Rocks, Dirt, & Mud...what's not to love? If your preschooler is fascinated with all things dirt and mud they will likely be spending plenty of time exploring outside. My Rocks, Dirt & Mud Activity Pack is great for extending the learning inside the classroom. ​
This pack is full of fun and engaging math, science, and literacy activities related to Rocks, Dirt & Mud including learning about different types of rocks and soil, patterning, shapes, related vocabulary and so much more!
​ This 73 page activity pack includes the following 20 Rock, Dirt and Mud Themed Activities:
Take a CLoser Look...Rock Shape Clip Cards
Practice shape recognition and work on fine motor development with these shape clip cards.
FINE MOTOR PRE-WRITING/CUTTING PRACTICE ACTIVITIES
Preschoolers will love cutting apart these rock themed puzzles, and putting them back together again!
This activity is great scissor practice.. If desired, preschoolers can glue them back together. Or, you can laminate the cards first to give preschoolers something harder to cut and reuse the puzzles later. 
This activity is great for children learning how to read and write. When children trace the line they are practicing going from right-to-left and top-to-bottom as well as following a line.
Preschoolers can cut the line after they trace for extra fine motor practice or laminate this page for repeat tracing practice. COMPLETE THE PATTERN
Practice AB, ABB, & ABC patterning with this set.
​ROCK SHAPE SORTING
Work on shape recognizing shape attributes with these shape sorting cards.
Encourage older preschoolers to describe the shapes as they add them to the mat. Can they describe one new thing about the shape with each card they match-up? Pigs in the Mud Roll and Count!
What better way to explore addition than with pigs and mud! Don't worry, this activity is a lot less messy than it sounds.
Invite your preschooler to roll the cube and place the corresponding number of pigs on the mud mat. Challenge your preschooler to count the total number of pigs on the mat after each roll. Support your preschooler in their math development by modeling math language such as: add, sum, total, equals, all together, plus, and more. Older preschoolers and kindergartners may enjoy using this activity for subtraction as well! **Teacher Tip: you can cut out the pieces to attach to dice as in the picture or assemble the included cube template! You may also choose to use the number cards as cards and simply flip them over. ​ PIGS IN THE MUD SEEK AND FIND FILE FOLDER GAME
Flip a letter card, then find the matching letter on the mat and cover with a counter of your choice. We used pink pom poms in this example
Also included; uppercase letter cards for matching to the lowercase letters on the mat.
Rock Count and Clip Cards
Preschoolers and tots love using clothespins, which is fantastic since they give little fingers a big workout! In addition to developing fine motor skills, children are developing number sense with this engaging activity.
*Teacher Tip: Keep the 3-part cards handy during this activity for reference when students ask about the different rocks on the cards. Referencing printed material when they ask questions reinforces the idea that print carries a message and that information can be sought in printed material. ​GEOLOGIST PUZZLE 1-10
Identify numbers then place in order using ordering skills and problem-solving to reveal a rockin' geologist.
​ROCK COUNTING MATS (1-10) WITH FRAMES & NO COUNTERS
Practice numeral recognition, counting, and cardinality with these ten frames.
​ROCK COUNTING MATS (1-10) WITH FRAMES
This version has rocks on the ten frame to match the numeral. Children can place rocks on top as they count, or count the printed rocks as practice.
​DUMP TRUCK COUNTING MAT
Flip a card, read the number, then add the rock counters to fill up the dump truck. Practice numbers 1-20 with this activity.
Sorting Rocks by Type
This is a great activity for adults and preschoolers to do together. Match-up rocks by type. Adults can read the different types of rock to enhance preschooler's vocabulary and knowledge of rock types. Preschoolers can match up the rock on the mat by number.
​SORTING ROCKS BY size
Rocks come in all shapes and sizes! Use this activity to practice sorting by size.
LET’S BUILD LETTERS
Create letters using rocks with these letter mats.
Above Ground Below Ground
Preschoolers are beginning to understand positional terms. Grasping spatial reasoning creates a strong foundation for learning more complicated math concepts as they grow older. This fun activity is a great way to practice spatial reasoning while also exploring scientific concepts!
Which objects/animals live above ground? below? and why? Extend this activity by challenging your preschooler to consider what other animals live above/below ground and why. SOIL MATCHING MAT
Match-up the soil types with this mat. Later, see what types of soil you can find in the outdoor play space.
​3-PART CARDS
Learn some new rock vocabulary words!
​COLOR SORTING CARDS
Rocks come in many different colors! Collect rocks and sort by color, see how many different colors you can find.
For added enrichment, compare how many you found of each color. Are some colors more common? ​LET’S MEASURE
Laminate and use to measure the rocks you collect! Record the data and make comparisons for added enrichment.
​ROCK, DIRT, AND MUD WORD WALL CARDS
Word wall cards can be used to display in the circle time space and reference during activities, as a prop for gross motor games, placed in the writing center and more.
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Free Build a Bear Den STEM Activitiy Visit the Rocks, Dirt, & Mud Theme Planning page 
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