Parents

Welcome to the Preschool Resource Hub!

Here you will find optional At Home Activities, Videos, Behavior and Communication Resources, and Links to Useful Websites.

At Home Activities for Students & Families

Tips to Support Motor Development

Bilateral Coordination Skills

Using both sides of your body together
- Turning pages of a book
- Stringing 1/2 inch to 1 inch beads onto a pipe cleaner or thick string
- Throwing or catching softballs
- Hand clapping games
- Building with Duplos or Legos
- Squeezing bottles such as a ketchup bottle with both hands
- Rolling dough (bread, playdough) with a rolling pin
- Pressing cookie cutters into dough
- Drawing a picture with a simple stencil
- Put rings on a peg board
- Lace cards
- Tear lettuce into pieces for a salad
- Tear construction paper for a collage
- Use both arms to twirl streamers
- Putting together puzzles
Scissor Skills
- Cut straws into thirds and use to make a necklace
- Cut out circle, triangle, and square shapes from index cards
- Cut out clothes for stick people with craft sticks
- Fold paper
- Thread buttons onto pipe cleaners or thick strings
- Cut out colored lines and make a rainbow
- Complete a cutting activity book
- Use scissors to cut play dough
- Pick up and sort items using tweezers or tongs
- Complete simple connect the dots
- Place stickers on a line and cut from sticker to the next sticker
Pre-Writing Skills
- Use tongs or tweezers to pick up small objects - cotton balls, cereal pieces, rice, or beans
- Coloring or scribblign with pieces of broken crayons
- Roll play dough and form letters of your name
- Squeeze plastic bottles or turkey baster to transfer water
- Pinch clothes pins and place them on cards or use them to pick up items
- Place froot loops over toothpicks, uncooked spaghetti, or string on pipe cleaners or stiff string
- Form lines or letters with pipe cleaners
- Trace sandpaper letters
- String letter beads on string to form their name
Fine Motor Control
- Use a hole punch to cut out designs
- Button or unbutton large buttons on clothing
- Draw a person
- Lace shoes
- Build with blocks (cans, jello boxes, cereal boxes)
- Peel an orange
- Screw on different sized lids
- Trace around their own hand and make an animal
- Help with simple food preparation (spread jam, measure, stir, cut)
Sensory Activities
- Finger paint
- Pop bubble wrap
- Play with playdough
- Draw in dirt or sand
- Wash dishes
- Plant flowers
- Draw or trace in rice or lentils
- Play a toy musical instrument (drum, piano, recorder)
- Water play
- Play with cooked spaghetti

Calming No-Cook Play Dough Recipe

Ingredients
- 1 cup of all-purpose white flour
- 1/4 cup fine table salt
- 1 tbsp cream of tartar
- 2 tbsp of vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp vegetable glycerin
- 3/4 cup boiling water
- 1/4 tsp food coloring
- 4 drops of calming essential oils (optional)
Directions:
1. Mix all of the ingredients except for the food coloring and essential oil
2. After mixing in a bowl, take the dough out and knead it until it comes together with the consistency you want (smooth and not falling apart)
3. Roll it into a log and cut into 3 parts (if you are using 3 different colors) if you are just going to use one color, add the food coloring into the bowl before you knead it. You may want to use a glove to mix and knead the food coloring into the dough so your hands don't get colored.
4. Add the 4 drops of essential oils at this time
5. Can be stored in a plastic bag or air tight container

Social-Emotional

Children's Social-Emotional development involves learning how to understand their own and other's feelings, regulate and express their emotions (feelings) appropriately, build relationships with others, and interact in groups.

