Spring Themes
Today is the first day of Spring! I am beyond excited to see flowers in bloom and feel warmer weather. “ Spring showers bring May flowers. Discuss how hibernation ends for animals, insects, and flowers “wake” up. Observe budding flowers while going on a drive or on a walk. Spring is a great time for a nature walk around the neighborhood or even in your own backyard. Below is a list of common lesson plan ideas that you can cover during Spring.
Spring Topics
Rainbows
Plants/planting (pollination)
Flowers (parts of a flower)
Life cycles: butterfly, chickens, frog, bees
Zoo
Baby animals
Transportation
Pond
Bugs and insects
Gardens
Special topics:
Graduation
Field Day/Olympics
living/non-living
Holidays:
Easter
Saint Patrick’s Day
Memorial Day
Mother’s Day
Father’s Day
Cinco De Mayo
May Day
Spring Activities
When Spring Comes by Kevin Henkes
And Then It's Spring by Julie Fogliano
Free Online Story Resources
There are tons of websites to read books online. The great thing is that a lot of them are free. Your local library may have several resources
StoryLine Online- story titles read by celebrities such as Oprah, Whoopi Goldberg, and more!
Libby App- Borrow books to read online from your public library.
Open Library- This was one of my favorite online library sites when I taught kindergarten. It has a variety of books available to view. I noticed this site has been updated a lot since then so more titles are available than before.
Oxford Owl- This site offers free ebooks for ages 3 and up.
Youtube Story Channels
These are some of our favorite channels. Most children love bed time stories but my boys love naptime stories. Before naptime, my toddlers and I love to read stories. My go to is Youtube if I am out of print books or want to provide the children with a different reader. During the pandemic, there social experiences have been extremely limited. My one year just went to the park for the first time the other day. It makes me sad just thinking about how sheltered Ive had to keep them. The pandemic is a whole different conversation!!!!
I tend to stay away from animated stories unless its for television watching purposes so they can get effect of hearing the words read on a page and turning once the reader is done. In this day and age, I am competing with electronics for my child's attention ( I know already at 2)!!!! So the Youtube Channels below provide readers that are engaging for my son to listen to and have popular titles that he loves. As with anything online, always preview the link before showing your little one and always supervise their activities online.
Rainbow Erasers in Easter Grass
Sensory Ideas
Oats and plastic eggs- Use oatmeal or baby cereal (for younger toddlers) and place in a plastic container or tube for sensory play. Add colorful plastic eggs into the container for a springy touch. Supply spatula, measuring spoon, serving spoon and tongs for exploration. For further fine motor practice, set up a transfer station Allow your child to open the eggs to transfer the oats from the container to the egg and vice versa.
Plastic eggs and water beads- use colorful water beads as a sensory aid in a container full of plastic eggs. Water beads are a choking hazard for children under 3. Couscous (a type of pasta) is a taste safe alternative. Cook the pasta according to the package's directions. Put the couscous in a baggie with a ziptop or a container with a airtight lid. Add a few drops of food coloring and shake to distribute the color. Lay on a sheet lined with wax paper and allow to air dry for a couple of hours.
Plastic eggs in the bathtub- Make bath time fun by providing plastic eggs during a bath. Place the eggs in a bath with a few colored bath tablets (make sure your child isn't allergic or has a skin condition before using).
Toy carrots or gummy worms in flower pot in dirt (cake mix)- Purchase devil's food cake mix or chocolate cake mix in this taste safe sensory bin. Make the cake according to the package's directions. Wait an hour or so until the cake cools before handling. Add gummy worms for a snack or plastic bugs for sensory play. Crumble up the cake and place in a large container. Springtime is always a good time for vegetable sensory bins. Add toy veggies for a food theme. Read the story, "Tops and Bottoms" by Janet Stevens before the sensory activity. I love this classic story which discusses the importance of hard work as well as differences between types of vegetables. Mrs Wills Kindergarten has a great activity freebie for retelling the story.
Plastic eggs in colorful noodles- Nothing says spring like a variety of colored noodles in different colors and shapes. Create a rainbow of colors using dyed noodles. Add a few drops of food coloring and a couple squirts of hand sanitizer into a Zip Loc bag full of dried noodles. You can also use cooked pasta - add a couple drops of food coloring and half teaspoon of cooking oil. Do not add the hand sanitizer!!!!
