Flower Garden Sensory Bin

Flowers are so much fun for little hands! Harper loves to pick them, plant them and even pull the weeds. I made a fun flower garden sensory bin for her and this super simple bin has not disappointed Harp at all!

Affiliate links are included

Supplies:

Dried black beans

Artificial flowers

Small terracotta pots

Sand toys

A clip case box

Instructions:
Pour the dried black beans into the container.
Add Terracotta Pots and artificial flowers.

Offer a variety of tools to explore the beans with. Plastic serving tongs, sand toys
like shovels and rakes, kitchen spoons and small gardening spades are all fun options for

small hands. I chose items that would fit into the container with the lid for easy clean up and storage.

This is a sensory bin your little ones will want to play with many more times.

With supervision allow your child to explore the beans, the tools and plant the flowers.

This bin was so simple. But, the best things in life usually are.

As I put the bin out, Harp was ready to start gardening right away. Rolf heard the beans being poured into a pot and he exclaimed "I love these bins!"

He naturally wanted to play too. Harper was more than happy to share her flower garden with Rolf.

The kids loved the sound the beans made when poured into the pots. They also like the smoothness of the beans.

To make it even more realistic, I later added a drop of rose to a few flowers and jasmine to a few others to add the fun of fragrance to the bin.

Wen playtime was over it was simple to lay everything in the box and snap the lid on for easy storage. 

We will definitely be playing with this again! 

You might also like this In the Sky Sensory Bin.
Find all of my sensory bin ideas here

Find more flower crafts for kids here.

Letter B Worksheet for Preschoolers

Print this free letter B worksheet for preschoolers or pin it or later.

My daughter is starting kindergarten this fall, so we are working hard on our letters and numbers!

I have been making letter recognition worksheets for Harper to practice her letter finding skills.

This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase I will earn a small advertising fee at no additional expense to you.

You can have your child circle the letters with a crayon or marker, or if you have a bingo marker, that is fun too! You can print as many of these as you need. Share them with a friend, or keep a few on hand for future reference.

Below you will find more preschool resources. Keep checking back as I will be sharing worksheets for the entire alphabet over the coming weeks.

Print the Letter B Worksheet

Find more preschool resources here

Letter A Coloring Page

Letter A Recognition Worksheet

Apple Dot a Dot Printable

Letter B Coloring Page

15 Spring Books for Preschoolers

Spring is near and we are letting it inspire our reading list! Harper and I have selected 15 books that we know you are going to want to check out too! These are great for a rainy spring day, a bedtime story, or anytime!

This post contains affiliate links; should you make a purchase I will earn an advertising fee at no extra cost to you.


Let It Rain
In Like a Lion Out Like a Lamb
Time for Spring
What Can You See In Spring?
It's Spring!
Animals in Spring
Olaf's Wait for Spring
I Can Grow a Flower
The Little Gardener
The Thing About Spring
Springtime Babies
Spring is Here: A Story About Seeds
Clifford's Spring Clean Up
The Tiny Seed
It's Spring: A National Geographic Book

We have already read Animals in Spring and Time for Spring, both were really cute. Harp loved all of the animals! We are anxious to start working in our flower beds and see if the tulips we planted last year come to bloom.


If you have a suggestion for preschool spring books I want to hear about it!

We have a few fun crafts that are perfect for spring.

Easy Raindrop Crafts

Apple Dot a Dot Printable

I have been busy making so many fun things to keep Harper busy with her letters and hopefully avoid the dreaded summer slump. To go with our letter recognition sheet and coloring page for the letter A, I made a super simple and cute dot a dot.

This post contains affiliate links, if you make a purchase I will earn a commission.

These are perfect for little hands! You will need bingo markers for this easy activity. If this is your first time with do a dot worksheets, the idea is simple. Have your child place a "dot" with the bingo marker in the circles.  Allow to dry, and display!

While this is such a simple activity, kids LOVE it. When I help at preschool and we work on a do a dots, all of the kids are totally enthralled the entire time.

