10 Activity Ideas for Goldilocks And The Three Bears!

Based on the much-loved tale of Goldilocks and The Three Bears, we have come up with 10 perfect activity ideas for your little preschooler at home or children in your classroom. Your children will love reading this classic and doing these activities as fun extensions!

Skills covered in these activities:

A. Fine motor skills such as weaving

B. Math skills such as counting, comparing sizes, and one-to-one correspondence.

C. Language skills such as using adjectives, antonyms, word recognition and narrative language for pretend play. 

Go read the fairy tale and immerse your child in these wonderful 10 activity ideas!

1. Antonyms (Opposites)

Allow your child to learn about opposites such as hard, soft, cold, hot, rough, smooth, by using this sensory bin as touch game. Fill a basket with objects of opposites, and watch how your child use her senses to differentiate the opposite properties. This is also a great sorting activity!

         

2. Counting using One-to-one correspondence

The number 3 is mentioned repeatedly throughout the story- 3 bears, 3 beds, 3 chairs and 3 bowls. The book is a great context for your child to learn counting, using one-to-one correspondence in this counting game. The number chart helps your child to visually understand comparison of quantities for each number and concepts such as “more” or “less”. Simply use some bear biscuits and a number chart and your child will be delighted to try it out, and gratify herself with a nice treat after!

3.  Weaving Bear

This is a Montessori-inspired practical activity! Cut out a bear figure and use a one-hole puncher to make holes for your child to weave through! It trains your child’s fine motor skills and concentration. My girl had tons of fun toying with the shoe lace and pulling it up and down through the holes!

            

4. Pretend Play!

Having this sensory bin will definitely appeal to your child to do some pretend play and role-play. Re-enacting the story is made fun with these concrete, hands-on props! Pretend-play is great for your child to practice skills like story-sequencing, recalling events, using a narrative script as well use of new language words from the book. My girl was parroting the repetitive phrases/ language chunks as she re-tells the stories with lines from the story like ” This porridge is too hot! This chair is too hard!” Its wonderful to see how the story comes alive in my preschooler’s pretend play script and dramatization with the props!

         

5. Comparing Sizes

To teach concepts of big, medium and small, I came up this matching activity with picture cards of varying sizes. My little preschooler loves assigning the right size of objects to each respective bear character and indirectly learning how to arrange objects according to size. You can also introduce matching with word cards like “Big” “Medium” “Small”.

6. Role-play using Magnetic Characters

This is another way of getting your child to do pretend play or role-play. Simply put magnetic strips behind the characters and the props and your child is ready to engage herself with some story-telling on the magnetic easel board.  Great activity to occupy your child!

7. Contextual words

Create this simple sensory bin , where picture cards are hidden in rice, beans or pom poms! Learning new words becomes fun and sensorial when your child gets to dig out the right picture card to match the word. Learning new words never get this fun!

   

8. Scavenger Hunt

Get your child busy searching  for objects around the house by going on a scavenger hunt. These words are extracted from the story and I printed them out to make word cards. Get your child to take a photo of the object with a camera, print it out and get your child to match the photo with the word!

9. Readers’ Theatre

Readers’ Theatre is a great way to dramatise the story with a group of children! Get ready some scripts, masks for the main characters and you can have a theatre show right there!

10. Read, Read, Read!

Your little one will never tire of reading this book over and over again! These book-activities are sure to get your child craving for more readings! Your  child is sure to pick up new concepts from each new reading, and you will be surprised how quickly your child can internalise new words when learnt contextually from the book!

 This blog post is published in The Preschool Survival Kit Magazine distributed to all preschools in Singapore. 

Spreading Jam! A Practical Life Activity

Maria Montessori made the observation that young children like to be involved in the daily home activities, and she developed Practical Life activities where children get to emulate adults and perform simple chores like sweeping, dusting, washing dishes and food preparation. This simple activity of spreading jam hones their fine motor skills as they learn to rotate their wrist and spread the jam with precision. Also it trains their independence which builds up their self-esteem and sense of self-efficacy.

The key to practical like activities is to set up learning materials in which the child is able to succeed and do tasks for herself safely.

I prepared the set for my little girl, with utensils including the butter knife and plates that are kids-friendly and safe for her to use.

You will need:

1. Food Tray or placemat ( to prevent mess and spills)

2. Small butter knife

3. Small Jam (These itty bitty ones are from NTUC/ Cold storage!)

4. Toast or crackers/ rice cakes

To begin, I showed my girl how the slice of bread is toasted. She then learned how to open a jar of jam, and got to smell the sweet fragrance of her much-loved strawberry jam!

        

After that, demonstrate to the child how to spread the jam on the toast. Show your child slowly how to spread the jam by emphasizing small steps such as taking a little bit of jam, and spreading it with the up-down motion, and making sure the whole toast is covered.