Social Emotional Preschool Activities for Home

Ask your child to recognize how they are feeling throughout the day (happy, sad, scared, and angry). Ask them to identify feelings in others including family members, TV characters, story characters, etc.
And/or, name the emotions/feelings for them. These could be their own emotions or those of others when the opportunity arises - when they are upset, TV characters, story characters etc.
Set a daily routine and stick to it. Set timers for play time, reading time, physical activities, etc.
Practice taking turns playing with objects and sharing toys
Use music for "clean up time"; ask your child to clean up by the end of the song.
Ask your child to practice putting on and taking off a jacket, gloves, shoes, etc.
Play music and stop the music at various times. Tell your child to "freeze" and pretend to be a statue when the music stops. Invite your child to be creative with their statues or talk about the type of statue they could create (make a statue that's tall or small; make a statue that looks scared, silly, sad, or angry.
Use puppets, stuffed animals, or other toys and play together. Pretend the toy is happy, sad, made, and ask your child what they can do to help the toy feel better. Or make up scenarios and ask how the toy might be feeling.
Think out loud. When you have a problem or frustration talk out loud about how you are feeling and resolving the problem. "Whoops! I spilled water on the floor. Oh well! Guess I'd better get a towel and clean it up!"
Do chores together. Kids learn a lot from helping out.
Read bedtime stories, snuggle, and enjoy some downtime together.
Play games and don't let your child always win. Model good winning and good losing. Help them to learn a "Maybe next time" attitude about not always getting their way.

Physical

Children's Physical development includes their gross-motor (large muscle) and fine-motor (small muscle) skills. Gross-motor skills are balancing, coordination, or ways of traveling this includes: pulling, climbing, running, throwing, and jumping. Fine motor skills include cutting, drawing, and writing.

Physical Preschool Activities for Home

Practice movement and walking at various speeds (slow, medium, fast)
Practice walking backwards and marching around a room
Walk up and down stairs alternating feet
Practice balance activities:
- Squats to pick up low items, tiptoes to reach something high, jumping off low items and landing on two feet.
Practice gross-motor activities:
- Carry a large ball while walking
- Throw and catch a ball
- Toss a small object into basket/bucket
- Kick a ball by running up to it
Practice fine-motor activities:
- Points at objects
- Use utensils
- Unbutton large buttons
- Rotate door knobs
- Tear paper
- String beads
- Pour water into different containers
- Cutting on a straight line with scissors
- Use zippers
- Practice holding a pencil and drawing
Have your child walk across the room in creative ways (skip, twirl, frog jump, bear crawl, roll, etc)
Turn on the music and dance!

Language

Children's Language development is motivated by their desire to communicate their thoughts, ideas, needs, and feelings with others and involves learning about sounds in speech, vocabulary (meaning of words), grammar (how words are organized in a sentence), and rules of engaging in conversations (e.g. making eye contact, taking turns). Children understand language spoken to them before they can express it out loud.

Language Preschool Activities for Home

Ask your child to pick up various objects: cup, spoon, paper, pencil, etc.
Play "Head, Shoulders, Knees, Toes".
Have your child find their favorite picture or illustration in a book.
Ask your child to place various items in a basket/bucket.
Ask your child to follow simple directions:
- Get the book and then a pencil.
- Wash your hands.
- Get your jacket and put it on.
Ask your child to name or point to objects or items in pictures.
Ask your child to respond to questions using 4-6 word sentences (or as many words as able, gestures, pointing, etc.).
Ask your child to retell a story or TV episode.
Your child should be able to pay attention to a speaker during a conversation.
Play "Simon Says" with your child (Simon says sit, twirl, jump up and down, run in place, pat your legs, etc.). Let your child lead the game and be "Simon." Include comparisons in your direction (Simon says touch something taller than you, something smaller than you, something hard, something fuzzy, or something the same color as the grass).
Play "I Spy With My Little Eye" with your child. Have them call out the object when they figure out what it is. (Ex. "I spy with my little eye something round that bounces). Take turns and let your child be the leader and have you guess what they are spying.
Tell your child that they are going to play a guessing game. Put an item in a bag and describe the item to your child. (Ex. "It's red and juicy and it makes a crunchy sound when you bite into it. It grows on trees). Let your child take turns choosing an item and describing it.
Give your child an empty paper towel roll and invite your child to hold the paper towel roll to their mouth and talk into it. Have them sing songs, recite nursery rhymes, make silly sounds, whisper, etc. Let your child decorate their paper towel roll and pretend they are reporters and ask family members questions.
Talk with your child about the size, taste, texture, and color of foods. Help them recognize the difference between rough and smooth surface, salty and sweet taste, and the odors of certain foods.
Talk with your child about different objects around the house. Name the object and describe the use of familiar items (oven, toaster, lamp, couch).
Talk to and with your child as much as possible about whatever you are doing.

