Play ideas for 4 and 5 year olds

17 things to do

• I spy a sound8 min · nothing to get · Hearing the first sound in a word is a key step on the way to reading.
• Letter walk15 min · nothing to get · Finding letters out in the world shows children that print is everywhere.
• Blanket fort20 min · you need blankets or sheets, chairs, clothespins or books to hold edges · Building a fort is planning, problem solving and teamwork, with a cozy reward.
• Make your own board game20 min · you need a big sheet of paper, crayons, a die, or a coin to flip, small toys for playing pieces · Counting squares, taking turns and handling losing are all part of the game.
• Bug safari15 min · you need paper, a pencil · Looking closely at living things is how young scientists start.
• Tell the next chapter15 min · you need a picture book you've just read, paper, crayons · Seeing their own words written down shows children that what they say can be read.
• Paper airplane contest15 min · you need paper · Changing one thing and testing again is how experiments work.
• Guess the shaker10 min · you need three or four containers with lids, dry rice, dry beans, a few coins · Guessing by sound alone means listening carefully and describing what you hear.
• Backyard games day20 min · you need a bucket, sock balls, chalk or sticks for lines · Events with turns teach waiting, trying hard and being a good sport.
• Play store20 min · you need food boxes and cans from the cupboard, paper, a marker · Buying and selling uses numbers, reading labels and lots of talk.
• Leaf and stick pictures20 min · you need leaves and sticks you collect, paper, glue or tape · Making art from nature means looking closely at shapes and colors.
• Rhyme chain6 min · nothing to get · Playing with rhymes helps children hear the sounds that make up words.
• Foil boat challenge15 min · you need kitchen foil, a tub or sink with a little water, spoons or plastic blocks for cargo · Testing and changing a design is engineering, done in a tub.
• Cardboard box city20 min · you need empty boxes of different sizes, markers, tape · Planning a city and naming its places mixes building with storytelling.
• Feelings charades8 min · nothing to get · Reading faces and naming feelings helps children understand themselves and others.
• Collect ten and count10 min · you need a basket · Touching each thing as you count, then grouping them, builds number sense.
• Cloud pictures10 min · you need a blanket · Seeing shapes and telling stories about them stretches imagination and language.