Preschool Science Curriculum

The sun is finally starting to shine down on us here in Brooklyn and even though it is only 40 degrees outside, we are taking full advantage of "spring" by beginning our nature study.
 We are incorporating many ideas from Mudpies to Magnets: A Preschool Science Curriculum. Even with all the great ideas on Pinterest,  I truly enjoy the activities and layout of this book. Each activity come with well thought out reasoning, target concepts, and expansion activities. This guide is made for the classroom teacher but can be easily adapted to the homeschool family. Even with a copyright date of 1987, their activities are timeless.

The first activity we used from the book was the creation of a mini-museum. My 4 year old is notorious for collecting "treasures" while we are out and keeping them in pockets of sweaters and jackets. The mini-museum is a great way for her to display her finds as well as let her know that we respect the importance of these items and to encourage her fascination with the natural world. 

There are many ways you can set up your museum:
1. Ikeas's Expedit Shelving unit
 
2. Milk Carton Cubby Cubes
 
3. Cardboard case of wine cut in half

 We went with the case of wine since Passover just ended and we happened to have an empty case lying around.

It was really simple to make:

1. I just cut the box and the inner dividers in half.

2. I then glued the dividers to the walls of the box for added stability.

3. Paint and fill. 

4. Label the specimens (didn't do that yet)

 She didn't have enough to fill each cubby so she took some of her dad's "treasures". My husband also likes to collect rocks and other bits of nature he finds when we are out. The apple definitely does not fall far from the tree ;).

Happy Exploring!