30 January 2012

preschool project / alphabet line-up




some of our best preschool projects come around by accident. one morning benji was lining up a few cars while i finished the morning dishes and we were talking about their names (have you noticed that all the cars 2 characters have a first and last name? holly shiftwell. finn mcmissle. miles axlerod. rod torque. i could go on. oh, wait, these are not the types of facts that run through your mind? seriously, i understand when moms say that their brains are turning to mush.) and we discuss their origins. he has this recent fascination about where his playthings came from; not like made in china.. but target, or santa, or grandma, or wal-mart, or this one was a potty prize, etc. and even if they don't have a name, we're big into naming things around here too (even if it's just jeep. it becomes a beloved jeep). i find it a little humorous when we're all searching for char car and frantically hollering downstairs, where's char car? where's flames car? where's songie? anyway, i had an idea and seized the moment. i grabbed the alphabet magnets from our craft bin and told him to go get even more cars and we'd start our little project. he was suddenly so excited. which is always the best.

+ line up a few favorite named toys and talk about what letter of the alphabet each toy starts with. for older kids, you could spell the names out. we talked about their colors and if they were big or small. (the one on the far right is what benji refers to as hot dog truck. it has a little band-aid image on the truck, but he has assumed it was a hot dog all along and i love it enough not to tell him it's just a regular ol' ambulance. i mean, who else has a hot dog truck for a pal!?! after our game had ended, it tipped over and he says to me, mom can you fix hot dog truck? all his pretend hot dogs are tumbling out.)

p.s. in posting these preschool projects, i in no way intend to convince you that lookie here, i'm a good mom. i am just doing my best and i love finding new kid-friendly ideas (aka free activities!) online and am often inspired by what other moms are doing. i hope to pay it forward. plus i love documenting our happy times together. he won't be little forever. but, does mommy mush brain last forever? happy monday.

12 comments:

Shannon @ A Mom's Year said...

I love projects that grow on their own! And speaking of names, this post made me smile because my two youngest got out the old wooden Thomas the Tank Engines trains this weekend (it's been years), and I remembered all the engines' and cars' names! If only I could remember where I put my keys....

Whenever I feel like I'm bragging or showing off (even though I truly just want to share ideas or something special), I remember the quote by Golda Meir: "Don't be so humble, you're not that great." Works every time. ;-)

Anonymous said...

Actually, you are just exercising a different part of your brain--using your creative side more & gearing it to your 3 year old! That's more important right now than your grocery list, so no worries! ;) You'll have plenty of time later on to add back the other stuff. In the mean time, I made lots of lists! (I still tell my son that if I have to add any new info to my brain, that I will probably lose something else, like my address!)
Shar

Destri said...

Lol..I thought "holy shiftwell" was your version of a cuss word, it took me a minute to put two and two together...talk about a mommy mush brain!

I am in full on panic mode right now as all this moving has taken the soon-to-go-to-kindergartner out of preschool. So I love this idea, thanks for sharing!

cecilia said...

i absolutely love this. my daughter is huge into letters AND cars right now. (i love that she's a girl into cars, i truly do.)

this may emerge as an activity for us with her bathtub letters.

Marisa said...

This is such a great idea! I'm pulling out the Leap Frog magnet letters right now and doing this with my guy. We LOVE simple, fun activities. Thank you so much for sharing, Marta!

Anna said...

I am laughing because I did the SAME thing Destri above did. I thought" WOW thats an original cuss word. She really does have the creative juices flowing.Now Im wondering if maybe I havent drank enough water today. giggle.( I KNOW ive eaten enough!!! ha ha!) This is such a great idea. Thank you for sharing. I am always on the hunt for a "game to play" that really is a teaching moment.

Jessie said...

marta, keep the preschool projects coming!! i love that you are paying it forward. what a great idea!

p.s. glad you had a good time at the brad paisley concert!! country music is the best.

{natalie} said...

what an excellent idea.

Travelin'Oma said...

Dad always says, "If you've done it, it ain't braggin."

I just watched "Dead Poet's Society" and re-appreciate your barbaric yawp!

Barb said...

I just wanted to say thanks for sharing these fun ideas and say your tone doesn't ever come across as boasting, in my opinion!

Lovely Lindsay said...

aw. marta.
these are the days.
the days spent with little boys.
+++
we love your preschool projects over here.
love, lindsay

Shannon @ A Mom's Year said...

I like your dad's quote even more than Golda Meir's. Hers makes me laugh, but your dad's is one I can say to my kids!

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