Cognitive

Children's Cognitive development is influenced by their approach to learning, how they remember events, how they use what they know to connect to other experiences, and how they engage in and pretend during play.

Cognitive Preschool Activities for Home

Ask your child to stack blocks from biggest to smallest.
Ask your child to use a shovel in different ways to fill a bucket with sand.
Ask your child to put a puzzle together every day until they can do it quickly.
Ask your child to take a toy apart and put it back together.
Ask your child to build a tent using a table, sheets, and other items.
Show your child a bunch of toys, then take one or two toys away. Ask child to identify which toys are missing.
Ask your child to sort objects by color, size, or shape.
Ask your child to sort various items: utensils (fork/spoon), clothes (pants/shirts or mom's/mine)
Ask your child to act out various scenarios: cooking food, putting out a fire, watering plants, be a bus driver.
Using various materials around the house, make up new uses for familiar objects. Ask, "What else could this (banana) be?"
Ask questions that have many answers, rather than questions that have right or wrong answers, such as "Where do you think birds sleep? How do you think a rainbow gets in the sky? Where do you think water goes after it goes down the drain?"

Literacy

Children's Literacy development includes recognizing letter names and sounds, recognizing the first sound in a word, indicating words that thyme or sound the same at the end of the word, noticing syllables or parts of a word, using books, understanding and responding to books and writing their name or writing/drawing about an idea.

Literacy Preschool Activities for Home

Have your child write letters of the alphabet in the air or on the carpet.
Have your child find a toy, object, food item, etc., and clap out the syllables in the word (ball, book, crack-er, pa-per, wa-ter, etc.)
Say the sound of a letter and have your child find an object or toy that begins with that sound.
Tell your child you are going to play an "I'm Thinking Of" game. Say, "Listen carefully to the clues I'm going to give you, and try to figure out what I'm thinking." (Ex. I'm thinking of something that starts with the "t" sound. It grows in the yard; it is brown and green; it stands up; it sways in the wind.") Repeat the game with other letter sounds and familiar objects.
Place sugar, flour, salt, or sand in a cookie sheet. Practice writing your child's name and letters or drawing pictures with their finger.
Read stories aloud with your child every day! Have your child point to pictures, retell the story, find their favorite part or identify letters.
Sing songs and tell nursery rhymes such as Humpty Dumpty or Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. Emphasize the rhyming words.

Math

Children's Mathematical development includes their knowledge of counting, identifying how many of an item, understanding and using position words (beside, between, next to), understanding shapes (circle, square, triangle, rectangle), comparing items, measuring objects, and understanding simple patterns.

Math Preschool Activities for Home

Count while washing hands, going up stairs, during commercials. How high can we count?
Work on numbers 1-5. Count the apples, bananas, cars, windows, pets, family members etc. and then write how many. This helps identify the numerals relating to the numbers.
Play board games with dice. Help your child learn the patterns on the dice and recognize them without having to count.
With your child's favorite toy, play a game of "Where is it?". Hid the child's toy in different places and when they find it, they must tell you with words where it is (i.e. in the basket, on the porch, over the refrigerator, between the chairs). Take turns hiding the toy.
Go on a shape hunt. Find things shaped like a triangle, a circle or a square. Challenge: Find rectangular shaped items.
Play, "I see something you don't see and the color (or shape) is..."
Bake cookies (or something else) together. Practice measuring, pouring, and dumping. Which is more: the sugar or the flour?
Make movement patterns. Clap, clap, stomp, clap, clap, stomp, clap, clap, stomp, etc. Make up various patterns.
Ask your child to help set the table and make sure there is one plate, one glass or cup, and any other items needed for each person.
Let child guess amounts ("Will all these beans fit in the cup or will we need a larger bowl?")

Rainbow Soap Foam

Ingredients
- 5-10 drops of food coloring
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tbsp dish soap
- Hand mixer
- Optional: glitter
Directions
1. In a bowl, add 1/4 cup water, 2 tbsp dish soap and 5-10 drops of food coloring. I also added some glitter with the food coloring
2. Mix on high with a hand mixer for about 2 minutes until peaks form
3. Put the foam into a shallow bin
4. Rinse the bowl and beaters and follow the instructions again using a different color of food coloring. Repeat until the desired number of colors are created, adding each to the bin

Supporting Positive Behavior at Home

Behavior Basics

Some simple ways to manage behaviors at home.

