Vote For the Best Halloween Costume

This game is always a fun game for children. They like to look at the different costumes and chose one they think is the best. Here’s what you’ll need to play the game.

Be sure each child has his or her costume. A few weeks prior send Mom and Dad a note telling them to dress their child in their costume to come to school on a certain day.

Before the day of the contest, create a necklace for each child using a piece of yarn, a hole punch and either a cut out of each number or a piece of cardboard with the number written on it to hang from the necklace. You will need empty slips of paper (one for each child), pencils and a bucket to place the votes in.

As the children arrive, give them each a number necklace and have them place it around their neck. Each child should have a number that is large and visible to the other children. Tell the kids what these numbers are for and that it will be a part of the game. Numbers are easier for the children to write than their favorite costume name or the name of the student who is wearing it.

When all the children have arrived explain the game. What they will need to do is look at the other kid’s costumes. When they decided which costume is their favorite they will need to write the corresponding number on a slip of paper and place their vote in the bucket.

Once all the children have voted, it’s time to count the votes. Whoever has the most votes for their costume is the winner. The winning student can be named the student of the day, give them an extra Halloween treat, or some other small prize. Add as many categories to your list as you want and hand out a grand prize to the best costume.

Five Senses Crafts and Activities

Take a variety of scented items and have your child try to identify them by scent.

Some items to try:

• Vanilla
• Cinnamon
• Flowers
• Onions
• Chives
• Basil
• Lemon
• Sage leaves

Some of the leaves can be crushed between the children’s fingers. Others can be scraped and smelled.

You can blindfold the child and see if he or she can identify the scents.

Memory Match Smell Game

• Take a variety of scented items and have your child try to identify them by scent.

Make a Smell Book

• Cut pictures out of magazines or print them offline. Items like flowers, skunks, foods, and garbage.

Five Senses Snacks

Eat with your fingers for one snack day.

Eat smelly foods blindfolded another snack day. Let the kids guess what they are eating by smell and taste only.

Or buy some baby food jars and let the kids guess what they are by taste.

Autumn Crafts and Activities

Autumn is such a fun time. Leaves turn shades of golden orange and brown. Use this beautiful creation of nature to your advantage. Focus on leaves for inspiration with these fun autumn craft ideas.

Create an autumn yard collage
This is a great way to get your kids involved in beautifying your front lawn for the fall season. Materials you will need to create your autumn yard collage include hay bales, pumpkins (all sizes), scarecrows, witches, cornucopias, etc. Anything related to fall will look wonderful. Stack your hay bales to create a backdrop. Next, place a huge scarecrow (or witch) on the center of the stack. Then add other complimentary fall accessories like cornucopias, corn stacks, ghosts, etc.

Happy Autumn Cards
Supply each kid with markers, paper, glue, glitter, stickers, etc. Let them make several autumn cards and write a special message on the inside of each one. After any wet appliqués are dried, gather the cards and take them to your local nursing home to distribute among patients.

• Leaf

Leaf Crafts and Activities for Preschool Kids.

Decorate the Playground for Autumn

Your school playground is a safe haven for children. There they can be themselves, have fun and forget about the worries of learning for a bit. Having preschoolers decorate the playground for fall not only spruces up the play area, but can also help preschoolers learn about nature and their surroundings.

To create your autumn collage you will need bales of hay, some straw, a pair of old jeans, an old flannel shirt, a couple of 2 or 3 prong sticks, one leg cut off a pair of old panty hose, a straw hat and a few plastic blackbirds. You will also need some small pumpkins, fall leaves, corn stalks and any other fall items you may come across.

Start by having the kids put the bales of hay as the backdrop. These bales can be pretty heavy so you might have to enlist a few other adults to help. Set the bales at least 2 feet high. Be sure they are not so high that the kids can’t reach them. Once the backdrop is set the children can place the leaves in the bales of hay. The can also place a few blackbirds here and there to set the stage.

To create your scarecrow, have the children fill the pants and shirt with straw. Tie off the ends of the arms and legs with twine so the straw doesn’t escape. Be sure they use a lot of straw to fill the scarecrow out. Be sure to let a few pieces of straw hang out here and there for an authentic look.