More Preschool Resources for the Letter A

Letter A Coloring Page

Letter A Recognition Worksheet

Letter A Preschool Worksheet

Print this easy letter A worksheet for your preschooler. It is simple, free and a good resource to add to your printable files.

This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase I will earn a small commission.

There are so many ways to work on letter recognition with your preschooler. From easy worksheets like these ones, to handing over an old word search or newspaper and asking your preschooler to find certain letters.Harper also love to practice tracing the letters with a highlighter. 

This worksheet is so easy! We prefer to use bingo markers on these, but if you don't have one, circling with crayons is fine too!

Print the Letter A Worksheet

More Letter A Resources for Preschoolers

Letter A Coloring Page

Apple Do a Dot Worksheet

Print as many of these as you need for your classroom, or add them to your homeschool files. I would LOVE it if you pin this worksheet to your preschool board or share it with a friend.

Itsy Bitsy Spider Craft

If you spend a lot of time listening to preschool music like I do, you are going to LOVE this easy Itsy Bitsy Spider craft that I made with my kids. This was so easy to assemble and so much fun to make. This is suitable for preschoolers and my 8 year old enjoyed it too... even though that is a baby song.

The Itsy Bitsy Spider House

You will need one full sheet of colored paper 
one 4x6 inch square of paper in another color
one triangle in another color (to make a roof)
2 2x2 inch squares of paper that are the same color.
One 2x2 inch square of paper in another color
One 1x3 inch strip of black paper
One Straw
One spider ring
2 strips of tape
Glue Stick

First Glue your 4x6 inch square of paper onto the full sheet.

Then glue on the triangle for the roof, and the 2 squares of paper that are the same color for windows.

Next add your door and your chimney.

Tape your straw to the side of the house on the bottom.
Slide the spider ring onto the straw from the untaped top.
Tape the top of the straw.

You can sing the itsy bitsy spider song with your kids, and have them move the spider up the spout! How cute right?

We had a lot of fun with this super easy Itsy Bitsy Spider Craft. I love that with such simple supplies we were able to create something so entertaining. 

This is not the only craft we have that  makes use of straws . You can give used straws a hot water soak and reuse them too to help reduce waste!

You might also like

Straw Necklaces; bling made for kids, by kids.

Straw Flutes; hey, why not?

15+ Winter Books for Preschoolers

The winter Rolf was 3, it was cold! We spent a lot of time curled up in his tiny little boy bedroom with stacks of books at our elbows. We read everything we could get our hands on in his tiny room, where it was the warmest!

Well, here we are again, in the midst of winter, and I happen to have another preschooler to snuggle up with and read the cold days away with! This year, we have picked 15 books that we felt like we MUST READ and I am happy to share our list with you for winter reading with your little one.

I am a participant in the amazon affiliate program. Should you make a purchase from one of these links I will earn a small commission. These titles should also be available at your local library.

Animals in Winter

The Thing About Yetis

Let It Snow

The Mitten

My Snowman,Paul

Winter Dance

The Snowy Day

Tracks in the Snow

Dream Snow

Snowmen at Night

The First Day of Winter

Pizza Pie Snowman

Winter is Here

The Animals Winter Sleep

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Snow

Welcome Winter


I have a collection of snowman painting ideas you might also want to check out for a fun winter day with your preschooler!

Print the I is for Igloo Coloring Page

School is out but we are still working on our letters! When the temps reached 92 last week, all Harper and Rolf could think of was popsicles, ice cream and playing with the hose. It seemed fitting to make an igloo for the letter I!

This printable combines handwriting practice and coloring for the win.

This post contains affiliate or compensated links.

To keep the fun of igloos going, we got some fun Toob toys from Safari LTD. We went with the Arctic Toob series because it had so many fun options including a seal, a fox, a whale, an igloo and more! Harper loved adding these fun toys to a bin of ice for a fun sensory experience.

