Some Simple Toddler/Preschool Activity Bags

These next few toddler/preschool activities are really simple. But for me it's a matter of taking the few minutes it takes to pull some stuff together or cut a few things out. And during the school year, there are times I just don't have the time. So doing all of this ahead of time and prebagging it up (with directions) should be both a time saver and motivator. So here they are:

STOP and GO Game:
You start with black construction paper, roll it up and tape it. Then write the word "GO" on a green circle and the word "STOP" on a red octagon. Put the green circle and red octagon (both around 4 inches across) back to back and glue or staple them to the top of the black construction paper tube.

This one is not complete, because it will be in a bag for my son. It will be used to play sort of a simplified Red Light Green Light game. It will be more like "Stop" and "Go". This, I'm hoping will help him with listening skills and should be fun to play. There's not much actual "crafting" he can do, but it's still a fun activity.



This next one is a very simple Springtime/Easter craft or it could be used when learning the letter B.

It is a butterfly cuttout (I made extra just in case some big sisters decide to join), black construction paper and colored dots.

Very simple, but he's only just turned two, so I think it's enough for him. And older children could place the stickers in a pattern. Or you could teach them about butterflies and how the wings are a mirror image of each other.

This next one is for Valentine's Day.

It just takes a heart shaped cutout (any color), tissue squares, and glue. I know you can buy precut tissue squares, but for these I just purchased a rainbow pack of tissue from Walmart and cut the stack in squares. Evan should enjoy crumpling up the bits of tissue. I'll probably just spread the glue out for him, unless he's using a glue stick by then. I included extras of these, too, just in case siblings want to join.

This last one is just a fun craft and counting activity. I printed out the monkey outline off the computer from DTLK.

I then put it on cardstock to give it more support. Evan will glue the beans to the monkey and fill in the lines. I'll use a thick glue for this. We can practice his counting with the beans, too. Then we'll count and glue the bananas around the monkey. It's cute just for fun. You could tie it in to the letter M or B for bananas and beans. I plan to incorporate stories and songs into some of these activities. For the monkey we can read about Curious George or sing about the "5 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed". With the butterfly we can sing "If I Were a Butterfly", or "Butterfly, Butterfly Happy All Day". We might turn our butterflies into puppets by attaching a straw to the underside so we can make them flutter around the room!

I really like having these bagged up and ready to go. And I think I'll jot down some of these books and song ideas to put in the bag with the crafts. With my memory, it's good to have as much as possible written down.

Hope you enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

TTFN

~Tina