Summer is the season of sunshine and vacations. With help from parents and caregivers preschoolers will be able to learn many thing and develop new skills during the warm summer months.
Summer Math Idea for Toddlers
Take advantage of the warm summer weather and have a wet “bucket toss” type of game. Fill three pails or buckets with water and place them in a line – one close to the kids, the middle bucket a little further away, the last bucket being the furthest from the preschoolers. Each child gets three soft foam balls to throw at the water buckets. The first bucket is 1 point, the second worth 2 points and the furthest one away is worth 3 points. Toddlers are introduced to simple mathematic skills as they learn to add their points as part of a fun game.
See more ideas for teaching math to preschoolers.
Summer Music Idea for Toddlers
With summer picnics and the inevitable ants a fun song to teach toddlers is “The Ants Go Marching One by One” sung to the tune of “When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again.”:
- “The ants go marching one by one
- Hurrah! Hurrah! (repeat)
- The ants go marching one by one
- The little one stops to suck his thumb
- And they all go marching down to the ground
- - to get out of the rain
- Boom, Boom, Boom!
Verses:
- The ants go marching two by two -
- The little stops to tie his shoe
- The ants go marching three by three - climb a tree
- The ants go marching four by four - shut the door
- The ants go marching five by five – kick a hive
- The ants go marching six by six – pick up sticks
- The ants go marching seven – pray to heaven
- The ants go marching eight by eight – shut the gate
- The ants go marching nine by nine – pick up a dime
- The ants go marching ten by ten – shout THE END!
Summer Science Idea for Preschoolers
With sunlight such an obvious part of the summer months try growing bean plants with lots of sunshine and also growing plants in a dark cupboard. Let the preschoolers describe the differences between the two sets of plants. Another fun summer activity for toddlers is observing the life cycle of tadpoles and frogs and educational frog growing kits are available from many sources.
Summer Art Lesson for Toddlers
Collect flowers, leaves and grass from an outdoor nature hike and teach the preschoolers how to make rubbings with crayon or chalk.
Summer Food Idea for Preschoolers
Let the kids pack a picnic basket full of summer goodies like watermelon slices and carrot sticks for an outdoor picnic in the summer sun.
Outdoor Summer Activities for Toddlers
Teach preschoolers about wildlife by letting them bird watch and look for different types of song birds on a summer nature hike.
Summer Themed Indoor Games
Just in case a summer storm keeps kids indoors try to have a toddler appropriate summer game ready like an indoor sandcastle contest. Divide the preschoolers into teams and give each team a large rubbermaid pan of “beach sand” with cups, spoons and bowls to create their own sandcastle.
See more Ideas for Teaching Toddlers About Seasons.
Angela England - Angela England is a problogger, mother of four (yes I know what causes that), speaker, teacher, labor doula, gardener and so much more.
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