Fun Safety and Health Activities for Kids in Preschool

When it comes to teaching kids about health and safety, it may be hard to keep their attention – especially your youngest students. Thankfully teaching these life skills doesn’t have to be boring with these fun activities for preschoolers!

LifeCubby is the only childcare management software created by a center owner. Many of our team members know first-hand how to keep kids’ attention and make any learning experience a blast.

Here’s how you can make the not-so-exciting topics of health and safety subjects your kids will love – and learn lots from with these eight fun activities for preschoolers.

Safety Activities for Preschoolers

When it comes to safety, it’s important to teach your students the basics first. You can do that through these four safety activities for preschoolers:

• Stop, drop, and roll: This activity will teach your students the best way to protect themselves in a fire emergency. Begin by telling your students to stop (to prevent fanning the flames). Then, have them drop to the ground quickly and cover their faces with their hands to prevent facial burns. Ask them to lay flat with their legs out straight to smother any “flames.” Lastly, tell them to roll over with their hands above their heads to put out any remaining flames. Make sure to tell your students that it’s important to pay attention to what’s burning and focus on putting out that area of their bodies, should they ever experience this in real life. Add some upbeat music to turn it into a game and ensure your little ones are prepared in case of a heated event.
• Sun protection experiment: This simple activity is perfect for teaching sun safety! All you need is construction paper and sunscreen. Start by splitting the paper into two sides, labeling one “sunscreen” and the other “no sunscreen.” Then, spray your kids’ palms with sunscreen and press them onto the side of the paper labelled sunscreen. After that, wet their palms with some water and press them onto the “no sunscreen” side. Leave the papers outside in the sun for about two hours. You and your students will then be able to see the “no sunscreen” hand isn’t as visible as the sunscreen side. This is a great way to visually explain the importance of staying protected from the sun’s harmful rays.
• Dialing-in emergencies: Phones have evolved, but the right number to call in emergencies has always stayed the same. Teach your students how to dial 911 by writing numbers and symbols, as if they were on a keypad, with sticky notes arranged in the same order like this. You can also practice on a cell phone once they’re familiar with the activity. Just make sure airplane mode is on so it won’t dial out. 
• Water safety songs: Have your kids carry a tune about water safety with these fun songs. Songs are one of the best ways for children to remember key topics that stick with them for a long time. Your students can splash around the pool at home knowing how to avoid danger with the help of catchy lyrics!

Health Activities for Preschoolers

Teaching your students about living a healthy lifestyle is important for their development. Do just that with these four health activities for kids in preschool:

• Food sorting: It’s important for kids to develop good eating habits at an early age. This activity teaches that by having your students sort out the healthy foods they should be eating. After cutting out pictures of different foods, have your students choose which they believe are healthy options and glue them to a body-shaped drawing. This is a great opportunity for them to understand what food is good for them and why.
• Optimistic thinking cards: Empower your students by creating task cards with positive affirmations and discussion topics. These cards can focus on improving self-esteem, confidence building, and encouraging positive thinking skills. Whether your kids describe their best qualities or acknowledge what they’re proud of, they will master avoiding negativity while boosting themselves in the process. 
• Working out: Exercise reduces a significant amount of stress, including for young ones. This fitness activity uses the alphabet and their gross motor skills to make working out enjoyable. All you need to do is write the ABC’s on pieces of paper and mix them up all over the floor. Each letter has a movement for your kids to act out. Now your students can feel great about a new fitness routine!
• Visual expression: Having your kids color is one of the best ways your students can express themselves. This Color My Feelings printable activity is great because it combines colors and moods using the Dr. Suess book My Many Colored Days. Each color represents different emotions. By picking a color that matches various facial expressions, they can express themselves in a healthy and fun way. 

Want to ensure your students continue to learn health and safety basics even after they’ve left the classroom? Share these activities safety activities for preschoolers and health activities for preschoolers with parents so they can reinforce your lessons at home.

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