What do you do with an interested preschooler while you are trying to give her older siblings their homeschool lessons?
This is the question I've been wondering all summer as I've pondered how to jump back in to homeschooling come the end of August! My daughter simply loves to be a part of everything. I've got to find a workable solution. Since I love busy boxes and busy bags (for on the go), I am so excited to put some together for learning our ABCs right here at home.
My ABC Matching Game Clothes Line is based on the Clothes Line Busy Bag I found at Money Saving Mom. While my preschooler readily recognizes the uppercase letters, the lowercase letters are not as familiar. I decided to adapt the Clothes Line Busy Bag into an early literacy letter recognition activity.
As Kitty places the clothes on the matches, she'll see both the uppercase letter and the lowercase letter. I put 6-7 items on each clothes line. Because my daughter is so young, I try to just give her one set at a time until it becomes more familiar. But, she loves them so she wants to do them all at once!
I also added a pocket "washing machine" so she can take the clothes off of the line and "wash" them.
There are a couple of ways to use this free printable. One way is to put hook-and-loop tape (Velcro) dots on the back. For the very young, this is a fine motor skill activity all on it's own.
For an other child, I added a string to make a clothes line (punch a hole on each pole and tie the string on) to make an even more challenging fine motor skill activity. It takes a lot of fine motor control to push the side of the clothes pin and insert the "clothing" into the clip.
Kitty especially likes to play this game with her older brother or with my help. So far, she enjoys trying with the clothes pins. I am hoping that the more we do this together, the sooner she'll figure out how to work the clothes pins by herself.
Regardless, she loves the ABC Clothes Line, and I can't wait to keep playing with her!
Would you like a free copy of the ABC Clothes Line printable? Get access to it when you sign up to become a Line upon Line Learning VIP.
If you enjoy this activity check out the other related activities I offer in my shop!
Learning about snowflakes is a perfect lesson for learning about symmetry. When we read Zoo Flakes ABC by Will C. Howell, we got a unique alphabet of zoo animals as well as instructions for making our own symmetrical STEAM snowflake craft. About the Picture Book: Zoo Flakes ABC Zoo Flakes ABC by Will Howell is a
Read MoreFor my preschooler, this angel kids craft was a nice alternative to snow play. The craft can also be converted into an angel Christmas ornament. The angel uses an outline of the child’s hands and one foot to form the wings and body, and a personal photo of the child’s face makes it personal. My daughter has a
Read MoreToday I want to share about a book I have read and reread with my elementary kids: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. I love this book, so I delight to revisit it with my children! While I realize some of it is a bit above my kids’ understanding at a young age, in general,
Read MoreMaking our own little town to drive around, something compact to easily fold away, is a perfect companion for one of our favorite books, Cars and Trucks and Things that Go. There is so much to enjoy on every page of that book. My oldest child’s first imaginary friend was “Goldbug,” the little creature who hides
Read MoreAn A to Z box is great kit to create to practice learning letter names and sounds. As kids hold each item (for each letter or sound), they have a physical and sensory (in come cases!) experience to help solidify the letter sounds and names. Plus, what could be better than handling little toys to
Read MoreApparently, searching for eggs never gets old. My older kids and my kindergartner all love hiding and searching for eggs in our home and our yard, time and time again, even when it’s not quite Easter! I told my youngest that I’d hide eggs for her yet again today if she would read the words
Read More