Eight Fun Learning Activities For Your Preschooler

Preschool provides your child with a fun, safe environment to learn about school and to prepare for kindergarten. Here are some fun learning activities you can do at home with your preschooler or toddler:

1. Read together. Reading is one of the best learning activities you can do together. Most preschoolers enjoy being read to and will begin to choose favorite books or stories. When you finish a book, ask your child to point out one of the characters or to tell you about the story. Don’t be surprised if you end up reading the same book over and over again!

2. Practice animal sounds. This one works in the car, too! Ask your child “What sound does a cow make?”, and wait for the “moo”. Start with easy ones like cats, dogs, and farm animals and work your way up to monkeys, donkeys, and snakes.

3. Learn about specific locations or animals. Spend a week or two learning about farms, for example. Read farm related books, visit a local farm, plan something together, or visit the garden center. This type of unit study will be familiar to them when they begin school full time.

4. Count. Count everyday items or count as you are playing. Build a tower and count how many blocks it is high or count out cookies at snack time.

5. Learn shapes and colors. Colors can be introduced throughout the course of your normal day. A trip to the grocery store produce aisle can give you lots of colors to choose from something as simple as holding up a tomato and asking your child to identify the color can help cement this knowledge.

6. Practice with pencils and crayons. Your preschooler will love making “art” with crayons, markers, and pencils and, in addition to expressing his creativity, he will be learning how to hold these writing implements — skills he will use in earnest once he begins to learn to write letters and words.

7. Play with clay. Clay or craft dough is fun to work with and manipulating the material helps develop hand muscles, which will lead to greater motor control and dexterity. If you are concerned abut the mess, play with craft dough at a table outdoors instead of inside.

8. Dance. Preschoolers and toddlers love to move about and dance. Put on some music and dance together. It is a great workout for both of you and helps develop important gross motor skills.

You can incorporate learning of some type into just about everything you do together. Your preschooler’s natural curiosity and interest in learning will make incorporating educational activities into your daily routine a snap!

About the Author:
Denise Sanger is the owner of http://www.NewCoolToysOnline.com which features a great selection of ride-on toys and outdoor toys for kids of all ages. The company may be reached at 877/950-7665.

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