You want your kids to be successful in preschool.
Seems like such a simple thing doesn’t it?
Preschool success.
You can even Google it and get 108 million results. The truth is that preschool success is much more complicated than that. The good news is that preschool activities don’t need to be!
If you’re a regular reader then you know how much we love easy and awesome ideas around here. The activities that hit the sweet spot of keeping kids engaged without being a ton of work to prep are the ones you’ll actually make and use with your kids. An activity can be jam packed full of preschool learning, but if it’s too complicated to set up then it’s not likely to be done.
This mini eraser color sort is one preschool activity that is both jam packed full of learning and super easy to prep.
You’re kids will be on their way to preschool success in no time!
Mini Eraser Color Sort
Have you fallen in love with mini erasers yet? They are a huge craze in preschool and kindergarten learning because they are so inexpensive–think Target One Spot–and can be used in so many ways! They’re so popular they even have their own hashtag on Instagram.
For this preschool busy bag activity we used these colorful flower mini erasers I found at Target but any design of colorful erasers would work. Use what you can find or what you already have on hand.
Color Sort Supplies:
- Set of mini erasers (these fun flower ones that came in 6 different colors was perfect for a muffin tin but 4 colors would be fine)
- small muffin tine with 6 openings (you can get a couple of these for a dollar)
- colored paper that matches the colors of your erasers
Preschoolers Can Learn Colors with a Color Sort
Once you’ve gathered all your supplies it’s time to play!
Stick the colored paper in the bottom of the muffin tin. You can tape it down if you’re worried about it slipping out.
Show your child how the colors inside of the muffin tin match the colors of the flower erasers. Tell them to sort the erasers into the correct tin.
When they’re done they can dump them out and play again!
This is a great busy bag activity to stick in a large Ziploc bag and take with you on the go. Kids can sort erasers while traveling, when they’re waiting at a restaurant or appointment, or store in their rooms to use during quiet time. Which it with some of our other busy bag ideas to keep the activities engaging.
So much learning is taking place while kids are sorting mini erasers by color.
- They’re getting in color practice, of course, but that’s not all!
- They’re working their fingers and developing their fine motor skills as they pick up and place the erasers in the tin. You can up the fine motor practice by having them sort the erasers using tongs or spoons too.
- They’re stretching their reasoning skills as they match, classify and sort the erasers into the different color groups. The ability to sort items helps develop both problem solving and critical thinking skills.
You can extend the learning as they fine tune their skills as well. If sorting by color becomes too easy you can make it more challenging by writing the color names in the bottom of the muffin tin instead of having the color there. You can also add in other types of erasers to the flower erasers to make sorting more challenging.
Follow your child’s lead to adapt and personalize this mini eraser color sort as they learn and grow. Starting with your child’s current skills and helping to challenge them to expand their learning is the very best way to set them up for success in the preschool years!
Looking for more preschool busy bag ideas to keep your kids playing and learning?
I have a book for that!
Check out The Busy Bag Book ebook with over 50 different low prep, high impact busy bags. Make them once and play with them again and again. This is one ebook you’ll definitely get your money’s worth out of! View it in our shop for more details and uses.
And read on for 3 other garden themed busy bag ideas below!
FROM LEFT TO RIGHT:
Oh I love this idea. How cute. I’ll have to keep this book in mind for my grandchild!
great idea. my girls (twins) are just learning colors now and sometimes they get them all right and then later on they get none right! It’s so frustrating! Will definitely be giving this a go.
Cool idea, my little boy is still trying to hold a pencil or crayon. he needs some practice more before going to kindergarten