Place the sticks up in the shirtsleeves to make the arms/hands. For the scarecrow’s head fill the panty hose with straw and form it into a ball. Tie off the open end and let the children paint a face on the scarecrow. Pin the pants and shirt together with safety pins and place the head down on top of the shirt at the collar, securing it with safety pins as well. Place the straw hat on top and now the kids have their very own scarecrow. Now help the kids attach the scarecrow to the middle of the bales of hay with wire. Be sure to place a blackbird on the scarecrow’s shoulder.

After your backdrop is set, let the kids paint faces on the pumpkins and place them on the ground in front of the bales of hay. Add some corn stalks, more leaves, fall flowers and even a cornucopia or two to set off your fall collage. Let the kids come up with some ideas of fall items. A stuffed turkey or two would be great. How about a couple of Pilgrims and a few Indians to set the stage for Thanksgiving? Maybe even let them set up a small feast for the Pilgrims and Indians to enjoy.

Decorating the playground in a small area for everyone to see can be fun and exciting for your preschoolers. Once they have it completed let them show it off. Let parents take pictures of their child in the middle of the collage. Take individual as well as a class picture and arrange them in a collage on the classroom bulletin board.

My Very Own Leaf Tracing Book

Looking at, collecting and enjoying fall leaves can be a lot of fun for everyone including preschoolers. There are so many different types of leaves that you can spend all day looking at them. Fall leaves are not just an annoyance or for raking up into piles to jump in, they are there for your preschoolers to create and learn from. Like tracing leaves for instance, what a fun way for your preschoolers to learn and enjoy fall leaves.

Start with some white copy paper. Start with 5 pieces of paper for each child. Place the paper in stacks of 5 each and fold each stack down the middle to make a book. Using a three-hole punch, place a hole in the top, middle, and bottom of the crease.

The kids can tie them all together with brightly colored yard. This will make a great book for them to keep their traced leaves in.

Once outside have your preschoolers find at least 5 leaves of different shapes and sizes. Once they have all found their five leaves, head back inside to create their leaf books.

On the front cover of each book have the children write (or you can write for them prior to beginning the activity) “My Very Own Leaf Book” by (Insert Child’s Name).

Starting with each child’s favorite leaf, show them how to place the leaves on the right side of each page and trace around the leaf. Once they’ve traced the leaf, glue the actual leaf on the left side of the page.

Once all their leaves are traced and glued into their book, let them color and decorate their traced leaves anyway they want. You can use stickers, crayons, paint, etc. to decorate.

Create Your Own Leaf Characters

Making characters out of construction paper can be so much fun and challenging too. With their imaginations and a little help from you, your preschoolers can put together some interesting characters that will keep you in stitches and their parents wondering what you’ll come up with next.

With different fall colored construction paper make as many different types and sizes of leaves as you can come up with. These cut outs will make the heads, bodies, arms and legs of the leaf characters, so you need many different sizes and shapes for them to use. Fall leaves come in many colors so be diverse in picking your colors.

Once you have all the leaves traced, cut out and put into stacks you will also need to have some paste, glue, crayons, colored pencils, markers (if you dare), glitter, fall ric rac, fall fabric pieces, a hole punch and some yarn. Now you’re set and your preschoolers can take over.

Start them out with the body of their leaf character. Next will be the arms and legs. Have them pick leaves out and paste them to the back of the body leaf. Pressing down on the body leaf from the front for a few seconds will set the legs and arms so it will be easier for them to work with.

The head will come next. This can also be attached with paste. They should attach this to the front of the leaf body. Again have them press down on the pasted area to set the leaf. When it comes time for them to draw the face and hair on their character the leaves won’t pull apart so easily.

Use the pieces of fabric and ric rac to make the leaf characters clothes. By using small amounts of paste the clothes will adhere to the leaf easily. They can attach it to their body, legs and arms or where ever they might choose. Let them add some touches to the clothes with the glitter.

When it comes to the leaf characters face, let the kids be creative. By using crayons, colored pencils or even markers they can put eyes, a nose, a mouth and even hair on their character.

Once your preschooler has their character completed, punch a whole in the top of the leaf. Run a piece of yarn through the hole and tie together. Now you have a leaf character that can be used like a puppet in a leaf play or hung around the classroom.

What fun your preschoolers will have creating their leaf characters. Let them put on their own little play with them. They will have a blast and you’ll enjoy the show.

Making a Leaf Collage

Parents love to have pictures their children made at school to put on the refrigerator. They can show them off and it’s a decoration for their kitchen. Keeping this in mind; let your preschoolers make a leaf collage for their parents. It’s fun and easy to do plus it can be educational for young children.

