1st Grade Activities
First grade is a year of firsts: your child's first full day of school, the first time she'll write a small story herself, and the first time she'll read a complete book cover to cover. We've got dozens of wacky reading and math activities, cool science experiments, and indoor and outdoor games to keep the learning fun.
Make a Labor Day Career Book!
Celebrate Labor Day and give your child a jump start on the school year by taking a walk through your neighborhood and talking about the different jobs that people do, then showing him how to make his very own "career book."
Make Your Own Pinata!
A longtime staple of birthday parties, the candy-filled pinata is a part of everyone's childhood. Now, your family can make its own pinata!
Practice Stick Writing!
First graders will get a kick out of creating a written message and practicing their letters using sticks they find in nature. This also helps to practice their letter formation and handwriting strokes.
Get Your Head in the Clouds!
First graders are eager to learn about science - especially using large objects to observe like clouds. Let your child daydream a little and use those science and writing skills, too!
Chalk it Up! An Outdoor Classification Activity
Classifying and sorting into groups is also a large part of the first grade math curriculum. The outdoors offers an abundance of learning tools for children, and classifying in the natural world gives your child an added lesson in scientific observation and classification.
Make an ABC Nature Book
Take a nature walk in your backyard or local park to find one object for every letter of the alphabet. Your child will be loving the outdoors while practicing her science, reading, and writing skills.
Make a Sweet Symmetry Treat
In first grade, students are introduced to many new math concepts, including the concept of symmetry. Here’s a fun way to explore symmetry that will leave your child with a sweet symmetrical treat!
Put Together a Sight Word Puzzler
First graders benefit greatly from learning to read words quickly and automatically, but practice doesn't need to be a chore. In this "out-of-the-box" approach to practicing sight words, practice looks a lot like play!
Play Rainbow Bingo!
First graders need to be able to read color words quickly and accurately, without taking the time to sound them out. Here's a fun bingo game designed to give your first grader fun, colorful practice learning to recognize words like "red" and "purple."
Make a Paper Plate Phonics Wheel
First graders develop their reading skills rapidly, applying a range of learned strategies to decode unknown words. Help your child practice reading, and blending them into words, with this fun activity!
