Inside: Twenty engaging water activities for preschoolers. Spark imagination, stimulate the senses, and bring on the summertime fun!
Summer is here with its hot days, family time, and kids who – at some point – get bored. Keep them cool and engaged with these twenty fun water play activities!
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20 Wonderful Water Activities for Preschoolers
1. Car Splash. Use a piece of wood to create a ramp and splash toy cars into the water table.
2. Water Painting. All you need is some old paintbrushes and a bucket of water. Kids can paint the sidewalk, fence, house, toys, trees – whatever they can find! Watch the paintings fade away in the sun.
3. Sensory Soup. Cut up fresh herbs to make sensory soup (from Happy Hooligans).
4. Water Wall. Here’s a great idea from Fun A Day. Make your own water wall using recycled plastic containers.
5. Ocean Scene. Add a few drops of blue food coloring, seashells, and ocean animals to the water table.
6. Sink or Float. Invite kids to predict whether an item will sink or float. Test their hypothesis.
7. Rain Gutter Water Ways. Explore gravity with this idea from A Childhood List. All you need is a couple of clean rain gutters and buckets.
8. Giant Ice Cube. Keep kids busy and cool with this idea from Jennifer Perkins. Freeze some plastic animals into a huge ice cube and excavate them.
9. Farm Animal Wash. Tromp your plastic farm animals through the dirt. Give them a nice bubble bath to get them squeaky clean.
Related: Farm Animal Picture Card Activities
10. Puddle Stomping. Puddles are water play at its best! Stomp, float leaves, drop in rocks… use your imagination!
11. Mud Pies. Provide dirt, water, rocks, and plants. Invite kids to set up a mud cafe.
12. Explore Measurement and Volume. Add measuring cups, spoons, and pitchers to the water table.
13. Spray Bottle Fun. Kids love to spray plants, the sidewalk, themselves, and each other on a hot day!
14. Toy Clean Up. Soap up your outdoor toys and scrub with sponges. Hose them – and maybe the kids – down until they are squeaky clean.
15. Car Wash. Grab a bucket of water, soft clothes, and a squeegee. Wash your family car until it’s shiny and clean!
16. Alphabet Fishing. Write letters on ping pong balls, toss them in the water table and hand over a fishing net (from Imagination Tree).
17. Sprinkler fun. Who doesn’t love running through a sprinkler on a hot day? We don’t have a lawn at our place, so we use this Splash Pad to cool down.
18. Chalk Painting. Use wet sidewalk chalk to paint toys, the sidewalk, or cardboard boxes. Rinse them all down.
19. Toothbrushing Practice. Encourage dental hygiene and have fun with water indoors! This idea from Teach Preschool uses toothbrushes, toothpaste, water, and plastic egg carton “teeth.”
20. Baby Bath Station. Provide plastic baby dolls, washcloths, sponges, soap, and tubs of water. It’s tons of fun with the added bonus of squeaky-clean baby dolls at the end.
These water play ideas will keep kids entertained and all summer long!
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