Scissors, markers, and backpacks, oh my! It’s back-to-school season and we’re here to help make your preschooler’s transition into the classroom as smooth as possible. Understandably, kids may struggle with this change, and that’s totally okay! It’s important to help them along the way with engaging activities and positive reinforcement that give them a sense of security and continuity as they enter a new setting.
Transitional activities are a great way to help young children develop the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in school and enjoy learning. These activities can promote self-regulation and help develop their social and emotional skills, too. That’s why we’ve rounded up 20+ activities guaranteed to excite little learners about preschool.
Why Back-to-School Activities Matter
When your kids head back to school, one of the best things you can do for them is help them develop and set daily routines. Routines give children a sense of control and safety because they learn what to expect, and how to prepare for the day ahead. They also help kids develop life skills that will benefit them far beyond their school days. Research shows that kids who participate in daily routines with their families have stronger language development, increased academic achievement, and improved social and emotional functioning.
21 Back-to-School Activities
Let’s get down to business now! Here is our list of exciting activities that you can try at home and in the classroom. These activities are perfect for children aged 3-5. From counting games to creative crafts, each activity promotes learning and fun. Without further ado, let’s dive into these 21 engaging ideas and help make the transition back to school enjoyable for your little ones!
Preschool Counting Activity
Here you can try different counting activities:
- Play to your child’s interests. For a vehicle-loving child, use semis to haul blocks to build towers using the correct number of blocks. – Counting Blocks While Building Towers
- Count snacks! Line up some numbers and count snacks to match the number!
- Head out into nature and petals on the flowers you find. Take it a step further and sort them by the number of petals! – Counting Flower Petals
Alphabet Hunt
Search for letters around the classroom or home. Preschoolers can practice upper and lowercase alphabet recognition, along with counting while going on a letter or number scavenger hunt around the house!
Sponge Boat Craft and Race
Create sponge boats with household items and race them.
Create a Time Capsule
Collect items to store in a time capsule. Find a shoe box or big mason jar to transform into a time capsule that you can keep in the attic or bury in the backyard. You can dig it up in a year or even ten to see how much things have changed.
There are plenty of amazing ideas for items to stow inside, like a questionnaire, a family pet’s collar, photos, cards, and anything with sentimental value.
All About Me Collage
This activity encourages kids to explore themselves as well as things they enjoy. You can gather magazines, newspapers, or printed images to use as crafts to create a fun collage that describes your little one and their interests!
Beach Ball Questions
Everyone loves tossing around a beach ball, so why not make a fun game out of it with your preschooler? Plus, beach ball games improve hand-eye coordination, eye-foot coordination, and more important developmental skills.
Toss the beach ball to your child and ask them a question like their favorite color or food. They can toss the ball back once they answer. Play together as a family for some quality time getting to know each other!
Self-Portrait Paper Dolls
Create paper dolls that look like your child and encourage them to get as detailed and creative as possible. Gather your paper, scissors, and crafts to build their look-alikes. You can find plenty of templates to work from or start from scratch.
Paper Clip Bookmarks
Build custom bookmarks your child will love seeing in their favorite book. This craft will encourage kids to grab a book during playtime.
Grab some jumbo paperclips, spare buttons or decorative bits, and a hot glue gun to create a unique bookmark with household items!
All About Me Caterpillar
A great activity for the first day of school, the All About Me Caterpillar is a cute exercise you and your child can look back on years later. You only need construction paper, markers, scissors, and a photo of your toddler to build your caterpillar full of fun facts.
Go on a School Supply Scavenger Hunt
Get your little one pumped for preschool with a scavenger hunt for their school supplies! The template in these instructions are a great way to kick off the activity.
Gather all your school supplies at home before playing, like crayons, pencils, glue, scissors, and any other classic supplies.
Play a Name Game
This can be another great ice-breaker for the first day of school or to get more familiar with classmates. Several different name games are helpful for toddlers, and any one of them will bring giggles and ease their nerves a bit.
Our favorite version is Willoughby, Wallaby Wee. If you don’t know this funny rhyming song yet, it’s time to learn it! Even babies will enjoy it especially if you bring along an elephant finger puppet or hand puppet to join in the fun.
Write “I Am” Poems
I Am poems are perfect for any age. Your youngest children can dictate their responses, while older children can write their thoughts. Teenagers and adults often love the challenge to think a bit more creatively. All you need is a paper and pen for an instant keepsake that you can revisit together years later.
Two Truths and a Lie
This one is sure to bring a cheeky smile to your little one’s face. Another great ice-breaker, it’s a simple enough concept to teach a toddler and you can practice it together.
You can use a pen and paper to take notes about their two truths and a lie, and read them aloud to the rest of the family or take this one into the classroom!
Rainbow Name Craft
Try this easy, fun, and awesome craft for kids to practice lots of skills. Here you can go over color recognition, the color wheel, cutting skills, name recognition, and the rainbow! You’ll only need a few items including construction paper, watercolors, scissors, and glue to create a masterpiece.
