Posted in Arts and Crafts, Fun in nature

Exploring Spring as a Preschool Theme: Ideas for Nature Walks, Gardening, Art Projects, and More

Spring is a wonderful time of year to explore with preschoolers. As the weather warms up and the flowers start to bloom, there are plenty of opportunities for children to learn and discover new things about the world around them. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at some ideas for exploring spring as a preschool theme in the classroom.

  1. Talk about the changing seasons

Spring is a great opportunity to teach children about the changing seasons. You can talk to them about how the weather is getting warmer, the days are getting longer, and the trees and flowers are starting to bloom. You could even create a visual calendar or chart to help them understand the different seasons and how they cycle throughout the year.

  1. Observe and explore nature

One of the best things about spring is the opportunity to observe and explore nature. Take your preschoolers on a nature walk and encourage them to look for signs of spring, such as flowers, new growth on trees, and baby animals. You could also set up a nature table in your classroom where children can display and explore natural objects they find.

  1. Plant a garden

Spring is the perfect time to start a garden. You can plant flowers, vegetables, or herbs with your preschoolers and teach them about the process of growing plants. This is a great way to teach them about responsibility, as they will need to water and care for their plants over time.

  1. Read spring-themed books

There are plenty of wonderful books about spring that you can read to your preschoolers. Some examples include “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” by Eric Carle, “And Then It’s Spring” by Julie Fogliano, and “When Spring Comes” by Kevin Henkes. Reading these books can help children develop their vocabulary, learn about different parts of the natural world, and develop an appreciation for literature.

  1. Create spring-themed art projects

There are many fun and easy art projects that you can do with preschoolers that are inspired by spring. For example, you could have them paint flowers, create paper butterflies, or make a collage of different natural materials. These projects can help children develop their fine motor skills, express their creativity, and learn about different textures and colors.

Overall, exploring spring as a preschool theme in the classroom can be a fun and enriching experience for both children and teachers. By teaching children about the changing seasons, observing and exploring nature, planting a garden, reading spring-themed books, and creating spring-themed art projects, you can help them develop their cognitive, emotional, and social skills in a meaningful way.


Don’t miss out on our inspiring blog posts celebrating the spirit of childhood! Sign up for our email list at unabashedkids.com to stay in the loop on all our latest content and promotions.

Plant and Flower Books – Unabashed Kids List

Storytime provides a great opportunity to teach new lessons to children. This list of 12 books…

Keep reading

Plant a Seed – Watch it Grow! Activity for Kids

Have children plant a seed and watch it grow, with this fun plant life lesson plan.

Keep reading

Learning the Parts of a Plant

Parts of a Plant: Lesson Plan and Worksheets for Kids This article will provide a FREE…

Keep reading
Posted in Arts and Crafts

Friendship Theme for Valentine’s Day at School

Celebrating Valentine’s Day in the classroom can prove itself to be quite tricky. A Friendship learning theme can make in the classroom Valentine’s celebrations run smoothly. I have created a list of activities that you can do with young children for Valentine’s Day.

How to plan a Friendship Learning theme? Plus FREE V-Day themed Materials

During Valentine’s week, I like to teach based on the learning theme of Friendship. To teach preschoolers or elementary-aged children about friendship we play cooperative games, work together on a single shared art project, do building activities at the block center, or do a scavenger hunt together. These activities require children to rely on each other to get things done. After each activity, I ask the class to name someone who was a good friend while we worked and to tell us what that person did that was friendly. I keep an eye on the children as they work so that I can name friendly things they have done, this ensures that no one is left out. Countless picture books teach preschoolers about friendship and I list 10 of my favorite in another post “10 Picture Books about Friendship that are Perfect for Valentine’s Day.

Super Simple Craft for Kids – Ninja Turtle Valintine’s Day Cards

Materials Needed for the Ninja Turtle Craft

  • construction paper (green, blue, red, orange, white, black)
  • glue
  • scissors
  • black marker
  • FREE TPT cutout

This craft is super simple and children will love making them. The year I made this craft with my class, I had the children make several to give to friends. Each friend had a Ninja Turtle heart from everyone in the class. We had a preschool class of 9 children.

ninja turtle craft

Super Simple Craft for Kids – Minion Valentine’s Day Cards

Materials Needed for the Minion Heart Craft

  • Construction Paper (yellow, light blue, white, black)
  • glue
  • scissors
  • black marker
  • FREE TPT cutout

minion heart craft

Super Simple Craft for Kids – Heart Poster

This craft is a great Valentine’s gift that children can give to their parents or teacher/principal. When I made this craft with my class the students made one (with both of their handprints in the middle) for their parents and a group heart project (with 1 handprint from each student) was gifted to the Center Director.

