As the season shifts, it’s time to embrace the essence of fall with your children here in South Florida. While we may not experience leaves changing color or temperature drops, there are still plenty of opportunities to explore and enjoy the unique aspects of this time of year. Incorporating seasonal themes into early childhood education can make learning fun and help preschoolers develop a deeper appreciation for the natural world around them.
Programs related to the fall can help support all areas of development, including thinking, motor, emotional, social, and language. Preschoolers also learn to build an appreciation for nature and the different seasons.
Here are fall-themed learning activities for children that a preschool provider can implement:
Sensory Exploration
Fall is plentiful, with different textures to touch, smells to sniff, and hues to see. Sensory activities related to leaf textures can help preschoolers become familiar with various types of tactile sensations. Gather different leaves and let the kids run their fingers over the surface. Then, they should describe the type of texture they get, such as smooth, rough, crisp, or soft. This activity targets word recognition and the development of the sensory system.
Pumpkin sensory bins are effective in creating another fun fall activity. Place pumpkin seeds and pulp into a large bowl or pot. Arrange objects such as spoons, cups, and small sieves to allow children to describe the textures and develop their scooping and pouring skills. This messy play is not only good for the senses but also enhances the muscular coordination of the hands.
For a sensual smell, make play dough that smells like apples. Pour the flour, salt, cream of tartar, and water, then add the red food coloring and apple pie spice or cinnamon. When kids pound the dough, they will also get to enjoy the aroma of fall.
Math and Counting
There are many chances to teach and revise early math concepts in the fall. ACORN Counting Games are enjoyable and can help teach preschoolers many things. Pick up acorns and utilize them as currency. Write the numbers on circles with a piece of paper and let children place acorns in circles according to the numbers on the circles.
Sorting different-shaped leaves is math-packed together with nature. A preschool provider can collect a variety of leaves that are distinct in form and size. By drawing or photocopying, they can copy different shapes of leaves onto several sheets of paper. Children are encouraged to place real leaves on top of their respective outlines, thus learning about shapes and sorting skills.
Estimation of pumpkin seeds promotes mathematical thinking. Before the actual carving of the pumpkin, encourage the kids to guess the number of seeds inside the pumpkin. When you’ve finished scooping out the seeds, count them together. This activity opens the idea of the content of estimation and helps in counting large numbers.
Science and Nature
The best months to study and investigate natural events are in the fall. An interesting experiment that can explain how leaves change colors can be an experiment. Pick green leaves and put them into glasses containing water and food color. For several days, the children can watch how the leaves take color from the water and change their coloration.
Another fun science activity is the pumpkin life cycle. Sow pumpkin seeds in the soil and take pictures of the seeds from time to time as they grow into plants. Draw pictures or make illustrations to help children establish a chronological sequence, which will help them learn about plant life cycles and changes that happen.
Weather Chasing in the Fall familiarizes preschool children with the meteorological concepts of the show. Prepare a weather map using pictures of sunny, cloudy, rainy, and windy days. Every day, children can point to the present weather, concepts of weather, and how elements are measured.
Literacy and Language
The concept of fall can improve language and pre-reading abilities. One way to engage in fall-themed storytelling is to use books about the season the students or children are reading. These can be books with pictures about fall or stories written using the vocabulary associated with the fall season. Ask children to explain what they observe outside, which will help them practice descriptive language.
The fall season also offers fun ways to practice letter identification. Make cut-out leaves out of construction paper and label them with letters. Toss these leaves across the classroom, and have the children use toy shovels or rakes to sort them into piles according to the first letter of fall words such as “acorn” and “brown.”
Art and Creativity
Children can use their hands to touch, feel, look at, and manipulate objects through leaf printing and rubbings. Put leaves under the paper and rub them with crayons to see the leaves imprint, or paint them and then press them onto the paper.
Pinecone painting is a distinct form of art that gives children ample opportunities to unleash their creativity. Gather pinecones and bring paint in the color spectrum of the fall. Children can dip the pinecones in paint and roll them on the paper so that they will get nice and interesting patterns and textures on the paper.
Making collages in the fall promotes creative thinking and helps children develop fine motor skills. Some examples of such items include colored papers, fall leaves, acorns, and craft feathers. A child can sort these items and paste them on paper to make pictures that depict fall.
Gross Motor Skills
Outdoor fall activities are significantly suitable for the development of gross motor skills. Leaf pile jumping is a traditional fall activity that encourages kids to run and engage their sense of touch. Roll the leaves and make heaps for the children to jump on, promoting large muscle control and body balance.
Pumpkin rolling races are a great way to combine the fun of race and exercise with an element of affinity for fall. Take a small pumpkin and balance it, then have children roll the small pumpkins across a particular course, thus enhancing their hand-eye coordination and spatial orientation.
Apple-picking dramatic play recreates the essence of the apple-picking process within the classrooms. Create a makeshift apple farm using paper or plastic apples and hanging them at different heights. Ensure small baskets and step stools enable kids to reach, stretch, and balance as they pretend to pick apples.
Fine Motor Skills
There are numerous possibilities to improve precise small muscle coordination during the fall. Acorn threading is a good hand-eye coordination activity. It is fun to do, and it provides right-handers with the ideal practice for threading an acorn with the left-hand and vice versa. Bring out acorn caps and pipe cleaners and demonstrate to kids how beaded laces can be threaded through the acorn caps to make fall necklaces and rings.
Feasting and cutting leaves help develop finger strength and improve scissor use. Collect leaves or, if not possible, cut leaf shapes from a piece of paper. Let preschoolers tear the leaves into even narrower strips with their hands or use scissors appropriate for children to cut them along the veins.
Transferring corn kernels to and from the mouth also helps develop pincer grasp and hand control. Put a small bowl with the dried corn kernels into another bowl, and put a pair of tweezers or small tongs nearby. The kernels can be put into different containers, and children can follow the kernel from one to another, thus developing their fine motor skills and focusing.
Coconut Creek Preschool Provider
A preschool provider can modify fall-themed activities depending on certain situations and your child’s interests. The idea is to have fun and keep exploring while helping preschoolers be in charge of the learning process during the fall season. Implementing fall-related activities can foster a warm and engaging learning environment for kids.
Do you want your child to thrive socially, physically, and academically at each stage of their growth? Providence Children’s Academy is the ideal school for early childhood development. We offer a fun and friendly environment to lay a solid foundation for your child.
Contact us today to learn more about our Coconut Creek preschool by calling 954-570-6914 or contact us online to schedule a tour.
Our goal at Providence Children’s Academy is to provide each student with an exceptional education.