Preschool Fun in the Summer Sun Theme Activities

Below you can find fun and engaging Preschool fun in the sun activities! Use the ideas on this page to plan your lessons!

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Fun in the Summer Sun Preschool Theme Map

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Nature Sun Catcher

Go on an adventure in the sunshine, collect flowers to create a sun catcher. 
Or create a sunshine shaped suncatcher! See details on how to Make a Suncatcher on my blog. 

Sidewalk Chalk Tape Resist Art

Lay down strips of painters tape in any design you choose. 
Set out sidewalk chalk and encourage your preschooler to fill in the shapes. 
When you're done peel back the tape (get your preschooler to help to support fine motor development) to reveal the masterpiece. 
Try making your own sidewalk chalk with our easy to follow tutorial.

Plaster Casting in Sand

This is a fun learning experience for preschoolers to explore during summer. 

Supplies:

• Sand
• Seashells
• Plaster of Paris
• Water 

Directions:
Dampen the sand by stirring in a bit of water. 
Flatten the surface of the sand and press the shells into sand.
Gently lift the shells from the sand to leave the impression.
Mix the plaster of paris with water until it reaches a pancake batter consistency.
Spoon the plaster mix into the impressions in the sand
The plaster should be set in about 30 minutes.
Carefully lift the casts from the sand and place on a wire rack to dry overnight.

Shadow Drawing

Use everyday objects, or take them outside to practice tracing their friends shadow with chalk. Place toys, plastic animals, etc while in the sun and draw/trace shadows.

Create a Sun with Squish & Twist Painting

Use the Squish & Twist painting method to invite your preschooler to blend colors and create the sun. 

Solar Printing Process Art

This week is the perfect time to try out Solar Printing!
Soak in the sunshine while engaging in this experiment that doubles as an art process. 
Get all the details for Solar Printing on my blog. 

Try This!

Shell Stamping

Put out plates with different colored paints and a variety of shells. Lay out a large section of chart paper. Invite students to dip the shells in the paint and stamp them across the paper.

Sand Bottle Art

Provide students with funnels, scoops, colored sand, and bottles to make their own art pieces.

Painting with Ice Cubes

Have children make unique pictures by painting with ice cubes. Add water and food coloring to an ice tray. Freeze and then pop out of the tray. Let children move the ice cubes around their paper to transfer the colors!

Sing a Song

Sing your favorite fun in the sun song! Some suggestions include Down by the Bay, or Mr. Sun

Whip up some puffy paint, pair with a triangle cut from cardboard to make ice cream cone art

Try this!

Invite your preschoolers to create a healthy summer treat, Yogurt Banana Popsicles. Provide a variety of toppings for children to customize

try this!

Ice Cream Stand*

Invite your preschoolers to play in a pretend ice cream shop! This invitation supports creative play, social skill development, math & literacy skills and is sure to keep little ones busy for hours. 
This Ice Cream Dramatic Play pack makes it easy to set up this invitation to play. 

Get this set in our shop!

Beach Fun

Transform your dramatic play space into a beach. Place a large sandy colored sheet (fabric "beach themed" shower curtains work great for this), and a blue water sheet on the ground. Add beach chairs, sunglasses, sun hats, empty (clean) sunscreen bottles, beach bags, towels, lunch coolers, beach balls, and shovels and pails to your space this week.

Summer Puppet Show

Add cutouts of people dressed for summer, summer items (cooler, beach umbrella, beach ball, etc) and invite students to tell a summer time story.

Lemonade Stand

Set up a lemonade stand in your dramatic play center. Provide cups, plastic lemons, straws, play money, and more. Have your students pretend they are either buying or selling lemonade on a hot summer day.

Pretend Pool Party

Set up the Dramatic Play area with beach towels, sunscreen bottles, pool floaties/noodles. Set down a large blue sheet for the pool. Have children pretend they are at a pool party. Don't forget the bbq so you can grill some tasty food when you get hungry.

Make Summer Objects with Pattern Blocks

This set of Summer Pattern Block Mats is a great addition to your learning space during this theme.
Build a beach ball, anchor, sand castle and more!
See everything included in the Summer Pattern Block Mats Shop Listing

Buy this Activity!

Sandpaper castles

Cut sandpaper into a variety of 2D shapes.
Encourage your students to build their own castles using this textured paper.
Find more details and tips for this activity on our Sandpaper Castles blog

Try this!

Build and Trace Shadows

Take your blocks outside for building, or use cardboard boxes in a variety of sizes. After building encourage your architects to trace their creations on the sidewalk using chalk. 

