Categories: Parenting

January Lesson Plans for Infants and Toddlers

This is a unit of lesson plans for a week in an infant classroom. This plan is geared for infants 6 weeks to 15 months of age. Of course for the very young babies you may not be able to do a lot of the art or movement activities, use your own judgment and go with the flow of the class. Don’t feel you need to be tied to any lesson plan for kids this age. The lessons are not in any particular order and can be done at any time of the day when there is time. These lessons include art projects that use baby’s fine motor skills and provide sensory, large motor activities, math and music activities. It also includes an activity for Martin Luther King’s birthday and activities for the color of the month, white.

Day One

Art – Sensory

Handprint Martin Luther King art – Have the kids glue a red heart to the center of a blue piece of construction paper. Paint each child’s hands, one white and one black. Press each hand on either side of the heart with the fingers pointing towards the heart. 1.

Social – Sense of self

Play the “Where is…?” game. Ask the kids, “Where is (another child)?” “Where is (another teacher)?” “Where is (the child you are speaking to)?”

Movement – music

Provide the kids with a kid friendly music CD and dance with them. Toddlers love to dance and babies love to hear music and watch.

Day Two

Art – Sensory

Create a footprint penguin. Use the child’s foot painted black pressed to a white piece of construction paper for the penguin’s body. Once it dries, have the kids glue on a white construction paper oval to the center of the foot for the penguins belly. Add an orange beak and eyes to complete the penguin.

Math

Show the kids a picture of some penguins. Count the penguins for them. This will help them get a beginning sense of numbers and counting.

Movement – Large motor

Exercise – Get the kids blankets and play with them, “hide the baby” (under the blanket), or have them kick the blanket off their legs.

Day Three

Art – Fine motor

Have the babies color with crayons. Provide them with a picture of a Happy New Year’s picture to color however they want. Help if they need it.

Language – Music

Sing “Happy New Year” 2.

Sung to “Happy Birthday” tune

Happy New Year to you

May good times and good friends

Last the whole year through

Sense of self

While sitting on the floor with an infant, play another version of the “Where is…?” game. “Where are your eyes?” “Where is your belly?” Etc.

Day Four

Art – Sensory

Finger-paint with vanilla pudding. Give each child a piece of fingerprint paper and a dab of vanilla pudding. Let them “paint” a picture with the white pudding.

Language

Read “Where Is Snowy’s Nose?” by Kelly Asbury, with the kids.

Language – Social

Sit on the floor with the kids and do the “Here is a Bunny” fingerplay:

Here is a bunny with ears so funny. (hold up your pointer and middle finger)

And here is his home in the ground. (cup you other hand)

A noise he hears and he pricks up his ears. (move your two fingers that are standing up)

And jumps to his home in the ground. (dive your fingers into your cupped hand)

Day Five

Art – Fine Motor

Provide the kids with a simple outline picture of a rabbit. Scrunch up small pieces of white tissue paper and use a glue stick to put some glue on the bunny. Help the kids place the scrunched up tissue paper on the bunny. Don’t forget they’ll try to eat it; it can be a good lesson on what not to put in your mouth.

Movement – Pretending

Pretend to hop like a bunny. Have the kids that can walk join you. Carefully hop around the little babies, looking silly like a bunny.

Language – Social

Sit on the floor and read “Pat the Bunny” with the kids.

Sources:

1. The Mailbox, The Education Center Inc., January 1996

2. Totline, 1001 Rhymes and Fingerplays, Totline Books, Warren Publishing, 1994

Jackie Silberg, Games to Play with Two Year Olds

Next Lesson Plan:

February Lesson Plans for Infants and Toddlers

More from Rebecca:

December Lesson Plans for Infants and Toddlers