We followed it up with a great book, Curious George Builds an Igloo. An afternoon playing in ice, learning about the letter Ii, and reading a great story in the cool comforts of our house made for an experience that even Rolfie, who is too cool on his own, couldn't resist getting involved in!

Print the I is for Igloo Coloring Page

Pin this page for later, or share it with a preschool parent!

You can find more FREE preschool printables here

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

Color Swirling Milk Experiment

Harper and I love to explore the kitchen when we need crafty inspiration. She is totally my partner in crime when it comes to creativity!

We were looking for a quick activity on a busy day, because even a busy day should have time for fun and exploration when you are 5! We found ourselves in the kitchen, again, to fuel our inspiration.

This is such a fun way to explore kitchen science and how dish soap works! You need only 4 things to make color swirling milk!

Supplies:

• Milk Use Vitamin D or 2% milk,
• Half and half or heavy cream provide even better results if you have it!
• Food Coloring
• Q Tips
• Dish Soap

This post contains affiliate links.

Directions:

1. Pour milk into a glass dish
2. Add several drops of food coloring to the milk.
3. Dip a q tip in dish soap 
4. Dip the q tip into the milk
5. And watch the colors swirl!

Why this works:

Milk has fat in it. The higher the milk fat content, the better this reacts. You can see the power of a concentrated dish soap before your eyes as the dish soap works to break down the fat content of the milk, thus disrupting the splashes of color, causing them to swirl.

What Harp thought:
Harp is a milk drinker, so she was ready to combine early science with her snack. She is intrigued by food coloring, so this was completely up her alley.

As you can see in the photos, she was ready to get hands on with this right away! She was completely intrigued by how the dish soap reacted to the milk. We tried this several times with different colors. We also tried this with skim milk and coffee creamer to see how the dish soap reacted to other milk products


 This is a fun way to engage the little ones with kitchen science, and I would highly recommend trying it with your kids sometime soon as it is so simple!

If you like colorful kids activities, you won't want to miss these glow in the dark nightlights.
This glow in the dark necklace is another fun project that my kids loved.

ABC Pancakes with Krusteaz

Thanks to Krusteaz for hooking us up with yummy mixes!

My 4 year old is going through a phase... the phase of "I don't like it..." He refuses to eat everything from yogurt to chicken, to crackers and fruits, he doesn't like anything except pancakes. So I make a ton of pancakes these days.

I have been making my sons food of choice into a fun learning experience, because face it, food should be fun to prepare and eat.

Krusteaz was kind enough to send us Honey Wheat Pancake Mix. {This stuff is so good! No wonder the kid wants to only eat pancakes!} and I got busy in the kitchen making pancakes for Roo that offered him a yummy breakfast and a chance to practice his ABC's.

I followed the directions on the package and created a batter.

Using a squeeze bottle I wrote letters on the hot griddle.

 After about 30 seconds I added a scoop of batter to the top of each letter and allowed them to cook as normal.

This created letter pancakes for the kids.

My son really liked telling us about the letter he was eating, this included letter sounds, who has a name that starts with a letter and son on.

Breakfast, lunch and sometimes dinner too, Krusteaz pancake mixes make a delicious option for my family. My son is a huge fan! I am too because I can make a huge batch and freeze them for a quick breakfast during the week to the delight of my family.

Story Time and a Jam Sandwich Craft

My kids are too stinking cute. I love their creativity and eagerness to dig into any project and give it their own unique touches. Several times a week Roo will ask to make a craft, similarly several times a week Harper will raid our craft closet and take off with anything she can reach... We now know they like to craft; if you add a good story into the mix it quickly turns from like to love.

A few weeks ago we checked out The Giant Jam Sandwich by John Vernon Lord. I thought this would be a fun book to check out, it also seemed like a good way to explain wasps to Harper and give Roo a reminder to avoid them!

I also hoped that a story about a giant jam sandwich and a cute craft would inspire my son to try something new. Something he has been adamant about not trying, jelly and jam!