Take the children out and let them gather as many leaves as possible. The size really doesn’t matter but be sure they find colorful leaves. This will bring color to the picture and make it more interesting for the children. Once you have collected all the leaves head back inside and start the leaf masterpiece.

Some of the leaves will need to be slightly dried. While some of the leaves are drying you can start to make the collage and learn a little bit about each leaf.

On bright colored construction paper have your preschoolers place different types of leaves. Have them find a leaf from a Maple tree, Oak tree or any other type of tree that was in the area where you gathered the leaves. Show them pictures of each type of leaf and then have them search through the leaves they gathered to find that certain type. Once they have found it they can paste it onto the construction paper.

After all the larger leaves are found and attached take the slightly dried leaves place them in as many small sandwich bags as you have children. Give each child their own bag and let them crush the leaves up. They can use their hands, books or anything they can find to make their crumbled leaves. Once the leaves are crushed to their satisfaction have them put small dots of glue around the edges of the construction paper. Have them sprinkle the crushed leaves around the edge to make a frame.

Making a collage can be fun for your preschooler. Seeing it on the refrigerator in their own kitchen will brighten their day as well as Mom and Dad’s. They can spend their morning breakfast time seeing if Mom and Dad can name the leaves and having a good laugh when they realize they may know more about leaves than their parents.

Winter Crafts and Activities

You look outside and see a beautiful blanket of white snow covering the ground. The kids are inside getting more and more restless as the morning progresses. Turn off the TV, bundle up the kids, and head outside for some old-fashioned fun in the snow.

Snowman
Who says lumps of coal are a bad thing at Christmastime? All you need to make a snowman is a few lumps of coal (or rocks) for eyes and a mouth, a carrot for a nose, sticks for arms, and a scarf and hat to keep him warm, and you’ll have a snowman to make Frosty the Snowman envious. If you have very ambitious children, send them out to make an entire snow family. Your kids will be entertained for hours.

Snow Angels
Have your kids lay down in the snow and move their arms up and down, and their legs in and out. Then, have them stand up. Your little angel will have made an angel in the snow. Add glitter or a garland halo to make your snow angel sparkle.

Build a Snow Fort or Igloo
There’s no cheaper way to build a playhouse than with snow. Invest in some warm mittens for your kids, and send them outside with some buckets. They may get inspired and create an entire home, with snow-furniture and decorations. You may even provide them with a spray-bottle with water and food-coloring so they can ‘paint’ their igloo. Serve them hot cocoa with yummy marshmallows in their new home.

Snowball Fight
Older kids love a good snowball fight. If you have a fluffy snowy day, jump into the fray with your kids and show them how a good snowball fight is done.

Winter Theme Snacks
Hot cocoa with marshmallows — yum!

Winter Wonderland

Let it Snow is often a huge wish for Christmas. Small children delight in watching the snow come down and cover the ground while waiting on Santa Claus to come and visit them. This game can give your preschoolers an opportunity to play in the “snow” while inside where it’s warm and cozy.

You will need a bag of packing popcorn, plastic buckets for each child, two shovels and two big containers that are the same size to pour the popcorn into when the game is completed. You will also need small prizes for the winning team and a Christmas CD to play.

Start by placing the packing popcorn out on the floor. Spread it out evenly so it will be easier for the children to scoop up in their buckets. Also try to find some that is small but not too tiny. You want it to be easy to scoop up but big enough that the children don’t slide on it while playing the game.

After you have placed the packing popcorn on the floor divide the children into two teams. Place one team on one side of the room facing the packing popcorn and the other team should be directly across from the first team.

Give each child a bucket and the first child of each team a shovel. Start playing the music. When the music starts the first child of each team will start scooping the popcorn up with the shovel and placing it in the bucket. When the music stops the child must stop filing his or her bucket. The shovel is passed to the next child and play continues until all the children have snow in their bucket.

Then have each child from each team empty their bucket into their container. The team with the most snow in their team container is the winner. It’s like a winter wonderland in their own classroom and they will laugh and laugh as the snow flies into their buckets and the warmth of fun fills their hearts.

Snow Globe

Children become very excited when they see a snow globe. They like to watch the snowfall and gleam in the wonder of it all. Preschoolers can make their own snow globes pretty easy. With your help and a few simple items they can have their own homemade snow globe to place in their room at home.

