This is a complete homeschool and preschool learning guide – full of arts and crafts, science, and basic activities – and made for you by a teacher! (Plus, I’ve included product recommendations.)
(Click the “P” on the image above to save it to Pinterest.)
If you would like a one stop place to go for learning activities for your preschooler, this is the place! I’m a former teacher, and I’ve included everything you need to teach your little one and prepare them for Kindergarten.
These are activities that you can do while having fun with your child, because young children learn through play. As you do these things, you’ll not only be spending time with and teaching your child but also instilling in them a love for learning.
Some subjects we’ll cover here are arts and crafts, fine motor skills, dramatic play, basics like math and reading, and science. This is a full resource for teaching your child, so don’t forget to save this page so you can come back to it often!
(There might be affiliate links in this blog post that I could receive a commission from. If so, I’ll only include those I feel are helpful to you!)
All Ready for Preschool Readiness Kit
Preschool crafts
Preschool crafts can be so much fun for your child, but they’re also important.
When children have the option to grab some art supplies, even if just construction paper and crayons, they get to use their imaginations, independence, and think for themselves.
They also get to experiment and try different things. This is a time when children get to see what they like and take credit for their work and talents.
For some reason as I saw children in the classroom get comfortable making their own art creations, they seemed to gain a sort of confidence and pride. It was great to watch them grow from being unsure of what to grab or make to having so much fun grabbing different supplies, creating, and telling me what they made afterward!
Of course, during these arts and crafts activities the children become better at things like fine motor skills as well. When they’re grabbing little art pieces or holding crayons they are fine tuning those little fingers and skills.
Saving your child’s preschool arts and crafts
There are a few things to remember when doing preschool at home.
First, be sure to ask your child to tell you about the artwork or craft when he/she is done. It’s good for children to describe things and use language skills while interacting and sharing, and it’s great if you can point out something special about their work!
Also, remember to write your child’s name and the date on some of the arts & crafts. Later on you’ll be glad you did so you can remember how old they were when they made it and which child made it if that’s an issue.
You can also put a rope or string along the wall & attach art work to it with clothes pins (painted if you like). Your child will be proud that you displayed it, plus it makes for easy, cheap, decoration!
Then, when you take the art or work down have a binder with plastic sleeves ready (or whatever you like) to save the most special ones in. This will allow your child, you, and others to flip through it easily later on.
Kids Art Display Storage Frame – 2 Pack
(capable of holding 50-150 pieces of children’s artwork depending on paper thickness)
Preschool learning guide for fine motor skills
The next part of this preschool learning guide is about fine motor skills.
This one is important parents, and the good news is it’s easy to do! Just remember that your child needs to use his/her hands. Using those little fingers and hands a lot will make all the difference, and this leads to good fine motor skills.
When your child gets to Kindergarten, you want them to be able to do basic things like hold a pencil. It’ll make it easier when they can concentrate on learning to write good, rather than struggling with how to hold a pencil or crayon. And, having lots of practice ahead of time gives them more confidence and skill in this area, too.
There are many different activities that you can have available for your little one to help with this, and it will be fun and get him/her away from the television some, too! Your part is to get the supplies and toys and make them available. See, it’s easy!
Think about what activities your child would like that will involve using his/her little fingers and hands, and even hand eye coordination, like stacking little blocks to make a tower.
They’ll have to look closely, hold the block, and set it just right to balance on top of the other one.
But, always remember to make it a game.
Young children learn best through play!
More fun fine motor activities
Another fun thing that’s good for your child’s fine motor skills is coloring on construction paper with a choice of crayons, markers, or chalk. This or even a dry erase board & marker (perhaps on an easel) will occupy him/her on & off so that you can do other things that you need to do, too.
Get washable crayons and markers and leave it out and available, and you’ll see your child wander over occasionally. I like to cut the paper in half & have one on the easel, and there’s still room for writing on the dry erase board & to put some magnetic numbers and letters.
