Easy Back to School Crafts for Preschoolers

Creative Activities to Help Children Starting Kindergarten

Aug 10, 2008

Doing crafts with children who are just entering kindergarten is a great way to talk about the transition and help them feel positive about starting school.

Even if a child has attended preschool or daycare before, the transition to kindergarten can be challenging for many children and their parents. To help preschoolers feel excited about starting school, it is important for parents to talk about the new experience often in the weeks and months leading up to the school year. Making crafts together is an easy and fun way to discuss activities at school and address any fears the child may have about starting kindergarten.

Create a Daily Schedule Photo Album

Put the photos in chronological order in a photo album to help the child understand the flow of the day and this will make it easier for him to anticipate activities on school days.

Write a Book Together

Create a book of what it might be like to go to school. Write about activities the child will do, the structure of the day and what the teacher is like. For kids who respond to humour, this book could be about silly events during the school day. Ask for the child’s input on the story, as this may highlight concerns from him. Have the child draw the pictures for the story or use colouring pages.

Draw a Picture for the Teacher

For a child who is comfortable showing his artwork, he could draw a special picture to give to his teacher on the first day of school. By the drawing the picture, the child is forced to think about school and what he would like to do there. Giving the picture to the teacher is also a good way for kids to feel comfortable with a new grown-up, especially for shy children.

Make a Countdown Chain

It is difficult for young kids to understand how long it takes to do something and waiting is often too much for little minds to handle. To help make the idea of passing time concrete, make a paper chain to count down the days to the first day of school. Cut one colourful strip of paper for each day leading up to the first day of school and then staple them together as interlinked loops. Have the child take off one loop every morning and count the number of loops still on the chain to find out how many days until school.

Design Back Pack Tags

For a simple back pack tag kids can cut out a small picture from a magazine, draw a picture or use a part of a photograph. Once the picture is cut out, trace the shape of the picture onto a blank piece of paper. Write the child’s name and classroom number on the blank paper and glue it onto the back of the picture with the words facing out. Mactac both sides of the tag to protect it and punch a hole in the top to fasten it to the back pack with a ribbon.

If a child is particularly anxious about attending school for the first time, it may be helpful to meet with the kindergarten teacher ahead of time. For other ideas on back to school crafts including school bus themes, check Dltk-kids.com.

The copyright of the article Easy Back to School Crafts for Preschoolers in School Readiness is owned by Angela Krueger. Permission to republish Easy Back to School Crafts for Preschoolers in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.