Worm Painting

This craft is loads of fun when pairing it with the study of worms or reading a worm book! Plus the look you get when the child touches it for the first time is priceless!

Supplies: brown paint, brown paper, and faux worms (found in worm bait) or rubber worms (found in party supply stores)

Process: Place the faux worm in the paint and let it wiggle around in the dirt (paint and paper).

Teach Well: Preschoolers need sensory experiences. Why not bring unique items into the classroom to help them explore? Those will be the ones they remember most! 

Affordable Classroom Garden

This project is quite affordable if you have a large classroom. This planting kit can be found at your local Target in the dollar section. The one photographed is of clover and if it is planted the first of March, you can have clover grown in time for Saint Patrick's Day.

Supplies: plant kit, a plastic spoon per child, a bowl per child, and water

Process: Plant your pot according to kit instructions

Teach Well: Giving your children a spoon and a bowl to plant their own pot gives them ownership over the plant. Make sure to water daily. The small pots dry out quickly and can not go a day without water.

Grow-a-Frog

Supplies: a growing frog (can be found at local dollar markets or the dollar section at your local Target), a large bucket, water, measuring tape, pencil, and paper

Process: Measure your frog and mark it's length on your paper. You may want to use butcher paper or something larger than letter size. Place the frog in the bucket of water (or according to package instructions). Every day take the frog out and measure it again. In our case, the frog grew an inch every day. It stopped at 14 1/2 inches and started to peel. As it gets too large for its skin begin to let it dry out by removing it from the water. You can measure the shrinking process if you like or just enjoy observing it instead.

Teach Well: Take photos of the growing process. Use it on a bulletin board or science journal prompt.

Leafy Shape Sensory

I love filling our sensory table up with different items every month; none in which are rice! This month we use silk leaves from the local dollar store; they come in a large package of loose ones. I think it cost me $6 to fill the table. I got the magnetic wands at my local teacher supply store. The shapes magnets I got at a garage sale, but you can use letters, animals, or round ball magnets (also found out a teacher supply store).

Supplies: Sensory table, magnets, magnetic wands, and silk leaves.

                       

Process: Fill your sensory table with the silk leaves and bury the magnets under them. Have the children use magnet wands to find a shape under the leaves. When they find one, have them say what shape they found!

Teach Well: Use this opportunity to introduce magnets and how they work in science. Keep other magnetic centers out for creative exploration!

Science Journals

Before our first science experiment, I have the children decorate the front of their science journals. We will be using these to record our observations during science time.

Supplies: Composition book, hot glue gun, paper glue, buttons, ribbons, markers, paper, and any other recycled materials

Process: Have the children pick out their paper and guide them to tear it down so that it will fit the cover of the composition book. Let the children glue it to the front cover. Glue another piece of paper to the top of that. Have the children place the items they want onto the cover of the book. Take the hot glue gun to the book and hot glue it into place. Using hot glue will make sure that the items won't fall off later.

Teach Well: Try not to move the items to where you may want to put them. Remember to let the child express themselves how they wish in art.