Laura @inspiremyplay Founder of @inspiremyplay, Early Years teacher for 11 years and mummy to three gorgeous girls. I'm passionate about about the benefits of play in early childhood. This is the perfect activity for anyone who’s lawn has been left just a bit too long without a mow! It’s really simple to prepare using a circle of cardboard and a pencil to create some holes. You can then thread the dandelions through the holes to create the lion’s mane. This activity is so good for fine motor skills and a great little boredom buster! The Benefits of Natural Resources for Creative and Sensory Play Natural materials are great to include in a child's sensory play. They encourage children to closely observe and explore the world around them and use all their senses since they have a variety of textures, scents, sizes, colours, and sounds. Loose objects like twigs, flowers, leaves, shells, and sand are all readily available open-ended materials which can be used on their own or combined with other items to foster creativity and imagination. While playing with natural materials, children are engaged in decision making and problem-solving opportunities. Natural materials can be taken apart, put back together again, combined, moved, and lined up. By exploring, manipulating, arranging, designing, stacking, and building with the materials in a variety of ways, children are able to be artistic, explore, design and collaborate. Natural resources inspire outdoor play and exploration and can also be found in natural surroundings. Exposure to nature gives children opportunities to discover and explore new things, solve problems, take risks, unleash their creativity and develop a sense of wonder. Dandelion Threading For this activity we took a circular piece of cardboard with holes in it and walked around our back garden collecting dandelions to create a lions mane. Cut a piece of cardboard into a circle; Using a pencil, punch holes around the edge of the cardboard and draw a lions face using marker pen; Then let your child collect as many dandelions as they want to thread through the holes to create the lions mane. Other Nature Play Ideas Natural materials can be used in a variety of ways for learning activities. Toddlers and preschoolers absolutely love combining art and craft with nature so if you are looking for more ideas you could try: Leaf printing. This is a great kid's activity. It can be combined with a nature walk to collect the leaves and even a bit of fine motor practice with a pair of scissors to cut them off the tree. A nature colour hunt is the perfect spring or summer activity to get kids outdoors and appreciating the world around them. A nature treasure hunt. Gofindit is a nature treasure hunt that encourages kids to explore the natural world. It's great for taking on walks, trips to the beach or for playing in the garden. Read our full review here. Creating a sensory tray for children to start exploring their senses while honing their motor abilities. We love small world set ups and natural resources are great to incorporate into small world play. You can read about some of our favourite small world themes here. Get your FREE ebook For more simple DIY recipes & ideas for sensory play at home download your Beginner's Guide to Sensory Play by subscribing to Inspire My Play today. Get Yours Now
Planting lifelong foundations in early childhood
Activities that develop early math skills are our favourites! We love working on our number recognition, counting skills, subitising and 1:1 correspondence. This “Build a City” activity…
Looking for fun and educational resources to help your child learn and practice beginning sounds? Look no further! We are delighted to offer...
For days when you want to relax at home, the kids can still do this fun Bubble Art Activity. Perfect for all ages and takes mere minutes to set up.
20 Free Name Activities for the First Week of Kindergarten. Check out these amazing hands-on and fun name activities! Integrates multiple skills.
It is the end of May, which here in Idaho that means we are done with school! This year has been a whirlwind to say the least. If anything, we truly have learned that as teachers and parents, we can do anything life throws our way. I have grown by leaps and bounds, and watching educators, parents
If you are like me, you are scrambling to find fun and engaging spring activities that help build skills in the areas of ELA and…
Fun counting activities to make learning enjoyable while building a strong numeracy foundation in your preschoolers.
The Happy Learners' Club Junior Club is our highly popular kids' activity membership for busy parents with 2 to 5 years old children. *Thank you for your interest in THLC. Doors to THLC is now closed. The next enrollment is happening from 18 to 23 May 2024. **If you have children between 6 to 8...
20+ WEATHER theme learning shelf and activities for preschoolers and toddlers. Check out the fun activities here...
Straw Maze Activity
Squish the bug gross motor activity is a fun way to get your moving and learning their letters! It's a great activity for spring!
When spring arrives and the weather warms, it's a perfect time to get outside and play with your students! These outdoor games for kids will give you a chance to not only have fun and get some exercise, they'll also reinforce the positive community spirit you've instilled in your classroom all year long. These games...
Super easy to set up counting activity using pom poms and water.
Download this free summer I spy worksheet and improve the recognition and counting skills of your kindergartener.
