A key component of Montessori primary education is that children learn to write in cursive first. I was initially surprised by this since traditional education teaches cursive writing later (if ever!). However once the philosophy behind it was explained, it made perfect sense. If you look at a young child’s scribbles, they usually consist of loops and wavy lines. Their writing flows from one shape to the next without lifting their pencil. Sound familiar?
Pre-writing naturally tends to mimic cursive. This is why the Montessori philosophy teaches cursive first – they believe it comes easier to young children.
Unfortunately I have found that cursive writing materials for preschool aged children are remarkably difficult to find. Most workbooks for this age group focus on printing letters. The few Montessori-endorsed materials I found were often very expensive and had to be ordered online.
When I brought this up with Goose’s teacher she helped me to devise a flashcard system that I could make on my own. After taking the time to create these fabulous flashcards, I just had to share them with you!
I designed my flashcards to fit on standard 3″ x 5″ note cards. Every flashcard features a front with an upper and lower case cursive letter, along with a small inset script letter. On the reverse is a large high resolution photograph of an animal or object that begins with that letter. I have even included an additional blank template in case you wish to replace an image with one of your own. It turned out to be much harder than I expected to come up with what I hoped would be a universally recognizable image for each letter. The last thing I wanted was for children to get confused because they saw ‘yak’ and thought ‘cow’ or saw a ‘yacht’ and thought ‘boat’. (So I went with Yogurt for Y which probably isn’t much better, but it is what it is.)
Assembly is very simple for these cards. Simply download and print the flashcards, cut out each card (It will go much faster with a paper cutter like this one from Swingline
These flashcards have both the cursive letters as well as script letters on the front. The idea is to cover the script letter with your thumb and ask your child what sound the cursive letter shown makes. If your child is struggling, move your thumb to reveal the script letters. We see these so much in our society that many children pick them up naturally. Finally, show your child the object or animal on the back of the card so they link the ‘buh’ sound of the letter B with ‘bear’ etc. It may be helpful to note that in Montessori schools children do not initially learn the names of letters, they are called by the sound they make.
You can also use the flashcards in reverse by showing your child the picture first. Have him name the sound that the image starts with and then turn over the card to reveal the letters that make that sound.
This is the best part – the flashcards are free! All you have to do is sign up below. You will then receive a link and password to my Free Digital Resource Library. You will never get spam from me but you WILL get access to an ever-growing library of printables, templates and more. What are you waiting for?
It’s Friday, and that means the end of another fantastic week of Tot School. This is the final post of my Farm themed tot school unit. If you missed the first 2 parts, you can find them here, and here.
This is a fantastic Montessori-based activity that focuses on spooning. Spooning is a fantastic way to develop hand strength and muscle control which is vital when children begin learning to write. To present this activity I placed a tray on our learning center with 3 small ceramic ramekins, one larger ceramic ramekin, and a spoon. Inside the larger ramekin I poured about 1/2 Cup dried split peas. The 3 smaller ramekins each contained a chicken figurine from our Battat Farm Animal Set
I then demonstrated for goose how to carefully scoop up one spoonful of peas and pour it into a ramekin. He up the necessary motions quickly and was soon rotating out his chickens so that all of our farm animals could be fed.
It’s important to note that no matter how careful your child is, you will ultimately end up with peas on your floor. However, presenting this activity on a tray does help keep the mess contained.
I came up with the idea for this activity when I noticed that Nugget was having a hard time distinguishing between the animals in our Battat Farm Animal Set
I purchased these wooden trays several years ago at Target, but this one is very similar. Inside each tray I adhered a set of 4 Velcro tabs. The opposite side of the Velcro tabs was attached to a laminated image of each type of animal. This provided a great deal of variety in the sorting, because I could group up to 4 types of animal within each ‘fence’.
Once the activity was prepared, I gave a lesson to both Nugget and Goose. I showed them how to sort through the animals to find the ones that match the picture within each tray. For Nugget, I kept the activity very simple. I began with only a single, easily identifiable animal in each pen. Then I gradually increased the difficulty.
For Goose, I focused on the animals that looked the most alike. Then I encouraged him to carefully examine the animals to find characteristics that make them easier to identify. I.e. the goat and the dog figures are very similar so I helped him check for horns to tell the two apart.