                                                                  

In the story, 4000 wasps descend upon a town. They are quite a bother but the townspeople roll up their sleeves and get to work making one giant wasp trap jam sandwich!

The kids found the book entertaining. Roo was not sold on the idea of jam at all. He said "That's not good. That's sick." He was pretty determined that he wouldn't like jelly, nor jam. 

Up next we made Jam Sandwiches. My kids go CRAZY for paper food crafts. Like drop everything,  We are making a sandwich!? From paper?! Will there be glue sticks involved?

Getting ready, supplies needed

I cut 2 slices of bread shapes in off white paper

I cut 2 slightly larger slices of bread shapes in brown paper

I offered my kids red finger paint and paint brushes

Of course, glue sticks were needed.

Baby Wipes... You will want these!

Instructions

I gave each kid a brown slice of bread and a glue stick

They smeared glue around the brown paper and topped it with the off white paper

That was pretty satisfying to the kids. They really like to glue things!

They were thrilled to see the finger paint and paint brushes!

I told them to paint the jam on their toast. They agreed this was pretty great. Glue and paint after a story? It couldn't get much better!

This was a great activity for the kids. They always want to help me cook, so to create their own food craft was a hit. 

After the story and the craft, I made a peanut butter and jelly for Harper, Roo came in and watched me spreading the glob of jelly around. With a very serious face he told me "That is sick. Bleck. No jelly for me please. I will have honey."

I love that kid. He is definitely a guy who knows what he wants. 

You also might enjoy this Paper Cookie Craft idea for preschoolers.

Toddler Tulip Craft

This easy toddler tulip craft is perfect for a rainy day! It is easy and adorable and is so much fun for little ones!

We love tulip crafts! There are so many fun ways to create something inspired by spring that can be enjoyed for a long time! There is something super sweet about sharing kid art with loved ones and this one is perfect for that!

This is perfect for preschoolers! Harper loved making these!

You will need:

One sheet of blue paper

One sheet of green paper

One sheet of paper in the color of your choice for the tulip

Glue

Scissors

Cut 3 tear shapes for your tulips.

Cut or tear a thin strip of green for your stem.

Glue the three tear shapes so that the point is lined up to look like petals.

Add the stem.

H is for Hot Air Balloon

This free printable is perfect for your letter of the week studies! It incorporates tracing, coloring and letter recognition, and best of all, it is FREE to print!

Harper and I have been working on one letter each week to help her build on what she is learning at preschool. I am a firm believer that education continues at home, and I LOVE to tackle fun projects with my mini. We make coloring time at least 3 times a week, so I knew that creating letter themed coloring pages would be a lot of fun for the two of us!

H is naturally her favorite letter. It is H like for Harper! I have a love of hot air balloons so I added that in, in hopes that she will find them interesting too. I want to do a hot air balloon ride with the kids when she gets a little older.

I would love it if you pin this coloring page for later, share it with a friend or print as many as you could need! If you work on these printable pages with your early learners I would love it if you share a pic on my facebook page.

Print the H is for Hot Air Balloon Coloring Page

You can find our other letter printables here:

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

G is for Girl Coloring Page

Grab this free G is for girl coloring page for your preschoolers and kindergartners!

We have been working hard on our ABC's! This week we have a completely free g is for girl page to share with you! You can print as many of these as you would like, pin it for later or share it with a friend as a free resource for early learning!

These are great for little ones as they combine tracing, coloring and letter recognition in one fun and free package!

Print the G is for Girl Coloring Page

F is for Fan

This free letter f printable coloring page is perfect for preschoolers and kindergarteners. It combines coloring and tracing to create a fun way to work on letters!

We have been having so much fun with these printable coloring sheets! We are doing one letter a week to supplement what Harp is learning at school.

These are completely free! I hope you will print as many as you need, pin it for later and or share it with a friend for a free early learning resource! 

Print the F is for Fan Coloring Page

Letter E Printable

This FREE Letter E printable coloring sheet is perfect for preschoolers and kindergarteners.


