Rainbows on Bubble Wrap

Extending the 2's activity yesterday, our 3's class painted strips of color in rainbow order on bubble wrap. They then pressed paper on top to make a print. They always love the surprise when the paper is pulled up from the paint!

Fun with Bubble Wrap and Paint

Painting with 2 year olds:

It started out as painting on bubble wrap with brushes and then pressing paper on it to pick up the print.

And then they wanted to touch the painted bubble wrap, trying to pop the bubbles.

That lead to slippery fingers.

Next came the hands.

Then came the arms...

And then came the sink!!!

Love these tactile 2's!

St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day with my 3's class! We found a note that instructed us to follow the rainbow. This was rainbow-colored yarn that led us upstairs, through several church classrooms, and finally to a gold coin hunt! Very simple, but very fun! 

I got the hat idea here. Thank you, Karen!

Window Blocks

More fun with the overhead projector! We love these window blocks. They are also perfect on our light table.

Simple Counting Cards

I made these simple counting cards a couple of years ago. I stuck foam numbers to cardstock. You can use anything for the objects.

Some of the preschoolers decided to not only count, but also recognize color.

And when it was clear these 3 year olds were ready to go beyond 6, I pulled out the rest of the number cards. 

Simple!

Using Trays

What would we do without trays? We use them for everything! But this week I realized how nice they are at the writing table. Especially when there is glue and smaller objects involved. It defines their space. If a preschooler is doing a lot of drawing and/or writing, I can use a place mat instead, so the lip of the tray won't interfere. We use trays for puzzles and manipulatives, but I've never placed them on this table before. I've noticed the children are working there for longer periods of time, and they aren't getting frustrated that their neighbor's work is getting into their space.

I guess no matter how long we teach, we always discover new ideas! Isn't it wonderful?

Rainbow Toast

I can't believe this is the first time we've made rainbow toast. So simple and the preschoolers loved it!

Rainbow Toast

Pour milk into 3 separate cups. Add red to the first cup, yellow to the second cup, and blue to the third cup. Brush onto bread (white works best). Toast and butter bread and enjoy!

Bug Catchers at the Fine Motor Center

After purchasing bug catchers for our outdoor science area, I realized it makes a great tool at the fine motor table as well. Great with large pom poms.

Works great with large jingle bells, too!

Paper Towel Rainbows

I got this fun idea from Deborah over at Teach Preschool. Thank you, Deborah, for once again sharing such great ideas and activities for preschool!

We used half-sheets of paper towels (fortunately, we had some that were already cut that way) and had the preschoolers color markers on them. When finished, they sprayed the paper towel with water and watched the colors bleed. That was very exciting! When dry, I cut them into 3" squares. I lightly drew an arch with pencil and they used q-tips (I'm getting smarter with the glue!) to cover the arch. Five squares were then placed on the gluey arch.

Beautiful rainbows!

Something New in the Block Corner

Looking for something new in your block corner? Try rocks! The preschoolers loved sorting them by size, counting them, lining them up, and hauling them in trucks.