodle the length of the bin and placed it inside to divide the bin into 2 “lanes.” Then we placed one rubber duck in each lane.  We each used a squirt gun to squirt the duck and race to the other side of the bin. Madelynn also had fun just spraying and splashing with the ducks in the bin even without racing.

Want all of this week’s Carnival activities for preschool?  You can grab them here:
On my site : Carnival Plans & Printables On TpT: Carnival Plans & Printables

Or you can grab our entire year of themes and plans:
On my site here: Preschool Bundle On TpT here: Preschool Bundle

Then check out the rest of our 45+ themes on the Preschool Curriculum Main Page.

The post Preschool: Carnival first appeared on Mrs. Plemons' Kindergarten.

**This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. View our full disclosure policy here.**

 Here is a look at our 6 animal themed baby bins:

Here are the details for each of our activities:

   Ocean Theme Read Aloud:

Aubrey loves books with flaps to lift and this ocean book quickly became a favorite. Each page in Deep Sea Dive by Salina Yoon has a brightly colored illustration and name of an ocean animal.  When you lift the flap a short poem gives a bit more information about that animal. I love that this book gives just a bit more info than a typical board book but still holds Aubrey’s attention.

Ocean Water Bead Bin:

In this bin: ocean water beads, plastic ocean animals, fine motor tools, cups

  **Remember water beads are NOT taste safe, so if your littles are likely to take a bite, try using tapioca pearls instead.

Ocean Bubble Ball Bin:

This week we had the perfect warm weather to move our sensory play outside. To set up this ocean bubble ball bin, I put blue, green, and purple ball pit balls in a kiddie pool, filled it with water and placed 3 empty bins on the other side of the yard.  Then I got Aubrey started by showing her how to grab a few balls and sort them into the 3 bins by color.  Then all I did was watch her splash, sort and wear herself out!

Fish Watercolor Painting:

Our next craft was a super simple one. I printed a few fish outlines on white cardstock. Aubrey used liquid watercolors to paint bright colored tropical fish.  If you need a taste safe option you could also use water with a few drops of food coloring.

Sponge Fish Water Bin:

In this bin: water, blue food coloring, sponges cut into the shape of fish, fine motor tools, eye droppers

Aubrey loves pretty much any water filled sensory bin, so this ocean themed bin was lots of fun for her to squish and explore with.

Ocean Animal Sand Play:

In this sensory bin: blue kinetic sand, mini ocean animal sand molds

Want all of this week’s animal themed activities for baby bins?  You can grab them here:
On my site : Baby Bins: Animals {Plans and Printables}
On TpT: Baby Bins: Animals {Plans and Printables}

Or you can grab our entire year of themes and plans:
On my site here: Baby Bin Bundle On TpT here: Baby Bin Bundle

Then check out the rest of our 35+ themes on the Baby Bins Curriculum Main Page.

The post Baby Bins: Ocean first appeared on Mrs. Plemons' Kindergarten.

**This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. View our full disclosure policy here.**

Here were our plans for our ocean theme:

And here are the details for each activity:

Ocean Vocabulary:

Our first book this week was Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea by Jan Peck. While reading I used picture cards to reinforce new words. Then Madelynn made an ocean vocabulary book. She drew pictures to show each animal and used the picture cards and book as a reference.

Fish Problem and Solution:

Our next story was Pout Pout Fish by Deborah Diesen. Before reading we discussed and defined problem. We talked about how every story usually has a problem or something that goes wrong. After reading, Madelynn drew and labeled the problem in the story (The pout pout fish was very sad.) Then we talked about and drew how the problem was solved (He met Miss Shimmer and she gave him a kiss. Then he felt better!)

3 Little Fish Retelling:

Our next story was The Three Little Fish And The Big Bad Shark by Will Grace. After reading, Madelynn drew to show what happened in each part of the story.

Ocean Inferring:

Our last book was Commotion in the Ocean by Giles Andrae. First we discussed the animals that live in the ocean. Then I read the poems 1 at a time without showing the illustrations.  Madelynn used the clues in the text along with what she knew to infer the type of animal and draw it on her response page. She loved when I showed her the picture to check if she was right.

Tracking Print:

Learning vowel sounds can be tricky and are usually the last letter sounds I worry about preschoolers mastering.  So for our last book this week we read this O for ocean alphabet reader. I included a mixture of items that representing short and long O sounds. Madelynn identified the picture then pointed to each word as she read. Afterwards she colored all of the pictures in.

Ocean Letter Writing Tray:

Our first literacy activity this week was an ocean themed letter writing tray. To make this fun sensory activity I filled our tray with blue sand and gems. Madelynn used seashell letter cards as a model and chose which ones she wanted to practice. Then she used her finger to write letters in the sand.

Ocean Sound Stamping:

Next, for more letter practice we used our dot stampers. We started out stamping inside the letter to make an O. Then Madelynn had to find the upper and lowercase o’s in the ocean, stamp them and make the “O” sound each time. Then she stamped the other letters different colors and tried to make the sounds for each one.

Fishing for Sounds:

This game was super engaging and easy to set up.  First I printed, laminated and cut out the ocean word cards. Then I filled our large bin with water and foam letters from the lakeshore alphabet fishing game. Madelynn used the magnetic fishing pole to catch letters and build each word, identifying the missing middle sound for each one.

Ocean Name Craftivity:

For this week’s name craft we created an ocean full of name fishies.  First, Madelynn cut the fish and water pieces out. Then she wrote the letters in her name on each fish. After she finished writing, she glued the fish together in order to spell her name. Then she added a few bubbles near each fish with a white crayon.

Ocean Journaling:

For our journal this week Madelynn chose to draw her favorite ocean animal. She said “I like turtles.”  I drew lines for each word, then we worked on writing the sounds together.

