This Construction Theme Preschool Week was loads of fun! We did crafts, learning activities, music, fine motor, gross motor, and more! I think most kids like building things, so construction is a really great theme. Here's the run down of all of our activities.
While you're here, be sure to visit some of our other preschool themes. You can find Over 30 COMPLETE Preschool Weekly Theme Units here along as a peek at our Daily Home Preschool Schedule.
[Related Read: FREE Printable Preschool Planning Page]
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Phonics/Reading
The girls played this great construction letter and sight word game! I set up 2 hula hoops and put some of the letters from an alphabet puzzle inside one.
Then I called out a letter and had Maggie identify it, put it in the back of her toy dump truck, and drive it over to the other hula hoop and dump the letter.
We went through the whole alphabet, but I only gave her 4 or 5 letters at a time to choose from. Later, Lena and I played the same game with some of her sight word cards. This was great practice for both of them, and was easily adaptable to both of their skill levels.
Math
All you need for this activity is a picture of a dump truck, some number cards, and some some kind of blocks or rocks. I just colored a coloring page that I had printed out and wrote numbers on scraps of paper. We used pattern blocks for our rocks.
Show your child a number card and help them count the correct number of 'rocks' to put in the dump truck. For older children, you can do the same activity with addition and subtraction. Using your number cards, show them a simple math problem and let them use the rocks to solve it.
Gross Motor
These construction movement cards from Royal Baloo are so much fun. I've seen them in several different themes before, and as always, these were a hit. Just print, laminate (if you want), and call out the actions for your kids to do. Since Lena can sound out simple words, I added an element of reading practice for her and asked her to read them to her sister.
Fine Motor
I stuck with a very basic fine motor task this week-- coloring! There are lots of great coloring pages available with a construction theme, and it is all great practice for those little muscles. I've noticed a big improvement in Lena's ability to color inside the lines lately, and Maggie's attention span is increasing so that she can sit and scribble with us for a longer period of time. Here is a great collection of construction coloring pages from Mom Junction.
Bulldozer Craft
I saw this idea via Pinterest from Mom's Town. This craft had it all-- coloring, cutting, gluing, painting, fine motor, and sensory development. The double extra bonus? Both of my girls loved it and it kept them occupied for a good 30 minutes. Read all about it in this post.
Snack
Build little structures with toothpicks and snack foods. We used grapes and mini marshmallows. Lena and I worked together to build a box, and Maggie and I built several shapes!
Imaginative Play
I found these great construction worker vests at JoAnn for only $3 a piece (use a 50% off coupon!) and 'safari' hats, that we used as helmets, at the Dollar Store. All week long the girls put on their little vests before they built with blocks, and Lena even used a very funny deep construction worker voice when she had hers on. Simple, inexpensive props can help a child's imaginative play take off.
Picture Books
Iggy Peck, Architect by Andrea Beaty was our favorite book this week. It's a rhyming story about young Iggy Peck who has a penchant for building from a young age. The story and pictures are cute and funny, and I liked that it was about the design element of building, rather than dump trucks and concrete mixers.
Other books we enjoyed this week were:
A Year at a Construction Site (Time Goes By) by Nicholas Harris
Road Work Ahead by Anastasia Suen
Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site by Sherri Duskey Rinker
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton
Richard Scarry's What Do People Do All Day by Richard Scarry
Chapter Books
This week we started reading Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I didn't realize it when I picked it, but one of the early chapters is about the family building their log house on the prairie! We read the chapter and then built out own little prairie house with our Lincoln Logs.
[Related Read: Great Chapter Books For Preschoolers]
Lincoln Log Building
There are loads of great construction toys for your kids to play with. We pulled out our Lincoln Logs, but you could also play with Legos, Duplos, or even regular building blocks!
Music
Pre-K Fun has a huge list of construction songs and finger plays that you can sing with your little ones.
My girls also enjoyed learning and singing along with "If I Had A Hammer" (made famous by Peter, Paul and Mary). Gotta' teach them the oldies!
TV
Television
"Bob the Builder" episodes are available on Netflix and Amazon Instant Video. We especially like the "On Site" series, which features real construction sites and machines.
My girls also watched a video of Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel here on YouTube. It has cute little songs and nice animation, and the text is true to Virginia Lee Burton's original story.
Whew! Was that not enough? Find lots more great construction ideas on the Cutting Tiny Bites Pinterest Board!
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