5 Exciting Summer Activities That Appeal to Preschool Children

One way to think of the minds of preschool children is to compare them to a blank easel that wants to be filled with information. The world around them is huge, but their experience is very limited, and there are new things to be known around every corner and under every rock. Here are 5 STEM-related activity ideas that will occupy preschool children and keep them engaged in the learning process.

1. Language and Culture

No matter where you look, preschool kids will find an opportunity to learn new vocabulary and discover new things about this diverse world. Kids love to find out where their favorite food, fruit, or musical instrument originated and discovering how much our lives are influenced by other cultures helps them understand the importance of diversity in our world.

2. Science

Every day is a great day for science, and science is surprisingly easy to do. Shine a bright light through a clear glass of water and see how light bends and divides into the colors of the spectrum. Play with magnets or catalog the birds living in your yard. Teaching children the foundations of science helps them gain a better understanding of the world and teaches relationships between cause and effect.

3. Technology

Life in the 21st Century is going to be all about technology and children who learn to effectively use technology in preschool will be better prepared for the future. One Montessori-style app for kids is CodeSpark. It's an interactive and adaptive app that teaches the basics of coding in the process of playing exciting games. This app is an excellent example of how children can use technology that feeds their minds instead of hampering their progress.

4. Engineering

Use building blocks to design towers and buildings. Lego-style blocks are especially great because they not only impart good engineering concepts, but different styles of math are inherent in their design. This type of building block teaches multiplication, division, fractions, and more in the course of playing.

5. Math

Math is going to be part of everything your child does, without exception. Math is needed to learn how to shop, to learn how to measure or pour, even to learn how to know when it is time to feed the family pet. The easiest way to learn about math in an engaging manner is by talking about it every time you use it. This teaches children that math is an important tool, encouraging children to apply math to other activities.

STEM education is important and continuing the learning process over the summer break helps children retain the information they have learned and keeps them engaged in the learning process. Combining the two into enjoyable games and activities turns boring summer days into adventures of discovery. 

Curious Classroom: Allowing Children to Explore

Sometimes, curiosity has negative connotations. After all, we have the proverb that “curiosity killed the cat,” warning of the dangers of unnecessary investigation or experimentation. But in the classroom, curiosity is the necessary ingredient for meaningful and authentic learning. With a hearty sense of curiosity, a student can direct themselves to learn all kinds of things: the taxonomy of feliformia, the state of Schrodinger's cat, or which 16th century British play is thought to have first recorded this curious feline proverb. In the Montessori Method of education, curiosity is not just necessary - it is the driving aspect of each classroom, and the Montessori Method fosters the innate interests and motivations of children. Dr. Maria Montessori observed that this led to more successful outcomes in their education, which has been confirmed by recent research in the field. So what are the benefits of a curious classroom and what does it look like to let it guide the classroom as children explore?