History Activities for Preschool and Kindergarten

Exploring Art History with Preschoolers – Playground Parkbench

Explore art history, from Modernism in the late 19th century to Pop Art, popular in the 1960s.

Montessori Inspired European Unit Study – The Pinay Homeschooler

Study European history with flags, animals, and landmarks – great for all elementary school students.

The Legend of Horatius at the Bridge – Layers of Learning

Learn about the legend of Horatius with this stanza, coloring sheet, and free printable Roman helmets.

Picture Books for Black History Month – No Twiddle Twaddle

Study black history through literature! Here are 10 great picture books for bringing black history alive.

Ancient Rome Food and Feast – Highhill Homeschool

Fill your tummy with a feast, fit for Ancient Rome. There’s nothing too extravagant about the meal, but elementary kiddos will love this!

Famous Artist Crafts for Kids  – The Crafty Classroom

Recreate the works of famous artists with these tutorials! Learn about them in the process, from Monet to Pollock.

Popsicle Stick Teepees – Glued to My Crafts

Study Native American history by creating these teepees. They’re pretty simple to make, with popsicle sticks being the base.

President’s Day Freebie – Mrs. Ricca’s Kindergarten

Study George Washington and Abraham Lincoln in this freebie for President’s Day.

Roman Numeral Lessons – The Natural Homeschool

Roman numerals are still used today! Introduce your kiddos to Roman numerals with this free printable.

Jackie Robinson Craft – Cutting Tiny Bites

On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson made history for breaking racial barriers and becoming the first African American to become a Major League Baseball player.

George Washington Lapbook – Lapbook Lessons

Use this lapbook to learn about our first president, George Washington!

Learn about Martin Luther King Jr – Teach Preschool

Martin Luther King Jr. made great advances for the Civil Rights movements. Learn about his amazing life!

Stonehenge Lesson for Preschool – Adventures in Mommydom

Get hands-on while learning about Stonehenge! It can be adapted for elementary and middle school, and is great for combining history and STEM.

Rosie the Riveter Coloring Page – Education.com

Rosie the Riveter was a classic icon during WWII, inspiring woman to help the war effort by taking up jobs.

Liberty Bell Craft – Mrs. Black’s Bees

Recreate the Liberty Bell while learning about early American history!

Pom-Pom American Flag Painting – Crafty Morning

Celebrate the 4th of July and Independence Day with this American flag painting! It’s simple and costs next to nothing.

Free Ancient Egypt Preschool Worksheets – 123 Homeschool for Me

Learn about ancient Egypt with this math and literacy pack. There are 17 printables, with history activities that can be adjusted for toddlers to 2nd grade.

Fun with Coloring Mixing: A Martin Luther King Jr. Day Craft – MPM Ideas

Learn about diversity and segregation with this bright coloring craft. It works best for large groups, but can be adjusted for smaller groups.

Ancient History: Roman Road – Preschool Powol Pockets

Learn about ancient history with this hands-on craft! Recreate a textured Roman road.

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Fun Pretend Play Ideas for Kids

Playing shop is definitely one of our favorite pretend activities. Set up a Cardboard Cafe, Ice Cream Shop, Coffee Shop or Lollipop Shop with all these lovely ideas!

If your kids like restaurants, try this Dramatic Play Restaurant.

Prepare a little one for a trip to the Airport, Doctors Office  or one to the Eye Doctor. This will ease the anxiety of experiencing something unknown, or play it afterwards to keep the memories alive.

A Perfume Factory outside will be enjoyed this Summer, I am sure!

A Pancake Making activity could be a good idea before attempting to bake real pancakes.

How fun does this Taco Stand with felt tacos and all look?

Outings to the Library, Car Wash, Ice Skating Rink, Farmers Market, Flower shop, Grocery Shop or Garden Center is always fun to play out, pretending to be the adults with dolls as children (or the youngest siblings)!

Everyday tasks like Laundry Day or Gift Wrapping becomes fun through play, and prepare children for the life of an adult.

On the note of careers, a Photography Studio is such a fun idea to play photographer for the day and mom can get a chance to be in a photo too!