I designed this set of clip cards to help children begin to recognize the sound that words start with, and then associate that sound with the corresponding letter. We love to play “the sound game” with Goose when we’re driving in the car. I pick an object and ask him to tell me what sound it starts with. Then we take turns trying to think of other words that start with the same sound. This is particularly great because I often come up with words that Goose isn’t familiar with so he is building vocabulary as I explain what the words mean.
The sound game can easily be adjusted to accommodate older children. Ask them to identify the sound that a word ends with or even a middle sound. As children become more accustomed to this game, you can begin to introduce clip cards like these. The idea is for the child to name the animal shown, then identify the sound that it starts with. Finally, have them point out the letter that makes that sound. They are called ‘clip cards’ because parents often have the child use a clip or clothespin to mark their letter selection.
I like to present the cards on a metal tray or cookie sheet along with a set of small magnets. (As always, keep small magnets away from young children for whom they could present a choking hazard.) To get your free set of printable clip cards sign up below. You will receive your link and access code for my Free Digital Resource Library. Hint: There’s a lot more there than just clip cards!
What do you think? Did you enjoy this week’s farm unit? Let me know how it went, and what unit themes you would like to see next in the comments below.
We are rolling right on through our farm themed tot school unit, and so far we have been having a blast! If you missed Part I, be sure to check it out. There were some really great crafts, recipes and activities for preschool or tot school. Today, our farm unit is going to the birds – literally! All of our crafts and activities revolve around poultry, so we will be feeding poultry, gathering eggs, gluing feathers and much more. Let’s get started!
I think counting mats are such a fun way to combine fine motor skill development with early math skills. Plus, they make counting just a little more fun. I designed these mats for counting up to 20, although you could easily use only the first 10 to match your child’s skill level. On each card I have featured one or more bird from the farm, and these birds are hungry! I recommend using dry corn kernels but you can use any dry beans or small counter that you have at home. As always, any small object (such as corn kernels) can post a choking hazard to small children so use your own best judgement.
While Goose enjoyed working his way through all 20 counting mats, Nugget had fun helping by trying to name what type of birds were on each card. It’s always great when a learning activity can include both an older and younger sibling!
Visit my Digital Resource Library to download and print your free copy of my Feed the Chickens Counting Mats. Don’t have an access code? Easy! Just sign up below and one will be emailed to you right away!
I wish I could take credit for this activity but all the credit for this one goes to Kim at Life Over C’s. Definitely check out her site for some fantastic learning activities and to download the printables for this fun activity.
This activity features a printable mat showing a wide assortment of fruits and veggies, along with a matching set of fruit and veggie cards. A quick pass through the laminator and a few Velcro tabs later and you have a fun and educational sensory bin search! I used Popsicle sticks and card stock to make garden signs that I adhered inside our sensory bin with a hot glue gun. This was definitely one of our cuter activities, and digging through the beans to find each fruit or vegetable kept Goose occupied for quite a while.
When we began I figured this would be one of those short-lived activities that wasn’t challenging enough for Goose but was a bit advanced for Nugget, boy was I wrong! It turns out that Goose’s fruit and veggie vocabulary isn’t quite as advanced as I thought and he learned a lot as he dug out each card and then let Nugget help him find the match.
Of course, soon the tractor was digging out the vegetables, and I had to watch Nugget like a hawk to be sure he didn’t try to eat the black beans, but overall I would call this one a win!
For this project we decided to create our own pet roosters! Goose named his ‘Captain Picklepuss’, which is of course a very respectable name for a rooster. We decorated our roosters using glue, feathers, crayons, and pretty much anything else Goose dug out of our craft closet. The end result was a rooster that would be the talk of any barnyard, I’m sure.
Visit my Digital Resource Library to download and print your free Rooster Printable. Don’t have an access code? Easy! Just sign up below and one will be emailed to you right away!
My boys have very active imaginations and adore pretend play. I think that the creative thinking skills developed during imaginative play are vital to future success, so we put a lot of emphasis on it in our house. When shopping for toys I always avoid what Alton Brown calls ‘Unitaskers’. These toys that can only be played with in one specific way just seem limiting and are rarely the toys that see repeated play.