Harper and I have been putting a lot of effort into our abc activities! She loves these printable coloring and tracing sheets that I have been making. I love that these give her a chance to color, trace and work on letter recognition all in one sheet!

I would love it if you would pin this, print it, or share it with a friend! You can print as many as you would ever need! If you use them with your little ones, I would love to have you snap a pic and share it with me on facebook!

                                                       Print the  E is for Easel Coloring Page

You can grab the other letters here :
Letter A
Letter B
Letter C
Letter D
Letter E

C is for Cat Coloring Page

This week Harper and I are studying the letter C. Harper attends preschool, but I am a firm believer that education continues when you get home, and any extra help she can get will benefit her as she enters the fast paced world of kindergarten.

I have been designing a coloring page, creating a craft and selecting a fun book to focus on each week. I hope you will pin these totally free coloring page printables so you can use them and share them with other little learners in your life.

This post contains affiliate links.

Harp loves this simple design, it gives her a chance to trace her letter of the week. She can color a picture associated with the letter and of course, the story to wrap it all up is always a hit. This week we are recommending Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. This is one of Harps all time favorites!

C is for Cat Coloring Page Printable

We are revisiting a favorite  craft this week too! Both of my kids have loved making paper cookies for years now. Harp knew we were going to make them as soon as she saw me add sprinkles to the shopping cart this week!

You can check out our easy paper cookie craft here.

Who will you print this coloring page for?

B is for Butterfly Coloring Page

This week Harper and I are working on the letter B. It is cold enough that I debated making the theme for this letter BRRRR... but, we are hopeful for spring and the return of our winged friends, the butterflies!

I made this cute coloring page to help Harp flutter through this letter. As soon as she saw it she said, "You made that for me to color!?!" It was too cute!

This post contains sponsored content or affiliate links.

We are going to revisit a favorite butterfly craft to accompany our coloring page. We made these easy butterflies last year, they were adorable and fun so we won't mind making them again at all!

If that isn't enough butterfly crafty fun, I would love to have you check out my butterfly pasta art project on Crafting Reality.

We love to incorporate a story into our studies. This is an affiliate link and I may earn a commission. Harper and I had a ton of fun with Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See by Eric Carle.

                                                  Print this free coloring page here 

If you have a fun idea for the letter B I would love to hear about it!

A is for Alligator Coloring Page

I shared an easy and cute letter a craft for preschoolers with you a few days ago and wanted to continue our letter a adventure with a fun coloring page you can print for your little ones.

In case you missed our craft you can click through to check it out. Letter A; A is for Alligator Preschool Craft.

This free printable gives kids a chance to practice writing their a's while coloring a fun companion to the craft, which was so much fun and so simple! I will go through the entire alphabet with Harp, so keep checking back for the rest of the letters of the alphabet!

This post includes affiliate links.

You can also grab a really cute book for under $1 on amazon to add to your letter A lessons. Harper and Irecommend A is for Alligator naturally!

                                                        Print the A is for alligator coloring page here

If you have a fun idea for the letter A please leave a comment to inspire Harper and I!

A is for Alligator Craft

Now that Harper is in preschool, our projects have become intentional. I want to make sure she is getting the support she needs to put all that she is learning to good use! We have been taking our time exploring the alphabet and having a lot of fun doing it too!

Today, I want to share a fun letter A craft with you that comes together in a matter of moments and takes a bite out of craft time and makes letter recognition a lot of fun for preschoolers!

This post includes partner links.

To make the A is for Alligator Craft you will need:

2 x 4" strips of green paper
1 x 2" strip of green paper
2 x 2" strips of white paper
1 googly eye
glue stick
scissors

Directions:

1. With the 2x 4" strips  and 1 x 2" strip of green paper form your letter A and glue it in place.
2. Cut teeth shapes in the 2 x 2" strips of white paper. 
3. Glue the teeth on the legs of the A.
4. Glue the googly eye on to the top of the letter A.

If you have a fun craft idea for the letter A I would love to hear about it in a comment!