During the upcoming holidays/breaks, these pretend activities could be set up easily to prevent boredom too!

Which one will your kids want to try out first?

You might want to see these ideas too:

100+ Things to Keep Kids Busy this Summer

The post 20+ Fun Pretend Play Ideas first appeared on True Aim.

Learning Activities Perfect for Spring

Fractions will make much more sense using this Fraction Flowers method and maths more fun with these games: Spring Math Game and Number Line Game!

Pretend and count with this Flower Pots Counting Activity.

Work on fine motor skills by making a Fine Motor & Counting Busy Sheet or this sweet Feed the Robin idea.

Learn about the busy bees and enjoy this Pollen Transfer fine motor activity.

Arranging Flowers are fun and educational too!

Print these free printables: Fingerprint Counting and Spring Alphabet Puzzle for a quick, no prep activity.

Practice name recognition and spelling with an easy Tulip Name Puzzle.

Spell some word family words with a Word Family Garden activity or perhaps use these Spring Writing Prompts for your older kids.

Spring Science activities like these Colourful Flowers and Seed Germination are always a hit!

Learn about What plants need with this fun idea and printable.

Get out the house and have fun learning in nature with these Park Activities, perfect for Spring time!

Teach economics and entrepreneurship with this free Entrepreneurship for Kids: Create a Lemonade Stand packet.

Try this Rain Cloud Experiment, and learn about the different types of clouds; what they look like, and what they can predict.

Enjoy Spring and enjoy learning with these fun ideas and activities!

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My kids love pom-poms and I had leftover coffee cans so I just put the two together. My  two-year-old is learning his colors so I started to make this up for him. I took the Lid of the coffee can and poked some holes in the top. I made them a little bit smaller than the pom-poms.  Then, I outlined the holes with colored markers to match the colors of the pom-poms. Now my toddler can match the colors and poke the pom-poms through the holes.

Since the holes are a little smaller and it takes him a little bit to getting to the pom-poms in.  After he was done putting the pom-poms in, he saw that when I took off the lid they reappeared again. He was so excited! And so was I because  that gave me the idea that I could use this activity for my kindergartner who is learning addition. I could turn this into a math sheet machine!

So, I made some flashcards for her with simple addition problems on them. She put the different colored pom-poms into the can according to what the problem was on the card. When she opened the can she would have the answer to her addition problem! This gave her a way to check her answers so she would have fun putting the problems to memory even if she knew or didn’t know what the answer was.

I love this because there are just so many different applications and it helps strengthen fingers for writing and drawing. The best part is when you get to open the can and dump all the Pom-poms out. It’s like a learning party!

So recycling and math meet in a multi age level activity. So much fun! What do you think? Would your child like this activity?

Make sure you check out our Christian Preschool Curriculum!

The post Preschool Activities: Colors and Math with Pom Poms! first appeared on True Aim.

It was amazing how much her writing improved after doing some of these each week. They make great busy bag activities and help children learn to sew too.

Easy Beginner Sewing Activities

The first activity you may have already seen. It’s a fun twist on threading that you can change all the time or whenever your child gets a card. Instead of throwing birthday or other holiday cards away hole punch them around the edges. Then get shoelaces and make your own lacing cards. Show your children how to do it the right way but don’t worry if they don’t do it perfect. It’s all about getting them to do fine movements with their fingers.

The next activity uses an embroidery screen. Cut your embroidery screen so it’s easier to manage. It comes in a large sheet so you will want to cut it in half then you can draw simple shapes with a black sharpie marker.

Show  your children how to go in and out of the holes in the screen and trace the shapes so that thread will look like you’re Drawing.  Include blank embroidery screens to let your children sew freely through the holes and make their own designs.

Finally making a felt threading activity is a great way to incorporate a theme and  it is easier for unexperienced hands.  I call this Flower garden threading! You have to name something as cool as this, right?!

My daughter was so excited to get to do this activity. I used ribbon and fastened a button to each end.  I cut slits in the felt flowers, leaves, and a sheet of green felt to weave the ribbon through.

As my daughter weaved the ribbon through the sheet, she added the leaves and the flowers where she wanted them to go. The result is a pretty flowered felt garden!