For this activity I made nests out of paper bags (instructions below) and then filled each nest with a few plastic Easter eggs. We were a little short on stuffed chickens so our nests included a variety of feathered occupants. After staging the nests, I also laid out a cowboy hat for costuming, and an egg carton for additional sorting practice. I gave each boy a basket and encouraged them to gather eggs and just have fun. Not surprisingly, Nugget decided to fill his basket with poultry and lovingly carry them throughout the house, carefully clucking and quacking at each one. This is such a sweet age! Goose took the task a little more seriously and was very intent on gathering all of the eggs, and opening each one in search of leftover Easter candy. As if candy would last that long in our house!
They returned to this activity several times this week, and each time they found new ways to interact with the nests. My favorite was when I walked into the room to find Nugget sitting very carefully on a plastic egg. Evidently his brother told him if he sat still long enough it would hatch! Oh how I hated to burst that bubble!
We had so many farm themed books in our collection, that this was one tot school unit that hardly required a trip to the library. Here are a few of our favorites:
This is a book that I picked up a few years ago at a consignment sale, and it has been a favorite of ours ever since. It’s pretty short, but the novelty lies in the fact that it places you inside the tractor. It’s a fun short read perfect for a toddler who is just getting into tractors.
This is the original Otis book, although there are now several in the series. It tells the tale of a sweet tractor and his friendship with a lonely calf. The illustrations are striking and the plot is well-written enough that parents and children should both enjoy this story.
The Grumpy Morning by Pamela Duncan Edwards
This is a cute book about the morning that the farmer overslept. I like the fact that the farmer is a woman, since too many farm books only feature male farmers. It also has a nice rhythm that makes reading it aloud pleasurable.
Moo by Matthew Van Fleet
Matthew Van Fleet is famous for his beautifully photographed and highly interactive children’s books. Each page features tactile stimulation and moving parts, sure to hold even the youngest child’s attention.
Cock-a-Doodle-Doo! Barnyard Hullabaloo by Giles Andreae
Giles Andreae is back again with this tour through the barnyard. Each page features a different animal and a short rhyme. The illustrations are fun and bright and the rhymes are playful. It’s definitely worth adding to your bookshelf.
Lift the Flap Farm by Hinkler Books
This book can be a little tough to find, but it’s worth the effort. It’s chock full of photographs of farm animals, equipment and even produce. My boys love lifting the flaps, and I love the extra questions at the bottom of each page to encourage critical thinking or find hidden extras.
This is a fun and silly story about how a message can be distorted as it gets passed from person to person (or animal to animal as it were). It’s great for an older preschooler who can understand the concept of pass it on, but the humor might be lost on younger children.
The Cow Loves Cookies by Karma Wilson
I love love love Karma Wilson. Her books never disappoint, and always include an attractive rhyming structure along with a playful plot. If you buy one fiction book from this list – buy this one. It’s just plain fun to read!
Be sure to check back later this week to see the final portion of our farm unit. Some of the best is still yet to come!
I don’t know if it’s the slower pace or the long days outside in the sun but it always is enough to make farm life appealing. At least it was until last week. Last week we signed up to have farm duty at Goose’s Montessori school. The school has it’s own miniature farm with chickens, ducks, sheep and miniature donkeys. Since there is a new baby donkey I was quick to sign up to take care of the animals for one week of summer break. Little did I know that I was going to be in WAY over my head!
The first day I showed up with a 3 year old and 1 year old thinking it would be a quick visit. We would hand out a little food, pet the baby donkey and be home in time for naps. Nope! I think the highlight was when the sheep got out of their pen and I spent an hour attempting to chase / bribe them back in. Or trying to corral the chickens into the coop …. or was it when I was hauling buckets of water (PS I think it weighed at least 50 lbs!) and a donkey knocked me over and I spilled the bucket all over myself.
Long story short – I have learned that I am NOT cut out for farm life. That hasn’t kept me from designing a super fun farm themed tot school unit. Please forgive the 3 enormous posts this week – there were so many cute activities I got a little carried away!
It wouldn’t be a tot school unit without nomenclature cards. If you aren’t familiar with these fantastic learning tools I explain them here. I always like to start any new unit with nomenclature cards because they are such an easy way to introduce the new vocabulary that you will be using throughout the unit. I have designed my own set of farm nomenclature cards that you can download for free from my Digital Resource Library. Don’t have an access code? Just sign up below and one will be emailed to you right away!
