Preschool Monday Activities

Today, while Piper and Riley napped, Sophie enjoyed a few preschool activities. She played music by making her own water glass instrument (think "Minute to Win It"). Vocabulary/concepts we discussed were: short/tall, full/empty, high/low/medium. She also scooped water out of one cup and placed it in another to change the notes. Then, she made up various songs and tried to hear if the notes changed higher or lower when she added or subtracted water. Sophie is three years old (four in April) and I wouldn't want to do this with my two-year-old twins since they would probably drop and break the glasses.

Another activity Sophie worked on today was her Three-Letter Puzzle Words. Each picture is comprised of three cards - one letter per card. She loves playing with these cards. Even if she didn't know which letter was supposed to be there, she could use picture clues and find the correct card. After placing the three cards together to complete the picture, she spells the word out one letter at a time, then says the whole word. "-c, -o, -w - cow". I bought these cards for $2.99 at a school supply store we have here in Tulsa called Mardel Christian and Education Book Store. They are made by School Zone Publishing Company. Although I haven't used these cards with Piper and Riley yet, I will start doing a few at a time with them.

The final activity Sophie practiced today was to trace and write her numbers (one - thirty) on the dry erase flip book I bought in Target's dollar section a couple of weeks ago (they still have some). She loves to practice these while sitting up at the bar and watching me cook. The elementary teacher in me would like to correct the way she's holding her pen, but I stopped myself. She's learning and having a good time. I'm not sure she has the fine motor skills yet to "correctly" hold the pen and write the numbers yet.

What are some of your favorite toddler/preschool activities you've come across? Do you have any links or websites to share? I'm on the lookout for great preschool educational activities.