Stay At Home Educator

intentional teaching for purposeful learning

  • About
    • Copyright / Disclosure / Privacy Policy
    • Contact
  • Preschool Lesson Plans
  • Literacy
  • STEAM
  • Thematic Activities
  • Shop
    • Cart
    • Checkout
    • My Account

Jingle Bell Drop – a Color Sorting Fine Motor Activity

This post may contain affiliate links, which means that at no cost to you, I may earn a small sum if you click through and make a purchase.

December 19, 2014 by Sarah Punkoney, MAT

Jingle bell drop is a color sorting and fine motor activity for preschoolers. I love combining holiday themes with educational activities, and this jingle bell drop does just that.

Jingle Bell Drop - a color sorting and fine motor Christmas activity for preschoolers - Stay At Home Educator

Please join me regularly via E-mail in the right sidebar, Facebook, Twitter @StayAtHomeEdu, and Pinterest to stay updated on the latest posts. This post contains affiliate links.

Jingle Bell Drop – a Color Sorting Fine Motor Activity

My mother recently purchased about 100 vintage glass milk bottles like these for my older sister’s wedding. They were the perfect fit for a shabby chic destination wedding, but what on earth do you do with 100 cute, little old fashioned milk bottles? After some convincing, my mother let me take a few off her hands as I knew I could find a use for them in preschool. As it turns out, they were perfect for our jingle bell drop color sorting and fine motor activity.

Students used plastic mini tongs to collect green and red mini jingle bells to drop into the glass milk bottles. They made the most delightful sound as they rang and clanked on the bottom of the milk bottles.  (I actually got my mini tongs at the dollar store, but don’t do that. Half of them broke while the children were using them. I have since bought these, which got good reviews. Some of the reviews even stated the purpose of their use was to develop fine motor skills).

For younger students, simply dropping the bells into the milk bottles is activity enough. Late two year olds and early threes might feel more comfortable using their hands instead of tongs. Please supervise your children closely, as mini jingle bells can be a choking hazard. For more fine motor activities for babies, toddlers and early preschoolers, see these posts:

  • Easy Fine Motor Activity for Babies
  •  Stacking Fruit Loops and How It Develops Fine Motor Skills
  • Glass Pebble Designs: a Fine Motor Activity

To introduce this to my preschoolers, I simply demonstrated how to use the tongs (although each student had their own technique they seemed to prefer), and set down some basic ground rules for the activity. (Like, it’s ok to jingle them in our hands, but it’s not ok to jingle them by throwing them). After a quick demonstration, I left the materials out on the preschool table during centers and allowed the students to come and go from the center. Although the green and red bells obviously suggest this activity is meant for Christmas time, it was enjoyed so much that I may leave it out past the new year, or exchange the colors of the bells for the next holiday we will recognize in preschool. Perhaps Valentine’s Day.

Enjoy!

Sarah Punkoney, MAT

I am Sarah, an educator turned stay-at-home mama of five! I am the owner and creator of Stay At Home Educator, a website about intentional teaching and purposeful learning in the early childhood years. I’ve taught range of levels, including preschool and college, and a little bit of just about everything in between. Right now, my focus is teaching my children and running a preschool from my home. Credentials include: Bachelors in Art, Masters in Curriculum and Instruction

stayathomeeducator.com/

You might also enjoy:

Christmas Fine Motor Center Beaded Feathers Thanksgiving Turkey: A Fine Motor Patterning Craft One to One Correspondence Counting Activity 6 Rainbow Themed Math Activities for Preschoolers with FREE Printable

Filed Under: algebra, Development, Mathematics, Motor Skills, Thematic Activities Tagged With: Christmas, Fine Motor, Sorting

« Winter Cookie Cutter Art
O Shaped Cereal Drop: a Fine Motor Activity for Baby »

Comments

  1. Katie Pinch says

    December 19, 2014 at 10:10 pm

    How fun! I bet the noise of the bell dropping makes this activity irresistible!

  2. service Dean says

    April 26, 2017 at 5:56 am

    I love this stuff

Trackbacks

  1. Christmas Activity Pack for Preschoolers - Stay At Home Educator says:
    November 23, 2015 at 6:41 am

    […] a lot of counting and number identification practice with these fun mats. Don’t forget about all that fine motor work, […]

  2. Jingle Bells Math Station - Preschool Inspirations says:
    December 1, 2015 at 2:50 pm

    […] you are looking for an excellent jingle bells coloring sorting game, go check out Stay at Home Educator! […]

  3. Quick and Easy Christmas STEM Activity for Preschoolers says:
    December 15, 2015 at 5:40 am

    […] when I saw bags and bags of green, red, silver and gold jingle bells handing all in a row, I snatched up several bags of each color and different sizes. Because I knew if I waited until […]

  4. 35 Jingle Bell Christmas Activities for Kids - Fun-A-Day! says:
    December 21, 2015 at 4:55 pm

    […] Jingle Bell Drop | Stay at Home Educator This is a wonderful way for kids to work on fine motor and math skills while having tons of fun! […]

  5. Pumpkin Drop +21 Other Amazing Autumn Fine Motor Activities says:
    September 1, 2016 at 1:20 pm

    […] Jingle Bell Drop […]

  6. Christmas Fine Motor Center for Preschoolers - Stay At Home Educator says:
    December 8, 2016 at 5:27 am

    […] Jingle Bell Drop – a Fine Motor Activity […]

  7. 15 of the Best Sorting Activities for Preschoolers - Stay at Home Educator says:
    March 26, 2018 at 5:16 am

    […] Jingle Bell Drop […]

  8. Fine Motor Activities for Preschoolers this Christmas | Pleasant Hill Academy says:
    December 10, 2018 at 3:54 pm

    […] red and green M&Ms or jingle bells. (Stay at Home […]

  9. Christmas Word Search Free Printable | Superheroes and Teacups says:
    November 20, 2019 at 11:36 am

    […] children can practice color sorting with this jingle bell drop activity from Stay at Home […]

  10. 25 Indoor Activities for Busy Toddlers: CHRISTMAS EDITION | Sidekick Mama says:
    November 22, 2019 at 11:48 am

    […] Jingle Bell Drop: Kids sort bells by color by dropping them into jars. They can either use their hands or mini tongs […]

Search This Site

Stay Connected

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Find preschool printables at the Stay at Home Educator on Teachers Pay Teachers buy learn with play book and ebook

PRINTABLE SHOP
PLANNING
LITERACY
MATH
DEVELOPMENT
THEMES
PLAY
Visit Sarah @ Stay At Home Educator's profile on Pinterest.
Stay At Home Educator

© Copyright 2015 Foodie Pro Theme · Genesis Framework · Customizations by Kara Carrero ·

Wordpress