Letter W Unit
All the activities in this unit have one thing in common, they are about items that start with the letter W. This is by no means a comprehensive list of activities. It's just some of the things I have tried with K and N myself which they have enjoyed. I have attached a few printables I created and used for this unit. Feel free to print them!
This post is curriculum based but it can be done by SAHMs and working parents alike. All activities here take 5 minutes or less to carry out from start to end. They also involve very little preparatory work. Give them a try and let me know what you think 😉
Materials:
- Plastic containers
- Plastic whale figurines
- Water
- Food colouring (optional)
- Hot water
- Spoons
- Cups
How to:
- Put water into some plastic containers and drop in a drop or two of food colouring if you are using them.
- Drop the whale figurines then pop them into the freezer to freeze overnight.
- Provide a cup of hot or warm water and some spoons.
- Pop the ice cubes out from the containers and let the kids pour the warm water over the ice to melt the ice and 'find' the whales.
Pro tips:
- Before freezing, make sure you don't use too much water. If you can leave the tip of the tail out, it would make the kids more motivated to do this activity as they can already see something in the ice and will want to work to get it out.
- If you have hammers, you can also make this an excavation activity and let them hammer away some ice instead of just trying to melt them with hot water.
Materials:
- Cardboard
- String
- Markers
How to:
- Cut wings out of cardboard.
- Let the kids decorate the wings
- Punch holes and string to make two arm holes for the kids to slip their arms into.
Pro tips:
- Use elastic instead of Raffia string if you have them. It will help in the wearing of the wings.
- Extend the activity and get the kids to spell or match the letters of the word 'WINGS'
- Talk about different types of wings, from bird wings to butterfly wings to airplane wings. How buildings also have wings but don't use them to fly!
Materials:
- Drink Cap
- Pipe cleaner
- Paper
- Glue
- Cardboard
- Double sided tape
- Real watch
How to:
- Cut out two narrow slits on the drink cap so that you can slot the pip cleaner in.
- Cut out a piece of cardboard that would fit right into the back of the cap.
- Slip the pipe cleaner into the slots, put some glue onto the back of the cap, then push in the cardboard to secure the pipe cleaner between the cardboard and the cap.
- Leave it to dry overnight or over a few nights if possible.
- Cut another circle from paper to fit onto the cap as a face.
- On the day of the activity, show your kid the real watch and talk about the numbers on the face. Write the numbers onto the paper just like the watch face.
- Cut out two more strips to be the arms of the watch and get your kid to match the time on the real watch, sticking it down with glue.
- Stick the paper face onto the cap with double sided tape.
- Wear the watch!
Pro tips:
- This activity requires prep a few days before just so the glue is allowed to dry before you start the activity. I did the entire craft in one day and I realised the watch kept falling off because the glue wasn't dry. So letting the glue dry is essential especially since the kids would be eager to wear their watches right away.
- You can allow for even more customization by just drawing out the circle meant for the face onto a piece of paper without cutting it out and letting your child colour and decorate before you cut it to paste it onto the watch. I would stick the face with double sided tape just so that it would secure immediately.
Materials:
- Red and green constuction paper
- Marker
- Dot stickers (optional)
- Pumpkin seeds or anything that can resemble watermelon seeds
How to:
- Cut out 'watermelons' and stick on the green skin parts.
- Stick on a dot sticker and write down a number.
- Laminate it at this point if you want.
- Get the kids to count the number of seeds indicated on the watermelon slice.
Pro tips:
- For kids who are not that keen on numbers, take turns with them; they do, then you do.
- Don't stress if they aren't very good at counting or require lots of prompts. Some kids take a while to get interested in numbers. Remember, we are aiming to just expose not drill for perfection.
Other Suggestions:
W is for Wonton
- Get some wonton skins and make some wontons! For parents who prefer not to have their kids handle raw meat, there are other options like cream cheese wontons! The secret to doing this activity well is keeping it simple. Start out with store bought wonton skins first and if you feel like you could handle much more after doing the activity then try making your own wonton skins.
W is for Whale
- Read the Whale and the Snail by Julia Donaldson and make a craft after reading the story. Talk about how the whale and the snail are very different but they were able to help each other.
W is for Wash
- Get the kids to wash some toys! Take a tub, fill it with some water and throw in some toys and a couple of brushes. If you still have left over non-toxic taste safe bottle soap from those milk bottle washing days, squirt some in there!
