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There are many ways you can help your Kindergartner learn! Try these activities, then visit your library to check out a book about it. Click here to print this list.
We are learning Social and Emotional Development
Do it!
Give your kindergartner various throw away items that are found at home, like paper towel rolls, old mail, lids, etc. Ask them to arrange the items into a sculpture or create a masterpiece. The throw away items can also be added to a sensory bin at home to explore, observe and create. Talk about the different textures, shapes, and sizes. Be sensitive to your kindergartner's feelings about textures and encourage them with things that interest them. For example, "Can you use these items to make a train?"
Read it!
Just a Mess by Mercer Mayer. Monster Mess! by Margery Cuyler and S.D. Schindler.
We are learning Approaches to Learning Through Play
Do it!
Ask your kindergartner to help you plan for a family meal. Encourage them to help cook and set items on the table, then clean up. Becoming involved in the cooking process might make them more willing to try new foods. For example, if you make a casserole and they help add the ingredients, they might be more willing to try it when it is mixed together. Involvement can be as simple as making a list for shopping, dumping pre-measured ingredients, or mixing something with a spoon.
Read it!
The Berenstain Bears Lend a Helping Hand by Stan and Jan Berenstain. Herman the Helper by Robert Kraus, Jose Areugo, and Ariane Dewey.
We are learning Scientific Thinking and Technology
Do it!
Play "Who's my baby?" Name an animal and ask your kindergartner to tell you the names of the baby. For example, dog-puppy, cat-kitten. Then ask them to name the animal and you name the baby. Show them pictures of the various animals and their babies with picture cards, word cards, sign or braille. If possible, make the noise of each animal with your kindergartner or listen to it using technology. Some books even offer opportunities to feel the textures of the animal's skin and fur.
Read it!
Puppies! Puppies! Puppies! by Susan Meyers and David Walker. The Pigeon Wants a Puppy by Mo Willems.
We are learning Social Studies Thinking
Do it!
Ask your kindergartner to tell you about a time when they felt angry, mad or upset. What did they do to feel better? If they are unable to give a solution for their situation, offer some suggestions. You can create a simple social story with your kindergartner using words or pictures for them to refer back to if they are in that situation again. Use words to help them identify feelings. Explain how you have felt when you have been upset, how your body reacted and ways you were able to calm yourself down. Explain that emotions are all okay to feel and express, but there are appropriate and inappropriate ways to do so.
Read it!
Polly's Running Away Book by Frances Thomas and Sally Gardner. How to Take the Grrrr Out of Anger by Elizabeth Verdick and Majorie Lisovskis.
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