Sandcastles

Kinetic sand is perfect for making sand castles, try adding some to your sand table along with some molds and basic tools.

Shell Tower

Challenge students to use shells to build the tallest tower they can!

And Then Comes Summer Story Time Activity

The book And Then Comes Summer by Tom Brenner (affiliate) is such a fun way to lead into summer activities. 
Our story time companion activity is a great way to engage in discussion and keep the fun going with an extension activity!
Get this And Then Comes Summer Story Time Companion pack in my shop. 

Available in my shop!

Roll and Write Letters*

Sidewalk chalk is a summer staple when you have young children. 
Set out this set of Roll and Write Letters Sidewalk Chalk cubes to encourage letter formation with sidewalk chalk. 

Get this in our shop!

Sand Box Letter Press

Place moistened sand in a sensory bin along with cookie cutter letters. Encourage the children to press the letters into the sand. Extend the learning: Can they find the letters in their name? Or the first letter in the word "beach", "sand", or "crab"?

​Name Building Popsicle

Incorporate name building into your summer with our Popsicle Name Craft and Worksheets pack!

Get this in our shop!

Snow Cone Letter Match*

This letter matching activity from Pre-k Printable Fun is easy to set up. 
Invite preschoolers to practice letter identification and matching with this Summer Fun in the Sun activity. 

See more from the Fun in the Summer Sun pack in our shop!~

Summer Letter Formation Practice

Tracing cards are a great invitation to set up for preschoolers. They are easy to create individualized learning activities and break the learning up into smaller parts.  Dry erase markers provide less resistance than other writing tools.
You can print these cards from the Summer Tracing Set from PKPF that also includes a variety of worksheets for children to work on tracing letters, numbers, shapes, and lines. ​

Get this in our shop!

Summer Word Building

Dive into summer with literacy fun! This set is easy to set up with your magnet letters and a magnet board or cookie sheet. Preschoolers work on letter sounds and identification as they fill in the missing letter. 
Magnetic Letters Summer Word Activities

Available in our shop!

Beach Inspired Sand Tray

Writing trays are great for practicing letter formation! Follow our tutorial showing how to make your own low cost beach inspired sand tray! Use it to practice tracing letters (or numbers, and shapes)!

Summer Rebus Rhymes-Coming Soon!

Sunny Letter Walk

 Cut out sun mats from yellow construction paper. Write a letter on each of them (make 2x as many mats as students). Place them in a large circle on the floor. Play the song Mr. Sun or your favorite summer music and have the children walk around the circle while the music is playing, When it stops have the students identify the letter they are standing next to.

Day At the Beach Story Time Activity

What's better in summer than a day at the beach? When you can't get to the beach a second best is reading about the beach! 
Grab a copy of Day at the Beach by Tom Booth (affiliate) to pair with our fun story time extension activities. Explore vocabulary from the book, engage in discussion and a follow-up activity. 
Get our Day at the Beach Story Time Companion set in the shop.( member exclusive)

Day at the Beach Pre-K Book Companion

Collecting Letter Shells

Write Letters on the inside of Shells. Place them face down around room. Provide your students buckets, and have them collect shells and identify the letters on each one from around the room.

*And Then Comes Summer by Tom Brenner
Day at the Beach by Tom Booth
Beach Day by Karen Roosa and Maggie Smith
Fun in the Sun by David Catrow
Is It Warm Enough for Ice Cream? by DK

Ice Cream Scoop Count*

This activity is an engaging way to encourage preschoolers to work on number recognition and counting skills. This easy to set-up activity is included in the Summer Fun in the Sun pack from Pre-K Printable Fun

Fun in the Summer Sun Preschool Activity Pack

Shell Patterning

Set up different patterns using shells (AB, AAB, ABB, ABC, etc.) and have students complete the patterns.

Sort Sunglasses

Set up different colored sunglasses. Have children sort them into bins based on color or size. Extend the activity by sorting by two attributes (examples: Big red sunglasses, small red sunglasses).

Summer Graphs

Ask a series of summer themed questions (examples: who likes to go to the beach? Do you like chocolate or vanilla ice cream) Have students graph the results.

Beach Ball Number Toss-Fun for Groups!

This is a fantastic group activity. Use a sharpie to add numbers (or letters, or names, or shapes) to the beach ball. Toss it to a friend! The child will look and announce which numbers they are touching. Looking for more low cost activity ideas? Check out this post!

Build an Ice Cream Cone Patterning*

Practice patterning by recreating the pattern on the card. Extend by creating your own patterns. This activity can be found inside our Summer Fun in the Sun Activity Pack.

