Early Learning Activities
These resources provide helpful information and suggest engaging experiences that will encourage young children to be successful learners.
5 Fun Ways For Kids To Learn To Write Their Name
Kids can get really frustrated trying to learn to write their name. It’s a difficult skill to learn at a young age but something that is very important to learn before starting kindergarten. read more
8 Cool Color-by-Number & Color-by-Letter Printables
Help your preschooler or kindergartener learn his colors, numbers, and letters with these free printable color-by-number and color-by-letter coloring pages! Also check out our Preschool and Kindergarten Workbook. read more
A Box of ABC's
A Box of ABC'sAge: 3 to 5Time: 5 minutes or longerType of Activity: Learning through art Materials needed: read more
A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words
A Picture's Worth a Thousand WordsBooks that have no words, just beautiful pictures, invite you and your child to use your imagination and make up your own stories. What you need: read more
ABC Shapes
ABC ShapesDirections Review the letters of the alphabet that your child knows and recognizes. Start with the most familiar letter of the alphabet and have your child make the shape of the letter with his body. It helps to show your child a picture or an example of the letter first. This is a good activity with another child, since many letters need two bodies to complete. read more
Action Steps for Families
Action Steps for FamiliesThere are a number of steps that you and other family members can take to help prepare your young children to become readers and to support the reading habit once they are in school. These include: read more
Activities for Age Two
Activities for Age TwoThese activities will teach children new words and story content, and will enrich and expand children's language and emergent literacy skills. read more
Add and Subtract: For Spanish Speakers
This handout for Spanish speaking parents helps them improve their child's math readiness. read more
Adding up to 12 At Home
This handout explains fun math games families can play. read more
Alphabet Book
Alphabet Book Materials Small notebook or loose sheets of paper Crayons or markers Old magazines Scissors Glue Photos of friends and family (optional)Directions read more
Alphabet Caterpillar
Alphabet CaterpillarWhat You'll Need:· 14 sheets of construction paper· Marker· Brown paper bag Help your child learn her ABC's! What to Do: Step One: Fold each piece of construction paper in half. Step Two: On each half of the folded paper, cut out a circle about 4 inches wide. Step Three: Write a letter of the alphabet in the middle of each circle with the marker (you should have two circles left over). read more
Alphabet Game: Upper and Lower Case Concentration
Have fun reviewing upper and lower case letters of the alphabet with this Curious George matching game. read more
Alphabet Matchup
Alphabet Matchup Materials Clothespins Paper Tape Pen or marker Old magazines ScissorsDirections read more
Alphabet Shapes
Alphabet ShapesWhat you need: A large sheet of paper Crayons Plastic alphabet letters What you do: 1. Trace all of the alphabet letters on the paper, in alphabetical order. read more
Alphabet Toss
Alphabet TossKids 5 to 7 Indoor activity Required: Thin cardboard or paper, drawing supplies, four to eight pennies, muffin tin, small items We have a fool-proof one, and we call it the Alphabet Toss. The ingredients are: enough consonants and vowels to make dozens of words, a sprinkle of luck, and a generous supply of spelling skills. You'll also need four pennies and muffin tins of any size (the larger the cups, the easier the game, and the better-suited for younger kids). read more
Anatomy for Kids
Anatomy for KidsMaterials Butcher paper or plain newsprint paper Paints, felt pens, or crayons Directions read more
April and Andy the Acrobats
Children will learn about the letter A with this coloring page. read more
As Simple as A-B-C
As Simple as A-B-CSharing the alphabet with your child helps him begin to recognize the shapes of letters and link them with sounds. He will soon learn the difference between individual letters -- what they look like and what they sound like. What you need: read more
Bedtime Race
Bedtime RaceTime 15 minutes Materials Small timer Directions Preschoolers love a challenge, and you can use that to your advantage at bedtime. Set a small timer for 15 minutes as a signal for your child to run for the bedroom, change clothes, brush her teeth, and hop into bed. Your child wins if the timer has not gone off.Follow with a favorite storybook. Extensions read more
Big Feet, Little Feet
Big Feet, Little Feet Activity for an individual child Age group: 18-40 months Duration of activity: 30 minutes Materials: Construction paper Markers Scissors Crayons This activity will help your child learn about sizes and comparison. You may wish to do this activity with hands as well. If you have a cooperative cat or dog in the family, you can include it, too. read more
Celebration Countdown
Celebration CountdownTime 25 to 30 minutes Materials Colored paperGlue Directions Using visuals tools to help your child look forward to special days can help to control anticipation. Make a paper link chain that corresponds to the number of days until the special day.Hang it in a prominent place chosen by your child and remove one link every night at bedtime. Extensions read more
Choice Tickets
Choice TicketsTime 5 to 10 minutes Materials PaperScissors Directions Cut the paper into ticket-sized squares. Whatever the behavior difficulty your child is having, such as staying in bed at night, give her a ticket or 2 that can be used to choose an alternative. For example, at bedtime, your child might spend one ticket to come back for another hug and another to get a drink. Extensions read more
Circle Dancing
Circle DancingDirections Identify with your child all the things in and around the house that are circular. These may include wheels, plates, balls, clock faces, coins, cookies, and doorknobs. Roll a coin and a ball and watch them travel. Have your child put his body into a round or circular shape. Encourage your child to move in circles and explore the ways round objects move in place and from place to place. Try spinning and swirling too. read more
Clothespin Colors
Clothespin ColorsIf the cutting and gluing aspect of preparing this activity will take more time than you have, use two sets of matching stickers instead. Materials Metal lids from frozen-juice cans Double set of pictures (either photographs or from a magazine) Glue Clear contact paper Magnets (optional) Plastic container, shoebox, or diaper-wipe container Directions read more
Cloud Watching
Cloud Watching Activity for an individual child Age group: 18-40 months Duration of activity: 30 minutes This classic activity is still one of the best ways to spend an afternoon. What a great way to spend some quiet and quality time with your young child! Find a nice clear area where you and your child can lie down and watch the clouds. Be sure to encourage your toddler to use his imagination. Does he see animals, people, different shapes? read more
Color by Number
Print out this color by number activity for your kids to enjoy. What picture is hidden inside? read more
Color Cards
Color CardsMaterials Construction paper Black marker Scissors Clear contact paper Directions read more
Color Cube
Color CubeMaterials Empty milk cartons (any size will do) Tape Scissors Construction or contact paper in six different colors Glue Clear contact paper Directions read more
