One child scribbles on a piece of paper and proudly announces, "This is my name!" Another preschooler writes a string of random letters and asks his mother what it says. Still another child draws a picture of a cat and labels it with a wobbly C. Which one of these children is writing? They all are. What are the stages of writing development? I've labeled these stages according to what you see in your child's ... Read More
Milk cap spelling mats for short o words
Today I'm back with another set of milk cap spelling mats - this time for short o You'll need to collect a set of milk or bottle caps for this activity --- or simply cut out paper circles with a large circle punch. Write letters on the milk caps, or print my set of letters and create your own milk cap letters with a bottle of Mod Podge. Here's my tutorial which will tell you just how to do it! Phonics practice ... Read More
Short o word slider cards
Looking for a simple activity that will teach kids to sound out words? Try these free word slider cards! You can introduce "sounding it out" in different ways. 1. One way is to take out some letter tiles - H, A, and T for example. Lay out the tiles in order with large spaces in between. Show your child how to say each sound separately. Gradually squeeze the letter tiles together as you say the sounds closer ... Read More
Preschool Art Projects & Simple Crafts for Letter C
Even though you're seeing this post at the start of spring, we created these projects in cold, cold January. We're talking single digits here -- too cold to play outside! So all four of my kids had fun creating a giant set of preschool art projects and simple crafts for letter C. Preschool Art Projects & Simple Crafts for Letter C Cup Caterpillars This is a great open-ended art project, as you can see by the ... Read More
Simple ways to get kids excited to write the alphabet
At our house, my dot sticker pages are most enjoyed by my two and three-year-olds. My Three (almost four) wasn't interested this time, so my recently-turned-Two got his first chance to try one. He loved it! He's just starting to learn his alphabet and didn't remember this was the letter Z even two minutes into the activity. No matter! It can take a lot of fine motor fun before it sinks in. ... Read More
Letter Z Preschool Activity: Z is for Zebra (dot sticker page)
Today I'm sharing a free letter Z preschool activity to help your little one learn the shape and sound of letter Z. (This post contains affiliate links.) Letter Z Preschool Activity: Z is for Zebra (dot sticker page) As I pulled out my newest dot sticker page, my Three (almost four) wasn't particularly excited about it. I realized that these have gotten so simple for him that they've lost their appeal. For ... Read More
Level 2 handwriting pages – lowercase
Today I'm sharing a set of free handwriting pages for preschool -- this time in lowercase! If you follow my blog, you know that I don't recommend doing a ton of worksheets. In fact, most of the ways we form letters are creative and fun. But at some point it's necessary to form those letters with a pencil and paper. Thankfully, since we don't overdo handwriting pages at our house, my kids love them! When I first ... Read More
Rainy day activity for preschoolers — Zoo Sensory Play
Do you do a lot of sensory play at your house? The kind where you give your child a container with a filler (like rice, dry pasta, shredded paper, etc.) and some toys and let him have some hands- on fun? I'm kind of new to sensory play, myself. I didn't do much of it until I started blogging a little over a year ago... and saw what everyone else was up to! Since my kids don't go to preschool, I feel like it's ... Read More
Color sorting activity for toddlers
Now that my toddler has turned two, he's become very interested in the learning activities that I do with his three older siblings. These are usually out of his league, however - so today I set up a simple learning activity that he could enjoy. It's a color sorting activity for toddlers. (This post contains affiliate links.) Last week I saw my Five and my Two playing together on the carpet. My Five was ... Read More
Level 1 handwriting worksheets – lowercase
Looking for free handwriting pages for preschoolers? Today I'm sharing an entire lower case set! If your child is just starting to form letters, please don't start with handwriting pages. Browse my fine motor alphabet posts for many creative ideas. Here are just a few... Write a giant block letter on paper and have your child fill it in with objects (like cereal, stickers, buttons, etc.). Here my Three ... Read More