What happens at home is EVERYTHING to a preschooler. Family Preschool theme activities can and should be talked about in preschool and this family preschool theme activities page will help!
This gives your students the opportunity to talk about the people most important to them and also helps them realize that family, the people we live with, is something we all have in common, regardless of how our families look!
Some families have siblings, some have none. Some have parents, some have none. This theme page is filled with preschool activities and ideas for all areas of your classroom.
You'll find more themes to help you with your planning on my preschool themes page.
Other Themes That May Compliment this Theme for your Classroom!
There are many other themes that may be great for your classroom and go along very well with this theme!
Below you will find links for a few of them such as All About Me and a Pets Theme!
Let the Preschool Family Theme planning begin!
You can either scroll down through this page to see all of the preschool activities for your theme or click the link below to go to specific preschool activity types you are looking for.
Family Faces
Materials Needed: paper plates (many!), markers, precut yarn in different colors, buttons or googly-eyes, glue, craft sticks
The children use the materials to make the faces of members of their families. Ask questions to help them such as "What color eyes does your Mom have? What color hair? Does your dad have a beard?"
Sponge Painting
Materials Needed: people shaped sponges, paint in shallow trays, construction paper
The children use the sponges to create their own family. Be sure to write the names of the people they list!
VARIATION: Use playdough cookie cutters (people shapes) to dip in the paint.
DON'T FORGET TO ADD SOME PET SHAPES, THEY ARE PART OF OUR FAMILIES, TOO!
Magazine Collage
Traditional but fun! In advance, have a huge selection of pictures cut from magazines of people, families doing things together etc. The children choose what they want to make a collage of family fun.
SUGGESTION: Ask parents in advance to cut pictures out for you either from magazines you have or ones they have at home.
Our Family
Add a dollhouse, cars and little people to you block area.
Circle Time is such a great time for children to learn the social skills of being together as a large group AND to learn more about your theme!
Our Families
Begin your theme with this activity!
In advance, cut out many, many little people shapes.
Prepare a large chart that has the children's names in the left hand column.
Ask each child who is in their family. The child tapes a person shape next to their name for each person (Mom, me, Grandma). Print the names on their little people before they tape it.
This can be used throughout the unit to compare families at Circle Time for some awesome math activities:
How many of us have brothers and sisters?
How many brothers and sisters in all?
Our Families Idea #2
Use a puppet to talk to the children about their families! Have your puppet talk about their family and, one by one, the puppet asks each child who lives in their house!
Family Helpers
Bring a large piece of chart paper and a marker to Circle. Ask the children what types of jobs their families need to do at home and what jobs they can help with.
Sing the song (sung to Mulberry Bush):
This is a job we do at home at home, do at home, do at home.
This is a job we do at home, my family and me!
You may need to start by suggesting a job--perhaps doing dishes, folding clothes, washing the dog, etc.
List the jobs the children name.
EXTENSION: As each child names a job and you are writing it on the chart, sing the above song while the child acts out the job!
Togetherness
Bring a large piece of chart paper and a marker to Circle. Ask the children what types of things their families do together and list them on the chart.
Again, you may need to start by suggesting: We make tacos every Friday night; we have a game night; we visit Grandma at the nursing home, etc.
Who Am I?
Ask questions that describe something a family member does at home. Let the children answer, and remember, there is no right or wrong answer here! Dads might be the ones to cook at home or Moms do the driving!
I am thinking of a family member who cooks dinner; does dishes; feeds the dog, etc.
Fingerplays, Songs and/or flannel board stories! Adapt them in any way!
My Family (sung to Muffin Man)
Tell me what you like to do, like to do, like to do.
Tell me what you like to do with your family.
Add what each child tells you:
Cheryl likes to walk the dog, walk the dog, walk the dog.
Cheryl likes to walk the dog, with her family!
Our House
Here are the windows (make a square)
Here is the door (make a triangle)
Come on in, I'll show you more (wave as though inviting them to come)
Here is the kitchen and the living room, too (point to pretend rooms)
A bathroom, a bedroom and a room for you!
An attic and chimney and a roof above.
My house is a home and it's filled with love!
Cooking with children helps develop their math skills and helps them to learn how to follow directions. It also allows for some great conversation! Ask many questions while cooking with your children to encourage conversation! Be sure to ask specific themed questions while making these fun snacks!
Preschool Family Picnic!
At snack time, put out some blankets and have a preschool family picnic style snack or lunch!
If you have cooking ideas to add to the preschool family activities theme section, please use the "Contact Me" link to the left and I'll add it to this page! Please be sure to tell me the name of the theme! Thanks!