Fun in the Summer Sun Preschool Activity Pack

Study the Water Cycle*

Recalling and exploring the water cycle is a great idea to revisit each season. 
This evaporation observation is excellent to perform during summer as the water will evaporate faster in the hot weather. Tie this into why it's so important to drink more water during hotter months. 
Water Cycle Preschool Science Activities

Water Cycle Preschool Activities

Hot and Cold Sorting*

Have children practice sorting objects that are hot or cold. Set out a variety of pictures that represent hot and cold. Have children sort into two groups. Use this set of Hot and Cold Sorting Mats to make the activity even easier!

Fun in the Summer Sun Preschool Activity Pack

Summer Sink or Float coming soon!

Solar Oven

Treat your preschoolers to a tasty snack while exploring science!
Build your very own solar oven and then test it out by making yummy s'mores. Perfect to pair with your Summer Fun Theme or a  Camping Theme Exploration. 

Try this!

Shadow Exploration

Exploring shadows with preschoolers is a fun and easy way to incorporate science into summer theme. Use everyday objects, or take them outside to practice tracing their friends shadow with chalk.

Try this!

What Melts in the Sun?

Supplies Needed:
Muffin tin
6 test items - we used peanut butter, peep candy, gummy candy, cheese stick, and chocolate candy

Instructions:
Place each test item in a section of the tin and place outside in a sunny area. Check on the items periodically and note the time in the sun and the condition of the items. Compare the time it takes each item to to melt and the change in texture

​Make Your Own Sun Tea

Brewing tea out in the sun simply tastes better than quick brewing with hot water. This is also a fun science exploration to enjoy with preschoolers. Brewing tea is a fun science and discovery addition to a Fun in the Sun theme. Keep reading to see the process and tips for supporting learning along the way. 
Find more information and tips for this project on our Make Your Own Sun Tea blog post. 

Try this!

Lemon Science Activities

Lemonade in the summer is so refreshing! 
Dive into some lemon science fun with our Lemon Science Activities set. 
Included in this set is a fun lemonade recipe. See our Making Lemonade Tutorial on our blog. 

Buy this Activity in Our Shop!

Make Your Own Moon Sand

This sensory rich activity is perfect for preschoolers and they will have a blast helping you make it! This tutorial has all the information you need including the simple ingredient list. 
Find all the instructions for mixing up this fun play material and teaching tips in our Make Your Own Moon Sand blog post. 

Try This!

Make Your Own Ice Cream

​What do preschoolers like more than eating ice cream? Making their own of course! This preschool cooking activity is easy and includes a variety of learning opportunities.
Find the details and teaching tips for this activity on our Make Your Own Ice Cream blog post. 

Try this!

Make a bouncy ball

Mix together ½ cup of warm water and 1 TBSP of Borax then add 1-2 TBSP of Clear Glue. Mold into a ball.

Pool Noodle Marble Run

Cut a pool noodle in half long ways. Then have a race using different colored marbles or sizes!

Make your own Bottle Fountain

Recycle some used water bottles by poking different sized holes in the bottom. Then fill with water and watch how the water escapes!

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More Fun in the Sun Science & Discovery Ideas:

DIY Garden Sundial from KCedventures
Sun Upcycled Crayons from mamasmiles
Summer Sensory Washing Stations from Little Bins for Little Hands

Ice Cube Fine Motor Fun

Place white or blue craft cubes blocks inside a small lunch cooler. Provide your student with plastic cups and a pair of tongs. Have them use the tongs to remove the "ice cube" blocks from the cooler and place them in the cups.

Ice Cream Cone Shape Clip Cards*

Get in a bit of math with this fine motor activity!
Preschoolers identify the shape of each ice cream and then use a clothespin to clip the matching shape on the bottom of the card. You can find this activity in the Summer Fun in the Sun Activity Pack from PKPF. 

Fun in the Summer Sun Preschool Activity Pack

Trace & Color Fine Motor Practice

These Trace & Color pages make setting up fine motor practice easy this summer, the set includes a variety of themes great for all year round including several fun summer themed pages. 

Trace and Color Set

Water Challenge-Fine Motor

Place two bowls inside a sensory bin. Add water to one bowl, along with sponges. 
Challenge students to transfer the water to the other bowl by absorbing and squeezing the sponges.

Beach Bin Sensory Hunt-Fine Motor

Bury different summer themed objects in a sand sensory bin. Give students a visual list of what to find.
Give them scoops, tongs, tweezers, etc. and have them dig through the sand to find each item on the list.

Scoop your own ice cream-Fine Motor

Scooping ice cream is a fantastic way to build fine motor skills-and a tasty summer treat!