As I observed my little girl endeavoring to spread the jam, it requires the rotation of the wrist which certainly trains her for writing in future. She also needs to learn how to control the strength of her fingers while holding the butter knife and it requires coordination of her left hand holding the toast, and right hand maneuvering the knife. It really helped that her knife is little and she could use it with more confidence.

        

Food is particularly an interesting topic to most children, especially my daughter who loves to eat! Preparing what they are going to eat makes them more motivated to gobble it up! They feel included into the food-making process and gives them a sense of autonomy. I love  the petite size of the jam jar, as the quantity she can consume is just right for her.

And the greatest gratification? Eating it up!!

Do you know the Muffin Man?

Each time I walked past the asle at the supermarket where the baking supplies are, I always thought how nice it will be to bake with my girl at home. Well today, after having procrastinated it long enough, I decided to have a go at baking muffins! Out of a Betty Crocker Muffin Box! What else for a beginner? 🙂

The whole process was quick, easy and so educational! My girl put on her little apron and was raring to go when I brought out the ingredients! I told her the quantity for each ingredient that we needed, and she watched me measure and estimate the amount for the 3/4 cup milk and 1/4 vegetable oil. She then cracked the two eggs and I seized the opportunity to teach her the different parts of the egg (eggshell, yolk, egg white). She also stood on the little stool by the kitchen sink and helped me rinse the blueberries.

She then poured the ingredients one by one into the glass bowl as I read out the instructions on the muffin box. She stirred the muffin mixture with the wooden spoon with all her might, and she was so fascinated watching all the ingredients blend into a lumpy batter.

The final step was to scoop the batter and fill the baking cups in the baking tray. It took great precision and focus to make sure the batter doesn’t spill outside the cups.

Upon filling the sixth paper cup, an idea struck her and she exclaimed, ” Mummy, can we put sprinkles and marshmallows on top?” And so we did!

The first batch went into the oven and I took time to explain to her how to adjust the timer for 15 mins, and the temperature of 400 F. When the baking started, Rae just stood in front of the oven, completely fascinated watching the batter rise to become fluffy muffins.

When the little muffins were ready, I took them out of the oven and I could see Rae beaming with pride at our little achievement. The muffins sat pretty in the pink paper cups. That afternoon, we had the nicest tea time at home, delighting ourselves with our little homemade muffins.

This whole baking experience is so rich in educational value! Let me summarise!

Fine motor Skills

1. Pouring the oil and milk into the mixture

2 Rinsing the blueberries

3. Cracking the eggs into a bowl

4. Stirring the mixture with a wooden spoon

5. Transferring the batter into the baking cups

Math

6. Matching the paper cups to the compartments in the muffin trays

7. Counting the number of eggs needed

8. Using measuring tools like cups, and measuring spoons.

9. Be exposed to fraction terms like 3/4 cups or 1/4 cup of oil.

10. Understand time concepts like fifteen minutes.

11. Count the number of muffins made

12.For older children, you can introduce concepts of division when you divide the batter into 12 portions to be baked.

Language

13. Learn verbs like stir, heat, drain, place, mix, grease, rinse, stir, divide, scoop,blend, remove, bake, cool, store, etc

14. Learn the different ingredients needed for baking muffins

15. Label the different parts of an egg

16. Learn what is instructional text and how is written on the box.

17. Follow one-step or two-step instructions

Haze! 20 ideas for indoor activities at home!

The haze is here.. Time to stay indoors and have some fun at home!

Here is a list of 20 activities you can try out with your little ones! And have loads of fun, even when it’s all hazy & gloomy outside!

1. Water Play

Well, it looks like going to the swimming pool is not a good idea with the haze. Your child doesn’t have to feel deprived! Just create a water play area in the bathtub and throw in some water toys! For Rae, I created a game where she scoops up floating Ping Pong Balls with the shovel as fast as she can! 🙂

2. Play Dough /strong>

There is endless fun with play dough, sculpting the dough into anything your child can dream up!

3. Get a pet!

This can be the time to get the pet your child has always wanted! Go assemble a fish tank using pebbles, water plants, and let some lovely guppies or terrapins inhabit it! Your child can have fun learning about pets, as well as learn how to be responsible taking care of the pet!

4. Plant a seed!

This is easiest science lesson you can create at home about plants! Plant a seed, let your child water it everyday and watch it grow!

5. Crafts & Painting!

Art has got to be Rae’s favourite activities! Present your child with open-ended art materials you can find at home, such as paper plates, paints, glue, scrap paper, tissue boxes, tape and see what your child can create with them!

6. Block or Lego Play

Another great idea for constructive play! Use your imagination and start building!

