If you’re spending your days with little ones ages 2-5, these Back to School centers are a perfect way to keep their little hands and brains engaged with Math and Literacy practice! Below you’ll find tons of activities that combine fine motor skills practice with tons of common early Preschool Math and Literacy skills!
Crayons Counting Cards
Grab your favorite manipulatives and practice counting with these crayon counting cards! Kiddos practice one-to-one correspondence by counting and covering each crayon. If your little ones are ready, follow the arrows on the numbers to practice writing them. If not, use your manipulatives to build the numbers instead!
Play Dough 10 Frame
10 Frame activities are such a fun addition to our sensory bins! Simply toss the number cards into your sensory bin and use play dough balls to build the amounts on the 10 Frame!
Numbers 0-10 Find and Cover
If your little ones are still practicing number identification, “find and cover” mats are a blast! Simple choose a number card from your sensory bin. Then, find and cover the matching number on the mat!
Play Dough and Pencils Shape Matching
Match the pencil shapes with their correct play dough shape matches!
Pencil Shapes
These pencil shape cards are a great way to differentiate for multiple skill levels! Your littlest learners will love tracing the shapes using manipulatives, PlayDoh or dry erase markers. And your older students (or older siblings) can practice their handwriting and spelling by tracing the shape names!
Play Dough Shape Building
Your play dough-loving kiddos will have a blast with these play dough shape building cards! Grab your favorite play dough colors and build as many shapes as you can!
Play Dough Color Matching
I love activities that combine academics with fine motor skills practice! Using sensory bin matching mats is a great way to do this! Toss the play dough cards in your sensory bin. Then, grab one at a time and match to their correct color on the mat!
Color Sorting Cards
These colorful glue bottle cards are a perfect addition to your sensory bins! I didn’t change a thing about our school-themed bin – I simply helped LG find and sort the colored objects that she dug out!
School Themed Alphabet Cards
This activity is perfect for littles who are getting started with their alphabet! While your kiddos use the manipulatives to build the letters, talk about the letter names, upper and lowercase versions, and sounds! And if they’re ready, try using a dry erase marker to practice tracing the letters!
Alphabet Board Game
The best way to sneak in learning time is with games! This alphabet board game is a perfect way to combine letter/sound recognition with a fun game! Simply roll the dice, move to the matching letter, and continue until you reach the end!
School Supply Play Dough Cards
Fine motor skills are so important to practice with our little ones! They don’t naturally have the same finger strength and coordination that we have as adults. So using materials like PlayDoh is a great way to strengthen their little muscles! These school-themed cards are such a fun activity!
School Theme Pre-Writing Strips
These pre-writing strips are SO stinking handy. Fill them with little manipulatives like mini erasers, mold play dough to fit, or use a dry erase marker to trace! *I’ve found that LG is most successful during her tracing practice when she uses “bubble” lines like these instead of just tracing “dashes”!
School Theme Cutting Strips
Give your cutting practice a seasonal flare with these school-themed cutting strips! Need some extra tracing practice instead? Print an extra copy, laminate them for durability, and practice tracing the lines with a dry erase marker!
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If you’re looking for other Back to School centers and activities for your unit, CLICK HERE for our blog post full of Back to School books and other activities! I’d love to chat and get to know you better! Come hang out with us in some of our favorite places!