Shell Impressions-Fine Motor

Provide your students with a sensory box of kinetic (or wet) sand, and shells, and have them practice making shell impressions.

Beach Ball Towel Toss-Gross Motor

Gather your beach towels and beach balls for a fun way to get little ones moving! 
Pair off giving each pair of people a beach towel. Place a ball in the middle, work together to wave the towel to make the ball fly into the air. 

Splash in the ocean-Gross Motor

Place a large blue sheet or blanket on the floor. Have your students take off their socks, and shoes, and  take turns "splashing" their feet in the "water" as they name shapes, letters, numbers, or any skills you are working on this week.

Hopscotch

Combine math and motor skills with a fun invitation to play hopscotch. 
This DIY is from community member Piper M. of Brainy Bumblebee Academy. 
Find more ways to spruce up your outdoor space on my blog post DIY Ideas for Your Outdoor Space

DIY Ideas for your Outdoor Space

Giant Bubbles-Gross Motor

Create giant bubbles by making your own wands from loops of yarn or other recycled objects. Challenge students to make the largest bubble! Check out our tutorial for how to make your own bubble solution.

Wet Sponge Toss-Gross Motor

Set up a target outside. Add sponges to a bucket of water.
Have children pick up the wet sponges and try to hit the target.

Ice Cream Scoop Toss-Gross Motor

Toss Ice Cream Scoop "Balls" into a large bowls.

Sprinkler Fun

Play outside in the sprinkler.

Summer Community Helpers

While community helpers are important all year round, there are certainly ones that are more obvious during each season.
During the summer months preschoolers may notice construction workers, librarians, farmers, and lifeguards more. What other community workers are important during the summer months? 
Explore the important workers in your community through Community Helper Conversation cards. ​

Community Helper Conversation Cards

Take a trip to the beach or community pool

Teach students important safety rules for the beach/pool and take a trip to practice skills and have fun in the sun!

Summer Scavenger Hunt Field Trip

Have students look for summer themed items throughout the community and report back how many items they were able to find from the scavenger hunt list.

Sunny Emotions

Explore emotions with this fun Sunny Emotions dough mat from our Summer Fun in the Sun activity pack. 

Buy this Activity in Our Shop!

Summer Themed Yoga

Have students do summer themed yoga poses on a beach towel and work on breathing and mindfulness.

Pack for a Summer Vacation

Provide students with a variety of winter and summer items, along with a suitcase.
Have them practice sorting items they would take on a summer vacation.

Collaborative patterning

Cut out a large yellow circle "Sun" (a yellow paper plate works well for this). Collect: orange, yellow, and red clothespins (you can pain them) sun rays, and place them in a basket in the center of your group area, with the sun. Start a pattern using the clothespin "sun rays". Invite each child to get up and take turns completing the pattern by clipping a clothespin to the sun. 

Participate in a Group Song Together

Before singing this song: show a photo, or watch a video about a beach!
Sing this song to the tune of the "Wheels on the Bus"
The waves at the beach roll in and out, in and out, in and out.
The waves at the beach roll in and out.
all day long.

Variations:
The dolphins at the beach leap and splash
The  fish at the beach swim here and there
The crabs at the beach go snip and snap
The shovels at the beach go dig, dig, dig

Play a Game Together*-Teamwork

This is a great game to play with a partner. 
Take turns rolling the playing cube to move the cherry to the top of the stack. This Ice Cream Cone Race to the Top Game can be found inside our Fun in the Sun activity pack. 

Fun in the Summer Sun Preschool Activity Pack

Ice Cream Theme Sign-in Activity

​Welcome your students to class with this engaging name recognition activity. 
Includes a variety of themes and available in the shop!

Daily Attendance

Create Outdoor Learning Opportunities

Be ready for learning outside this summer with our Summer Dry Erase Binder !
Activities from this set support preschool math, literacy, and fine motor development. 
You can also check out this post with suggested ways to create outdoor learning spaces.

Preschool Summer Activities Binder

Fun in the Summer Sun Preschool Activity Pack

$7.00

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Ice Cream Stand Dramatic Play Pack

$4.00

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Ice Cream Themed Incentive Reward Chart Set

$3.00

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Beach Fun Flip & Count Pre-K Math Activity

$2.00

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Ice Cream Cone Race to the Top Game

$0.00

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Sidewalk Chalk Roll and Write Uppercase Letters and Symbols

$2.00

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Magnet Letter Summer Vocabulary Centers

$3.00

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Ice Cream Alphabet First Sounds Puzzles

$2.00

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Preschool Summer Binder

$4.00

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Summer Tracing Set

$5.00

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