I shared what I did with all four kiddos during the summer in a recent post. If you haven’t read it yet go check it out!
I shared a little of L’s binder in the previous post, but I wanted to share a more in depth look at what I do with him to practice basic skills. Below are 8 simple ways to teach your preschooler that have worked for us!
Binder and Journal – Keeping everything in a binder works for us right now, and as the school year starts I plan on making more activities and probably creating file folder games for him. I will also most likely add a more “formal” assessment page so that I can keep track of what he knows and what he is learning (don’t worry, I’ll share!)
The other benefit of having and using these same learning activities consistently is that it is easy to use and easy to assess. Because we are doing the same thing with the same materials, I can tell very quickly when Lincoln is just guessing and when he has mastered something.
He picked out this cute notebook as his journal and loves to “write” and draw. His writing has actually improved a lot this summer – he went from giant scribbles covering the page to tiny scribbles on the lines.
Making time for kids to practice their writing and drawing is really important for their fine motor development, their imagination, their communication skills (explaining what they wrote or drew), and for literacy development (learning that specific marks can make letters, which make sounds, words and be put together to have meaning).
Name Match and Letters in Name – Recognizing his own name is something we are working on, as is the skill of matching up the letters in his name. Before we start, I tell him “this word is Lincoln” and he often repeats after me. Then, I point to each letter and name it. Then, as he matches I state the letters again. He can match up all his letters and usually recognizes his uppercase “L” and the “o”. He can also usually hand me the “n’s” when I ask which letters look the same. We have worked on these skills by me asking for a specific letter and him choosing one to hand to me. If he is wrong, I simply tell him what letter he has and he tries again.
After school starts, I am going to hit this a lot harder and we are going to work on letter sounds for the letters in his name. I love these videos for learning sounds. Kids love them too, and I am excited to get to try them one on one as opposed to with an entire classroom.
Name recognition is obviously an important pre-reading skill, but it is also a great doorway because kids are interested in themselves and the things that belong to them. Items in preschool rooms are also labled with specific names and signs, and the quicker kids learn to recognize them the better!
Name Tracing – I simply typed Lincoln’s name twice and changed the font of the top name to dashed lines. I laminated all of the pages in his binder, so this works perfectly with a fine tip dry erase marker. Just be sure to wipe it off prior to putting it away! So far, I have first placed my hand on his and guided him as he traces, giving verbal cues about the direction he is writing. Then, I have him try it on his own, again giving verbal cues.
In addition to a practice page with his entire name, I also created pages to practice tracing/writing and recognition of each individual letter in his name. We will begin working on these letters one at a time once school starts.
In addition to getting more time to look at and practice the letters in their name and seeing their name as a whole, tracing their name gives young children a chance to practice fine motor skills and letter formation. Tracing can serve as a way to quickly identify any possible fine motor struggles kids are having as well as help determine which hand they are more comfortable using. Name tracing provides important pre-reading skills as well: learning that words go from left to right, up to down and that letters strung together form words.
1-5 Words and Boxes – Counting is something we do daily. We count food and toys and all sorts of things; and I count to and down from 3 what feels like all the time. So Lincoln can count to 3 pretty well just from listening to me. I wanted to give him a chance to see the number words as he practiced counting out objects, and as he progresses, we will pay more attention to the words, the letters in them and practice tracing them. Right now, I just point to the number on the page and tell him what it is. Then, I point to the pile of objects (sometimes legos, counters, blocks, small toys, beans, dinosaurs…) and ask him to place one in each box. This helps solidify that there is one object for one box – a way to practice “one to one correspondence.” When he counts, I have him “get out” his pointer finger and place it on each object as he says each number. Right now, he keeps getting stuck on “4” but can count chronologically after that in spurts (123…789..etc) which is common in kids his age. When he gets stuck, I wait to give him time to think. Then, we start at the beginning and count together. Finally, I give him a chance to try counting on his own.
He was getting frustrated the other day, and I just started singing to help him remember. He loved it! The song my brain automatically associated with the rhythm of counting to ten was the nursery rhyme “Are You Sleeping? (Frere Jacques)”. So I sang each phrase (1-2-3-4…5-6-7…8-9-10…I can count) and he repeated… we’ve done it many many times since. Rote counting or being able to count from memory is a very important base skill to being able to count objects and identify what number comes next. Songs and rythm are a great way to help kids remember! Sometimes I will just tap out the beat or the syllables of a word or counting sequence and Lincoln will automatically copy me. I have found it helps him remember a lot better!
Shape Match – This one is pretty straightforward. I lay out the white shapes and hand the black shapes to Lincoln. He then matches the shapes. Next, I ask him to hand me specific shapes. If he hands me the wrong shape I simply tell him the name of the shape and repeat the shape I asked for. The next steps after he masters this will be for me to point to a shape and have him name it. After this, we will work on describing the shapes (number of sides, points, what object it resembles etc). We have started to do this a little already in order to help him identify shapes; for instance describing rectangles and squares can help determine the difference between them.
The more you talk about and practice shapes both on paper and in the world around you, the more your little one will notice, identify and describe shapes on his own! They will start to show up in drawings and writings as well as creations (playdough, legos, any geometric games).
Color Match – Colors are everywhere! We talk about colors all day long! I lay out the color cards and have Lincoln match them. Just as with the shapes, I ask him to hand me specific colors. The next steps is for me to point to a color and have him be able to name it. We practice finding colors in the world around us now, but something else I am going to begin working with him on is to find a specific color in the world around him by either naming a color or giving him a color card and having him go find an object that is the same color.
If you want the pages I use with Lincoln, download the document below! If you are using the name practice pages, just change Lincoln’s name to your child’s name.
There are obviously many other things you can do, but these are a few of the simple ways to work with preschoolers that have worked for me in the past – both in a formal preschool setting as well as one on one with Lincoln.
What ways to do practice basic skills with your preschooler?
How do keep your materials organized?