If your kids like to move (and who doesn’t?) then this they will love this ABC active learning game!
I actually had a different Move and Learn activity planned to share this week…until I spied these cups we had taken from an event for our art supply shelves.
Before we used these styrofoam cups for crafting we decided to stomp on them first. In the name of learning of course!
Adding movement to any skill practice makes it more engaging and memorable for kids. We all learn better when we are having fun!
ABC Active Learning Game
- foam cups (or other type of similar item from the recycling bin like a cut up egg carton!)
- permanent marker
That’s it! All you need to do to prep for this game is to take out some old cups and write letters on the top. Then set them up on the floor and invite your kiddos to stomp!
My youngest is working on letter sounds so she chose a letter, said the sound, and then stomped it out!
I really wasn’t even sure this activity was even enough to write about as a full post, but she had so much fun I couldn’t not share it.
When we were done we collected the scraps to save for art projects–you can use styrofoam for printing, collages, and more.
You can customize the cups with whatever your child is working on–sight words, math facts, etc. There are so many possibilities!
The other Move and Learn co-hosts were busy putting together ABC Move and Learn Activities for kids this week too, make sure to check them out!
Other Ways to Move & Learn this week:
- Pumpkin Shape Game from The Pleasantest Thing
- Unscramble & Fill in Your Name from Hands on : as we grow
- Build My Name Apple Tree Game from Toddler Approved
- Check out all our Move & Learn activities
- Lots of ideas on our Pinterest board!
Thanks so much Lorraine!
Please. please, please reconsider the use of styrofoam. Please encourage your students to make environmentally sound choices when it comes to materials.
Discarded polystyrene does not biodegrade for hundreds of years and is resistant to photolysis. Because of this, very little of the waste discarded in today’s modern, highly engineered landfills biodegrades. Because degradation of materials creates potentially harmful liquid and gaseous by-products that could contaminate groundwater and air, today’s landfills are designed to minimize contact with air and water required for degradation, thereby practically eliminating the degradation of waste.
Polystyrene foam is a major component of plastic debris in the ocean, where it becomes toxic to marine life. Foamed polystyrene blows in the wind and floats on water, and is abundant in the outdoor environment. Weathering by wind, sun, rain, and wave action degrade polystyrene to known and suspected carcinogens, including styrene monomer (SM), styrene dimer (SD) and styrene trimer (ST).
Hi Marie! That’s good to consider! Thanks for caring enough to respond! We took these from an event we went to so they wouldn’t go into the trash and we could use them for crafting and art. If you don’t want to use styrofoam try any other type of recyclable you can find, you can use it for art when you are done.
I came here to say this as well. Please do not promote this! So very wasteful! That is the last thing our landfills need.
Hi Jenny! I can appreciate your concern. We got these for free from an event and actually still have all of these cups that we played with that day in our art bin. It is important to think about what will go in our landfills and I find that there are so many items we can “save” from the trash bins and use for art or learning instead. What about trying it with take-out containers?
Hi! Would egg cartons cut up work? Just thought I would share.
Yes! That is a great idea!!!!! Thank you! I’m actually going to use that at my house this week bc we are almost done with an egg carton.
i did this with daycare and posted my video on a site. I was torn up by doing this. I understand what they are understanding. I guess I will have to take pin off mine. My kids had fun. Guess fun over on this idea
Thanks for your comment! You can tell how much you care and that is a good thing. We took the extra cups we used from an event we were at so they wouldn’t get thrown away and we could use them for art. Styrofoam can be upcycled to create prints that can be used again and again. It would bug me to buy some just to destroy too, but I bet you could have the same type of fun with other items that would have been previously destined for the landfill. I find more things like this can have a new life as an art material! If you had shoes on you could use take out containers that you collect from the parents. If they are plastic you can then even turn them into shrinky dinks!
You are very polite in your response, but you are still promoting this activity.