Pretend Play Activities
One way that we can talk about kindness with young children is to talk about pet adoption. Talking about pets is a great way to instill empathy in young children. To begin, pets require a lot of love and attention, but they also give us unconditional love in return. You can explain to children that […]
Fairy tales invite us into a world of magic! Stories about magic allow us to reflect on our own capabilities and to also think about what kinds of powers are possible if we lived in a realm of magic. Here, we invite you to make magic wands with natural materials to add to your dramatic […]
In this activity, older children can pretend to be the famous artist Jackson Pollock, or you can simply use this activity to get messy and have some fun! If using this as part of a “artist study”, where you celebrate a specific artist’s style of work, you can bring in books or printed images of […]
Oh no, the children’s favorite superheroes have been frozen and they need to be rescued! Plan this one a few hours in advance or overnight and let the children problem solve their way to save their favorite characters. This activity is a great way to explore the properties of ice and the way it melts! […]
Children could watch recycling trucks all day–and why not? They are indeed fascinating inventions that use hydraulics to lift up and crush down on the recycling in the truck. If on garbage day children perk their ears up, look out the window, and ask to see garbage and recycling trucks, we invite you to listen […]
Sweden has a fun gift-giving tradition called Julklappsrim. Julklappsrim is translated as ‘Christmas present rhyme’. When giving gifts to each other, Swedish people like to write rhymes, containing clues about the gifts, and attach them to the wrapped gift. It makes opening gifts so much more fun – reading the rhymes and guessing what’s inside! […]
Throughout history, children have used loose parts for play. Loose parts are open-ended materials that can be assembled, reassembled, lined up, or gathered together, and they can be used in all sorts of creative ways. Children have always played creatively with stones, sticks, acorns, pinecones, and even bones! Some say that the modern day game […]
Farmer’s markets are exciting places, and neighborhoods are lucky to have them! Farmer’s markets are places where people come together to sell their produce, cheese, meat, eggs, bread, snacks, and other goods. Farmer’s markets are a great place to celebrate community, as you might often see the same people each week, while the produce changes […]
What better way to talk about how houses provide us with shelter than to make one ourselves! There are two options of how to create this: 1. Use trees as the posts to set up your simple tent or 2. Uses the side of stairs as a lean-to (pictured here). A lean-to is a structure […]
The Very Busy Spider is a book about a spider who works diligently to build a beautiful spider web. Many animals come to distract her from her work, but she stays focused and finishes the job. At the end, she has a beautiful spider web that also helps her to catch her food! Let’s make […]
This activity is inspired by the class kid’s snack, also called “Ants on a Log”. That snack is typically made with celery sticks, peanut butter, and raisins, and would make a tasty accompaniment to your next outdoor play picnic! Set up Time: 5 minutes Directions Materials Learning Through Play Cognitive: Connections – Children are best […]
