Valentine Tot School Trays!

I am really excited to share these pictures and this post because I'm going out on a limb here and trying something new: group Tot School!

This has been something in my mind and on my heart for a while so last month, I sent out an email to some friends in the mommy group, just to see if there was an even an interest in doing something like this.

Well, there was and this week, we're expecting about 15 toddlers over at our house to do Tot School together!

Crazy, exciting and I just can't wait. Seriously, I feel so blessed that this opportunity is taking shape, even if it turns out to be an insane couple of hours! Ha!

But, below are the trays that I've prepared for our first Tot School. The mamas are going to be working with their tot, but I'm also hoping that kids can pair up (or make small groups) and do some of them together. We're going to do a group craft outside and then the tray work will be done inside (how I'm wishing we had a larger house at about this moment!).

Anyway, I haven't prepared everything for the Valentine craft, but I'm pretty sure that I'm done with the trays. I wanted to share them so that it may inspire an idea with you and so that our Tot School mamas have an idea of what to expect upon arrival this week.

*Quick things for Tot School participants...

-Maddie has tried each and every one of these trays. Some were fun, some were quick and some lend themselves to working with others. Complete the tray so that your child feels successful. If something is too hard, adapt it to their level or get a new tray altogether.

-Show your tot how to do the activity and work with him/her.

-When finished with a tray, work together to put it back together neatly so that it's ready for the next person.

Okay, onto the trays (that I tried really hard to keep in theme with Valentine's Day)...

This is a size sorting activity with pompoms and tweezers. If your child has never used tweezers before (or just doesn't like them), they can use their fingers or you can help them with the tweezers.

Lay out the three plates, label each with a size card and sort the pompoms.

Pompom patterning with a paint tray (Ha! Say that a few times fast!). Again, the tongs are out to transfer the pompoms, but fingers can be used, too.

The heart eraser patterning tray has a couple of options. Some strips have the hearts traced in the correct color, so little ones can match colors and note patterns. However, there's also a pattern strip that is outlined only in black so that they can create their own pattern.

Oh, and the heart erasers are from the Valentine cheapy section at Target.

I got these boxes at the Dollar Tree and knew they'd be fun (and I was right, since Maddie can't stop opening and closing them).

There are a ton of activities you could do with this one. I put out a bowl of red buttons and they can count out buttons to match that heart box. Or, you could have your tot match the numbers by using the box and the lid. Or even still, create a small number line by having them put the heart boxes in numerical order.

I got these heart picks at the Dollar Tree, along with the styrofoam disk (although, I got mine months ago, I know that they almost always have styrofoam of some shape). I used a Sharpie to draw colored dots so that your little one has to push the pick through, making a beautiful Valentine bouquet!

This was a little tricky for Maddie until I showed her how to use one hand to hold down the disk and the other hand to push the pick in.

For some fine motor practice, have your tot line up the floral rocks on the popsicle sticks.

You can try patterning with them, too.

Drop pink and red toothpicks through the sugar shaker lid. For a bigger challenge, try the pipe cleaners (they bend easily and you have to really focus and go slowly!).

Also, show your tot how to unscrew the lid, remove the objects and screw the lid on again.

Make a Valentine "tree" by threading pink, white and red beads onto the corresponding color of pipe cleaner branches.

Sort the different types of hearts in a tray from... yup... the Dollar Tree.

Pretty, huh?

Work on one-to-one correspondence and counting by lining up small erasers in the number boxes.

Use the tongs (or again, just fingers) to drop one flower in each well of this heart-shaped ice cube tray.

Do a heart button color sort in this muffin tin.

Tong (or spoon, since I added a spoon after I took this picture) the mini Valentine cookies (thanks Mom!) into the paint palette, one cookie per well.

And, while not necessarily very Valentine-y, this was one of Maddie's favorites when I had her test run the trays this weekend. Using the bath mat shapes (Dollar Tree; six for a dollar!), balance a teeny-tiny bell in each suction. We've done this a million times with marbles, but the bells make sweet little music.

There are enough to do one with only silver bells and one with colored bells. This might be a fun one to do with a friend, taking turns as you go!

And so, I'll keep you posted on how our first ever Tot School goes! Like I said, we'll be doing a craft together, which should be fun. I've also made a couple batches of vanilla-scented play dough AND chocolate-scented play dough, so we'll have that set up with heart-shaped cookie cutters.

I can't wait!