If you have some more advanced beginner sewers, you can try this simple sewing project with them!

What kind of sewing activities do your children enjoy? Leave a comment below!

Have a Preschooler? Check out our Christian Preschool Curriculum!

The post 3 Simple Preschool Sewing Activities first appeared on True Aim.

If you sent your child off to preschool, he or she would learn their letters, shapes and colors.  He would practice counting, cutting, and holding a pencil.  He would also work on sitting still for longer periods of time.  These skills are all important and should be covered with our kiddos – whether they are at home or at school.  But we must be sensitive to what our preschool-aged kids can handle or we can begin the process of squashing their love of learning.

Some 2-year-olds are ready to do light lessons.  Some 5-year-olds are not.  The only way to know if your child is ready is to give it a try and see how they respond.  If your child is excited while you are working with him or her, then you should continue.  If your child balks or seems frustrated, then put the lessons aside and wait a few months.  After taking a break, you can try again and see how he responds.

Once you’ve determined that your child is ready, you can set up some lessons for him.  When doing so, please keep these 5 important tips in mind!

How to Homeschool a Preschooler:

1 – Involve all of their senses – Kids learn best when they are moving.  Try to get their entire body involved in the lesson.  When learning a new letter or number, use a variety of methods for teaching the concept.  Use masking tape to make a large letter or number on the floor and have your child walk along the outline.  Play music and ask your child to dance or skip or jump along the outline.  Have your child count out that number of M&Ms and eat them.  Say a rhyme or sing a song about the number.  Keep it varied.

2 – Make it fun – The more fun you can make the lessons, the more cooperative your child will be.  Have him jump on a trampoline while saying his ABCs.  Let him act out the story while you read aloud to him.  Whenever he answers a question correctly, throw a circus peanut or a marshmallow at him and let him try to catch it with his mouth.  Keep things light and silly so that your child will thoroughly enjoy the process.

3 – Do lots of reading – One of the best things you can do for your child is to read to him.  Sitting still is a learned skill, however, so if you notice your child has a hard time listening to an entire picture book then read half of it to him.  Let him move around and then try to finish the book.  For kids who struggle with sitting still, consider letting him play quietly at your feet with cars or some other object while you read to him.  Be sure to use an expressive voice.  Pause to point to pictures and ask your child questions about what’s happening.  Reading aloud can and should be a very interactive process at this age.

4 – Work on motor skills – As kids get older, they will need to be able to write and to move their bodies in coordinated ways.  Working on fine motor and gross motor skills now will give your child an advantage in the next few years.

5 – Don’t forget life skills – Academics are only one aspect of life.  There are many other skills we should also be working on with our preschool-aged kids.  Make sure your child knows their left from their right.  Allow your child to dress himself – even if he doesn’t do it exactly the same way that you would.  Help your child learn how to properly express his feelings rather than being demanding or melting down.  Work with your child on following instructions.  Help your child learn how to share and get along with others.  And make sure your child has his phone number and address memorized.

Young children are like sponges and they are capable of learning a TON of information.  When done the right way, you can teach your preschooler without them even realizing they are learning anything!  Keep it light.  Keep it fun.  And let your child move!

Question:  Are you planning to homeschool your preschooler?  Have you already taught preschool at home?  If you have any other tips you could share, please leave a comment below!

The post How to Homeschool a Preschooler – 5 Important Tips! first appeared on True Aim.

For this activity you will need:

• Brown, green and orange felt
• Orange pompoms of different sizes
• A glue gun or fabric glue
• Tweezers

How to make it: 

Cut orange felt “pumpkins’ that match the size of the pompoms. Glue it down randomly onto the felt ‘pumpkin patch’. Add stems.

Cut a strip of green grass and glue down too. Easy!

How to play

Let your child use tweezers(or pegs) to place the pompom ‘pumpkins’ on the right spot, thus matching the size of the pompom to the size of the cut pumpkin.

Extend this activity to counting the pumpkins, and even do simple math equations! For example, add 2 pumpkins, ask your child how many pumpkins are left. Or add all the pumpkins and take some away, asking how many pumpkins are left etc.

Place this activity in a small container or bag and use it as a busy bag activity while traveling!