Materials Needed for Handprint Tissue Paper Heart Craft

  • Construction paper
  • Scissors
  • Pencil
  • Glue
  • Marker
  • Tissue paper
  • Pink or red washable paint

Don’t miss out on our inspiring blog posts celebrating the spirit of childhood! Sign up for our email list at unabashedkids.com to stay in the loop on all our latest content and promotions.

Posted in Activity, Arts and Crafts, Books and Reading, holiday

Groundhog’s Day Classroom Activities!

Groundhog's day

Reading books, arts & crafts, writing stories, and making themed treats are great classroom activities for Groundhog’s Day.

dirt pie recipe

For Groundhog’s Day make some “Dirt Pie”. Dirt Pie is a chocolate pudding with oreo cookies. Add some gummy worms to add to the groundhog digging theme and make the sweet treat even sweeter.

Posted in Arts and Crafts, Books and Reading, learning colors

12 Books About Colors for Children

Learn to identify colors with these books.

We’ve created a list of 12 colorful children’s books that teach color theory in an entertaining way. These books will help children identify colors and mix colors. All books are chosen by Unabashed Kid’s Editors and are affiliate linked to amazon.com. To purchase books from this list just click on the book cover or title, to shop directly on Amazon.

Dog’s Colorful Day by Emma Dodd

In this story Dog starts off the day with one black spot on his ear. But it seems that wherever he goes, he runs, rolls, and trots right into more colors. As he wanders around town, Dog collects spots made of red jam, blue paint, pink ice cream, and more.

dog's colorful day
a color of his own
Advertisements

A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni

All of the animals have colors of their own except for the chameleon. He is yellow like a lemon, even black and orange striped like a tiger! Then one day a chameleon has an idea to remain one color forever by staying on the greenest leaf he can find. But in the autumn, the leaf changes from green to yellow to red . . . and so does the chameleon.

This book is perfect for teaching children to identify all of the colors around us. As a bonus the book also teaches a great lesson about friendship, as the chameleon meets another chameleon to travel with him.

The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt

Duncan’s crayons go on strike. They write letters to express their grievances. What can Duncan possibly do to appease all of the crayons and get them back to doing what they do best? Coloring.

A fun activity for 1st to 3rd graders is to have them write their own letter’s from Duncan or the crayons perspective. This is a great letter writing exercise.

the day the crayons quit
the day the crayons came home

The Day the Crayons Came Home by Drew Daywalt

Every kid has probably lost a crayon or entire box of crayons at school or on a road trip. In this story Duncan finds out what happens to lost crayons.

How Do Dinosaurs Learn Their Colors? by Jane Yolen

Board book to help dinosaur loving toddlers learn their colors. Jane Yolen’s Dinosaur series is super fun and creative. Children find answers to some of the most creative questions.

how do dinosaurs learn their colors
color

Color by Ruth Heller

This book is for upper elementary kids. A perfect walk through of how artwork is created on paper. Great for an elementary art classroom.

Advertisements

Little Blue and Little Yellow by Leo Lionni

Little Blue and Little Yellow are best friends, kept separate. When they finally find each other, they give each other such a big hug that they turn green!

This is an amazing picture book for children as it shows them color mixing instead of telling them. The book has very few words, but tells a wonderful story through images.

little blue and little yellow
monsters love colors

Monsters Love Colors by Mike Austin

Did you know that monsters love to scribble, mix, dance, and wiggle?! Why? Because monsters love to make new colors! Children will have a blast reading this story.

Color Dance by Ann Jonas

The girl in red, the girl in yellow, the girl in blue, and the boy in black and white are all set to stir up the rainbow. This super creative story will aid in teaching color mixing.

color dance
mix it up

Mix it Up by Herve Tullet

As the title suggest, the readers will learn to mix colors. Very simple writing with color splattered mixtures. This book gets to the point and is a great reference for learning about color mixing.