One of my favorite games with nomenclature cards is to combine them with one or more Safari Ltd. Toobs. I used the Farm TOOB
Now this is one FUN sensory bin! Probably because it’s so messy. We used some pigs from our Farm TOOB
I introduced the activity with this video explaining why pigs roll in mud, and we read ‘Hogwash
Goose prefers to keep his hands clean, but even he was willing to dive into the pudding when he figured out how tasty it is. Nugget, of course, can always be counted on to coat himself from head to toe in any substance he gets his hands on.
Making paper plate lambs is easy, fun and the end results are surprisingly adorable! Best of all this is a craft that a preschooler can complete with minimal assistance from Mom. Elmer’s glue scrubs clean from just about every surface, right? *wink*.
Prep Work: Download my template and cut out the legs, face and ears of the lamb.
**Don’t have an access code for the Digital Resource Library? No problem! Just sign up below and one will me emailed to you right away!
Ok, I’m going to level with you. This was a super neat activity that turned out far better than I initially imagined, however it might be difficult to replicate at home. I will show you what I did, and then offer my suggestions for how you could possible put your own spin on the activity using things you already have around the house.
To begin with you need a frame of some sort. We made our own out of this Discovery Kids Construction Fort
Next, you need a rubber glove and some twine. Fill the glove with water and use the twine to secure it shut at the wrist opening. Then use your frame to suspend the glove so that it dangles in the opening. When your child is ready to begin ‘milking their cow’ use a safety pin to poke 3-4 holes in the tip of 1-2 fingers. The glove will tend to drip so please keep a bucket beneath your milking station.
Like a real cow, we found that our glove gave us the best results when we used a push-pull motion. If you feel particularly ambitious you could even decorate your frame so that it looks like a real cow. If you do that you officially win the Mom-of-the-Year Award and I absolutely want you to send in pictures!
Nugget and Goose worked up quite the appetite doing all of our farm activities today so I figured it would be a great opportunity to finish the day with a yummy farm-themed snack. These tasty haystack snacks are a sweet and easy treat!
Optional Additions: Slivered Almonds, Nutella, Chopped Nuts, Mini Marshmallows, Caramel Chips, Heath Bar Crumbles.
or wax paper.There’s way too much sugar to call this snack healthy, but I think it’s just right as a special treat after working hard and learning all morning.
Which did your kids like best? Are there any other farm-related activities you would like to see later this week?
Father’s Day is three days away. That means that if you don’t have your gifts yet it’s time to get your fanny in gear. Not to worry though, I’ve got a great card idea and a cool looking mug that will be perfect for Dad, Grandad, or any other special someone who deserves a little recognition. These two fun father’s day crafts should be just the thing to kick off Father’s Day – but if you need more you should check out my post on how to make a ‘Hot Wheels Back Massage Shirt’. Intrigued? You should check it out!
Dads are amazing aren’t they? Always ready to step in and kill that spider or open that pickle jar. What would we do without them? Show Dad that he means the world to you with this crafty card!
If you have kids, you probably rely on your morning coffee to survive. Unless you’re my hubby who has somehow managed to reach the ripe age of 40 without developing a caffeine addiction. I can’t decide if that’s admirable or just insane. Either way, this coffee mug craft can easily be adapted for your favorite friend or family member. It does require permanent markers though so it might be best to save for preschoolers and older children. Or even make one yourself – they’re easy and fun!
Enjoy your mug! I have read that oil based sharpies will survive the dishwasher but I have chosen to hand wash mine with soap and water and it is holding up nicely. I believe this craft could easily translate to use on a plate or serving dish but I am not sure how food safe it would be. You should be fine with your markings on the outside of your mug though.
How did your mug turn out? Did the recipient just adore it? Tell me all about it and show me a picture in the comments!
Is it just me or is this year just flying by? I can’t believe that June is already halfway over – where has Summer gone? Father’s Day is right around the corner, and I have the perfect easy gift to make for Dad. This shirt is perfect for those lazy parenting days when you just can’t quite adult but the kids still want to play. Lucky for you all it takes is one quick Walmart Run and 15 at the ironing board and your Father’s Day gift will be good to go!
Edit: A few readers have mentioned having issues getting the images to print properly. If your printer is having issues with formatting, I recommend visiting the Acrobat print dialogue to select Page Scaling, Tile Large Pages (or Tile All Pages). Set Tile Scale to 89% and overlap to 0″.
