Dollar Tree Sensory Bins For Preschool #preschool #autumn

The class is loving these sensory bins. I got the container, beans, and bones from Dollar Tree. The Skeleton arm tweezers are from Monster High that my daughter had years ago. In the second bind all of it is Dollar Tree. The bin, hay, leaves, acorns, insects are all from Dollar Tree.

 

Eye Ball Drop #Dollartree #halloweenactivity #preschool

I grabbed two skeleton hands, a bucket and two packs of eye balls from Dollartree to make my class an Eye Ball Drop Game. Using a paper towel roll and showing them how to use the two hands they loved dropping the eyes into the toilet paper roll. It is so good for their hand eye coordination and gross motor skills. 

The plastic bucket around the little mummy bucket is because at first all I heard was eye balls hitting the floor. This was much easier for me to ensure we didn't lose all our eye balls and they were ready for the next child to try it out.

Dollar Tree Bubbling Skull #Dollartree #preschoolactivity #halloween

My class loved the bubbling skull we did for Halloween. All the products were from Dollar Tree except the food coloring and baking soda which we had already.

I put a drop of food coloring then each child put two spoons of baking soda into the skull then a syringe of vinegar which was really good for their fine motor skills. I will definitely be doing this again! They loved it and asked for to do it again.

AUTUMN SENSORY BIN FOR MY PRESCHOOL CLASS

This year I am doing older 3s after doing the 2 year old class for 6 years. It is a big difference but not. Fortunately my first class was mine just a few months ago when they were in my 2 year room so it was nice to have them back and do something new!

I am excited about the change of room and the new abilities my class comes to me with. 5-6 months makes a big difference when we are talking toddlers so I cannot wait to see where we are in the next few months.

Two weeks ago I made them a sensory bin for Autumn using mostly Dollar Tree items. 

My daughter and I grabbed some mini soft pumpkins, plastic acorns, mini hay bales, and leaves  dumped them into a big Tupperware and wah la instant sensory bin.

I had purchased 2 bales of hay but it is so much in the one that I only opened one. this is:

1 bale of hay

2 packs of plastic acorns

2 different bags of fake leaves

a bag of wooden letters I had from a sign

The kids love it. They look for the letters and the acorns then hide it all again for another friend to find. They ask for it every day.

Making Dandelion Play Dough

 A yard full of dandelions means it is time to make some Dandelion Play Dough for my preschool class to play with. 

It was really easy and my class loved playing with it. 

We picked a basket full of flowers. Get rid of as much of the green from the flower that you can. 

We put them in a blender with a little bit of water and puréed it. 

Then I added water, flour, salt, oil and cream of tarter. 

And work it until it is the consistency of play dough! 

Ice Age For Real - Toddler Activity

This week the letter at my Preschool was “I”.

We did inside, insects and igloo but I think the one the kids loved best was Ice Age.

We took a balloon and stuck a toy dinosaur inside, filled with water and put it in the freezer over night.

In the morning we cut the balloon in front of the class to reveal a frozen orb with a suprised inside. Our class is 2-3 year olds and they were so excited to see the dinosaur. We gave them a spray bottle of water and a paint brush to take turns trying to uncover more of the dinosaur until we were finally able to get it out of the ice. This is the second year we have done this and I can tell you the kids love it. It takes a while but that is the best part. Their interest in hearing more about dinosaurs, turn taking and coaching each other is what we love most about this activity. The kids really get excited for each other as they see more of the dinosaur.

I really wish I had done this with my kids when they were little.

Tips to Teach Your Kids How To Tie Their Shoes

This morning Handsome's therapist and I worked on shoe tying with him. We spent 10 minutes deciding on a method.

We are going to do Bunny Ears mixed with The Squirrel and the Tree.

How to tie shoes

Though most kids' shoes now feature Velcro closures, learning to tie ones own shoes is still considered to be milestone that children should master by 5 or 6 years of age.

But, teaching a child to tie his own shoes can be frustrating; kids can lose interest quickly if they feel the task is too difficult, or they may seem to "get it" one day only to completely forget the next.

1. Bunny Ears

Probably the most common method for teaching kids to tie their own shoes is the "Bunny Ears" method.

Tell the child that he needs to make his shoe laces into "bunny ears."

First, he needs to secure a knot for the bunny's head.

Take the laces and cross them over to make an "X". Then, pull one ear through the bottom of the "X" and pull tight.

Say, "Now we need to give bunny some ears." Loop the laces into "bunny ears".

Tell the child that now we need to "make the bunny ears tight so they don't fall off".

Then make another "X" using the "bunny ears", slide one "ear" under the "X" and pull tightly.

2. The Squirrel and the Tree

This is a fun method that utilizes a kid friendly story and movements that help kids understand and remember the basic steps to shoe tying.

Tell the child to create "tree roots" by making a starter knot.

Make a tree with a long thin loop; hold the loop in the child's right hand.

With his left hand, take hold of the lace and tell him that a squirrel runs around the tree and jumps into the hole under the tree and comes out the other side (he'll need to switch hands at this point which can be difficult for some kids).

Many parents prefer this trick because it teaches the kid to tie shoes with the single loop method.

3. Loop It and Swoop It

This is a less childish, but still memorable way of teaching a child to tie in the traditional single loop method.

Teach your child to tie his shoes using the standard tying method, but as you go through the motions say, "loop it, swoop it, pull." Do this over and over while repeating the same three, simple instructions until your child is able to tie his shoes on his own.

Encourage him to say "loop it, swoop it, pull" each time he attempts tying his shoes until it becomes second nature.

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