"First School" Lesson Plans: Activities for 2-3 year olds

We've been "back-to-school" for almost two months now, and I finally feel like things are settling down as we have figured out our routine. Things have fallen into place so nicely, in fact, that I even had time to make a plan for the learning activities that I want to do with the Sweet Bee. She just turned three years old this week, so I'm calling it "First School". Here is the focus for each day at a glance:

Monday: Letter of the Week
Tuesday: Social-Preschool with friends
Wednesday: Number of the Week
Thursday: Color /Shape of the Week (alternate weeks)
Friday: Creative art, seasonal theme, playgroup

Here is a detailed breakdown of what I plan to do each day.

Letter of the Week
Introduce the letter: use a letter grab bag with the various letters we have in the house (foam letter, blocks, magnet letter).
Read a book that connects with the letter.
Create letter artwork, see No Time for Flashcards for inspiration.
Color a basic letter poster for the wall, add a letter sticker (the posters I use are the Uppercase A-Z Worksheets from Confessions of a Homeschooler).

Number of the Week
Introduce the number: use a number grab bag with the various numbers we have in the house (foam number, blocks, magnet letter).
Read a counting book.
Use the counting cups to count a snack (cheerios, crackers, grapes, etc).
Play a number/counting game.

Color of the Week
Create a color poster using crayon, colored pencil, marker, paper scrap, paint, etc.
Go on a color hunt and search the house to find the color.
Read a book and look for the color in the pages.
Free art using the color (and others, too).

Shape of the Week
Introduce the shape using the felt shapes. Play a matching game.
Create a shape poster by gluing small colored shapes on a larger shape.
Go on a shape hunt and search the house to find the shape.
Cut the shape out of play dough or cookie dough.

Creative and Fun
Create or play something fun. A good day to do seasonal projects (ex. Halloween or Christmas).
Playgroup with friends.

As we go along, I'll share the specifics of what we actually did in each lesson (ex. which books we read for letter X, the number game we played with number 3, the creative letter artwork we did for letter L, etc). Watch for the details in future posts. These activities would be fun (and educational) for most 2-3 year old children, and adaptable for other ages as needed. My five year old likes to join in whenever she can!

There are a lot of great resources available when it comes to planning a preschool lesson. These blogs are my favorites and first places I look for inspiration:

No Time for Flashcards
Confessions of a Homeschooler
The Activity Mom
Chasing Cheerios
Teach Mama