Flip a favourite nursery rhyme right into a enjoyable hands-on studying expertise with this Three Little Kittens preschool exercise! Children could make their very own mittens, seek for the mittens they “misplaced,” and even wash and cling them out to dry identical to the kittens within the story.
The most effective issues about utilizing nursery rhymes with preschoolers is which you could take a easy story and switch it into a complete studying expertise. Studying, rhyming, sequencing, faux play, advantageous motor apply, and even early math abilities can all be labored into the enjoyable.
In case your little learner loves cats, mittens, or nursery rhymes, that is a simple preschool exercise so as to add to your homeschool day, classroom lesson plans, or afternoon at dwelling.
In case your youngsters get pleasure from this enjoyable studying exercise, attempt these different Three Little Kittens actions for teenagers!

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Why Use Nursery Rhymes for Preschool Studying?
Nursery rhymes are particularly enjoyable for preschoolers as a result of they’re brief, repetitive, and straightforward to recollect.
After listening to Three Little Kittens just a few occasions, don’t be stunned in case your baby begins filling in phrases or reciting elements of the rhyme with you!
You can too use the story to apply a number of preschool abilities, together with:
- Listening and comprehension
- Rhyming phrases
- Story sequencing
- Superb motor abilities
- Coloration recognition
- Matching
- Faux play
- Following instructions
- Retelling a well-known story
And since the actions really feel extra like enjoying than schoolwork, they’re a simple addition to a preschool homeschool lesson.
What Is the Three Little Kittens Nursery Rhyme About?
Three Little Kittens tells the story of three kittens who lose their mittens.
After discovering them once more, the kittens get to get pleasure from some pie. Sadly, consuming the pie makes their mittens soiled!
The kittens then wash their mittens and cling them as much as dry.
It’s a easy story, however that’s precisely what makes it so helpful with youthful youngsters. Preschoolers can simply comply with what occurs first, subsequent, and final.
You may discuss concerning the story as you learn by asking easy questions comparable to:
- What did the kittens lose?
- The place do you suppose their mittens went?
- How did the kittens really feel once they couldn’t discover them?
- What occurred after they discovered their mittens?
- Why did they’ve to clean their mittens?
Questions like these flip storytime right into a easy studying comprehension exercise with out making it really feel like a lesson.
Three Little Kittens Preschool Exercise
We began our Three Little Kittens exercise by making our very personal mittens.
You don’t want something fancy for this half. Draw a easy mitten form on white building paper and reduce out two mittens for every baby.
Then let the youngsters adorn!
Markers, crayons, stickers, dot markers, or washable paint can all work. Children could make matching mittens or create two utterly totally different designs.
That is additionally a simple alternative to speak about colours, patterns, and matching.
As soon as the mittens are completed, the true enjoyable begins.
Discover the Misplaced Mittens
Within the nursery rhyme, the three little kittens lose their mittens and don’t know the place to seek out them.
Naturally, we would have liked to lose ours, too!
I hid the paper mittens round the home and despatched my little “kittens” off to seek out them.
You may make the mitten scavenger hunt as simple or difficult as you need relying in your baby’s age.
For youthful preschoolers, go away a part of every mitten seen. Older youngsters may get pleasure from having them hidden underneath pillows, behind toys, or in different secure locations across the room.
You can too give clues:
- “Look someplace we sit.”
- “Your mitten is close to one thing blue.”
- “Look underneath one thing comfortable.”
This provides listening, problem-solving, positional phrases, and vocabulary apply to a quite simple sport.
Wash the Mittens
When you’ve misplaced the mittens and located them once more, it’s time to proceed the story.
The kittens ultimately get their mittens soiled and have to clean them.
Paper mittens clearly aren’t going to outlive a bucket of water, so we switched to socks and pretended they have been mittens.
Fill a small bucket or tub with water and somewhat cleaning soap and let the youngsters wash their faux mittens.
This ended up being one of many favourite elements of our exercise!
Children can scrub, squeeze, rinse, and swish their mittens by means of the water.
Water play is already entertaining for preschoolers, and connecting it to the story provides the exercise a function.
Grownup supervision is essential anytime younger youngsters are enjoying round water.
Dangle the Mittens to Dry
After washing their mittens, the kittens cling them out to dry, in order that’s precisely what we did.
We strung a rope between two playhouses exterior and let the youngsters cling their freshly washed “mittens” on the road.
You can additionally tie a bit of string between two chairs, use a drying rack, or create somewhat indoor clothesline.
Give preschoolers clothespins and allow them to connect the mittens themselves.
Opening and shutting clothespins is incredible advantageous motor apply for little fingers!
Our children loved washing and hanging their mittens a lot that they took them down and began the complete course of over once more.

