Crystals, Gems, Rocks: Day 4 (Simple Preschool At Home)
For Day 4 of our week of crystals, gems, rocks in home preschool, we kept things shiny by focusing on crystals. We mainly focused on fine motor work, but also added in a little bit of fun science today. Keep reading this post to see how we kept busy and learned at home today.
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CRYSTALS, GEMS, ROCKS: WEEK 1 dAY 4
Crystals, Gems, Rocks: Day 4 Ideas
Letter of the day:
C is for crystal. I created a simple free printable ‘C is for Crystal’ page on Twisty Noodle. I cut up a few holographic paper straws from Target (linked below) into pieces about half an inch long. Then I cut the straw pieces open, and we smooshed them flat, so we could easily attach them to our C page.
Word of the day:
Instead of working on his name, my kiddo wrote ‘crystal’ with 4 different writing instruments. (I grabbed that printable page from First And Kinder Blue SKies on Teachers Pay Teachers!)
Book of the day:
National Geographic Kids Rocks and Minerals. By Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld. (We pretty much love EVERYTHING from National Geographic Kids books.)
Journal prompt of the day:
The prettiest crystals I’ve seen look like…
Activities and play we enjoyed:
I printed out a really cool crystal coloring page and my son chose to use colored pencils with it. This provided some practice with his pencil grasp, and also a bit of a simple creative outlet.
For some more fine motor practice, I provided chenille stems and ‘crystal beads’ that were more of the shiny paper straws cut into varying lengths. My kiddo had a great time making fancy bracelets for the entire family to wear!
You can’t talk about crystals without trying to grow some! It’s a perfect way to incorporate a little bit of science into our home preschool day. Crystal growing kits are available at most craft and toy stores, but I found these small ones at our local Dollar Tree.
YOU MAY NEED THESE TO LEARN ABOUT CRYSTALS, GEMS, ROCKS…
colored pencils / crayons / marker/ transparent tape / pens / scissors / pencils / double sided tape / composition notebook / index cards / crystal growing kit / shiny paper straws / chenille pipe cleaners
But PLEASE Remember…
This is what is working for us during the pandemic, for the time being. It may seem overwhelming to your family to attempt anything like this. Or if you’re like me, you may welcome a little structure in your days. It’s important for you to consider the needs, emotional health, and learning styles of your entire family, and make adjustments as needed. The goal is NEVER more stress, more comparisons, or more guilt.
Keeping the above in mind, here’s a little bit more about our process…
- We’re aiming for about an hour of ‘school-ish’ work a day. This might included coloring, painting, writing, drawing, stickers, and more. My 4 year old is used to attending UPK for two and a half hours a day, 5 days a week, so 1 hour seemed like a good starting point at home.
- I build a ton of breaks and flexibility into our days and weeks. I plan 5 days of ‘school’ each week, and we generally accomplish all the activities by stretching them out over 7 total days. Some Wednesdays, we just can’t do school. So we’ll make it up later, if we can. Again, the goal isn’t stress or pressure, so flexibility is key.
- Variety is helpful for my kiddo. His attention span is short, so most of what I plan is quick, and we change styles of learning often. You know what will work best for your own families.
- Our journal is simply a basic notebook. Every day, I provide a prompt, and my child draws a picture on a blank index card. I tape that into the notebook, and write most of the prompt. At least one or two words are written larger, in dots, so my son can trace them.
- I have a pretty well stocked supply of craft and learning materials already, and know that may not be the case for you. Be creative, be flexible, and be open to compromise! We also have a large home library for the kids, which is very helpful right now!