You might like to see these fun fine motor activities too:

40 Fine Motor Activities
Rainbow Words
Fine Motor Play with Recyclables

The post Pumpkin Patch Size Match first appeared on True Aim.

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Free Preschool Printables

Snakes 3 Part Cards – Trillium Montessori

Print out these types of snakes cards. Snakes included are American Copperhead, Anaconda, California King, Emerald Tree Boa, Green Python, Hognose, King Cobra, Rattlesnake, Sidewinder, and Western Hognose.

Autumn Printables for Kids – Living Life and Learning

Check out this diverse group of free autumn printables ranging from crafts, to coloring pages, to handwriting worksheets!

Letter C Coloring Page – Learning2Walk

This giant coloring page/letter pack from Learning2Walk covers the entire alphabet one letter a time. Here is the Letter C.

Do You Want to Build a Scarecrow? – Sight and Sound Reading

Do you want to build a scarecrows? Check out this cut and paste craft, a great fine motor activity!

Free Subtraction Matching Game – Life Over C’s

This free subtraction match-up game is perfect for little ones to play together, or alone.

Free A to Z Animal Writing Pages – Embark on the Journey

Practice letter writing with these A to Z printables with adorable clip art!

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The post Free Preschool Printables and Mom’s Library #154 first appeared on True Aim.

Welcome to Mom’s Library

This post is filled with parenting tips, activities for young children, crafts, devotionals, recipes, and more!

Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the next Library!

Click here to see all Mom’s Library Posts

Pre-K Activities for Kids

Beginning Sounds Activity – Growing Book by Book Although this ice melt activity requires a tad more prep (mostly just planning ahead) than most activities, it is definitely a memorable craft that involves a shoebox plastic container, small plastic toys, a water can, and a spoon/mallet. Toddler Dominoes – Crafty Journal Toddlers can make their own dominoes with craft foam and craft foam stickers.

Endangered Animals Tot Pack – In All You Do

Get this incredible pack for free. This site also has many other free worksheets with all kinds of different themes.

Cutting a Banana for Toddlers – Living Montessori Now Using knives and scissors for the first time can be a scary thing. However, introduce this life skill with a banana and a basic butter knife!

10 Musical Toys for Early Learning – Chirpy Chatterbox

Introduce a love of music with these 10 fun toys.

Frog Life Cycle Hopscotch – Tiny Tots Adventure

Mix biology with the classic children’s game of hopscotch. And, you could reproduce this game with other different animals.

Free CVC Word Building Apples – Life Over C’s

Phonics are the best way to teach reading. Build words with your own CVC – consonant, vowel, consonant.

Check out Even More PreK Ideas Below!

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The post PreK Activities and Mom’s Library #150 first appeared on True Aim.

My children know basic weather terminology, but I wanted to start incorporating weather into our homeschool day because of how much they can learn in the process. Simply by tracking the weather, you can teach descriptive vocabulary, observation skills, graphing, days of the week, past/future grammar, etc. I put together this list of free resources that can help get you started.

This list includes free weather tracking charts and graphs, stickers, vocabulary cards, activity pages for a large range of ages, and more. Enjoy!

Weather Activities for Kids with Free Printables

Weather Tracking Charts and Stickers

Each of these weather tracking charts has great features, so you can pick whichever will work for you and your child best!

Click on the photo to go to the free printable.

Weather Vocabulary Cards and Posters

These free printables are great for a classroom wall or to cut apart and use as teaching materials.

Weather Games and Activity Pages

These free printable activity pages include so many great topics, including basic preschool skills (i.e. numbers, letters, colors, cutting practice), the water cycle, temperature, weather graphing, clouds, and more.

I hope you find these printables and activities useful. I know my kids are having a blast with them so far. That is one of the beautiful things about homeschooling – You have the power to make learning fun and instill in your children a desire to learn that they (Lord-willing) will never outgrow!

I love taking one topic or activity and turning it into a much larger learning opportunity by incorporating so many other skills, all without my kids even realizing it. Do you have any other great weather-related resources to share? Leave a comment below!

The post Free Printable Weather Activities for Kids first appeared on True Aim.