35 Preschool Activities For Playful Learning

Kids can learn better when they indulge in playful preschool activities. That’s why preschools focus on whimsical projects for children to enjoy while learning. This post has been created for teachers and parents who want kids to have practical, yet playful learning before the actual studies start.

These preschool activities list for playful learning consists of 40 such enjoyable projects that have been aggregated from various sources. Let’s dig in and learn about each of them.

1. Bug Fossils Using Play Dough

Here is a fun activity that teaches children about fossils and the basics of Paleontology.

This quick and easy playful activity involves the use of play dough (specifically brown in color), a couple of plastic bags, plastic tongs, and a magnifying glass.

In these  Preschool activities, kids need to flatten the dough first and then press the bugs onto the dough.

After that, with the help of a pair of tongs, they will need to remove each bug toy from the dough carefully.

This will leave behind the bug impressions. It is pretty fun and easy activity to try out.

2. Slimy Bag with Toy Fishes

If your kid loves fishes, then this quick and easy activity could make their day.

Moreover, using live fishes could be a big responsibility for a small child to handle, so we use toy fishes for this activity.

Furthermore, we use a mixture of liquid starch and glue to create the slime for the plastic fishes to swim in. You can also add glitter in it to make it more interesting.

3. Painting Names

If the children want to enjoy a colorful art and craft activity, then this could be the one to choose.

The things you are going to need for it are paint tubes (multiple colors),a small or medium-sized canvas, painter’s tape, a sponge, and a pair of scissors.

It’s quite easy to do this one toom, as you just need to first stick the tape on the canvas to create a name and then go wild with the sponge dipped in colors.

Just make sure to supervise the kids while they use scissors.

4. DIY Wooden Toy Car Storage

This preschool activity can be done to create a display for toy cars.

For this, you are going to need a wooden crate, empty foil tubes (you will need many of these), toy cars (preferably Hot Wheels brand cars), a sponge, scissors, glue, paper cutter, and spray paint (Blue or Red). Creating a garage out of the items is needed for this project.

The tubes need to be cut to align them inside the wooden crate without them protruding out of the crate space.

5. DIY Sponge and Grass Hut

This one is a playful task that involves some botany and a lot of patience. The child will be able to learn and enjoy this preschool project in which the grass actually grows.

It can be a great way of educating kids about growing life. The hut needs to be created using the sponge pieces first.

Then, the grass seeds can be added over the hut’s roof and then the hut should be kept in suitable conditions for the grass to grow.

6. Rainbow Soap Bubbles

Here is a fun-filled project that involves soap, colors, and lots of moist fun.

Kids are going to love this activity. But, make sure to take the necessary steps for the soapy mess that is left behind.

It is quite fun and easy to do this as all it requires is mixing the ingredients to let the bubbly and colorful foam do its magic.

7. Edible Sand Fun

If you have heard of kinetic sand, then this awesome DIY recipe for preschool kids is worth trying out.

The colorful sand prepared through this recipe is not only playable but also edible. So, kids can enjoy eating it once they are done playing with it.

8. House Blocks Stack

This preschool project is all about building blocks. But, the blocks used for this project are all DIY-based.

Note that this activity needs the full guidance of a parent or teacher while handling the tools, as creating blocks out of wood requires wood crafting tools.

After the mini boxes of wood have been created, they need to be painted in the form of a building block with windows to make them look livelier. Stacking up the boxes is the easy part and the children can do it on their own.

9. Play Dough With Apple Scent

 

The adorable and fruity play dough fruits (apples in this case) are worth admiration.

The idea is simple but can be messy as the dough needs to be created beforehand.

So, make sure that this activity is carried outside to avoid a mess. You do not necessarily have to create apples out of the dough mixture.

If you have any other fruit-scented shampoo that needs to be mixed in the dough, then you can use that to create the relevant fruit out of the dough.

10. Printed Hexi Card Designs

If the children are into crafty ideas using printable and colorful papers, then this task could be the one to choose.

With colorful craft papers, this one is more about creating beautiful geometrical designs using hexagonal shapes.

You need to find printable hexagonal designs online for this first. After printing enough designs, beautiful and colorful figures can be created for kids to adore.

11. Cool Shadow Puppets

Who would have thought shadows would be this fun? That’s what this task is all about.

With just a couple of cutouts of various animals, everyday things, etc., the magic can come to life.

Moreover, shadow puppets can increase the creativity of children as they will indulge in their own stories and plots while playing with these.

12. Painting with Feet

The best thing about being a kid is that there are no rules to be followed.

The same applies to this fun activity, where they will not have to use their hands to paint. Instead, their feet are required for this project.

Make sure that these preschool activities are being done on a huge waterproof mat to avoid ruining the floor. Children will also need to clean their feet afterwards, so be ready for that too!

13. DIY Animal Puzzles

This one could be great for kids who love animals. So, enjoying a puzzle that tests their brains with fun would be a great idea, wouldn’t it?

On a piece of paper, animal shapes are laid down beforehand by the teacher or parent to trace it.

Then each child can be given the paper with the animal shapes with the animal figures.

He or she will then try to figure out which shape belongs to which traced image.

14.  Scavenger Hunt Games

Kids are curious, so they are going to love this fun preschool activity.