White Rabbits Color by Alan Baker

Children will enjoy learning about colors with White Rabbit.

Advertisements
color
Mouse paint

Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh

This playful introduction to colors will appeal to any curious preschooler. One day three white mice discover three jars of paint–red, blue, and yellow. But what happens when they splash in the colors, mixing the red and blue?

Take a look inside “Red, Blue, and Green! What color is on my plate?

Best color book for toddlers.
k to "1 2 3! What can I eat?" and "ABC Name My Food!", "Red, Blue, and Green! What colors are on my plate?" is a food-themed book for young readers.
Best color book for toddlers.
k to "1 2 3! What can I eat?" and "ABC Name My Food!", "Red, Blue, and Green! What colors are on my plate?" is a food-themed book for young readers.
Best color book for toddlers.
k to "1 2 3! What can I eat?" and "ABC Name My Food!", "Red, Blue, and Green! What colors are on my plate?" is a food-themed book for young readers.
Best color book for toddlers.
k to "1 2 3! What can I eat?" and "ABC Name My Food!", "Red, Blue, and Green! What colors are on my plate?" is a food-themed book for young readers.
Best color book for toddlers.
k to "1 2 3! What can I eat?" and "ABC Name My Food!", "Red, Blue, and Green! What colors are on my plate?" is a food-themed book for young readers.

A color and food recognition book for toddlers.

The companion book to “1 2 3! What can I eat?” and “ABC Name My Food!”, “Red, Blue, and Green! What colors are on my plate?” is a food-themed book for young readers.

Children look through over 20 brightly colored “real images” of foods and name the color of each food. Fruits, vegetables, carbs, meats, and cheeses make up a beautiful rainbow-colored plate. A perfect book to introduce picky eaters to new foods. Come along for the journey and discover new delicious foods.

Available for $3.99 USD on Amazon

Posted in Arts and Crafts

4th of July Craft for Kids

Handprint USA Flag Preschool
Group USA Flag Craft

How to make a Group U.S. Flag

Advertisements

This 4th of July flag for kids was a great group activity for the pre-kindergarten class. Continue reading to find how we made a group flag in our pre-k classroom.

Teacher Preparation:

  • Gather Materials
  • Set out the white pages (1 per each student) and the 1 blue page.
  • Draw lines on the white pages (2 lines for large hands and 4 lines for small hands). Assign paper based on the kids size.
  • Have a plate of red and a plate of white paint.
  • Set a time out in your busy class day to monitor hand-printing.

Making Stars

  1. Gather White paint and dark blue paper
  2. Paint Child’s hand with white paint.
  3. Push hand firmly down on dark blue construction paper.
  4. Do the same for the next child in line.

Making Stripes

  1. Paint one hand of each child red.
  2. Use white paper. Have them press their hand down, lift, and press down in a straight line. Lines drawn on the paper, make it easier for a child to follow.
  3. Monitoring by an adult will prevent a large mess. Please use washable paint.

Putting it all together: Making the Flag

The class created the flag as a group and it stayed on the wall from Memorial Day until a little after July 4th, in a year round school program. The children then got to take home their independent page, which is the white paper with red handprints. The blue paper has all of the children’s handprints on the page; the teacher kept this page.

To make the group flag you will need three white pages taped together on the vertical side.

The top white page must have 5 lines (4 drawn lines) and the other two must have 4 lines (2 drawn lines). This will ensure that there are 13 stripes on the flag.

The blue paper with white handprints will represent the stars of the flag. Tape this to the upper left corner.

Make an even rectangle with all of the student hand prints. Some student papers may need to be taped off to the side if you have an odd number of students.

The preschool was closed for 4th of July, but we held a small celebration with our class the Friday before 4th of July. Our circle time activities were U.S. centered, and we read a book about the 4th of July. Amazon has a great inventory of 4th of July Children’s Books. (View Here)

Unabashed Kids is an affiliate for Amazon and other online retailers. That means that if you use the links found on the U-Kids blog to make a purchase, we receive a small percentage of the purchase price. It never changes the price you pay and we select every item mentioned on the blog!

