Let's Learn with Kindergarten Here I Am! April 2025

Try these activities with your kindergartener, then visit your library to check out a book about them. Click here to print this list .

We are learning Language and Literacy

Do it!

Help your kindergartner collect pebbles. See how the pebbles can be sorted (size, color, shape, etc.) Discuss how some are alike and some are different. Assist your kindergartner in reaching, grasping, and collecting the stones. Allow them to feel the rocks with their hands or on their cheek. Use words to help them describe the textures, weight, shape, and temperature of their feelings.

Read it!

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig. Three Pebbles and a Song by Eileen Spinelli.

We are learning Social Emotional Development

Do it!

Talk about jobs your family does. How do these jobs help others? Talk about the different people, services, and agencies who work with your kindergartner. Explain their jobs to them. Discuss the ways this helps them and the family.

Read it!

A Day's Work by Eve Bunting. Families by Susan Kuklin.

We are learning Scientific Thinking and Technology

Do it!

Look out a window with your kindergartner or watch the birds outside. When finished, encourage them to draw a picture of a bird they saw.

Read it!

What in the World is an Inch? by Mary Elizabeth Salzmann. What Will Hatch? by Jennifer Ward.

We are learning Mathematics, Thinking and Expression

Do it!

Eat a snack of animal crackers. Have your kindergartner sort the crackers into groups by animal and count the number in each group. Substitute other foods if there are dietary or feeding restrictions. You can also adapt the activity using stuffed animals.

Read it!

Kindergarten Count to 100 by Jacqueline Rogers. How Do Dinosaurs Count to Ten? by Jane Yolen.

Apply Now for Lifting Family Voices: Using your Story to Strengthen Programs and Spark Change

Are you pregnant or a parent/caregiver of a child/children birth to age five in Pennsylvania? If so, Pennsylvania’s Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) invites you to register for the Lifting Family Voices: Using your Story to Strengthen Programs and Spark Change workshop on June 12, 2025, 8:30am – 4pm in Harrisburg, PA. In this workshop, you'll gain tools and tips to help you develop and share your family’s story and experiences. Learn how to make your voice heard, influence decisions, and create a more supportive community for all.

Reimbursement for child care and travel expenses such as lodging and mileage within guidelines will be provided.

Registration is due by May 16, 2025. Seats are limited and will be provided on a first come first serve basis. See the flyer for more details. Apply here. For questions, please contact Sadia Batool at c-sabatool@pa.gov.

The 2025 Pennsylvania One Book Live Event

The 2025 PA One Book is Arlo Draws an Octopus, written by Lori Mortensen and illustrated by Rob Sayegh Jr. When Arlo decides to draw an octopus, he can’t help but think that maybe he’s not an octopus drawer. His drawing has a head that looks like a hill and eight squiggly arms that look like roads. It’s an octopus disaster-piece! But just as Arlo vows never to draw an octopus again, he makes a discovery that changes his perspective about his drawing . . . and much more.

Register now to join the April 10, 2025, 10:30 am virtual live event with the author and illustrator. Space at the virtual live event is limited. Can’t make the virtual event? No worries! The event will be recorded, and the recording will be available afterward.

Pennsylvania's libraries and early learning programs have received copies to share with young children. Visit your local library to access a copy and check out the PA One Book website for early learning activities, crafts, and resources related to the book. Follow the PA One Book on Facebook for family-friendly fun posts!

Celebrate the Month of the Young Child!

During April, we come together to celebrate young children’s joy, wonder, and boundless potential! 🎉💕 The Month of the Young Child is a time to recognize the critical role families, early childhood educators, and communities play in nurturing and shaping the future of our youngest learners.

How can you become involved in MOYC?

Look for ways to celebrate in your home, early learning program, or community.
Create a display that shares why quality early learning is so important. Learn more!

Fun Nature-Based Learning Activities

Celebrate spring with fun activities to encourage fine motor skills, creative thinking and inspire a love of nature with these nature-based activities by Lindsey Brown, owner of Brown’s Family Child Care in Venango County.

The activities are perfect to do in the home or within an early learning programs, and are part of a homemade nature-based curriculum approved through Department of Education and aligns with the PA Early Learning Standards.

Check out the Bird Watching Area Activity, Circle Cereal Bird Feeder, Collaborative Bird Feeder, and the Homemade Bird Feeder activities.

Sustainable Gardening with Kids Activity Guide

Empower kids to take action and make positive contributions to their communities. This free 18-page guide by KidsGardening and High Country Gardens walks through the basics of sustainable gardening and offers tips and activity ideas for four sustainable youth garden themes.

Health Trends in Early Childhood Education

The Pennsylvania Key is excited to introduce Health Trends in Early Childhood, a monthly resource dedicated to important health topics affecting young children (from birth to age five), their families, and caregivers.

This month, in recognition of the Month of the Young Child and Child Abuse Prevention Month, we’re focusing on Child Well-Being. The goal is to highlight ways we can all help children grow up healthy and strong.

Each month, you’ll find valuable insights into a current health topic in early childhood—why it matters, how it impacts children and families, and steps we can take to support the well-being of little ones in our communities. Plus, you'll get trusted resources to help you learn more.

Mindful Parenting

Parenting can be stressful. Parenting kids with special needs can be even more stressful, and it can cause anxiety, depression and marital problems. A mindfulness practice can help alleviate stress and prevent these problems. And it can make you a better parent. Use mindfulness techniques to take stress and anxiety out of raising kids.

Positive Parenting, Thriving Kids

The Positive Parenting, Thriving Kids Project is a series of free videos and print resources with practical, evidence-based information and skills to address families most common parenting challenges. This project is part of the Child Mind Institute’s innovative partnership with the state of California. The series is organized into four categories, each containing multiple videos. Each video has been created in both English and Spanish. Ver episodios en español

Don't Wait. Vaccinate

When you plan summer activities, please remember to make an appointment for vaccinations. Scheduling your children now for the vaccines they will need to start the next school year will help you cross a critical item off your hectic back-to-school list this fall.

Immunizations should be part of your children's regular school physical before kindergarten. See information about immunizations for students attending Pennsylvania schools. For more information regarding vaccines required for your children, please get in touch with your children's health care provider.

Helping Parents Be Parents

Parenting can be challenging. There's no such thing as a perfect parent, and there are a lot of different ways to be a good one.

The Early Learning GPS has tips, tools, and resources to help when families encounter challenging behavior with their child.

Parenting is challenging, and the challenge comes with little direction at times. Just as there are no perfect children, there is no such thing as a perfect parent. Pennsylvania Family Support Alliance (PFSA) believes every parent needs and deserves two things: Information, and support! Visit the PFSA website for resources and support.

Calendar of Activities for Early Learning Providers

Throughout April, let’s celebrate the Month of the Young Child, a time that shines a spotlight on young children’s and their families’ needs. It’s also a moment to acknowledge the significant impact of early childhood programs and services, including yours, in meeting these needs.

As an early learning professional, your role is crucial in the Month of the Young Child. Check out the April Calendar of Activities designed specifically for you, with activities and information to help prepare children and their families for school success. Click here to print the April Calendar of Activities for Early Learning Professionals .