We pulled together a few simple spring based activities to create this mini unit for our tot school and afterschooling programs. Have fun and enjoy this N is for Nest exploration!

N is for Nest: A Mini Tot School Unit

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Squeaker’s interests are all over the place lately, so that means we haven’t done too many themed tot school units. Instead, I leave access to art supplies, books, and manipulatives for her to explore during the day. We also play a lot because I know that she’s learning through play and I think play is incredibly important for her development. With the recent change of seasons, and her ongoing interest in birds, I figured that we could start exploring outdoors and looking for signs of spring. I also wanted to incorporate letter recognition and some fine motor skills into it; so it would be beneficial for both Squeaker and Sweet B. We ended up with a mini tot school unit (that I also carried over for Sweet B’s afterschooling), focused on the letter N.

We pulled together a few simple spring based activities to create this mini unit for our tot school and afterschooling programs. Have fun and enjoy this N is for Nest exploration!

I didn’t create a full pack for this but I have included the two sheets that we used. Both include a picture of a nest and the word nest in dotted letters.

I was thinking of doing something spring related for both Sweet B and for Squeaker. We try to do tot school stuff while Sweet B is at school, so while I was brainstorming; we shared a smoothie for breakfast. With her autism, textures have been difficult and tedious at times but I’ve found that smoothies will go a long way. Who knew!

strawberry banana smoothie

This super simple recipe uses strawberries, bananas, vanilla yogurt, and DairyPure brand milk.

  • DairyPure brand milk is the only brand of milk backed by the exclusive 5-Point Purity Promise. DairyPure brand milk facts:
    • No artificial growth hormones*
    • All milk is tested for antibiotics

It was a great way to get both of our days started- Sweet B for a full day of school and me for the rest of my day.

Once she was off to school, I set about planning the mini tot school unit for Squeaker. We had plenty of leftover plastic eggs, fake grass, and we always have cupcake liners on hand; so I figured that would be as good of a start as any.

craft supplies

Now all I needed was to wait for Squeaker to wake up. I didn’t want to overload her though right off the bat so while I was waiting for her, I set out her breakfast and some chocolate milk.

tru moo and egg

I didn’t have very long to wait and after she’d had a little bit of breakfast, she was eager to make a nest with me.

And can I tell you how easy it was? In one of the cupcake liners, put  down a little of the fake grass. Next, add a plastic egg and draw the bird face on the egg. Done!

I also filled two of the eggs. One of them with uncooked rice and the other with some playdough. Of course, they were then taped shut just to be on the safe side.

After we had completed a few nests, we moved on to the coloring pages.

n is for nest pin

We also made an N on a paper plate with some of the playdough.

Overall Squeaker handled this well and I’ll put the materials back out when Sweet B is home from school so we can use them again for her afterschooling. We’ll see if she tolerates her little sister learning with her but if she doesn’t, I’ll keep Squeaker occupied with another coloring sheet and TruMoo chocolate milk.

You can download those coloring sheets here: Version 1 (nest with eggs) and Version 2 (nest without eggs)

So why do I give her TruMoo?

  • TruMoo has NO artificial growth hormones*, NO high fructose corn syrup and a delicious taste kids love.
  • TruMoo is the perfect way to keep your kiddos smiling, while getting them the nutrition they need.

Maybe I’ll also make another batch of those delicious strawberry, banana smoothies for me and Sweet B to enjoy, with the delicious taste of DairyPure brand milk.

  • DairyPure brand milk and TruMoo both contain no artificial growth hormones* and come from your local dairy, making them the perfect pair for your children’s diets!
  • Start and end your day right with DairyPure brand milk and TruMoo, the perfect balance of nutritious and delicious!

We got our day off to a great start and kept the fun going throughout the day.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

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Kori

Digital Product Creator at Kori at Home
Hey there! I'm Kori, a neurodivergent mom and certified Life Coach, here to empower moms raising neurodiverse families. Diagnosed with ADHD and Autism at 37, I've turned my passion for neuronerdery into practical parenting tools. With a stack of coaching certifications and a love for 80s pop culture, Marvel movies, and all things brainy, I'm here to help you and your family thrive in this neurotypical world.

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Ali Gilbert
8 years ago

What a cute thing to do with your left over Easter eggs! Great idea!