Stuffed Toys

Here are five amazing ideas for preschool activities using kids stuffed toys.

TEDDY BEAR PICNIC - This is one of the great classics of preschool activities. It’s great for a classroom, or for a special birthday party for your preschool child at home. Invite parents to participate in this special event. Each child is asked to bring his or her favorite stuffed toys. They can use stuffed animals or dolls. They will also need to bring a small blanket or cloth. Prepare special snack foods for that day. Pack the snack foods into a cute picnic basket along with paper products and drinks. When the children arrive, have them “introduce” their animal by name and tell something that makes him special. Have the children “teach” their teddies and their parents some of the songs they love. Have children bring their stuffed animals and blankets to the playground with you. Each child may then spread his picnic blanket on the ground and enjoy a special snack in the fresh air. Afterwards, teddy can go home with mom or dad.

 TEN IN THE BED - This game is great fun to play at home with a preschool child. It makes a great bedtime or naptime activity. Choose nine stuffed toys of varying shapes and sizes. Sing the song “Ten in the Bed” or read the book Ten in the Bed out loud. At the end of each verse, push another animal out of bed. At the ending, “I’m lonely…I miss you,” all the animals get to come back and little one is ready to snuggle down for sleep.

ANIMAL HIDE AND GO SEEK - This game is great when you are running out of preschool activities whether you have one preschooler or a whole classroom full. The child or children close their eyes and slowly count to ten. Meanwhile, you go around and hide several stuff of his stuffed toys in various places around the room (you can make funny sound effects as you go, ”Hmm…should I hide over here? No, I should go over there. SHHH! He’ll hear you!”). Then you come back right as they say, “Ready or not, here I come!” Then you help the child hunt for all the kids stuffed animals.

PUPPET SHOW - Small children love to watch puppet shows or help put them on for family members. Choose a short story your child knows well from a favorite picture book. Find appropriate kids stuffed toys to represent the various characters. Find a convenient piece of furniture to hide behind and seat yourself there with your child. Have your child “be” one of the characters. Read the story aloud, moving each animal around as it talks or walks in the story. Change your voice for each character. This can be hilarious as there are always mishaps with the animals falling off or children mixing up their lines. Children love this and don’t care that they are both performer and audience at the same time. But if you want to, you can perform it later with other family members as the audience.

NOAH’S ARK - This game is a great one to add to your list of Bible songs preschool activities. It goes along with the tune, “Who built the Ark?” Choose an appropriate piece of furniture to serve as the “Ark”. Work with the children to find pairs of animals to match the verses of the song. Talk to them about it, “We’ll need two kangaroos – do we have any kangaroos? No? Let’s pretend these rabbits are the kangaroos.” Line the stuffed animals up along one side. Sing the song, using appropriate hand motions for the refrain. At each verse, “walk” two animals up to the ark.