Are your kids fascinated by dinosaurs? Discover dinosaur activities for kids in the video above, then read about 7 engaging ideas below. Little paleontologists will love the range of activities to explore; from educational learning resources to hands-on crafts and sensory messy play ideas, below you will find an activity to suit each individual child. All activities are also great for home learning during COVID-19.
1. Play Dough Fossils Dinosaur Activities for Kids
Raise your hand if your kids love play dough! In addition to providing a sensory experience for children, play dough helps little hands to develop fine motor skills as they manipulate the dough. Strengthening and controlling the muscles of the hand can promote pre-writing skills, making play dough both fun and beneficial to learning. Create your own dinosaur fossils with toy dinosaurs and play dough. Begin by rolling the dough into a ball and flattening it with a rolling pin to create a circle around 2cm thick. Take different dinosaur toys and press into the dough to make colourful fossils. Watch the video above to see this activity in action!
2. Dinosaur Soft Toys and Puppets for Kids
Snuggle up with a cute dinosaur puppet! Puppets encourage creativity and imagination, bringing life to stories and boosting communication skills. This cute T-Rex Baby Dino puppet has a moveable mouth and soft, vibrant fabric. Similarly, this Wilberry knitted stegosaurus is a cuddly soft toy with a retro, vintage look and feel. Puppets and soft toys make wonderful additions to playtime, as little ones learn to put themselves into another’s shoes. They are also excellent gifts, with their beautiful attention to detail and timeless designs.
3. Dinosaur Sensory Bins for Kids
For little hands that love messy play activities, sensory bins are perfect for hours of entertainment. Simply fill a container with water, dried rice or sand and add dinosaur toys. Additionally, you can mix food colouring into the water or rice for visual stimulation and create vegetation for the dinosaurs to eat using spinach, kale or small plants. To develop motor skills and hand-eye coordination, kids can use jumbo tweezers and scoopers to pick up the dinosaurs, or better still – pretend to be archeologists searching for fossils! Plus, Learning Resources Helping Hands Tool Set is ideal for messy play activities. For more messy play ideas, head to this blogpost.
4. Free Dinosaur Printables
Find numerous dinosaur printables on WordUnited’s Free Resources Hub. Ideal for using at home or in the classroom, these free printables can be downloaded and printed from any device with ease. Moreover, with children at home during COVID-19, parents can choose from hundreds of resources that are perfect for home learning. Put your dinosaur knowledge to the test with colourful flashcards designed with vibrant labelled illustrations to help children learn dinosaur names. Alternatively, for a crafty activity, check out Split Pin Dinosaurs, where children can transform the illustrations into moveable dinosaurs.
5. Dinosaur Books for Kids
You will find wonderful dinosaur books for kids on WordUnited! Why not try a 3D cube book or sticker activity book about dinosaurs? Alternatively, kids can get moving and grooving with Dinosaur Rap, a beautifully illustrated singalong book and CD! Plus, children can even watch an animated singalong video of Dinosaur Rap from Barefoot Books here. Children may also enjoy a sweet tale about friendship with Dear Dinosaur, complete with real letters to open and read.
6. Dinosaur Puzzles and Games
Puzzles are brilliant learning toys for children of all ages and can cater to many interests, including dinosaurs. Jigsaws support the development of logical thinking and problem-solving skills, as well as improving fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination and concentration. Toddlers can enjoy Fair Trade wooden shape sorter and counting dinosaur puzzles, with chunky pieces that are easy for small hands to grip. For older children, take a look at this 100-piece dinosaur jigsaw puzzle. There are also fabulous dinosaur board games such as Orchard Toys Dinosaur Lotto and Dinosaur Dominoes. Orchard Toys games are teacher-tested and help children develop a range of skills, such as turn-taking and observational skills.
7. Dinosaur Learning Kits
Combine science and history with 4M’s learning kits. Children can dig, excavate and construct the mysterious skeleton of a prehistoric animal with KidzLabs Excavation Kit. Likewise, try a DNA Augmented Reality Kit for a unique virtual dinosaur activity. Such learning kits are suitable for children aged 8 years and above. They promote scientific skills and understanding in an interesting way, motivating children to expand their dinosaur expertise.
Children can read more about dinosaurs on National History Museum! For younger children, CBeebies have curated a fascinating list of dinosaur facts for little ones to enjoy. Browse thousands of educational toys, learning resources and books for kids on wordunited.com!
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