I’m not sure how our afternoons will pan out with a new kindergartener, but we will have a routine. And after the first month or so, it will involve homework. Some days I’m sure Mickey Mouse will call his little clubhouse onto the screen so I can busy our younger two children while I help their big brother. Other days I know I will be looking for ways to involve the preschool siblings in homework time. Today I’ve got 8 activities that you can prepare ahead of time as “busy box” type learning activities that include siblings but also give you time to help out older students. I can’t take credit for these, as I’ve seen ideas floating around Pinterest over the last few years. I’ve adapted them to fit my plan, and most can be made with materials you have on hand or that can be purchased from dollar bins. And if you don’t have an older child doing homework, go ahead and use throughout your day with preschoolers at home.
Name Puzzle
This activity is so versatile. I purchased a couple of packs of punch-out, decorating letters a while back from the Dollar Tree, and they sat in storage for some time. My oldest already knows letters, and the younger two weren’t ready. But when this activity popped up in my Instagram feed, I knew it was for us. My two-year-old loves the letters of his name, so we have started there. He’s perfectly happy matching his own name, and I’m going to introduce the rest of the alphabet bit by bit. We even adapted this summer for big brother to trace his name and create a puzzle for the younger ones. Add family names, names of friends, names of stores…whatever gets those kiddos into their ABCs!
Sticker Match
Go ahead and save the butcher packaging paper from Amazon deliveries or wrapped around your Hobby Lobby purchases. You’ll need them. {Regular paper would work just fine, of course.} Grab a couple of packs of stickers from the Dollar Spot or dig out a set from what you’ve stashed away from birthday party favors. Spread out one set of stickers across paper. Grab a page of two of construction paper to cut up into cards. Place on sticker on each card. Preschoolers will match sticker card to sticker on butcher paper. Further activity by creating graphs and answering questions about the stickers.
Sticker Counting Book
Grab a piece of construction paper, make a book, and add a number on each page. Pair with a pack of stickers {perhaps some left over from other sticker activities} for preschoolers to place the correct number of stickers on each page.
Egg Carton Color Match
If we are being honest, this activity was born out of my own hoarding. I hang on to cardboard egg cartons like golden treasure and happened to hold onto a free colors booklet we received at a Discovery Green Toddler Tuesday event. I put them together and felt like genius was indeed born that very moment. However, if you find yourself without said booklet, grab some construction paper and cut up that People magazine you’ve just finished. Tape colors into each egg slot, and cut out a variety of objects in colors to sort. Place objects in a pile and have preschoolers place into appropriate slot. Involve older children by having them cut out the objects first.
Textured Sticker Match
My moms group posted a variety of summer learning/playing activities all summer on our Facebook page, and this one seemed so easy that I thought we would repeat throughout the year. Grab some thicker/textured stickers or foam stickers that are large enough to trace. Outline each on a piece of paper and return sticker to original paper. Preschoolers will match sticker to outline. Adapt for older siblings by asking them to write the color or name of the sticker next to each match.
Lunch Bag Color Sort
I simply sorted through the pile o’ collected craft materials for this one. Choose four or five colors. Extend activity by having preschoolers color each bag the appropriate color. Gather items from around the house – ribbon, fabric scraps, scrap paper, small toys, craft materials, heck, even fruit snacks or m&ms. Place items in a pile, open lunch bags, and help preschooler sort items by color.
Lid Matching
I’m telling you. Hoard away, my friends. Wash out that peanut butter container for recycling, but save the lid. Milk lids, water bottle lids, mayonnaise jars…the list can go on and on. Collect a variety of sizes of lids and outline on a piece of card stock or scrapbook paper. Preschoolers will match lid to outline. This activity is nice for introducing vocabulary to discuss size. Don’t have lids? Use small toys to trace and match.
Dot Marker Fun
A quick Pinterest search can score you tons of free printables for keeping toddlers and preschoolers busy with Dot Markers. Review letters and numbers or simply hand over the markers and a few sheets of printer paper. It might get loud {think :: bang, bang, bang as the markers hit the paper} but at least you will have a few minutes for helping older students with their work. Warning :: these are messy, but washable. Just try to keep them out of the toddler’s mouth!
Need more ideas? Be sure to check out ideas for a busy bag swap and get your family and friends involved as well. I have no idea how afternoons will technically pan out, but I’m certain that if I don’t use these activities during homework time, I will break them out several mornings a week. What are your go-to ways to include younger children in “homework?”