Have different types of building toys, like small and big blocks, shapes, legos, and even animals and people to build homes for! Remember to join in sometimes.
Your child will also learn by seeing what you decide to make, and he/she will love that you took time to build together, talk, and laugh. You’re building memories together! (Don’t forget to take a picture every now & then.)
Please allow playdough and a mess
One thing some parents don’t like or allow is playdough. However, I think if they knew just how much playing with playdough would help their child’s fine motor skills and future writing skills they would gladly buy or make it.
Their are many things you can do with playdough, too. Your child will want you to make some things, but then you can encourage him/her and show how to make it.
(Just watch first & teach them not to eat it.)
Children can make a snowman, make letters and numbers, make animals, write in it with a popsicle stick, stamp it, cut it with child safety scissors, etc.
Let them use playdough toys, just use the imagination, or use both!
Melissa & Doug Clay Activity Set
Encourage your child to try
Don’t forget about puzzles, and add a new one every now and then.
Puzzles will teach other things like patience and staying with a task, too. Try to gently remind your child to turn it around and try new ways when getting too frustrated, then give praise after.
Just don’t be the parent that does it all for the child. They need a little challenge. It’s how they grow. Sometimes as a teacher I’d have a parent stay a bit in class and help their child, which would have been fine if they weren’t doing most the activity for the child.
It’s easy to do this and not realize it, because you’re just trying to help your child. As a parent, I totally know this. I remember how I was as a parent with my little one before I was a Headstart teacher and after. The teacher had to tell me he could do it himself. Later as a teacher I remembered this and understood.
As long as you’re always thinking of ways your child can play using their fingers and hands, fine motor skills and more will improve quickly. Scissors are great to learn to use too, but of course only child scissors and with supervision.
Great ideas:
- Small toys that you link together, just for fun or in a pattern (red, yellow, red, yellow).
- Tearing colored paper to glue onto another paper (you can draw & child fills with paper).
- Painting with water colors or using paint brush to dip in glue for crafts (can sometimes quietly reposition hand to hold pencil/brush correctly).
- Making a necklace with string and cereal (fruit loops or one that’s safe if has allergies). Can make a pattern, too!
Dramatic play preschool activities
Dramatic play is so much fun for children, and it’s just as much fun for the grown ups watching. The little kids act out things they’ve seen and heard, practicing their future grown up roles and making stuff up. This pretend time can be full of conversation, and that’s awesome!
Some fun things your child will love for this are:
- puppets
- dress up clothes and hats
- toys that mimic real life, like cooking pots, dishes, & foods
- a cash register & pretend money
- you playing with him/her!
- a paper bag & art materials to make own puppet!
Another thing that preschool activities can involve is acting out feelings, especially during dramatic play. This really helps children learn to express how they feel.
It can be helpful to guide the puppet show or dramatic pretend play when you need to show a better way to express feelings or for things like being kind to one another. You’ll often get your child’s attention better and they’ll get the lesson easier when you use play time to teach. It’s also more fun!
Children also learn to work things out during play with others. They are learning how to work together, how to share, what’s acceptable behavior, and how to make friends.
So, be sure to act things out with your toddler or preschool child sometimes, and remember to let loose, use imagination, and have fun! Preschool at home doesn’t always have to be serious.
Preschool and homeschool learning guide for basics
Preschool at home can include a lot of things, but don’t forget the basics. Here’s a list of ideas:
- Reading (Look at books together, often. This is important! And, ask questions and discuss the stories afterward. Maybe ask what was their favorite part. Sometimes let them see you running your finger across the words as you read, left to right. *Discuss the parts of the book, how to care for books, & why they’re important/special.), & Rhyming
- Writing (You can never have too many places/opportunities for writing or things for your child to write with.)
- Letters, Letter sounds, & Number recognition (Name things that begin with the letter.)