Materials List

White Construction Paper

Crayola White Paint

Crayola White Paint

Blue Construction Paper

Blue Construction Paper

Crayola Red Paint

Crayola Red Paint
Advertisements

More Unabashed Arts and Crafts

Get Craft Ideas Sent to your inbox

Posted in Arts and Crafts

A Father’s Day Craft that Dad will Love

A Gift (from kids of all ages)

So, when is Father’s Day? Father’s Day is always the 3rd Sunday of June. If you need a gift for a special Dad, here is a quick, creative, and fun craft for kids of all ages. This gift is super Easy to make: If you don’t have good penmanship and worry about drawing the word DAD ==> Print the FREE stencil below. This article goes over the steps for this art craft in detail, but it is a fairly simple project. We promise it will be a father’s day craft that dad will love.

Father's Day craft - handprint
Completed Father’s Day Craft

Simple Instructions for Father’s Day Craft:

Scroll down and read the full article for details. A free craft simple instruction print-out is available.

Print the stencil. Tape DAD cutout on poster paper or a canvas (Dad deserves the canvas). Color or paint. Remove cutout. Laminate and/or frame the poster. Give to the BEST DAD IN THE WORLD!

“My daughter got me a ‘World’s Best Dad’ mug. So we know she’s sarcastic.” —Bob Odenkirk

Dad Joke
Advertisements

The fathers of my preschoolers loved this gift. It takes very little prep time or instructional time. This craft uses materials that are easily found at home or at school. The only thing I believe may not be in every home is a painting canvas. If you cannot get a canvas thick construction paper will get similar results. I suggest that artwork is done on construction paper be framed before gifting. In this article, you will see images of a DAD craft done with construction paper and a MOM craft done on canvas. I bought canvas’ for my entire preschool class at the local dollar tree. You can purchase a canvas in-store or on amazon using the links below.

Materials needed for this craft

  • Any Color Paint (recommended) or crayons/markers
  • Canvas (recommended) or thick paper
  • FREE U-Kids Dad stencil – print, cut out, trace and tape
  • pencil
  • black marker
  • tape
  • Picture Frame – only if you use thick paper. Canvas painting frames are optional.

picture frame
Crayola washable paint

“Father’s Day is important because, besides being the day on which we honor Dad, it’s the one day of the year that Brookstone does any business.” —Jimmy Fallon

Dad Joke
Mother's Day Craft

This craft should ideally be done on CANVAS or thick paper, to avoid paper folding when the paint dries. The picture is an image of the same craft done on a canvas, for Mother’s Day. Dad deserves the canvas! You can buy a low-cost canvas on amazon by clicking the link below.

Preparation before working with a child under age 10:

Follow these preparation steps before working with a child under the age of 10.

Prep step 1: Please cut out the DAD stencil if working with little ones. The FREE DAD stencil can be found in the downloadable instructions. No matter how great they are at using scissors they just don’t have the skills needed for this part of the craft.

Print the FREE Instructions linked below or draw your own. It is optional if you want to cut out the centers of letters A and D.

Prep step 2: Tape the stencil to the bottom of a canvas or thicker piece of paper (whichever you choose to use). Only the letters D A D should be taped down, discard the rest of the cutout.

Advertisements
Advertisements

What the child needs to do:

The following steps are what a child needs to do during this art craft.

Part 1: Paint the canvas, including the taped-down word DAD. If really young children do not have the stamina to cover the whole canvas, have them focus on painting over the taped-down word DAD.

Part 2: Dip the hand in paint (palm down and flat-handed) or have an adult paint the child’s hand. Use a color different than the colors used to paint the canvas. This makes for a better highlight and contrast.

*** For the second part of the project – use a color other than white for the handprint of children who did not fully paint the top of the canvas. White paint on the white canvas will not highlight the handprint.

The Final Step Before Gifting this Father’s Day Craft

This is the final step before gifting this masterpiece to dad. Complete these final steps before gifting the craft to the BEST DAD in the world. The following step is best done by an adult or child over the age of 10 with good pencil skills.

  • Removed the taped-down word, DAD. Revealing a white outline of the word.
  • Trace the word DAD on the CANVAS with a black marker.

Bonus Step: Use white paint to cover any edges where paint got under the stencil.

Advertisements

Thanks for reading and Happy Father’s Day to all of the amazing fathers. I hope dad enjoys his gift. Take a look at our Ultimate List of Books about Dad. All about Dad Children’s Book list.

Book release - Dad is my best friend