Color by Code Shark:

We worked on addition to 5 this week for our color by the code activity. Madelynn solved the number sentence in each section of the picture then used the key to color each one the correct color.

Ocean Measuring:

Our new math focus for the week is measurement, so we started out with using nonstandard units, goldfish crackers, to measure ocean animals. After lining up her crackers on the line to measure each animal, Madelynn counted the number and wrote it on each page.

Weighing Seashells:

Madelynn loves experimenting with balance scale, so I made sure we had at least one fun ocean activity for learning about weight. First she choose a small plastic ocean animals  to place on one side of the scale.  Next she filled the other side of the balance scale with the seashells  one at a time until the scale balanced out. Finally she counted and recorded the weight on the response sheet.

Ocean Capacity:

Capacity is always a fun measurement concept for preschoolers, because they love to fill and dump things.  For our ocean themed capacity exploration I filled our sensory bin with blue water. Then I added plastic ocean animals, various sized containers, measuring cups and spoons. Madelynn explored capacity by seeing how many cups, or scoops of water fit in each container. I helped her to make predictions and check to see how accurate they were as well.  She also added sea creatures to discover how they affect capacity.

Measuring Seashells:

For our last measurement activity we tried out standard measurement using a flexible measuring tape. Madelynn choose a seashell then lined up the measuring tape to measure the length of each type of shell. Then she wrote the measurements on the recording sheet.

Ocean Water Bead Bin:

In this bin: ocean water beads, plastic ocean animals, fine motor tools, cups

Jellyfish Craft:

Our first craft this week was a 3D jellyfish. We started out painting a small paper bowl (try to find the least waxy variety possible so paint will stick!) various colors with tempera paint.  After it dried, I helped Madelynn cut and staple ribbons underneath the upside down bowl. Finally she glued large googly eyes to the top to finish the jellyfish, and I poked a small hole for a loop of elastic in the top for hanging.

Ocean Ice Melt:

It has been nice and hot around here this week, so we moved our next activity outdoors! I froze ocean creatures in blue ice ahead of time. Then I placed the ice blocks in large bin with tools, eye droppers and cups of warm water. Madelynn used tools to excavate the ocean creatures.  We sorted, named, and counted the animals.

Fish Watercolor Painting:

Our second craft was a super simple one. I printed a few fish outlines on white cardstock. Madelynn used liquid watercolors to paint bright colored tropical fish.  After the paint dried, she cut the fish out and added a googly eyes to the faces.

Ocean Animal Kinetic Sand Play:

In this sensory bin: blue kinetic sand, mini ocean animal sand molds

Want all of this week’s Ocean activities for preschool?  You can grab them here:
On my site : Ocean Plans & Printables On TpT: Ocean Plans & Printables

Or you can grab our entire year of themes and plans:
On my site here: Preschool Bundle On TpT here: Preschool Bundle

Then check out the rest of our 45+ themes on the Preschool Curriculum Main Page.

The post Preschool: Ocean first appeared on Mrs. Plemons' Kindergarten.

**This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. View our full disclosure policy here.**

 Here is a look at our 6 animal themed baby bins:

Here are the details for each of our activities:

Farm Theme Read Aloud:

Little Blue Truck by Alice Schertle is already a favorite in our house and even though we already used it for our blue themed week, I knew I had to bring it back out for our farm theme.  Aubrey loves the truck and animal sounds and I love the message of friendship and helping others.

Little Blue Truck Sensory Bin:

Our first activity is a repeat sensory bin from our Blue theme to go along with our Little Blue Truck story. First, I filled our bin with shredded brown paper “mud”. I added a little blue truck, farm animals, a frog and a dump truck and it was the perfect way to practice retelling a story.

Wishy Washy Sensory Bin:

In this bin: “mud,” plastic animals, tin tub, water, scrub brushes

To set this activity up I filled a small bin with 1 cup water. Then I added  2 cups cornstarch a bit at a time, and sprinkled a few spoonfuls of unsweetened cocoa powder in for color and scent. I added the animals to the “mud” mixture, then filled a separate tub with water and scrub brushes. To help contain the mess I placed both bins inside a larger bin.

Ice Cream in a Bag:

Have you ever made ice cream in a bag? We tried it for the first time in tot school last year and I was SHOCKED at how easy and delicious it was! So I knew I had to bring this activity back for preschool and baby bins this year. Here is the recipe:

  1. Mix 3 cups crushed ice and 1/3 cup salt in a gallon freezer bag.
2. Mix 1/2 cup whole milk, 1/4 tsp vanilla, and 1 Tbsp sugar in sandwich bag.
3. Drop the small bag inside the large bag and SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE! **Wear gloves the bag will get really cold **
4. After about 5 minutes take the small bag out and enjoy, yum!

Farm Animal Bead Threading:

I found these wooden farm beads nay knew they would make the perfect activity for our farm themed baby bins. I love that the lacing string included in the set has a large sturdy wooden peg to make threading so much easier even for the smallest hands.  Aubrey needed me to model the process of pushing the peg into a bead and pulling it through a few times before she was able to do it independently.

Farm Animal Matching Bin:

In this bin: oatmeal, Melissa & Doug Farm Animal Pop Blocs, spoons, cups

Want all of this week’s animal themed activities for baby bins?  You can grab them here:
On my site : Baby Bins: Animals {Plans and Printables}
On TpT: Baby Bins: Animals {Plans and Printables}

Or you can grab our entire year of themes and plans:
On my site here: Baby Bin Bundle On TpT here: Baby Bin Bundle

Then check out the rest of our 35+ themes on the Baby Bins Curriculum Main Page.

The post Baby Bins: Farm first appeared on Mrs. Plemons' Kindergarten.