- Math – Counting (Help your child count items touching each one, too, after can count verbally.), Shapes recognition (Play games with them or make drawings of shape people!), & Colors (*Color a rainbow with crayons, or chalk & black paper, & name the colors!)
- Nursery rhymes (These are very important, too, & children love them. Find them in stories, videos, songs, or sing them together!)
- Music (Introduce different types of songs & music, clapping out the beat, shakers or instruments, & singing. *You can make a shaker with an empty water bottle & rice! Just make sure it’s closed tightly so they can’t get hold of the lid & peel the label off to see through. Put some music or video on & start shaking to the beat!)
- Try to introduce New Vocabulary/words sometimes & their meanings, like today, on top of, tomorrow, morning, night, opposites, the same, etc.
- Days of the week, Months, Feelings, Holidays, Exploring, Weather, & anything else that seems to be a teaching moment!
Science preschool learning activities
Asking questions is very important for children, as well as for adults. It’s how we improve & learn. And, science preschool activities get the children exploring, experimenting, and asking those wonderful questions.
They also use language, like comparative words, during these activities. Plus, they have fun! And, fun is so important!
So, here are some ideas off the top of my head (listed below) that I think you’ll enjoy & that will maybe spark some ideas for science toddler and preschool activities at home with your child. Try to keep in mind that science activities are really all about getting a chance to explore and use the five senses.
So, whenever possible let your child help, touch, and be involved in the process. Also, try to find times to get them curious by asking a question like, “I wander what will happen if we…”. This is what’s so great about science. It gets their little minds thinking differently, and teaching them to think good will bring lifelong benefits!
Science and sensory activities
Here is a list of science and sensory activities for preschool:
- Sink & float activity (Fill something with water. Make predictions, then put items in one at a time to see what sinks & what floats. Discuss why!)
- Exploring outdoors (To see what you can find. Try taking a magnifying glass or bag for collecting items sometimes.)
- Look online for videos/pictures of animals or maybe something specific to look at, learn about, ask questions about, & name/draw.
- Measure & compare things, discussing differences with comparative words.
- Check out “Sid the Science Kid” on Netflix/online, & discuss what he’s doing!
- Look online for tips if needed, then do an experiment such as making a tornado out of 2 liter bottles & whatever else you like & discuss it.
- Look at a science book, such as a book about animals or weather!
- Get creative or use imagination, & make something special to watch for a while, like an ant farm, plants you planted, or bean/seed you put in a wet paper towel in a baggie (or something else that’s see through) on a sunny window to watch grow!
- Do an experiment of mixing 2 colors of paint to predict then see what color it will turn into.
- Build a ramp with something, have a race, & predict which vehicle will win the race to the bottom!
- Let your child help you make some fun slime or playdough with one of the many recipes that can be found online! Discuss the 5 senses & how it feels & smells. You can even put a little of something in it to make it smell good! Just make sure it’s clear that we don’t eat it.
Closing thoughts: Full homeschool preschool learning guide (crafts and more)
Now you have a full homeschool and preschool learning guide full of arts and crafts and other activities for your child. Remember to include a variety of activity types, like the following:
- Preschool crafts
- Fine motor activities
- Preschool dramatic play
- Basic activities like nursery rhymes
- & Science activities like sink & float
Parents, remember that young children soak up information, want to learn, & want your attention. So now is the time to use any teaching moment that you have, and it doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive.
The important thing is that you’re involved, because as I said parents are the first teachers and have the opportunity to instill a joy for learning. And all the while, you’re making memories. So, keep it fun!
Please comment with any ideas on home schooling or kid’s activities that you want to share. It might help others!
Remember to save a pin from this blog post to Pinterest (like the one below), or save this page, so you can easily find these tips again. And, perhaps share the link to this post on your fave social media to inspire other parents.
Additional resources
If you enjoyed this homeschool and preschool learning guide, you might also want to read my blog post with time saving tips for moms.
And, this site has a list of science resources that might be helpful to you.
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