Countdowns

This simple technique is a way to prepare your children for transitions, including transitioning to non-preferred or refused activities.

How do you use a countdown effectively?

When you tell your child it's time to turn off the TV, they say "no!". Calmly tell them, "in 5 the TV is going to be turned off" (wait 15-30 seconds), "in 4 the TV is going to be turned off" and so on. After you say "in 1", turn the TV off. This may be a struggle at first, but once children get used to countdowns, it helps them prepare and accept the transition.

If your child is younger or has lower language skills, a 3-2-1 countdown with visuals may be easier. Show them the picture of the "3" paired with verbally telling them, "in 3 we are...", continue to 1.

Example:

You can easily make countdown cards and "laminate" with packing tape!

Choices

Choices are an easy way to give your child control over a situation, and another way to handle refusal behavior.

How do you use choices effectively?

When your child refuses to get dressed in the morning, you can help by offering her choices. Simple, clear, and reasonable choices such as, "do you want to wear the pink shirt or the black one?" can help the situation. When giving choices, keep it to 3 maximum (generally 2 choices is best) and your child has to choose one of the choices you offered.

Example:

Mia is having a hard time staying by you in the store. You get down to her eye level, and calmly tell her, "Mia, it is unsafe to run away from me in the store. Do you want to stay by the cart or ride in the cart?" Mia shakes her head no, or refuses. Calmly give her the same two choices again and again, giving her some processing time until she makes a choice.

Practice giving your child choices about positive things too, so they can feel more "in control" throughout their day. This will also help associate choices as a positive thing!

First-Then Prompts

This simple prompt is similar to choices, and helps with refusal or doing non-preferred things. Use this strategy only if your child gets to do something preferred directly after the non-preferred task.

How do you use First-Then prompts effectively?

When your child refuses to do something you've asked, you can give them a simple "first we..., then we can...", or even just "first..., then..."

Example:

Ashton loves chicken nuggets, but refuses to wash his hands before dinner. You can give him the simple prompt of: "first, we wash our hands and then you can eat your nuggets". Again, if your child has lower language or is younger, make it simpler: "first wash, then nuggets."

Now if your child is not motivated by the "then" or in Ashton's case, by eating chicken nuggets, a countdown may be more appropriate.

Enforceable Statements

This is a simple way to let your child know what their behavior needs to look like for something positive to happen. Very clear and simple, it lets your child know they will get to do... as soon as they do....

How do you use Enforceable Statements effectively?

An enforceable statement should be clear and simple. It tells the child what their behavior needs to be for them to be able to do something that they want to do.

Examples:

Odin is throwing his toys at his sister. You remove the toys he throws and give him the statement, "when you can be safe with your toys, you may have them back". Continue to calmly remove each toy until he stops throwing them. You might ask him, "are you ready to be safe with your toys?" and then return them.

Kayla is painting at the table and has painted all over her hands and the table. You take the paint and brush away, and tell her "If you want to continue painting, you will need to keep the paint on the paper. Otherwise, you will be all done." Wait several seconds to let Kayla process, then ask her "where does the paint need to stay?"

Praise, Praise, Praise!

This is possibly the most effective way to handle behavior. Notice when your child is behaving, and praise them for it. Teachers often live by the phrase "you get what you pay attention to."

How do you use praise effectively?

This may sound silly, praise should be natural right? But there is an actual correct way to deliver praise effectively to young children. Praise should be specific, authentic, and let the child know why they did a good job. Try and give 5 positives to every negative - it's harder than you think!

Examples:

"I noticed you put your toys away! That is being responsible and keeps your toys safe."

"Awesome job using your words to tell me what you want. I understand you better when you talk like a big kid!"

"You are playing very nicely with your little sister! I love to see you being a great, big brother."

Cooperating at Home

When expecting children to cooperate with specific tasks at home, make sure they are developmentally appropriate for the child. Here are some things you may expect children to be able to do at different age levels. Please remember all children develop differently and some may not be able to do these until older.