Descubra a praticidade e eficiência com nossos Modelos de Relatórios Escolares do berçário ao 5º ano do fundamental Simplifique sua rotina Já!
Are you looking for super fun measurement worksheets and activities for kindergarten?? You found them!! Your students will LOVE these hands-on learning activities and fun, extra practice worksheets that teach a variety of kindergarten measurement concepts.
Create an Amazing Rainbow Sun Catcher and play with light and shadows in your backyard with this easy DIY project for kids!
These six free printable Human Body Worksheets contain activities to keep a child entertained while also teaching them everything they need to know about the human body. The human body is so important to learn about!
Are you ready to take art outside and finally get a clean house back? This ice painting activity is perfect for the deck or driveway this summer! Frozen Painting Fun I don’t know about you, but I love a good art project that can be done outside! I would much rather have art activities going … Continue reading "Awesome Frozen Paint Art Activity"
Download same and different worksheets suitable for kindergarten level, great as revision on matching and sorting. Freebies included!
This post may contain affiliate links. I may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post at no cost to you. The best memories can be made in the summertime. I love ideas that spark a child’s imagination and, most importantly, are FUN! Here are some of my favorite fun-filled kids activities for...Read the Post
FREE printable Symmetry drawing activity for preschool and kindergarten kids. A fun art and math activity in one! Kids will complete the symmetrical pictures by drawing the other half.
Have a child learning to read? Try this missing sounds reading activity to work on decoding skills. A hands-on, phonics based reading game.
Nature Turtle sticky wall is a fun and easy outdoor art activity for kids to do this summer. Create a turtle using nature!
This nature walk collection printable activity sheet idea was written as part of my Let’s Play Ambassadorship. Let’s Play is an initiative by Dr Pepper Snapple Group that provides kids and families with the tools,
Printables for toddlers and preschoolers. Alphabet games, Scissor skills pack, Pre-writing & more!
Free Preschool & Kindergarten Simple Math Worksheets. Preschool and Kindergarten age Kids can learn Count, Numbers, Telling Time, Addition and Subtraction.
Kids can get 'bored' or 'tired' on a walk but often only need a little bit of distraction. Here's another idea for keeping them motivated using string.
ALL ABOUT EARTH Get ready for a month filled with so many fun activities to teach your kiddos all about our planet Earth . I teach this unit in April so it coincides with Earth Day. I’ve loaded up this blog post post with read aloud book ideas, free videos you can share with your students,
Create whimsical art in the great outdoors using just cardboard and silly sketches! A fun and inexpensive way to get your kids to play in the backyard this spring and summer, away from TV screens and video games.
How to Avoid the Summer Slide! Summer is right around the corner! We all LOVE our summer vacation, but not the "Summer Slide!" The Summer Review Packets
A free kindergarten math packet for at home learning.
Help stop the Summer slide with these 5 cheap, yet fun Summer learning activities. Everything can be found from the dollar store.
K-1 POETRY UNIT I love teaching poetry to kindergarten and first grade students! Even though I have this labeled as Unit 8 in my Writing Series , I actually teach poetry throughout the entire year. We follow the same routine and students look forward to our poetry week every month.
Outdoor learning is a great way to connect with nature and have fun. Forest School activities can incorporate art, craft, science, sensory play, and s
Looking for fun Weather Activities for Preschool? This set is packed with weather charts, activities, and weather worksheets you'll love.
Here are some fun hands-on math activities with a summer watermelon theme! Print watermelon number cards and a Roll It, Write It, Count It mat. Below, you’ll also find a recipe for some amazing watermelon scented play dough. Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the printable activities. First, I’ll tell you how […]
Looking for a fun and FREE kids activity? Make a nature cutting bin from yard clippings. Let your kids practice scissor skills AND play.
It’s rock week! Do your kids insist on gathering rocks everywhere they go like mine? I mean we literally cannot cross a parking lot without scooping up like 7 little treasures that they just HAVE to have. So we spent all week gathering the piles of rocks laying around our yard and can’t wait to […]
For days when you want to relax at home, the kids can still do this fun Bubble Art Activity. Perfect for all ages and takes mere minutes to set up.
When spring arrives and the weather warms, it's a perfect time to get outside and play with your students! These outdoor games for kids will give you a chance to not only have fun and get some exercise, they'll also reinforce the positive community spirit you've instilled in your classroom all year long. These games...
