Educating your preschooler can be fun. Think outside the box and a world of learning opportunities await!
Not only is your preschooler learning new concepts every day through relationships, communication and experiences, but she desires to learn!
Take advantage of this unquenchable desire to learn and begin teaching them now. Be careful about neglecting to encourage their thirst for knowledge. These tender years are the perfect time to teach a young child basic concepts in a fun way so they will desire to learn even more as they grow older.
Don’t give in to the temptation to throw educating your child on someone else. Yes, they will be able to go to school one day and learn the basics and more, but you are setting the foundation now and can easily give your child a head-start.
Taking time out of your day to connect and teach your munchkins will not only benefit their mind, but also their heart. The bonding experienced while teaching and learning is a special one you should try to cultivate. The extra time and thought involved is worth it. But, again, with preschoolers, teaching is kept very simple, and thus SUPER fun!
Who ever said that most of learning comes from the lifeless pages of a book? Don’t get me wrong, books are great teaching tools. That is why we have bookshelves full of them. However, until your child has a strong phonics and math foundation, she cannot learn chunks of concepts from a book. For this precious time in her life, she learns most about everything from you. Right now, you are the most important, open book to her. Let her soak up the knowledge that lies in the pages of your life.
Do you feel inadequate to teach? Do you think teaching isn’t fun? These simple, and creative ideas will create a joy for learning and teaching. Just try it! You will never know the joy you are missing until you take the time to teach your child letters, colors, shapes and numbers. Enjoy this time and get ready to have some fun AND learn too!
Simple and Fun Ways to Teach Your Preschooler
- Play games! Dust off that Scrabble game box, and begin some letter fun. Kids of all ages love hands-on learning. Pick four tiles and arrange them in a line on a flat surface. Slowly point out each letter and say the letter’s name. Then, ask your child to say it with you. Pick up the letter tiles and place them in your child’s palm, and then close her hand. With her eyes closed, ask her to pick one tile out of her hand. Once selected, she can open her eyes. Discuss the tile. Does it have lines or curves? Remind the child of the letter’s name again. Return tiles to the flat surface, and ask the child to pick up a certain letter. Repeat these steps until letter recognition has improved.
- Line up some small pails or buckets. Grab some small, soft, primary-colored balls or bean bags. Ask your child to throw a certain colored bean bag or ball into the bucket. Switch colors every time.
- Count stairs. Stairs are a great opportunity to get counting done everyday. As you ascend and descend, count every stair with your little one in a sing-song voice. Smile at your child and encourage him to join in. Continual repetition accelerates a child’s learning.
- Take time to name objects on the pages of books you read together. Point out the blue flower, the three birds or the bright yellow sun that looks like a circle.
- Count out edible objects. M&Ms, gummy bears or skittles are a tasty place to start. Name the colors before eating. Point out the “s” on the Skittles and the “m” on the M&Ms. Count out teddy grahams or goldfish. You already have your little one’s undivided attention with these goodies. Make snack time a learning time!
- Have a treasure hunt. Try to find as many red things around the house as you can. Draw a collage of all the things you discovered that were red. Change up colors as desired.
- Grab some play-doh. Play-doh is such a fun learning tool. You can teach colors, counting and even shapes. Little mess and little prep is involved in this learning experience.
- Bake together. Baking is another fun activity that can teach measuring, counting, colors and letters. Make simple french bread pizzas, cookies or just a box of brownies. Either way, your munchkin is sure to learn some basic educational concepts!
What are some simple and fun ways you encourage your preschooler to learn? Please share them with us in the comments section! We can always learn new things and fun tips!