7. Scavenger Hunt

Write down some clues on post-it notes and ask your child to start searching for the items! It will spark off great excitement in your children as they scramble around the house looking for the items!

8. Bake

Children derive great gratification from baking! Involve the child in making the dough, using cookie cutters, add the toppings and let them watch how they are baked in the oven! And the most irresistible part? Savouring their homemade cookies!! 🙂

9. Montessori Sensory Play

Just throw in some toy cars/animals and some sand/beans/penne pasta into a container or bin and watch your child do pretend play with them!

10. Cook!

Cook a simple meal with your child! Help them put on an apron and a chef hat. Involve them in the cutting of the vegetables or fruits using a butter knife. Make them feel like a junior iron chef!

11. Have a picnic at home!

Lay out a picnic mat and some picnic food in a basket and enjoy tea time or snack time with your child! Right at home!

12. Teach your child games you used to play!

Take your child down your memory lane by playing some nostaglic games you used to play when you were young! Hopscotch, five stones, happy family cards, etc!

13. Camp at Home!

Set up a tent, and put in some sleeping pillows and have a pillow fight in there! Or use the torchlight for some adventure in the dark!

14. Cardboard Box play!

Recycle all the cereal boxes and other cardboard boxes and do constructive play with your child! Make a train, house or even a zoo!

15. Make popcorn and watch a movie together!
Your child will love to make his or her own popcorn and have a movie date with you!

16. Play Dress up!

Take out all the old accessories like hats, gloves, scarves or boots and dress up to be a character!

17. Board Games!

This is one family fun activity that never gets boring! Take out your junior Monopoly game, Pictionary, Boggle, Uno, whatever!

18. Puzzles

Another classic game to play! Completing a puzzle together somehow is a very bonding activity to do with your child! Plus it trains patience and perseverance!

19. Create an art gallery at home!

Take out all the art pieces your child has done in school and put them up like in an art gallery. Ask your child to take you on a tour in his very own art gallery by talking about how it was created, and what ideas it represent! It sure will make your child feel proud!

20. Create indoor gym!

You can create your indoor gym at home! Just create an obstacle course with tunnels, little stools, bean bags, hoola hoops! Or pour in lots of plastic balls into the cot and let your child roll in them!

Mortar & Pestle- Beans

Using a mortar and pestle to pound contents is an excellent way of teaching them motor skills and concentration. The pestle knob is comfortable for the toddler to hold with the hand grip. It takes a lot of focus, persistence, as well as training of the fine motor skills to master the skill of pounding and grinding. Your child will also learn the cause and effect of the pounding action on brittle, or hard ingredients, and determine how much strength to use.

I decided to let Rae try pounding something harder than eggshells, which are beans. In her first attempt, she realised she couldn’t pound the beans. I then prompted her to do simple problem-solving by asking her what can she do to pound the beans. she replied, “Pound Harder!” And true enough, by exerting more strength, she could see more beans being broken into smaller pieces. I could tell the self-pride in her little achievement there!

Scooping the beans with a spoon and transferring them into the mortar without dropping any makes the activity more complex and challenging!

Mortars can be found in the supermarket or any cookware store. Otherwise there is a cheap alternative from Daiso shop below:

Mortar & Pestle- Pounding Eggshells!

Wondering what to occupy your toddler with when you need to cook in the kitchen or take a breather? Take out your mortar and pestle and let your child be actively involved in this Montessori Practical Life activity! Grind nuts for cooking or salads or biscuits into crumbs for baking! Your child can also be particularly intrigued by the strong fragrance released from grinding of the coffee beans or the herbs from your garden! The kinds of ingredients are endless!

I was cooking an egg dish in the kitchen, and I immediately recalled how children in Rae’s Montessori school pound eggshells!

Rae couldn’t wait to start pounding the moment she saw the eggshells in the mortar. Watching Rae smashing it to smithereens makes it a rewarding experience for her!

To make the task more challenging, I gave Rae a dish and a spoon for her to do transferring.

She was very meticulous in transferring the smashed eggshells carefully unto a dish without attempting to drop any bits! 🙂

Guess what you can do with the eggshells?

You can go sprinkle them into the flower pots and enrich the soil! 🙂

Lacing Pasta

Threading pasta is a great activity for developing your child’s fine motor skills. Threading pasta onto a string involves bilateral coordination of the child’s hands, and requires their eyes and hands to work together.  It also trains the child’s finger dexterity. This activity is especially engaging as the child needs to focus attentively on getting the string through. Rae can be engrossed in it for half hour or more! (Especially great when I need to cook!)

Give the child lots of encouragement when she first starts trying! In no time, she will be able to accomplish a long string of pasta for you! Display it and let her feel proud! 🙂