Top 10 Preschool Educational and Fun Websites

We are living in a brand new world. A world of technology! When I was little, I played Barbies, colored in my coloring book, watched Saturday morning cartoons and The Muppet Show at 7:00pm. I played outside from sun up to sundown and never heard of a gig, byte, a thumb drive or a mouse (unless we caught one in the trap). My preschooler has heard of them and is pretty good with the mouse. Here are the Top 10, tried and true preschool websites, my son has enjoyed.

1. www.sproutonline.com (PBS and Sprout Characters, Elmo, Calliou, Superwhy, Thomas The Tank Engine, etc. Games, Coloring Pages, Videos, Crafts and Recipes) Free
2. www.starfall.com  (Learn ABC's, Learn To Read, Dress-up Gingerbread and Snowman, just to name a few. This is my sons favorite.) Free 
3. www.fisher-price.com  (GeoTrax, Little People, Power Wheels, etc. Coloring Pages, Online Games, Puzzles, Memory Match, Shapes and Colors, etc.) Free 
4. http://funschool.kaboose.com  (Click on the Preschool at the right. Online Games, Coloring Pages, Fun and Educational) Free 
5. http://kids.aol.com/KOL/1/KOLJrGames  (Letter Games, Shapes, Numbers, Printables, Music & Stories) Free 
6. http://treehousetv.com  (Calliou, Dora, PBS Characters and NickJr. Characters. Videos, Online Games and Coloring, etc. ) Free 
7. http://disney.go.com/disneyjunior  (Disney Characters. Online Games, Stories, Videos and Coloring) Free
8. www.seussville.com  (Cat in the Hat Characters. Book Videos, Online Games) Free 
9. http://duplo.lego.com  (Duplo Animations, Activity Sheets, Online Games and Coloring Pages) Free
10. www.kneebouncers.com  (Have fun learning while you play. ABC's, numbers, Online Games, Sight Words, Guess Who, Popping Bubbles, etc.) Free Trial Week. $2.95 a month or $19.95 yr.

Keep your child safe by installing a kid safe browser, Create a seperate Windows account (a Guest account to protect your files) and to protect your computer itself, you can download a program like Toddler Keys to prevent tiny hands from fiddling with your computer by locking your drives, the keyboard, and the mouse.

Top 10 Preschool Reading List + More Excellent Literature

My favorite books for my preschooler are below. My son has a wicker book basket with a great selection of books, just for him. Most preschoolers want to hear the same stories over and over again, which is actually very beneficial. Your child can get so much enjoyment from a few well-written children’s books rather than getting him a new one every time you go to the store. It allows the child more time to enjoy the written language and he has a chance to really understand and process the stories.

Some excellent preschool literature:

1. The Little Red Hen pictures by Lucinda McQueen
2. Richard Scarry’s Please and Thank you Book by Richard Scarry
3. Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina
4. Guess how much I loveYou? by Sam McBratney
5. The Carrot Seed by Ruth Krauss
6. Itsy Bitsy Spider by Iza Trapani
7. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr.
8. What do you Do with A Kangaroo? by Mercer Mayer
9. Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey
10. Noah’s Ark by Peter Spier
11. Peepo by Janet and Allan Ahlberg
12. The Mitten adapted by Jan Brett
13. Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Suess
14. The Greedy Python by Eric Carle
15. The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
16. The Real Mother Goose illus. by Blanche Wright *Rand McNally and Co.
17. Play with Me by Marie Ets
18. We help Daddy by Mini Stein
19. Harold and the Purple Crayon
20. Good Dog, Carl by Alexandra Day
21. 101 Things to do with a Baby by Jan Ormerod
22. Little Cottontail by Carl Memling
23. The Little Engine that Could by Watty Piper
24. The Very Quiet Cricket by Eric Carle
25. Richard Scarry’s First Word Book
26. There was and Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly by Simms Taback
27. The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle
28. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you See? by Bill Martin Jr.
29. Good Night, Moon by Margaret Wise Brown 

So, hug your child, pick a story and read a great book!

Top 10 Activities To Keep Preschooler's Hands Busy

Living in a house with seven people, there is always something to clean, put away or fix. I try and have my preschooler occupied before I start. Sometimes the activity lasts for 3 minutes but sometimes, if I'm lucky, it lasts for 20 minutes.  Here are 10, tried and true, activities to help keep your preschooler occupied in no particular order.

• Computer time ~ I don't think it's ever to early to learn how to use a mouse. We have used several different games and websites. Reader Rabbit, Jump Start & Busy Town are a few CD's and websites, we enjoy, Nick Jr., Starfall and even Club Penguin (so they can keep up with big brother or sister) have helped with the little ones computer skills.
• Building Blocks/Legos ~ They love to build tall towers and knock them down at this age. Mine loves to try and make little cars and airplanes like his brothers.
• Matchbox Cars with a Homemade Ramp/Trucks ~ We just purchased a few "new to us" cars from a yardsale and the first thing he looks for is a piece of wood to run the cars down. He ended up finding a screen and propped it up on the front of a chair, Ta-Da, 20 minutes of fun.
• Water ~ We will play in sprinklers outside, fill up the bathtub or sink (supervision required) for plastic fish and boats and anything else that will float or sink. We will put in a few plastic cups or bowls and just pour from one item to the other.
• Scissors and paper/Coloring Pages ~ Scissors (supervision required) bring at least 20 minutes of fun and is a great activity for their fine motor skills. Find an old magazine and a pair of kid friendly scissors and start cutting. They start with pressing the scissors down and tearing the paper, but eventually they get the scissor motion. You also see the progression in coloring. Starts with 1 or 2 colors of scribbling and works into a few more colors trying to stay in the line.
• Playdoh ~ Get out your cookie cutters & Playdoh and get started. They can make a ball, put the balls together to make a snowman, make a snake, cut with plastic knives. Endless options.
• Stuffed Animals/Baby Doll ~ My girls, especially, like using their imagination with little stuffed animals but they always draw their brothers into their make-believe world. My daughter becomes director, "OK, now your dog says, I would love to go to the park with you and my dog will say, Great! Let's go." It is probably the best activity my daughter has created for herself. She would spend hours in her room.
• Outdoor Time/Ride Bike/Swings ~ When I was little, I would leave early in the morning and be back home for dinner. My how times have changed. I have a very hard time getting my children outside, but once they get out there, they have so much fun. We go to the park, ride the bike, ride a scooter and they are trying to dig a whole to China on the side of the house.
• Games (Hiding go Seek, board games, puzzles)Apples to Apples has been a surprising game that my preschooler enjoys. I read his cards but he puts the one that makes the most sense to him for the category. There are so many different puzzles my son loves. Peg puzzles, wooden puzzles & magnetic puzzles. He loves active games like Hide n Go Seek, Ball, Freeze Tag,
• Card Board Box ~ Best "free" activity out there. What is it about a cardboard box? It can be whatever they want. A castle, rocket, store front, TV and their imagination goes on.
 

 There is the Top 10 list of activities. I am fortunate to have children of different ages to help play with each other and look out for one another, while I try and keep my castle fit for a king.