Category Archives: preschool

7 Ways to an Easy and Fun Poetry Tea Time

Posted on May 14, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

One of our favorite parts of the week is Tea Time Poetry Tuesday. This weekly tradition includes a real fancy tea set, a table cloth, special scrumptious treats and a stack of poetry books. We sip our drinks, eat our … Continue reading →

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Posted in Early Elementary Years, homeschooling, literature-based learning, preschool | 12 Comments

Every Day is Earth Day

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

Earth Day doesn’t have to be just one day every April. It can be any day of the year. Here are some activities you can do anytime, anywhere to take care of the earth and show your gratitude for  all … Continue reading →

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Posted in Early Elementary Years, healthy living, homeschooling, Learning Spaces, Museums and Field Trips, nature, preschool, science | Leave a comment

Planting With Preschoolers: Grass Haircuts

Posted on April 15, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

We planted some grass seed in these play dough containers. Grass seed is very gratifying for kids to plant. It sprouts quickly, it’s hardy and, if you plant it in a little container, you can do this… Draw on a … Continue reading →

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Posted in nature, preschool, Spring crafts | 3 Comments

Planting Seeds With Preschoolers

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

Our seed-planting area is ready to for exploration. Our books: What Does a Seed Need? and Spring Is Here!: A Story About Seeds  (these are Amazon affiliate links). We used cut up cardboard tubes from paper towel and toilet paper rolls to … Continue reading →

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Posted in creative play, homeschooling, literature-based learning, nature, preschool | 1 Comment

Kiddie Pool Bird’s Nest and Story Time

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

 Spring is for the birds.  Stories about birds, really.  And what a fun way to listen to story time and learn about birds, in this easy-to-make nest. More wonderful books about nests and birds: Are You My Mother? by P.D. … Continue reading →

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Posted in creative play, homeschooling, kindergarten, literature-based learning, nature, preschool, science, Spring crafts | 8 Comments

Learning About Polar Animals and Safari Ltd Giveaway!

Posted on March 8, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

We’ve spent a week with the polar bears, penguins and seals, with the help of our friends at Safari Ltd. We set up fun and easy habitats to go along with some great learning resources. And, Safari Ltd has generously … Continue reading →

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Posted in creative play, Early Elementary Years, geography, homeschooling, kindergarten, nature, preschool, winter | 32 Comments

Pretend Play Construction with Coffee Grounds

Posted on March 6, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

Invitation to play:  Dried coffee grounds and construction vehicles in the  Play Table. Keeping my four year old occupied is an essential part of the homeschool rhythm in our house. For a couple of weeks, I dumped our used coffee … Continue reading →

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Posted in creative play, homeschooling, preschool | 3 Comments

Rainbow Painting With Marshmallows

Posted on March 2, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

To teach the concept of the order of the colors in the rainbow, here’s a preschool painting activity with a twist.  We used mini marshmallows to paint our rainbows. We had a box of colored toothpicks but they didn’t contain … Continue reading →

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Posted in holidays, preschool | 2 Comments

Kitchen Science: Sparkly Snow Volcanoes

Posted on February 28, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

We had so much fun with this latest project for The Studio, that I just have to share it with you here.  This project is part science experiment, part messy fun.  It was so easy to set up and it … Continue reading →

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Posted in creative play, kindergarten, preschool, science, winter | Leave a comment

Australian Unit Study

Posted on February 19, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

We’ve been Down Under for two weeks, learning about the wonderful animals and geography of Australia. We could’ve gone on for several weeks more, there’s so much to learn about this wonderful continent. Here’s a peek at some of the … Continue reading →

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Posted in Early Elementary Years, F.I.A.R., geography, homeschooling, kindergarten, preschool, Unit Studies | 4 Comments

Strong, Brave, Courageous Girls: Picture Book Characters for Our Daughters

Posted on February 13, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

You know what we love? Books with strong, brave, courageous, funny, characters.  What is even better is when they have a whole series of their own.  Remember when you were a child, first discovering a love of books? Remember when … Continue reading →

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Posted in Early Elementary Years, homeschooling, kindergarten, learning to read, literature-based learning, preschool | 4 Comments

Water Beads and Shaving Cream Pretend Play

Posted on February 7, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

“Cake batter” (shaving cream)… Plus some “sprinkles” (water beads)… And a spoon for mixing and spreading… And you have some wonderful, quiet, sensory fun. Cost: about $4, but only because my 4-year-old grabbed the shaving cream can and emptied the … Continue reading →

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Posted in creative play, keeping toddlers busy so you can actually educate your older children, preschool, toddlers | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Hands-On Geography: Animals and Their Habitats

Posted on January 31, 2013 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

An invitation to learn and play… This was fun to set up and even more fun to watch my kids explore, hear their questions and find the answers together. Currently, we are learning about Australia, so we set up a … Continue reading →

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Posted in creative play, Early Elementary Years, geography, homeschooling, kindergarten, nature, preschool | 2 Comments

Writing With Spaghetti!

Posted on November 6, 2012 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

You can thank my six year old daughter for this idea. Bored in a restaurant, she began to write her name on the table using spaghetti noodles. Before leaving, I scooped all the uneaten spaghetti noodles into a take out … Continue reading →

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Posted in Early Elementary Years, homeschooling, kindergarten, learning to read, preschool | 2 Comments

Counting with Ghosts: A Preschool Story and Craft

Posted on October 22, 2012 by Julie @ Creekside Learning

Our little preschool book club of two had some Halloween fun this afternoon with Ten Timid Ghosts by Jennifer O’Connell. I adore this story, because, while it seems a little scary at first (a witch scares a group of ghosts … Continue reading →

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Posted in Halloween, homeschooling, literature-based learning, math, preschool | 10 Comments