Moving Day
One year, we had 3 children move during the school year. It can be a stressful event! Provide an opportunity for the children to pack and move by setting up dramatic play with lots of toys, clothes, boxes and bins.
They pack and help move (perhaps using a wagon!). Be sure to interact with them and talk about what they think their new house will be like, what their favorite things are that they don't want to forget to pack and perhaps what they might be nervous about (leaving friends, a new school, etc.)
More Than Just Painting (Although that is always THE favorite in our classroom!)
My Family
In advance, have a large supply of pre-cut people shapes for the easel (babies, adults, children, pets). The children choose the family members they want to paint.
Where Shall We Go?
Place many chairs together as a car and let the children take turns being the person driving the family some fun Preschool family activities such as to......
the park, school, work, supermarket, etc.
Provide the driver with a makeshift steering wheel and the others with activities they might do in a car.
My Family Flannel House
Hang a LARGE piece of flannel on the wall that is separated into rooms. Provide flannel pieces in shapes of people and household items for the children to place on the board.
This would work well in your manipulatives center as well on a smaller scale!
Book Suggestions for the Library
(I LOVE Amazon, and some of the links below will take you to the Amazon website. If you do choose to purchase yours through Amazon, they do send me a few cents--which supports my coffee habit! )
Who Is That?
In advance, cut out pairs of people (adult woman, man, child, baby, grandparent, pets).
Laminate both sets.
Tape one set in a manila folder.
The children match the people shapes.
Family Sort
In advance, cut out and laminate a large number of people, families and others that go with this preschool family activities theme from magazines.
Simply place them at the table for the children to sort in different ways.
Puzzles!
Of course! Have many family puzzles available during this theme!
Farmer in the Dell Thanks, Kaleena, for this idea!
Have the children take turns acting out the farmer in the dell. The children love singing and choosing each character over and over again.
Shaving with Whipped Cream
Okay......again, as in the Blocks area activity, I am asking you to be brave and go a little crazy here!
At a table, provide free standing hand mirrors, whipped cream, a clean brush and tongue depressors.
Let the children shave......and eat! Of course, be sure to talk about the fact that this is PRETEND and that they should never, ever do this at home!
Water Fun
Provide dishes, water, soap and towels to do dishes (and of course a mop and bucket!)
If I Could Paint My House....
What color would they choose if they could paint their house?? Find out in the preschool family activities theme science idea!
Materials needed: Provide paint cups with different colors of water in each.
Provide each child with their own clear paint cup and a pipette.
Teach them how to use the pipettes.
Let them create their own colors.
I'd suggest having a few pitchers of water a large bin. They will want to empty their colors and start over many times!
My Family Book
Each day, encourage the children to talk about one family member and draw a picture of that member. Have a conversation starter printed on the page each day. The child draws about that person and you print on their page what they say:
I love my Mom because...
My sister/brother and I like to .......
At the end of the unit, you will have a great family book to send home.
VARIATION: Use this idea for a Thanksgiving or Christmas theme activity or end of the year activity.
My Family Fun Page
Encourage children to draw a picture of some fun preschool family activities they enjoy doing with their families. Print their stories on the page.
EXTENSION: Make this into a class book and read it at circle time.
EXTENSION: If you have the ability, make color copies so that each child can take a copy of the book home. Use their original paper as their book cover.
Another Family Fun Page Idea
In advance, cut family member pictures out of magazines, old books, etc.
Glue one family member on large, plain construction paper. (Make MANY!!)
Provide markers or crayons.
Encourage the children to draw a family picture and write down the story they tell you about their picture.
These also make GREAT classroom books to read at Circle Time!
Preschool Family Activities Banners
Send a note home to families asking them to make a family banner or collage of the people in their families. Ask them to label the pictures by printing the name of each person under the pictures (the banners will go home after your theme is over).
As children bring them in, let them tell their friends about their family at Circle Time and then hang the pictures in the classroom to see during the theme!
Classroom Visitors
A Preschool Family Activities Theme is a great opportunity to involve families in the classroom!
Pet Visit
Invite a family to bring a pet in to visit your children. Be aware of allergies and possible state regulations (i.e. some states do not allow birds in classrooms)
We had a family this year bring in their Bearded Dragon on Show and Tell Day!
Babies
Invite a parent to bring their baby in and talk about the jobs involved in being a parent.
Grandparents
Invite a grandparent to visit and talk about things they like to do with their grandchildren.
Go to the ALL ABOUT ME Theme Page
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