Nature Walk and Collect
Turn a walk in nature into a fun game toddlers will have a blast playing. Not only is nature a great way to get them outdoors and in the fresh air, but it’s the perfect outing to keep them engaged and ready for school activities.
Collect fallen items like leaves, sticks, acorns, and flowers. Compare collections at the end of the walk or incorporate more games like I-Spy on the walk.
Shape Sorting
Help your little learner develop their cognitive skills with a shape-sorting activity. This type of game will introduce them to patterns and prepare them for math learning later down the road.
Gather shapes in different sizes and colors and ask them to place the same shapes in one place. Try adding more shapes or going on a scavenger hunt for those shapes on a walk.
Storytime with Puppets
There are so many benefits to storytime with puppets, but one of the most valuable is that puppets can encourage even the shyest child to participate and join in without being in the spotlight.
There are all sorts of puppets to choose from, including fun finger puppets and hand puppets to full-body puppets and Marionettes. Use them in tandem with their favorite book, or on their own with simple language to tell stories.
Friendship Bracelets
This craft helps children build bonds with their peers and can introduce the value of friendship. These are crucial elements to enjoying school! You can help toddlers with this one, but for younger kids, consider a no-sew DIY friendship bracelet craft.
Classroom Tour Treasure Hunt
Creating a classroom scavenger hunt that allows you to reiterate what kids have been learning is a great way to help students remember concepts that they may not have caught onto. Try any of these three types of scavenger hunts to get them involved and working together!
Bubble Painting
Creating bubble paint art is an awesome opportunity to introduce colors to your toddler! Mixing colors and playing with bubbles is an exciting activity that lets them embrace their creativity and learn new skills. It’s time to use up all those half-empty bottles of bubbles for this one! Mix them with watercolor paints and blow bubbles for a messy and fun art project.
Music and Movement
Music and participation activities help to create structured routines and ease transitions. There’s also a direct connection between early musical engagement and reading readiness! There are endless music and movement activities that are fun and educational. Try one of these 18 examples.
Tips for Parents and Educators
Facilitating back-to-school activities is easy with these tips and tricks.
- Don’t forget to offer praise and encouragement. Let your child know they’re doing a great job and that you’re proud of their accomplishments.
- Be sure to create a welcoming and stimulating environment. Children will have a positive association with back-to-school activities if the setting is fun.
- Soft music can help relax little learners. Music is a powerful tool to keep children engaged.
- It’s all about bright colors. Use them in activities that excite little ones. Bright colors stimulate toddlers and grab their attention. Toddlers are in a stage of exploration and learning, and colors can play a role in this.
Why Customize Back-to-School Activities?
If each child learns and plays at their own pace, should you modify back-to-school activities to suit your toddler’s needs? Of course! And there are plenty of options to customize these activities for children who need a more challenging task, or with learning or physical impairments to make sure they all receive a fulfilling experience.
Let’s take a look at some tips. Keep in mind that every child has a unique personality and special skills. Keep the focus on each child’s strengths and abilities as you work to make modifications and adjustments.
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Parents, teachers, and caregivers should try to set goals together. Their goals should be simple and match the abilities of the child. Always discuss your ideas and plans with the family.
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Simple changes often can be made to regular toys. For example, you can help a child who has difficulty with stacking rings by simply removing every other ring. For a child who has difficulty holding a bottle, cover the bottle with a cloth sock so little hands can grasp it better.
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Children with special needs are sometimes timid or nervous about playing with others. You can show them how by being a play partner yourself. As the child becomes more comfortable, you can invite other children to join your play activity.
- It’s also important to teach children how to talk and play with children who have a disability. Talk to the children about what to do. For instance, gently touching the shoulder of a child with a hearing impairment or looking directly at him while talking are effective ways of getting their attention.
Safety First
Back-to-school crafts and activities with your toddler are all about having a blast, but we can’t forget the most important detail—your little one’s safety! Here are a few good rules of thumb to follow when creating a fun art project, playing silly games, or going on little adventures.
Close monitoring and involvement can help prevent accidents and ensure that arts and crafts supplies are used properly.
- Small items that can be swallowed should be avoided in activities involving children under the age of three.
- Sharp points should not be used near children under the age of four. We suggest reading the product instructions and safety warnings first, then explain them to your children.
- Be sure to check and follow the recommended age range for each craft, or the age mentioned on the product packaging (whichever is older).
- Inhaling dust and fumes from art and craft supplies can be dangerous. Chalk, ceramic glaze, paints, dry or powdered clay, oil paints, spray paints, markers, and other materials can all pose a threat. Open windows for proper ventilation or do activities outside.
Well, you are now well equipped to have fun with your preschooler! Don’t forget to add a healthy reading routine to your back-to-school activities too! Try a sound book from Cali’s Books to encourage excitement about school and reading. Counting, colors, dinosaurs, and songs about furry friends… there’s something for everyone in our growing collection of nursery rhymes and fun stories for toddlers and preschoolers.