Plastic eggs in rice- Rice is a classic sensory ingredient. Dyed rice appeals to the senses and is plenty of fun although it can make a huge mess! I always set physical boundaries when my boys are engaging in messy play. Since they are little, I provide them a little leeway (without them knowing). I typically put a smaller bin inside of a larger bin or put the activity outside if the weather permits. I like to lay down a vinyl tablecloth on top of a shower curtain for wet messy play such as water or cooked spaghetti. I layer the two covers so they overlap. The first serves as a primary boundary (that I tell the boys to stay within) while the second cover is there in case of an accident.
Plastic eggs in beans - beans are one of my favorite sensory bins since they are not as tiny as rice but not as messy as water. Provide scoops, cups, and spoons for exploration.
Here’s more great sensory ideas below …..
Therapy Fun Zone- Clean Mud
Glued to My Crafts Blog – Bird Nest Sensory Bin
Kids Activities Blog – Water Bead and Flower Sensory Tub
Learning 4 Kids – Digging Worms Sensory Play
Kids Play Box – Pond Life Sensory Play
The Jenny Evolution – DIY Spring Sensory Bottles
Mess For Less – Garden Sensory Bin
Fantastic Fun and Learning – Bird Nest Play Dough Activity
Craftulate – Birds’ Nest Small World With Homemade Salt Dough Eggs
Hands On as We Grow – Nature Sensory Bag Suncatcher
Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails – Bird Seed Sensory Bin
Fantastic Fun and Learning – Flower Garden Play Dough
Buggy and Buddy – Spring Themed Sensory Bin
Pre-K Pages – Butterfly Life Cycle Sensory Bin
Fun at Home with Kids – Mess-Free Sensory Play Butterfly
Glued to My Crafts Blog – Carrot Garden Sensory Bin
Natural Beach Living – Ladybug Life Cycle Sensory Activity
Kids Activities Blog – Edible Mud Sensory Play
Plain Vanilla Mom – Flower Garden Sensory Bin
Kids Craft Room – Spring Flower Sensory Bottle Activity
Fun at Home with Kids – Rainbow Soap Foam Sensory Play
Pre-K Pages – Moldable Rainbow Sensory Sand
Modern Preschool – Baby Bird Eats Worms Fine Motor Sensory Play
Gross Motor
Clouds and Wind from Mama of Littles
Music and Movement
Super Simple Songs- Five Little Ducks
Rock N Learn-Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear
Science/STEM
PBS Kids Go Green: Litter and Our Oceans-This Video from PBS follows the adventure of Al the Aluminum Can. It demonstrates how litter can have a negative effect on our planet. The accompanying activity provides children the opportunity to “clean” up the litter. This activity is suitable for grades 1 & up.
Easy Weather Science Experiments for Preschoolers and Toddlers five easy experiments that teach about the weather and water cycle.
Rainbow In A Jar: Water Density Experiment by Little Bins for Little Hands easy sugar and water demonstration of water density. While it’s a simple activity I would try this with an older preschooler or kindergartener as this activity requires attention and patience.
Build A Bird’s Nest By View From A Step Stool- This stem activity is derived from the book, “Owl Babies,” by Martin Waddel. Read the story and then create your own bird's nest. Activity can be adapted for all ages!
Green House- Follow a plant's journey
from a seedling to a plant. Use this free
activity template and accompanying
journal to track your plant's progress!
Subscribe for this freebie!
Spring Holidays
May Day- May 1
May Day is an ancient Spring holiday celebrated on the first of May. It is more popular in Europe than it is in America. In America, May Day is more related to our Labor Day than a Spring celebration. One of the most famous May Day traditions is the maypole. The May Pole can either require the decoration of a tree or pole. Typically, flowers, and streamers adorn the May Pole. The May Pole activity is a great outdoor, gross motor activity. Play music while the children go around to create a festive atmosphere.
May Day Instructions
Gather streamers (crepe paper) and flowers. Make sure you have enough streamers for each child.
Find a tree or pole to hang the crepe paper and flowers. Attach the streamers (crepe paper) and flowers at the top of the tree or pole.
Hand each child a streamer. Children can skip or walk around the pole/tree. In most games, children skip around 10 times to the left and then skip 10 times to the right.
Learn more about May Day here.
Want more May Day ideas? Read 9 Ways to Celebrate May Day with Kids by Backwoodsmama
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