I hope the Dad in your life enjoys this gift – and that whoever ends up wearing it gets what I am sure is a much deserved break. (And maybe a Hot Wheels induced back massage??!)
Do you guys have any other exciting plans to make Father’s Day special? Let me know in the comments!
All good things must come to an end, and so too must my Ocean themed Tot School unit. I have had so much fun with my boys as we learned about aquatic life, and tried out some fantastic games and crafts. Today I’m going to show you the rest of what we tried out, and give you my final verdict on what to try (and what to stay away from!).
This was a really unique activity that turned out to be a lot of fun – even for Mommy! The supplies are minimal and the results are striking. Best of all – this is a activity that covers a wide range of ages so everyone can participate together.
Use your dish of water to wet the sponge and apply it to both sides of your construction paper. Let it get good and wet! Then use the chalk to draw on the wet paper. As the paper dries your chalk art will become bright and vivid. See? I told you it was crazy easy!
For the littlest tots the sensory experience of handling a sponge and wet paper will be fun enough. This is a very tactile art project that can create some really fun looking art.
I designed this free printable to encourage kids to get up and get moving. Each card features a cute ocean creature and an action for your child to perform. They can ‘Wiggle like a jellyfish’ or ‘Squawk like a Seagull’. It didn’t take long for this to turn into a game of ‘who can be sillier?’ at our house. After sitting still for an art project it’s great to get moving, so this was a perfect follow-up to our underwater chalk art.To download yours just sign up below and you’ll be sent an access code for my Free Digital Resource Library!
As I mentioned in Part I, Safari Limited Ocean Toobs played a huge part in our Ocean themed tot school unit. They worked very well in our water bead bin, but they’re also perfect in a dish of blue colored rice. Rice is always a safe bet if you feel that your little ones aren’t quite ready to be trusted with water beads.
If you haven’t made colored rice you can see how we do it here.
I LOVE to read, and I try my hardest to instill that love in my boys. I think the most important thing is to read as often as possible, so I always go out of my way to find books that go with our tot school themes. Here are a few of the books we enjoyed the most:
DK Eyewitness Books: Ocean
Commotion in the Ocean
Clark the Shark
The Pout-Pout Fish
The Rainbow Fish
Our ocean unit was a ton of fun! I feel like my boys learned a lot and I will definitely pull out some of these activities again as Nugget gets older and is ready to participate more. The biggest hit was the ice-cavating activity and the least successful was the jellyfish bottle.
Comment below with your own hits and misses, and let me know if there is a tot school theme you would like to see soon.
Welcome back! I’m super excited to share with you more of our ocean themed tot school unit. If you missed the first part of this unit just click here.
This activity takes a little foresight to prepare but is still super easy and my boys just LOVED it! I used small plastic storage containers and froze an assortment of seashells and ocean figurines within several layers of colored ice. If you’re short on time I think most kids would be just as happy with a single color block of ice, but the rainbow definitely adds a little something extra.
Once your ice block is frozen your work is done and it’s time to let the kiddos get to it. I provided a bowl of warm water and an assortment of sponge brushes, spray bottles and droppers for applying it to the ice. I also gave the boys several toy hammers, saws and screwdrivers. They aren’t very effective but it didn’t stop Nugget and Goose from trying.
This is definitely a messy activity so I recommend saving it for a hot day outside.
This was one of those activities that I wasn’t too impressed by, but my boys have loved. We made our little jellyfish out of an old plastic grocery bag and a Voss water bottle. My biggest complaint is that he moves too quickly and tends to hide at the top of the bottle. I have experimented with adding corn syrup to the water (Spoiler Alert: DON’T Try That!) and it had a very slimy reaction with the plastic bag and quickly started growing something disgusting. Perhaps the bags from your grocery store are cleaner but I learned that mine are a petri dish of germs just waiting to grow. Ick!
How did your jellyfish turn out? Did he have the same swimming issues that ours did? Tell me all about it in the comments, and if you find a way to slow down his swim please share! 🙂
This printable turned out to be one of my favorites, because there are so many ways to modify it. The download includes a basic large vs. small version as well as a large vs. medium vs. small page. Once you have printed out the sorting background, print the page full of ocean creatures and cut them out. As always I laminated mine so it would withstand multiple uses. After finding tiny creature cut-outs all over the house I went back and added clear velcro dots to the back of each creature and the background page so that they stay with the activity.
