Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to bond with children at home and to teach kids all about feelings. Check out our 3 steps volcanoes with feelings, a sensory activity for preschoolers.
María Montessori named the brain of children an absorbent brain. From the moment they are born until they are six years old, children have an almost infinite capacity to learn. In this stage, 80% of the brain is developed. That is why it must receive stimuli to form the most significant number of neuronal connections. The best way to achieve this is via sensory stimulation through smell, touch, taste, hearing, and sight that this information reaches the brain.
Sensory stimulation is essential for developing children’s intelligence, which must be done with greater intensity from 0 to 3 years old. That does not mean that it will not work after three years, but the brain loses its plasticity over the years. Children learn from everything they see, feel, and hear from their environment, so it is appropriate to do activities with them at home to stimulate each of their senses.
Nature gives us several stimuli that we can use with children, such as colors, textures, sounds, and smells. To develop a smell, we can provide them with the opportunity to smell each food they are going to taste. Nature has its perfumes; flowers have a diversity of odors. A game that can be played is identifying odors. Children with a more developed sense of smell are more willing to try new foods. Believe it or not, taste and smell have a great relationship.
Developing a sense of touch is very easy; keep in mind that contact does not refer only to the hands. The sense of touch is the entire skin of our body, which is often not considered. Children love to play with water, so the bath can be a good opportunity for them to feel textures, temperatures, walk barefoot in the grass, touch the flowers and trees.
To stimulate their hearing, we can perform activities at home using objects inside a jar, identify the sounds of the different animals, songs, and relatives’ voices. All the sounds that children can perceive are stimuli and information of the brain.
The eyes are the least developed sense at birth. However, it is the most stimulated. It is considered one of the most important. One way to stimulate sight is through activities involving different colors, books, and colors of flowers. The world is full of visual stimuli.
And finally, there is the sense of taste. To stimulate it, we must provide children with various foods. The more children try foods, the easier to include new foods in their diet. Let us ensure that children eat vegetables and fruits from an early age. In this way, they will not have problems later and promote a healthy diet.
The following sensory activity for preschoolers provides various stimuli such as the smells of each of the materials and the same physical reaction.
THEME: VALENTINE’S DAY SENSORY ACTIVITY FOR PRESCHOOLERS
HOW DO WE DO THIS SENSORY ACTIVITY FOR PRESCHOOLERS?
Topic: Sensory stimulation
Age: 2-4-year-old children
Goal: Through this Valentine activity, the children will stimulate the sense of sight and smell.
Difficulty level: Basic. This sensory activity is designed for children to carry out autonomously through following the instructions.
Skills:
- Color identification
- Smell perception
- Following instructions
- Patience
MATERIALS:
- Vinegar
- Baking soda
- Food coloring
- Plastic cups with faces attached to the front (previously made that have different facial expressions)
- A spoon
ACTIVITY DEVELOPMENT
Step 1:
Add the baking soda to each plastic cup.
Step 2:
Add the food coloring to the baking soda.
Step 3:
Pour the vinegar into each plastic cup.
ACTIVITY RESULT
Colorful volcanoes experiment
FREE PRINTABLE VALENTINE’S DAY WORKSHEETS
Let kids learn more about different feelings. Get new worksheets to use with the sensory activity for preschoolers. Click the link below to download our free printable Valentine’s day worksheets.
Download the Free Printable Valentine’s Day Feelings Worksheets
HOW DO WE DO THIS SENSORY ACTIVITY WITH CHILDREN OF DIFFERENT AGES?
CHANGES FOR CHILDREN UNDER 2 YEARS OLD
This sensory activity for preschoolers can be developed with younger children. To lower the difficulty level, it is necessary to change materials.To carry out the activity, you can use shaving foam and food coloring. The children can draw on a white surface with their hands or with popsicle sticks. In this way, an activity will be carried out according to the children’s abilities and development.
CHANGES FOR CHILDREN OLDER THAN 4
This sensory activity for preschoolers can be done with older children. To increase the difficulty level, it is unnecessary to change materials. The children can perform the whole process, add each of the ingredients into the plastic cups. In this way, an activity will be carried out according to the children’s development and abilities.
VIDEO DESCRIPTION – VOLCANOES WITH FEELINGS
This sensory activity for preschoolers video provides the step-by-step of the “VOLCANOES WITH FEELINGS” activity, designed for boys and girls from 2-4 years old. A sensory activity of volcanos with different colors was carried out. This Valentine activity will allow children to develop color identification, smell perception, following instructions, and patience. The materials needed for the activity are vinegar, baking soda, food coloring, plastic cups with faces attached (previously made with different facial expressions), and a spoon.
Do you like this Valentine’s day sensory activity for preschoolers? Make sure to check out our other articles.
- Here’s an awesome home activity, Let’s Wash the Hearts Sensory Activity for Toddlers (1-2 Year Olds)
- Check out this awesome Hearts with Beads Valentine’s Day Home Activity for Kids Fine Motor Skills (4-6 Year Olds)
- Give kids fun craft to do. Check out this Valentine’s Day Crafts to Teach Kids Counting and Feelings Number Activity (4-6 Year Olds)
- Let kids have fun with Fun Stamping Heart Valentines Day Art Home Activity for Kids (4-6 Year Olds)
Get super cute Valentine’s day outfit for your little ones, check out this Valentine’s Day t-shirt for your little ones.
I’d like to know what you think of our Valentine’s day sensory activity for preschoolers. Please leave a comment below.
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