What are some good ideas for centers for preschoolers?

Question

I teach in an inclusive preschool program with students between the ages of 2.5 and 5 with a wide range of abilities. I need some good ideas for centers that last about 10-15 minutes.

We do small group activities with no more than 6 students at a time, and the students are grouped by ability. I need something that would be appropriate for students with special needs and typical students. The activities don't have to be the same, but I need general ideas that can be modified for the different groups.

We will be focusing on the color yellow, green, and orange and the letters C,D,E in the upcoming weeks. Any suggestions are appreciated.

Answer 1

My No 1 favorite activity is messy play you can use:



cornflower & water (the most fun!)

flour & water

jelly

pudding

sago & water

semolina & water

soapflakes & water

mud



You can add sand, grains or noodles for even more texture and most can be colored with food coloring to suit your theme.



Other ideas:

C:

- Cupcakes: Making or decorating cupcakes

- Construction: Supply a variety of boxes, containers, lids, paper etc and let them loose with the glue and sticky tape

- Caterpillars: Read the 'Very Hungry Catapillar', talk about how catapillars change into butterflies and then make a pom pom catapiller to take home.



D:

- Dolly play: washing them, drying them, feeding them, putting them on the potty, dressing them etc

- Drums: make drums out of anything you can find eg. saucepans, boxes, chairs, ice cream tubs etc. Take it in turns to see how each one sounds different and then make some music together.

- Dairy Food: Talk about what dairy food is and then try some different types of dairy food eg. different kinds of cheese, cream cheese, yoghurt, icecream, milk etc (check for allergies first)



E:

- Eggs: painting eggs or making egg people (after blowing out the contents first)

- Elephants: Make an elephant mask out of paper plates and a folder paper nose

Envelopes: 'write' a letter to mum, dad. grandma etc put it in an envelope with a 'stamp' and 'address' then post it in a box painted up to look like a mail box. Give the letter to the parents when they come to pick up their child.

- Earth: Play in the earth - make mud pies or do some digging or gardening

Answer 2

Try having the kids color different "ice cream" flavors and "toppings" onto paper, while you make "cones" and "bowls". Cut everything out while the kids clear off a table and get out some fake money (Monopoly money is fine). Then get behind the table and arrange the fixings. Let the kids order different ice creams. Sometimes you'll get crazy combos. Once I got a girl who wanted a "peanut butter, sparkle strawberry, banana, and lettuce cone with anchovies and blueberries". Yum! This can keep kids entertained for hours. If you want, move on to sandwiches, soups, and cookies. Also try "the body dance". This is when you say "dance with your fingers and your legs" and then slowly add things and take things away. Also try makng up stories by taking a book and read the first three pages. Then have each kid take a turn making up what happens next. Then they each get another turn. Then you take your turn and end the story. Sand pictures can be fun also. Lay down 2 layers of newspaper on the floor. Take a few cups of sand from a local beach and color them with food coloring or colored water (paint powder and water). Bring them with you in tubberwear. Then have the kids squeeze elmer's glue onto a paper in a design. Sprinkle sand on and shake exess off. Repeat with other colors. You can set an examples by making simple pictures like a boat on water or a dog. Even the youngest child can squeeze glue eith your help and loves the pretty color. A bonus to this is adding glitter to some sand. Have fun!

Answer 3

What are your "centers"? I'm thinking that you aren't talking about typical centers in a classroom but more small groups.



* Scissors or paper tearing depending on development: provide yellow, green, and orange paper. Let them cut or tear. Collect. On another day glue to the block letters Cc, Dd, Ee. Craft foam is a neat media to cut, for beginner cutters. They look need on a black background.



* Write your focus letter in white crayon on a white piece of construction paper. Provide watercolors. You can choose the color you want them to paint with by taping off the other colors with masking tape. Or make your own watercolors or use tempera cakes. When they paint over top of the paper, the focus letter shows up.



* Have the name cards of the children in your group available. If you wish, have them use alphabet manipulatives to spell their name. I made "matching mats"...I wrote their name on the top half and then the children who are unable to spell their name yet matched the letter manipulatives. You can make a chart in my name/not in my name and use your focus letters or make a graph with how many letters are in their name etc. Make it color related if you wish. :-)



* a specific color collage (would be perfect for your C week).



* Go fishing. I used a plastic dish tub, magnetic letters, and a magnetic fishing pole. We sorted out our focus letters.



* make playdough in your focus color and "build" your focus letters. You can also provide letter, shape, number cookie cutters.



* Bean Bag Throw- This is great for a review...and best done under supervision at small group. I place construction paper sheets in the colors I wish to review up on a wall and we toss bean bags at them and state the color. Of course you can do it with any concept and even mixing your colors and letters by writing your focus letters onto the paper.



* Similar to the above activity- fill 2 liter bottles with your focus colors, add a focus letter to the front of the bottle. Have them roll a ball and tell you which ones they knocked down.



* Fine motor- building towers--- provide 1" cubes in your focus colors. We aim for them to build 8-10 blocks tall.



* have plastic "easter" eggs (you can use your focus color here too) with letter manipulatives inside. Have the majority of the letters be your focus letter so they get practice saying the name and sound. You may even want to use laminated pictures with the beginning letter on one side and a corresponding picture on the other side so that those who are beyond letter recognition can be more challenged). Have them sort the eggs/letters in to two baskets.



* Mitch the Fish or The Cat of Many Colors are great small group "stories" to review colors. If you wish for these stories email me and I'll see that you get them.



* Have children paint cardboard paper towel tubes (aluminum foil tubes work best) in your focus color. Rhythm sticks. Then use these rhythm sticks for various activities..."word chunks" in each other's names or your theme-related vocab words...hold up a flash card with a number or provide tactil numbers for them to feel and have them tap their sticks together that many times. Use them for a following the directions activity.



* Copy, create and extend patterns with your focus colors.



* always have a theme related book if your activity is done before another groups. You can also have free crayon exploration as an "extra" as well or have a collection of fingerplays ready so there isn't much "wait" time.



Good luck.

Answer 4

centers should consist of the following:



Dramatic play

reading center

math center

open art center

science discovery center

quiet place for the students who would rather be by themselves.