Flip It Right into a Mitten Matching Recreation
Earlier than placing all the things away, use the mittens for a fast matching exercise.
Make a number of pairs of paper mittens with matching colours, shapes, numbers, letters, or patterns.
Combine them collectively and ask your preschooler to seek out every matching pair.
You may modify the exercise primarily based on what your baby is at the moment studying.
For instance:
- Match uppercase and lowercase letters.
- Match numerals with the proper variety of dots.
- Match equivalent colours.
- Match easy patterns.
- Match shapes.
- Match footage that belong collectively.
That is a simple option to reuse your mitten theme whereas practising a very totally different preschool ability.

Apply Story Sequencing
Three Little Kittens can be an excellent nursery rhyme for introducing story sequencing to preschoolers.
After you’ve learn the story and accomplished the actions, ask your baby what occurred.
Begin with three easy occasions:
First: The kittens misplaced their mittens.
Subsequent: They discovered their mittens.
Then: They washed their mittens.
As soon as your baby understands the essential order, you possibly can add extra occasions from the story.
Don’t fear about getting each little element proper. The purpose is to assist youngsters perceive that tales occur in an order and apply remembering what occurred.
Add Some Preschool Math
You may even sneak somewhat math apply into your Three Little Kittens actions.
Begin with the quantity three!
Rely three kittens, three pairs of mittens, or six particular person mittens.
You can additionally collect a number of pairs of actual mittens or gloves and let youngsters kind them by coloration, dimension, or sample.
Strive making easy mitten patterns comparable to:
Pink, blue, pink, blue…
Ask your baby what comes subsequent.
For an additional simple exercise, write numbers on paper mittens and have your baby put them in numerical order.
Have a Three Little Kittens Snack
There’s one crucial a part of the nursery rhyme we haven’t talked about but.
The pie!
If you wish to make your Three Little Kittens preschool lesson further particular, end it with a pie-themed snack.
You don’t essentially need to bake a complete pie. You can serve mini pies, fruit with whipped topping, pie-shaped sandwiches, or one other easy deal with.
Discuss what occurred within the story when you’re consuming.
Simply be certain that everybody takes their mittens off first!
Extra Methods to Lengthen the Three Little Kittens Story
One of many causes I like preschool actions primarily based on books and nursery rhymes is which you could maintain the educational entering into so many alternative instructions.
Strive including just a few of those concepts:
- Draw footage of the three little kittens.
- Make kitten ears from building paper.
- Faux to be kittens and act out the nursery rhyme.
- Search for rhyming phrases within the story.
- Apply making cat sounds.
- Learn different nursery rhymes and evaluate the tales.
- Discuss what kittens want to remain wholesome.
- Learn books about cats and kittens.
- Rely toy cats or kitten footage.
- Create a mitten sensory bin.
- Apply hanging doll garments or socks with clothespins.
- Make a paper plate kitten craft.
You don’t need to do all the things without delay. Decide one or two actions that work with the talents you’re at the moment practising.
How one can Use This Exercise in Your Preschool Homeschool
This exercise can simply grow to be a part of a preschool nursery rhyme unit.
Begin by studying or reciting Three Little Kittens collectively. Then select one hands-on exercise to finish every day.
For instance, you may adorn mittens someday, have the mitten scavenger hunt the subsequent day, and wash and cling your faux mittens later within the week.
Repeating the nursery rhyme all through the week provides preschoolers loads of alternatives to grow to be accustomed to the story.
By the tip of your mini unit, see in case your baby can let you know the story with out your assist!
What age is the Three Little Kittens exercise greatest for?
This exercise is right for preschool and pre-Ok youngsters, however you possibly can simply simplify it for toddlers or add more difficult literacy and math actions for kindergarteners.
What abilities can preschoolers study from Three Little Kittens?
The nursery rhyme might help youngsters apply rhyming, listening, sequencing, vocabulary, counting, matching, advantageous motor abilities, comprehension, and story retelling.
What provides do I would like for the mitten exercise?
You’ll primarily want building paper, markers or crayons, scissors, socks or washable mittens, a small container of soapy water, string, and clothespins. You may adapt the exercise primarily based on provides you have already got at dwelling.
Can I take advantage of this exercise in a preschool classroom?
Sure! As an alternative of hiding only a few mittens, create a pair for every baby. Children can adorn their mittens after which work collectively to seek out matching pairs. The story additionally works properly for circle time, dramatic play, literacy facilities, and winter-themed preschool classes.
Do I would like a Three Little Kittens guide?
No. You may recite or sing the standard nursery rhyme and not using a particular guide. Nonetheless, an image guide model could make it simpler for preschoolers to comply with the story and offers them illustrations to look at when you learn.
What themes work properly with Three Little Kittens?
This nursery rhyme suits properly into classes about cats, pets, winter, mittens, clothes, nursery rhymes, rhyming phrases, and story sequencing. That makes it simple to include into a number of totally different preschool themes.
Extra Actions for Preschoolers:
Three Little Kittens Preschool Exercise Sources:
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