W is for Wheel
- Print out the wheel matching printable for some letter matching fun, perfect for the young tots working on letter recognition!
This post is curriculum based but it can be done by SAHMs and working parents alike. All activities here take 5 minutes or less to carry out from start to end. They also involve very little preparatory work. Give them a try and let me know what you think 😉
1. W is for Whale
- Plastic containers
- Plastic whale figurines
- Water
- Food colouring (optional)
- Hot water
- Spoons
- Cups
How to:
- Put water into some plastic containers and drop in a drop or two of food colouring if you are using them.
- Drop the whale figurines then pop them into the freezer to freeze overnight.
- Provide a cup of hot or warm water and some spoons.
- Pop the ice cubes out from the containers and let the kids pour the warm water over the ice to melt the ice and 'find' the whales.
Pro tips:
- Before freezing, make sure you don't use too much water. If you can leave the tip of the tail out, it would make the kids more motivated to do this activity as they can already see something in the ice and will want to work to get it out.
- If you have hammers, you can also make this an excavation activity and let them hammer away some ice instead of just trying to melt them with hot water.
2. W is for Wings
- Cardboard
- String
- Markers
How to:
- Cut wings out of cardboard.
- Let the kids decorate the wings
- Punch holes and string to make two arm holes for the kids to slip their arms into.
Pro tips:
- Use elastic instead of Raffia string if you have them. It will help in the wearing of the wings.
- Extend the activity and get the kids to spell or match the letters of the word 'WINGS'
- Talk about different types of wings, from bird wings to butterfly wings to airplane wings. How buildings also have wings but don't use them to fly!
3. W is for Watch
Materials:
- Drink Cap
- Pipe cleaner
- Paper
- Glue
- Cardboard
- Double sided tape
- Real watch
How to:
- Cut out two narrow slits on the drink cap so that you can slot the pip cleaner in.
- Cut out a piece of cardboard that would fit right into the back of the cap.
- Slip the pipe cleaner into the slots, put some glue onto the back of the cap, then push in the cardboard to secure the pipe cleaner between the cardboard and the cap.
- Leave it to dry overnight or over a few nights if possible.
- Cut another circle from paper to fit onto the cap as a face.
- On the day of the activity, show your kid the real watch and talk about the numbers on the face. Write the numbers onto the paper just like the watch face.
- Cut out two more strips to be the arms of the watch and get your kid to match the time on the real watch, sticking it down with glue.
- Stick the paper face onto the cap with double sided tape.
- Wear the watch!
Pro tips:
- This activity requires prep a few days before just so the glue is allowed to dry before you start the activity. I did the entire craft in one day and I realised the watch kept falling off because the glue wasn't dry. So letting the glue dry is essential especially since the kids would be eager to wear their watches right away.
- You can allow for even more customization by just drawing out the circle meant for the face onto a piece of paper without cutting it out and letting your child colour and decorate before you cut it to paste it onto the watch. I would stick the face with double sided tape just so that it would secure immediately.
4. W is for Watermelon
- Red and green constuction paper
- Marker
- Dot stickers (optional)
- Pumpkin seeds or anything that can resemble watermelon seeds
How to:
- Cut out 'watermelons' and stick on the green skin parts.
- Stick on a dot sticker and write down a number.
- Laminate it at this point if you want.
- Get the kids to count the number of seeds indicated on the watermelon slice.
Pro tips:
- For kids who are not that keen on numbers, take turns with them; they do, then you do.
- Don't stress if they aren't very good at counting or require lots of prompts. Some kids take a while to get interested in numbers. Remember, we are aiming to just expose not drill for perfection.
Other Suggestions:
W is for Wonton
- Get some wonton skins and make some wontons! For parents who prefer not to have their kids handle raw meat, there are other options like cream cheese wontons! The secret to doing this activity well is keeping it simple. Start out with store bought wonton skins first and if you feel like you could handle much more after doing the activity then try making your own wonton skins.
W is for Whale
- Read the Whale and the Snail by Julia Donaldson and make a craft after reading the story. Talk about how the whale and the snail are very different but they were able to help each other.
W is for Wash
- Get the kids to wash some toys! Take a tub, fill it with some water and throw in some toys and a couple of brushes. If you still have left over non-toxic taste safe bottle soap from those milk bottle washing days, squirt some in there!
W is for Wheel
- Print out the wheel matching printable for some letter matching fun, perfect for the young tots working on letter recognition!
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