Age 3:
- Put dirty clothes away
- Put away toys or books
- Put trash in the trash can
- Wipe their spot at the table with a cloth
- Wash their own hands
- Put on/take off coat
Age 4:
- Brush teeth
- Wash self in bathtub
- Put dry pet food into a dish
- Put silverware or cups on table (plates if plastic)
- Dress and undress
- Put non-breakable dishes into sink
Age 5:
- Understand and be able to restate rules
- Independently do a simple chore (make bed, put socks in drawer, etc)
- Remember routine: wash hands before meals without being told, etc
- Help adult with more complex chores (fold laundry, water plants, etc)
Children with special needs may need some accommodations to be able to do at-home tasks. Consider the following:
- Only require them to do part of the task while you do the more difficult part.
- Provide instructions in a different way (each part of the task separately, picture cues, hand over hand assistance, etc.)
If you want your child to begin to participate in at home chores, it is imperative that you explicitly teach children how to do each step of a chore. Try these steps:
- State simply and clearly what you want to see your child do. It's hard fo parents not to say "where does that go?" or "is that how you put your toys away?" or "don't put your toys there!" and become frustrated. It's paramount to remember, your child may not know exactly what you want to see them do. Try instead: "go put your toys back on the shelf in your bedroom", or "please put this cup gently in the sink".
- If your child still seems unsure, try calmly giving them a gesture, point in the direction of where they need to go, or gently take their hand, saying "I can help you" followed with, "maybe next time, you can do it yourself".
- Remember to keep the direction simple, if your child isn't able to immediately do it. Instead of saying "put your books and toys away", you might simplify it, by handing your child one book at a time, you putting some away to make it easier, telling them, "you put your books away, now let's do your toys."
- Once your child has completed the chore, even partially, give them specific immediate praise. "You put away all your books and toys! You are such a good helper!" or "I saw you put your plate and cup in the sink like a big girl!"
Know that when a young child is learning a new task, it may take longer than expected for them to be able to do it independently. Try and remember that clothes may be in the wrong drawer, toys and books put in the wrong place, etc. This is why it is important to keep it simple, or one step at a time until your child has it down!

What about when your child refuses to cooperate...

This is common in preschoolers! Consider that they may not understand the direction, not want to stop what they are doing, or simply are challenging you to get a reaction/attention. Try these strategies if your child continues to refuse:
- You may need to get their attention. Gently take their hands, get down to their level, say their name, and then explicitly say the direction.
- Children may need a warning that they will have to stop what they are currently doing. "In 2 minutes, you will need to stop playing and put these toys on your shelf."
- Your child may need a concrete "cue" that they need to complete a task, such as putting their toys in their hands followed by a gesture of where they need to put them.
- If your child misbehaves to get your attention, try, as appropriate, to ignore the negative behaviors and respond with praise to positive behaviors!
- If your child becomes angry/frustrated/upset, remain calm yourself, acknowledge their feelings and calmly state: "I see you are angry. You want to keep playing, but the toys need to be put away. When you're calm, I will help you put them away." Wait until they are calm to restate the direction.
- Find something simple that is "fun" that they can do when they have completed the task. This can make the task more motivating. "When you have put away 3 more toys, you can help me pick what to have for lunch!"
- Try making a game out of a task. See if your child can "race" you, or who can put their toys away faster. Set a timer and see if your child can "beat the clock".
- Remember to praise your child as soon as they begin the task and as soon as they complete the task, with or without help!
- If your child becomes angry/frustrated/upset, remain calm yourself, acknowledge their feelings, and calmly state: "I see you are angry. You want to keep playing but the toys need to be put away. When you're calm, I will help you put them away." Wait until they are calm to restate the direction.
- Find something simple that is "fun" that they can do when they have completed the task. This can make the task more motivating. "When you have put away 3 more toys, you can help me pick what to have for lunch!"
- Try making a game out of a task. See if your child can "race" you, or who can put their toys away faster. Set a timer and see if your child can "beat the clock."
- Remember to praise your child as soon as they begin the task and as soon as they complete the task, with or without help!

Logical Consequences

Logical consequences are an alternative to punishment. Unlike a punishment, logical consequences are a guide for children to understand that their behavior will have consequences in the real world.