This sorting page also works great for sorting seashells, or even stickers if you find a variety of sizes. What did your kids prefer to sort?
One of the best things about these learning units is the opportunity to scavenge your house to find materials. Sure, you can make some activities, but you’ll be surprised how much you already have to work with. Here are a few of our favorite toys and games.
Color Fun Fish Bowl
Melissa & Doug Sea Life Wooden Chunky Puzzle (7 pcs)
Baby Einstein: Animal Discovery Cards
Safari Ltd Ocean TOOB
Summer is a great time to take a vacation to the beach, but if it’s too far away you can bring the beach inside with this fun ocean themed tot school unit! I have created so many printables and activities that I had to divide it into three posts! So check back throughout the week as I continue to share all the ocean themed fun we have been having!
As a Montessori Mama I am a HUGE fan of nomenclature cards. What are nomenclature cards, you ask? Simple, they are cards that feature a vocabulary word and image (think flashcards for vocabulary building). In the Montessori tradition they are frequently used as ‘Three-Part Cards’. There is a complete card with both the image and title, as well as a second divided card with an image on one portion and the title on a separate portion. It really isn’t as confusing as it sounds 🙂
As children begin to read they can use 3-part cards to match the title to the image. For now, my boys just use nomenclature cards which allow them to build vocabulary. (If you’re interested in learning more, click here) For months Nugget has been trying desperately to get his hands on Goose’s laminated nomenclature cards for each unit I introduce. Unfortunately his little motor skills just aren’t quite ready to handle the laminated cards without bending (and often chewing!) them to pieces.
This is why I decided it was time to find a way to create his own set of nomenclature cards that would be virtually indestructible.
Nugget was so excited when I introduced his very own nomenclature cards! He’s at the age where he wants to do everything that big brother does. First we sat together and went through each card as I read the titles to him. Then, I brought out a basket containing Munchkin Ocean Squirts
Lacing cards are such a fun way to develop fine motor skills, so I knew I just had to include them in my Ocean themed tot school unit! All you have to do is print, cut them out (this can be great cutting practice for an older sibling – and can save you time, too!), and punch the holes.
Personally, I prefer to laminate my cards so they last through more than one use. If you are looking for a laminator this Purple Cows Hot and Cold Laminator
Some easy extension activities can include asking your child to lace every other hole, or even do a blanket stitch. There’s no reason that a material you took the time to make has to be used only one way.
If you visit my blog very often you already know how much I adore water beads. The slimy, squishy texture is shockingly addicting and my little ones are over the moon excited when I get them out. I ordered these
Note: Always supervise the use of water beads in your home. Although they are non-toxic they can still be hazardous if swallowed due to their exponential growth. Always store your water beads away from children and pets, and contact your doctor or vet if you believe they may have been ingested.
OK, you’ve been patient – and you will be so well rewarded. I got completely carried away designing printables for my Ocean themed tot school unit. There are the lacing cards I showed you above, size sorting games, animal activity cards, even a pretty ocean quote to decorate your tot school space! To get all this and more sign up below and you’ll receive your exclusive access code for my Digital Resource Library!
Colored rice is incredibly easy to make and extremely fun to work with. The color combinations are endless as are the applications. Below is my favorite recipe for how to make your own colored rice, followed by a few easy activities you can use it with.
Begin by pouring the vinegar over your dry rice. Ad 3-5 drops of food coloring in your desired color(s) and stir until well combined. The more food coloring you use, the darker and more vivid your rice will be.
Once the rice is fully combined spread it evenly over a baking sheet. Let sit for 1-2 hours until completely dry, stirring occasionally. Store in a dry, sealed container when not in use.
Colored Rice is perfect for sensory bins. It works particularly well for smaller children because it doesn’t post a chocking hazard and is non-toxic. Below you can see that I used it in an Ocean sensory bin and a Farm themed sensory bin.
This material also works well in several Montessori activities. I have used it as an introductory pouring medium, as well as for scooping.
Dk Tractor Shaped Board Book
Otis by Loren Long
Pass It On! by Marilyn Sadler
