Activities for Preschoolers
Parent Q&A
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Hi BPN, my almost 4 year old is in need of more physical activity/ work on his physical literacy. He has a fantastic imagination and can play animals or characters from stories for hours on end (he also does this with his friends at preschool), but it is a real challenge to get him to participate in any kind of sport like activity or to try anything new physically ( like climbing at the playground or scooter). I obviously don’t want to push anything on him that just isn’t him, but I know he’s got energy to spare at bedtime that could have been used, lol. I used to make up elaborate games to get him to ride a balance bike, kick a soccer ball, etc. but cannot do that now as we have a new baby, and he would quickly lose interest in that anyways. He is also very timid with other children- he’s friendly, but if there is a chance kids will be in physical contact with him/ bump into him, he will not do that activity. He is a bit behind other kids his age in terms of physical abilities (has a more difficult time with stairs, balance, tumbling etc) but I think this is more due to fear than developmental abilities… any organized activity ideas? Can kids this young do theater? Thanks for any help!!
May 12, 2022 -
Our kiddo is going to start going to preschool 9-6 Monday through Thursdays, but we made a Friday a half day so that we can have a regular mommy and me afternoon. I was thinking that maybe we can bake / cook / garden together, maybe go to the park. But there are a lot of Friday afternoons to fill! Any suggestions about what else we can do and places we can go? Or any good classes on Friday afternoons?
Aug 23, 2019 -
Hi all! I have an almost 4 year old and 19 month old. My 4 year old has done the usual list of classes (East Bay Music Together, Crowden, some gymnastics, swimming, soccer, and ballet)....my second child has pretty much done nothing b/c it's been tiring to keep up with doing two classes on the weekends (working parents so weekday classes are tough right now) for the 4 year old. In theory, I'd love to find a place that can accommodate both kids in their lessons (either in the same class if a large age range allowed or many classes for the various age ranges running at the same time)....any suggestions beyond Bladium soccer? I could do East Bay Music Together again, but is that going to be too boring for a 4 year old? Thanks!
Apr 17, 2019 -
Hello - After a few somewhat disastrous attempts signing up our 4 year old son for various sports and swimming classes, I’m looking for suggestions for any regular or semi regular classes or workshops on the weekend, of maybe more the learning/science variety (as opposed to athletics), appropriate for 4 year olds? Ideally in the North Oakland/Berkeley area. We do one-off things on our own, but I’m looking for something a little more regular-with-an-instructor/teacher type of thing (we can certainly participate with him though).
For example, I know the Lawrence Hall does Little Explorer workshops (which we haven’t done yet due to scheduling...), but is there anything else out there along those lines? Thanks!
Jun 18, 2018 -
I'm home with the kids on Tuesdays and Thursdays and since my oldest turned 4, I've noticed that the playgrounds on these days are mostly filled with younger kids. (I'm guessing lots of 4-5 year olds are in Pre-K full time!)
That said, I really would love for him to have a playmate who is close in age, if not older. Any suggestions for classes or playgrounds or places where we might find a fellow 4 year old for our Tues/Thursday adventures?
Nov 3, 2016