You will need to ask the children a few weeks ahead of time to bring in their own jar. They can use glass, but plastic is much safer for smaller children. If you know someone who has a baby and is eating baby food you might ask them to save the jars and lids for you. Then the children won’t need to bring anything in from home. Smaller jars are easier for young children to handle also. Once you have the jars be sure they are clean including the lids.

You will also need small Christmas figurines, small sequins, shower and tub sealing silicone and mineral oil. These items are easy to find in craft stores. They are also pretty inexpensive to purchase.

This craft will take a couple of days for the children to complete. All the silicone must dry completely before you have a finished product to enjoy. Start by gluing the figurine the child has picked to the underneath side of the lid. You will need the silicone for this and it must be left overnight to dry completely.

Once the silicone has dried the children can place the sequins in the bottom of the jar. This will be their snow. Sequins come in many different sizes and colors. Try to find small sequins that are Mother of Pearl in color. This creates the best snow and they fall well in mineral oil. If you can’t find Mother of Pearl, plain white or silver also works well.

Place the mineral oil in a large bowl. Each globe will need to be placed in the bowl one at a time to fill. Submerge the jar completely in the mineral oil. Be careful that the sequins don’t come out into the larger bowl. Once the jar is completely submerged place the lid on the jar as tightly as possible. This also needs to be submerged to be sure that the jar is completely filled. Twist the lid on the jar a bit more and remove from the mineral oil.

When you remove the jar, place it upside down (lid down) on a towel and then dry the outside of jar and lid completely. Using the silicone sealant, secure the lid to the jar completely around the lid. This will secure the lid, but also keeps any air pockets from forming where the mineral oil can leak out. Let it dry overnight.

Once dry let the kids decorate the outside of their snow globe. They can use stickers, glitter pens and even finger paint. Just remind them that they do want to see the snow falling so be sure to leave some area’s where they can see the inside of the globe.

Once the decorations are dry and set they will have their completed snow globe. What fun they will have watching the snow float down around their figurine. They will be proud of the snow globe they created themselves and you and their parents will have fun watching them play with their newest creation over and over again.

Dressing Frosty

All children get a tickle out of building a snowman. Unfortunately some places never get much snow around Christmas time if they get any at all. This game will give the children a chance to dress Frosty in their own classroom.

You will need to supply the children with clothing for Frosty. Hats, scarves, gloves, coats and even a red clown or carrot nose will work. Place these items in two different boxes, one for each team.

You will need two adults to help play this game. You and an aid or even a couple of parents who have come for the party will be great. Just be sure they are willing to have little children crawling all over them, dressing them and laughing all the while. They will also need to be able to be on their knees for a period time. By standing on their knees the children will be able to reach them better to place a hat on their head and so on.

Divide the children into two teams. Place your snowman and their clothes on one side of the room and the children on the other. Have the first child in line from each team walk to the snowman and place one item of clothing on their snowman. When they have finished have them walk back to the end of their team line. The next child will then go down and do the same. Play continues until one team has used all their clothing items in the box to dress their Frosty. The first team with a fully dressed snowman wins.

This can be a lot of fun for everyone who is playing. Dressing their own Frosty gives the children a little bit of wintertime fun and a lot of Christmas glee.

Spring Crafts and Activities

Spring has sprung and now it’s time to take in all the newness in the air. Here are some fun spring themed crafts you can do with your preschooler.

Bouquet of Handprint Flowers

Here’s yet another idea for using those precious little hands for something other than making a mess! Parents will love this because anything with handprints of their children show how they’ve great and are great keepsakes. This is an adorable craft that’s not too messy. You’ll need to help the children with the tracing and cutting.

Supplies You’ll Need:

• paper plate
• Colored construction paper (the more colors the better)
• Glue stick
• Pencil
• Scissors

How to create your bouquet:

1. Trace the children’s hands at least 10 times on different colored construction paper.

2. Cut the handprints out.

3. Use the glue stick to glue the handprint outlines, with fingers pointing out, around the edges of the paper plate.

4. Glue the next set of hand outlines (again, fingers pointed OUT) a few inches inside of the first circle of hands.

5. Continue this pattern until all the handprints have been glued to the paper plate.

6. Cut a small circle out of a piece of construction paper and place it in the middle of the “flower” and fluff your petals.

7. Once everyone in the class has completed their flower, stick them all on the wall and make a classroom flower garden or bouquet for everyone to see. When it’s time to take them down send them home for parents to save.

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