Early Childhood - educational preschool and kindergarten teaching activities

SELF-CONCEPT ACTIVITIES

Each child is unique:

Have children look at themselves in a full-length mirror. Discuss their total appearance and how they are alike or different from the other children. Help them see that no one is exactly alike.

Blindfold the children, one at a time. Have each child feel the face and hair of classmates and then feel their own face and hair. The children will find that people feel different.

Record each child's voice during an activity period. Children listen to the voices and guess which voice goes with each child.

Write the children's names on a strip of paper. Compare the letters in the names.

Play "Guess Who". Pick a child out of the classroom. Tell three clues about the person and have the children guess who the person is..

Encourage the children to bring a favorite item from home and discuss why it is their favorite object.

Make hand and foot prints and compare them to the others in the classroom..

Children can begin to explore racial and ethnic differences by examining differences in skin color, hair texture, and eye shape. Create graphs of how many in the class have blue eyes, black hair, etc.

Have several children stand in a line in front of the class. Name the child who is first, second, third and so on. Ask the children to change positions. Then have the each child in line name his or her new position. To vary the activity, have the children at their seats name each child in line and describe his or her position.

Have the children make a self-portrait using a paper plate. Give them yarn for hair and allow them to add their features to the plate.

Supply each child with an empty Pringles or similar can and a sheet of construction paper. Have each child decorate the construction paper and glue it to the can to create a time capsule. Encourage the children to fill the can with personal items, such as a picture of himself, a drawing, etc. Replace the lids and store the time capsules until the end of the year.

Use a magnifying glass to look at their hair, nails and skin.

Tape a piece of paper to the wall. Place a lamp or overhead projector in front ot the paper so that the light shines onit. In a learning center, have a child sit sideways in the light of the lamp. Trace the child's silhouette onto the paper. Cut out. Have the child look through magazines and cut out pictures of things that he or she likes. They can then glue the pictures to their silhouetttes as collages.

Make a friendship quilt. Cut several squares of brightly colored construction paper. Give each child one of the squares. Have them decorate the square or even glue a picture of himself, glitter, beads, sequins, or yarn to the square. Staple the squares, side by side, to the bulletin board. If extra squares are needed to fill in empty spaces, print the school's name or teacher's name on additional squares and intermingle them with the student's squares.

Each child's body grows:

Ask the children what they want to be when they grow up and why.

Have the children think of some things they can't do now, but can do when they grow older. What are some things they can do now that they couldn't do when they where younger?

Role play the growth process from baby to father or mother to grandparent. The child can interpret the process as he or she goes along. Children can also develop a short play about the family.

Teachers can help children appreciate their growing skills and abilities by pointing out, for example, that they can run, throw a ball, walk on tiptoe, share materials, control a crayon when drawing, etc.

Each child is part of a family:

Have the children name some of the rules their family has and discuss why these rules are important. Discuss the jobs that need to be done at home. Make sure children understand that families must work together.
Make a sharing collage. Use fabric scraps, paper scraps and other materials. Have children color and paste these materials on a large sheet of mural paper..

Role play the growth process from baby to father or mother to grandparent. The child can interpret the process as he or she goes along. Children can also develop a short play about the family.

Take the children's fingerprints twice. Leave one alone, but let the children use the other one to paint on. Give the children both copies to send home.

People have different feelings and emotions:

Ask the children to make faces of a certain emotion (sad, mad, happy, etc.) Provide some scenarios for these emotions (falling off a bike-sad, someone hitting them-mad, etc.)