It is an engaging game played by children by making a list of objects to find and clues to help the players to identify the items.

15. Lego Mosaics

If the kids are a fan of Legos, then this would be a fun thing to do.

Teaching them the artistic prominence of mosaics through Legos would give them a boost of appreciation and enjoyment towards this event.

You can choose any themed mosaic that the kids will love. You can choose any popular theme to create items and beings related to it.

16. DIY Zoo

Here is another fun-filled idea for playful learning involving toy animals.

Using such figures, children can imagine their own little zoo using wooden blocks or even Legos to build parks and cages for the animals.

Cages can be built using the relevant material available, which can then be filled with plastic animal toys to give it an impression of an actual zoo.

17. DIY Colorful Clean Mud

Somepreschool activities are fun and simple to do, just like this one.

All you need is to prepare colorful mud and let the children enjoy it.

You will need to add food colorings to the mud clean mud to make it look more attractive for this project.

18. Woodland Meadow DIY

Here is an exercise that can help bring out the creativity in children.

In this DIY project, children are guided to decorate a mat by creating an artificial, three-dimensional scene of a meadow.

Various items can be used for this, such as pebbles, paint colors, grass, plastic toys, or anything that is available for such a project.

19. Human Body Project

A decent way of teaching kids about the human body and its parts. This one requires them to create various organs using various craft items.

You can start with the easy organs and body parts first, then move to move intricate ones to make it more exciting.

20. Jar Rainforest

This is a fun way of creating a biome in a jar that requires some knowledge of biological conservation and sustenance.

Teaching children the way plants grow is good for educational purposes as well.

Also Read: 9 Preschool Activity Ideas for Teachers

21. Customizable Magnetic Run

If you want to teach kids about Physics, then this is an interesting activity that uses pipes, magnets, balls, and of course, gravity.

Being changeable, the design of the magnetic run can vary as per imagination.

22. Chalk Maze

Kids can enjoy a lot with these fun-filled DIY mazes.

For instance, they can try a math-driven maze that will act as a good physical and mental exercise.

23. Outdoor Dice Game

The perks of DIY preschool activities are that they polish a child’s creativity and imagination.

That’s why this energetic dice game played outside is a perfect mixture of indoor fun with an outdoor twist.

24. Polyhedra Totems

This cultural activity can teach children about making ancestral emblems out of paper.

Creating polyhedral shapes using craft items can be cute and enjoyable.

25. Spiral Sun Catchers

Suncatchers are known for showing off their beautiful spectrum of colors, which is why it can be the perfect project for children.

A lot of guides are available online for creating DIY spiral sun catchers. You should check them out.

26. Wood Stick Wands

These preschool activities involves using sticks of wood to create beautiful magic wands.

It can be the perfect props used for wizardry and witchcraft.

It is quite easy to make wands, as all you need to do is find relevant wood sticks that can act as such magical props.

Kids can embellish these stick using paint, glitter and whatnot!

27. Water Wall DIY Project

Here is another gravity-based, customizable task that uses water instead of a ball.

Once the water is poured from the top, it washes down through the pipes and empty bottles used in this project.

The bottles will need to be cut in half vertically to make openings for the falling water to pour in without interruption.

Also, an empty wall space will be needed to stick the plastic bottle pieces for creating the project.

You can search for images related to this activity to know how it needs to be doneexactly.

28. Ocean in A Bottle

For summer preschool activities, this could be a fun one where kids can create their own mini-oceans in a bottle.

It needs a few things, like colored water/oil, a miniature boat, some pebbles, shells, etc., to set up the project.

29. Cardboard Organisms

This activity is easy and fun to do. With cardboard as the primary crafting item, it transforms itself into lively organisms depending upon the child’s imagination.

You can search for cute creatures created using cardboards for your reference.

30. DIY Sailboat Cork Jar

Children will love this ship in a bottle DIY project that uses bottle corks for creating the sailboat. This task can teach kids the value of patience and precision.

Also Read: 15 Common Road Hazards and How to avoid them

31. Cardboard Spinning Thread Toy

Here is another cardboard project that has been a popular pass-time among the kids of the ’80s and ’90s.

Now, it is time to relive those memories with the kids of today. Search online to locate the right way of creating these spinning cardboard toys.

32. Music Note Game

Children need to have knowledge of music notes if they are into it. So, this particular project involves using music notes in a creative way.

33. Nature Weaving

Here is a crafting preschool activities that involves the use of natural resources found outdoors in the park, etc.

First, it involves weaving ropes over twigs and sticks to create a framework.

Then children can embellish it with natural or artificial ornaments of their choosing.

34. Lego Balloon Car

In this task, children can enjoy playing with their Legos by building a car model installed with a balloon.

An inflated balloon will give a constructed Lego car a push and make it move by itself.

35. Paper Forts

Crafting with papers and cardboards is always achievable through a cost-effective and accessible project plan. That’s why we bring you another lovable preschool activity to teach kids how to make paper forts.

Final Notes

It’s funny how children can learn so much at such a young age due to ever-growing energy and curiosity.

That’s why preschool age is the perfect time to teach them such cool and intriguing preschool activities.

Try them out as a teacher or a parent and help them improve their minds and grow their imaginations.