Here are some tips:
- They should be practical and enforceable.
- Consequences must be stated calmly, clearly, and respectfully.
- Make sure your child has your attention before letting them know what the consequence will be - don't yell it from across the room.
- Consequences need to fit the behavior and be appropriate.
- Always let your child know what the consequence will be and be prepared to follow through!
Here are some examples of consequences that are logical:
- Your child throws a toy = toy will be taken away.
- Your child does not put their pajamas on when asked = they have to miss the first few minutes of their favorite show while putting pjs on.
- Your child dumps water out of the tub = tub toys will be taken away.
- Your child turns the TV up when asked to turn it down = TV will be turned off.
- Your child leaves toys out after playing with them = those toys will not be available to play with the following day.
Make sure to think about the consequence before telling your child. By telling your child about a consequence, you are giving them a choice; and always give them the chance to change their behavior!

Use calm, clear, simple language. Example: "If you are using your toys to dump water on the floor, the tub toys will be taken away."

Remember, children are not born with the ability to make appropriate choices or accept consequences; this will take practice and may result in tears at first. Also, remember the goal is not to punish the child, the goal is to allow them to make a better choice and change their behavior.

Lastly, and maybe most importantly, remember to praise your child when they make a good choice or change their behavior for the better!

Teaching Your Child About Feelings

Young children experience many of the same emotions as adults: anger, sadness, frustration, jealousy, silliness, boredom, worry, etc. The difference is young children may not have the cognitive awareness or the verbal language to express these emotions in an appropriate way.

Adults can help support and foster understanding of feelings in even very young children. "Feeling safe and secure, loved and nurtured, is the biggest and most important ingredient for a child's healthy social-emotional development."

How else can adults help support young children's social-emotional development?
- Consider your child's temperament. Do they become easily frustrated? Are they more easy-going, letting things roll off their back? There is no right or wrong, but noticing your child's temperament may help you understand why they may sometimes feel "bigger" emotions than you think are necessary for the situation.
- Talk about feelings. This can be beneficial for children in infancy all the way to Kindergarten! Labeling feelings and how we know we are feeling that way can help children better understand how they are feeling. Label feelings in books, when they are happening, try and draw different feelings, etc.
- Validate children's "big" feelings while they are happening. "You are crying because you are feeling frustrated and upset", "you threw the toy because you are angry". It is important to calmly validate feelings, not to make the big feeling even bigger!
- Role play how to deal with strong feelings in healthy ways. "I am angry because I spilled milk on the counter. I think I will take three deep breaths before trying to clean it up."
- Make different feeling faces in the mirror. For very young children, you may label the emotion, make the face, and have them copy you. As your child grows, you can make a face and have them try and label it, or have them make the face that you label. as your child is 4 or 5, you can give them a scenario and let them try and make a face. "My little sister just knocked down my block tower! How might my face look?"
- Make a cozy corner in your home. Children may need to be alone sometimes just like adults. Unlike a "time out" , this area can be a choice for your child to go to when they are angry, sad, or upset. This area can have calming items in it, such as a mirror, feelings book, stuffed animals, water bottle, etc.
- Teach more complex feelings words. Rather than just happy, sad, mad, teach your child about more complex feelings: frustrated, jealous, embarrassed, worried, lonely, proud, overwhelmed, excited, cranky, confused, etc.
- Suggest ways to handle big emotions. Parents often make the mistake of telling a child to "stop", whether it's screaming, crying, stomping, etc. It can be beneficial to teach your child how they can appropriately and safely deal with these big emotions. You can teach your child to take some deep breaths, go to a cozy corner, hit couch cushions, jump up and down, rip paper, etc. It's important that your child knows "it's ok to feel strong emotions, and there are appropriate ways to handle them so we can feel better."
- Be aware of your own emotions. Your child can feel it when something is off. Make sure you take time to calm down before reacting taking a few deep breaths, walking away for a minute, etc.
- Ask your child to describe their feelings. Many children won't be able to do this until they have the language and cognitive skills to do so, but listening to how they feel can help calm them down. You might ask "how is your body feeling right now?" "Your face is red, does it feel hot?" "Your fists are clenched, do you feel tense?"