Transitioning to Kindergarten can be a stressful time for young children as they take on a new role as “student”—in addition to other changes such as new surroundings, routines and expectations, and in some cases being away from parents for the first time.
There are many things, however, that can be done to help prepare children for this big transition and a familiarity with some key skills will be beneficial. The Jim Henson Company and PBS KIDS have included some fun ideas from the award-winning Dinosaur Train website at www.pbskids.org/dinosaurtrain that will help children familiarize themselves with and build upon some specific skills, while at the same time enjoying their favorite characters!
Practice reading and speaking. Help your child practice the letters of the alphabet while learning, speaking and singing about the diversity of dinosaurs that once lived on Earth with the “Dinosaurs A – Z song.” Have fun learning about letters, and dinosaurs.
Learn about color. Help your child understand, investigate and make predictions about the science of color, using household basics including food coloring, clean food jars/containers, colored markers and a cookie sheet. F
Develop fine motor skills such as coloring; cutting; drawing; buttoning; zippering; building. With Buddy’s help, you can practice some of these skills while making a Stegosaurus Puppet.
Practice gross motor skills such as running, jumping and throwing. Try “Playing Dino Ball Your Way” to improve these skills--and get some exercise too--by inventing the rules for an imaginary game and then playing it!
Explore size and scale. Using illustrations and physical markers, kids can measure out size differences in large dinosaurs to understand their size and scale! Check out the activity “Even Bigger than T.rex!” at the following link and have some fun while learning about size.
Of course there are many other important skills for children to be familiar with before starting Kindergarten – these are just a few to have fun with, along with your friends from Dinosaur Train!
Here are some “Get ready for Kindergarten” shopping ideas to help build on some of the above skills or just for play and fun-My family was lucky enough to test out some of them and the kids loved them. Here are a few of great Dinosaur Train products available.
DINOSAURS A TO Z from Golden Books by Andrea Posner-Sanchez; illustrated by
Terry Izumi.
Meet 26 dinosaurs—one for each letter of the alphabet—in this Dinosaur Train™ alphabet book. Buddy, Mr. Conductor, and the other Dinosaur Train™ characters from the hit PBS Kids® animated series introduce dinos from Apatosaurus to Zigongosaurus! Young paleontologists-in-training will love learning cool facts about 26 amazing dinosaurs. This awesome non-fiction book with a sturdy padded cover makes a great gift!
Ages 3-5; SRP $11.99; 30 pages. Available August 9, 2011.
This fun book is loaded with pages of bright illustrations and is a great way to practice the alphabet before school starts. The thick pages won't bend or tear easily and kids will love the familiar characters mixed in with lots of new friends.
DINOSAUR TRAIN COLORING PAD & MARKER SET from Crayola Mess Free Color Wonder
With Crayola Mess Free Color Wonder, the inks are clear, and colors magically appear only when the markers meet the special Color Wonder paper. Kids are free to unleash their imaginations and love the way each marker magically reveals a different color on the special paper. Moms love the fact that Color Wonder inks will not appear on skin, walls or carpet, so there’s no clean up involved. Age: 3+. SRP: $7.99. Available now at Walmart, Target, Toys “R” Us, Kmart, Kohl's, Meijer.
This exciting coloring book is not only great for preschoolers but for toddlers as well. With Willow just learning how to color, these are a great way to encourage her creativity without having to worry about getting marker or crayon on all clothes, walls or faces.
MEGA BLOKS Dinosaur Train “All Aboard the Dinosaur Train!” from MEGA Brands
All aboard the Dinosaur Train! Have your little dino-engineers join Buddy and Tiny on their adventures through the Age of Dinosaurs with their tour guide Gilbert aboard the Dinosaur Train! Build and rebuild the authentic Dinosaur Train with two observation cars, opening doors and replica brown roof as it pulls into Pteranodon Station to pick up a new group of passengers. Make sure children have their tickets ready so they can visit the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous time periods and meet all kinds of cool dinosaurs with Buddy, Tiny and Gilbert!
Features:
• Buildable Dinosaur Train and Pteranodon Station!
• Mr. Conductor sticker and big red wheels that really spin!
• Includes Gilbert, Buddy and Tiny figurines!
• Combine with other toys to mix and match pieces and build your own adventures with Buddy and his family on the Dinosaur Train!
Ages 3+
• Buildable Dinosaur Train and Pteranodon Station!
• Mr. Conductor sticker and big red wheels that really spin!
• Includes Gilbert, Buddy and Tiny figurines!
• Combine with other toys to mix and match pieces and build your own adventures with Buddy and his family on the Dinosaur Train!
Ages 3+
SRP: $32.99
Available now at Amazon and Toys”R”Us
The first day of kindergarten is fun, but also a little scary for both parents and kids. Making it through the first day is a big deal, and a little reward might be in order. Any new student would be thrilled to get one the adorable set of Dinosaur Train Mega Blocks.
DINOSAUR TRAIN APPAREL from Kids with Character!
Dinosaur Train’s summer line shirts and pants/shorts sets are great for back to school. Look for NEW Dinosaur Train apparel coming in August and September at Kohls and Kmart.
What better way to start off the school year than with your favorite TV characters right by your side? These adorable sets are perfect for boys and come in a wide range of sizes at affordable prices. They are definitely going to make for some cute pictures of the first day that you will treasure forever.
Get ready for an all-new season of Dinosaur Train this August with “Dinosaur Big City” which premieres on PBS Kids on August 22; and the DVD release of Dinosaur Train: Dinosaur Big City on August 23 (SRP: $14.99). From the world-renowned Jim Henson Company, Dinosaur Train is seen in over 13 million households every month* and embraces and celebrates preschoolers’ fascination with both dinosaurs and trains. The series encourages scientific thinking and other skills as it teaches viewers about natural science, natural history and paleontology.
To Connect with Dinosaur Train and keep up with future events and promotions, you follow them on these networking sites:
Follow The Jim Henson Company:
www.twitter.com/hensonparents
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About Dinosaur Train
In Dinosaur Train, young viewers join Buddy the T. rex and his adoptive family of Pteranodons on whimsical adventures through prehistoric jungles, swamps, volcanoes and oceans as they unearth basic concepts in natural science, natural history and paleontology. The Dinosaur Train is a colorful locomotive, customized to accommodate all kinds of dinosaurs, and it has the ability to visit the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous worlds, while the train’s Conductor, a knowledgeable Troodon, provides passengers with fascinating facts along the way. DINOSAUR TRAIN is a Parents’ Choice Silver Honor TV series, and its accompanying website received a Parents’ Choice Silver Award and a prestigious 2010 Prix Jeunesse Award. PBSKIDS.org/dinosaurtrain welcomes more than 2.4 million visits each month, offering engaging content designed to continue dinosaur exploration beyond the television series, including printables, games, and a dinosaur field guide. Parents, caregivers and educators can find resources and activities to extend the series learning at PBS Parents (PBSPARENTS.org) and PBS Teachers (PBSTEACHERS.org).
***Please note that I received no form of monetary compensation for this post. I did receive a sample of the product to try in order to write a fair and honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own and were not influenced in any way. ***
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