Valentine’s Day Preschool Activities

I have never been big on Valentine’s Day; it’s just not a “holiday” that holds much meaning for me. The wasted paper from pre-written Valentine’s cards, the flowers that will die in a short matter of time, the excess of sugary treats- no thank you! I’ve always been a bit of a Scrooge on this commercial excuse for a holiday, which is why I was thoroughly surprised when Valentine’s Day 2006 was full of romantic surprises ending with a proposal.

From that day when I said “Yes!” Valentine’s Day has had a softer spot in my life. And now with kids, I have been so excited about celebrating Valentine’s Day and using it as an opportunity to talk about love, kindness and caring for those around us with several fun Valentine’s Day preschool activities.

I rounded up some Valentine’s reading material from the library and these are a few of the favorites from the week. I found it difficult to explain what Valentine’s Day was to a three year old so these books were a great help in kicking off our theme of love and showing others how much we care for them.

We are in the midst of a room makeover on our study and I can’t wait to share the finished school room. We have an area to incorporate activity trays, and these have been great so far. Gabriella is excited to see what is on her trays each day and I love that I have ready-to-go activities when I need a moment to care for the baby or housework.

This week’s activity trays include several Valentine’s Day preschool activities:

• Top Left: “V is for Valentine” printable with glue and pom poms; Tracing activity with nesting heart cookie cutters
• Top Right: Foam heart cutouts and foam heart stickers from the Dollar Tree; John 3:16 printable and glitter glue pens from the Dollar Tree
• Bottom Left: Pipe cleaners and beads from the Dollar Tree; Heart pattern block printable with pattern blocks
• Bottom Right: Counting & math activity with heart printables and heart floral picks from the Dollar Tree; cutting activity with foam Dollar Tree hearts that I drew cutting lines on with a black marker

In addition to our Valentine’s Day activity trays, we have been making lots of Valentines to send to family and friends with stickers, glitter, doilies and glue.

And of course we can’t have a holiday pass without capturing some photos! We stopped by The Pearl last week for lunch and shopping and took these pictures. We have a fun photo playdate with friends planned for this week so stay tuned for some more themed photos!

Links to my inspiration and more Valentine’s activities:

• http://discoverymoments.com/montessori-work-day/montessori-monday-valentines-trays/
• http://ministry-to-children.com/valentine-coloring-page/
• http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/2010/02/prek-letter-v.html
• http://www.playdoughtoplato.com/valentines-pattern-block-mats/
• http://www.schooltimesnippets.com/2014/01/broken-hearts-valentines-cutting.html

I’d love to hear what activities you are planning for Valentine’s Day with your littles. Share with me on our Facebook page!