Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Vimeo
  • YouTube

Not Just Cute

Whole Child Development

  • Home
  • Blog
  • Speaking
  • Podcast
  • Books
  • Contact
  • New? Start Here.

Preschool Goes Prehistoric with Dinosaurs!

July 23, 2009 by notjustcute Filed Under: Unit Themes 15 Comments

dino

There’s just something about preschoolers and dinosaurs.  Maybe it’s the juxtaposition of tiny children that have been on this earth just a few years and the enormous specimen that left millions of years ago.  In addition to being a fascinating topic of study, a look at dinosaurs serves as a vehicle for learning a variety of skills and concepts.

First and foremost, the study of dinosaurs fosters curiosity and a thirst for learning.  Children can’t help but leap into a pattern of scientific inquiry when they look at these monstrous creatures!  You can also easily explore several preschool life science themes (needs of living things, meat eaters vs plant eaters, theories of extinction) as well as earth science themes (volcanoes, climate changes, etc.).  You just can’t study dinosaurs without incorporating a myriad of science and sensory activities!

Dinosaur study is also a great time to incorporate the math concepts of measurement and scale.   Children will certainly be engaged as they try to understand just how big (and how small) some of these beasts were!

Vocabulary explodes as the children need new words for “big” to describe these guys!  Children begin to use words like “huge”, “enormous”, and “gigantic”.  They may also need words like “extinct”, “paleontologist”, “ferocious”, and “fossilized”.  Additionally, you will be amazed with the capacity some children have for learning and remembering dinosaur names.  This is not a frivolous skill as these names often have Latin roots and, in addition to the initial value, will transfer over to learning and understanding other Latin-based words.

Exploring the world of dinosaurs also opens up the creative minds of our little ones.  Because no one was here to see them, there are only ideas – no right answers- to questions about how these creatures looked and sounded.  Invite your children to make their own conclusions as you study the clues together!

Here are some of the activities you may want to consider in your preschool dinosaur unit (links will follow as detailed activities are added):

Dinosaur Mural (Creative, Social)

Five Silly Dinosaurs  (Music, Math, Language)

Crayon Melting, Dino Style (Creative, Science)

Dinosaur Erosion Table (Sensory, Science)

Fossil Imprints (Science)

Frozen in Time (Sensory, Science)

Preschool Paleontologists  (Science)

Rhyme-A-Saurus(Language, Pre-Reading)

Dinosaur, Dinosaur, What Time is it? (Social, Large Motor)

A Visit to the Museum (Science, Social, Language & Literacy)

Dino Scales (Fine Motor, Creative, Science)

The Classic Volcano (Science)

Hot Lava Hop (Large Motor)

We are the Dinosaurs (Music and Movement, Language)

How Big is a Dino?  (Math)

Dinos Invade the Block Area (Math, Science, Language)

Best Dino Books  (Language)

And can you believe there will probably be more added to this list?  You’ll need plenty of big ideas when teaching about these big creatures!  Stay tuned!

 

Above photo by pocheco.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

Related

Comments

  1. 10

    Tiffany says

    May 17, 2011 at 1:29 pm

    Love the dinosaur activities!! Thank you!

    Reply
    • 11

      notjustcute says

      May 17, 2011 at 3:55 pm

      Thanks Tiffany! I do have a soft spot in my heart for dinosaurs — must be my three little T-Rex’s.

      Reply
  2. 12

    Laura says

    September 6, 2014 at 3:45 pm

    I love your ideas for the preschool dinosaur theme! Instead of Rhyme-A-Saurus, I might start with upper and lower case recognition. Our children have just moved into PreK yet their letter recognition skills are lacking. I would love to see more of your lesson plan ideas. !Brav0!

    Reply
  3. 13

    https://casinogamesonline.work says

    August 24, 2016 at 11:08 pm

    com also offers a newsletter and results of worldwide lotteries.
    While most of these are not for money but the prizes
    can range form a toaster to a cruise. Certain Florida lotto sites have live
    support chat rooms.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Five Silly Dinosaurs « Not Just Cute says:
    July 23, 2009 at 1:56 am

    […]  Click here for more dinosaur ideas! Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)The Other Oscar Changes Could Mean No Best Song CategoryOoops, I forgot my kid […]

    Reply
  2. Crayon Melting, Dino Style « Not Just Cute says:
    July 23, 2009 at 1:58 am

    […]  Click here for more dinosaur ideas! Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)Why use the ShamWow when we have paper towels?Craftastic! Saving the planet, one craft at a time […]

    Reply
  3. Dinosaur Erosion « Not Just Cute says:
    July 23, 2009 at 2:01 am

    […]  Click here for more dinosaur ideas! Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)Sweat, Bugs, and Frizz — How to Zap Summer BuzzkillsBeachy keen: Old school meets new with this super sandbox […]

    Reply
  4. Dinosaurs Frozen in Time « Not Just Cute says:
    July 23, 2009 at 2:08 am

    […]  Click here for more dinosaur ideas! […]

    Reply
  5. Preschool Paleontologists – Digging for Dinosaur Bones « Not Just Cute says:
    July 23, 2009 at 2:13 am

    […]  Click here for more dinosaur ideas! Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)Northeastern Montana: More than land to blast through […]

    Reply
  6. Rhyme-A-Saurus « Not Just Cute says:
    July 23, 2009 at 2:17 am

    […]  Click here for more dinosaur ideas! […]

    Reply
  7. Dinosaur, Dinosaur, What Time is it? « Not Just Cute says:
    July 23, 2009 at 2:22 am

    […]  Click here for more dinosaur ideas! Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)Your Job Will Come: Looking for work with kids underfootBabes’ Blog, Week 92: Life and death and peeing on the floor8.5 Percent of U.S. Youths Addicted to Video Games, Study Finds […]

    Reply
  8. Hot Lava Hop « Not Just Cute says:
    July 25, 2009 at 7:16 am

    […] usually tie volcanoes in with my dinosaur unit.  As we talk about the changing earth and the theories of extinction, volcanoes make their way […]

    Reply
  9. The Best Books for Dinosaur Lovers! « Not Just Cute says:
    August 7, 2009 at 6:26 am

    […] more dinosaur activities, click here! Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)A Trip to the Dinosaur Museum Puts Us All in the […]

    Reply
  10. Make a Fantastic Dinosaur Mural | Not Just Cute says:
    May 6, 2014 at 2:31 pm

    […]  Click here for more dinosaur ideas! […]

    Reply
  11. Dinosaur? No. No more! | Science in Storytime says:
    October 18, 2015 at 11:50 am

    […] https://notjustcute.com/2009/07/23/preschool-goes-prehistoric-with-dinosaurs/ […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

search this site

Privacy & Cookies: This site may use cookies to customize your experience. Learn more by reading our Privacy Policy.

I’m Amanda Morgan. Here’s what I’m about…

In early education, there is too much distance between what we know and what we do. I bridge the gaps that exist between academia, decision-makers, educators, and parents so that together, we can improve the quality of early education while also respecting and protecting the childhood experience.

Content Copyrighted (2008-2022), Amanda Morgan, All Rights Reserved

Get Our Newsletter & Developmental Guide

  • Home
  • Contact
  • Disclaimer
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 · Swank WordPress Theme By, PDCD

 

Loading Comments...