This COVID-19 quarantine has been so nice on many levels, but it has also been a little wearying. My kids yo-yo from being wildly happy about our situation to being completely devastated with boredom. On top of that, one second they are thrilled with one another and have fun ideas of what to do, the next second they are arguing and need prayer and deep breathing exercises to get their sanity back (this includes me, too). It is definitely an hour by hour roller coaster over here!
All that to say, I have found myself needing some ideas up my sleeve to help pass the time once the boys have finished their school work. I have also been searching for simple at-home learning activities to support the new preschool online-learning my team and I have been creating at work. This post was my desire to have all of these great activities in one place as a resource for everyone! Hopefully they will be of service to you when it is 3 hours from dinnertime and you are ready to put on your protective gloves and drop them all off at the fire station. 😉
Number Match
Write the number 1 with a Sharpie marker on one half of a plastic egg. On the matching half, draw 1 small dot. Write the number 2 with a Sharpie marker on one half of another plastic egg. On the matching half, draw 2 small dots. Continue with as many numbers as you wish. Have your child match the eggs with the correct numbers. See this idea HERE.
Color Match
Break a bunch of colored plastic eggs a part. Set a timer for 1 minute to see how many eggs your child can match and put back together before the timer runs out!
Alphabet Eggs
Place letter magnets in a bunch of plastic eggs. Have your child pull an egg and look inside to find out what letter is there. Use THIS FREE PRINTABLE to color in the matching letter.
Shape Match
Draw the same shape on the top and bottom half of a plastic egg. For example, draw a square on the top of an egg half and a square on the bottom of the egg half. Repeat with other shapes like circles, stars, triangles, rectangles, etc. Have your child match the shapes. See this idea HERE.
Egg Towers
Stack as many egg halves as you can before the tower falls over! See this idea HERE.
Memory Game
Separate the eggs into halves. Place them on a table in 4 rows of 4 egg halves. Now get 8 pairs of matching colored jelly beans. Place one jelly bean under each egg half. Now play Memory with your child, peeking under 2 egg halves at a time. Whoever makes the most matches – wins! Eat the jelly beans! See sample HERE.
Egg Stamping
Pour some paint on a paper plate. Repeat with different paint colors. Dip plastic egg halves into the paint and then stamp onto a piece of paper to make a beautiful picture. See an example HERE.
Egg Painting
Tape a piece of paper to the bottom of a plastic storage bin. Add paint. Add plastic eggs. Hold the sides of the bin to roll the eggs around through the paint. See this activity in action HERE.
Egg Roll
Take plastic eggs outside and roll down a sliding board. Which ones rolled the farthest? Add items inside the eggs like small rocks or jelly beans. Do the eggs roll any differently?
Noisy Eggs
Fill a bunch of plastic eggs with random small items. Shake and try to guess what is inside each egg.
Color Sort
Place pieces of colored construction paper on the floor. A red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple piece. Dump out some plastic eggs. Have your child put the red eggs on the red piece of paper, etc.
Egg Patterns
Use plastic eggs to create patterns. For example, green egg, green egg, blue egg. Repeat.
Egg Race
Place a bowl of plastic eggs at one end of the room. Place an empty bowl on the other side of the room. Have your child use tongs to move the eggs one at a time from one bowl to another.
Fizzy Eggs
Make this fun Fizzing Easter Sensory Bin from HERE. Very easy and the kids will LOVE it!
Action Eggs
Fill eggs with little pieces of paper that instruct the child to do a move like “Hop like a bunny 5 times.” Pick eggs and do the instructions! Get a great list HERE.
Tubes and Eggs
Use your leftover TP and paper towel tubes by standing them upright on the floor. Have your child balance a plastic Easter egg on top of the tube. See it HERE.
I hope you have an egg-cellent time with these activities!
Godspeed, friends!
Joyfully,
Julie 🙂
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