15+ Summer Learning Activities for Preschoolers

Planning engaging summer learning activities for preschoolers can be just as refreshing as the season itself. With a mix of sunshine and structure, the right summer preschool theme ideas bring learning outdoors while keeping your preschoolers little minds just active as their bodies.

Whether you’re working through a full summer camp curriculum or offering flexible programming, this season offers unique opportunities to build skills in the best ways. Themes that tie into nature, water, or simple science keep preschoolers motivated and excited to come to preschool.

summer learning activities for preschooler, summertime learning activities for kids
Keep the kids busy this summer with these free activities for preschoolers!

Summer is a great time to refresh your preschool plans with a lighter, more flexible approach to learning. With warm weather and a shift in schedule, planning summer learning activities for preschoolers that maintain engagement without exhausting them is key.

And that’s where creative summer themes for preschool come in. They offer you structure while giving children plenty of room to explore, move, and just play.

These ideas can guide your choice of books, songs, sensory bins, and small group work, keeping everything tied together and purposeful.

The best part about summer themes is how easily they lend themselves to outdoor exploration. Activities that include water play, scavenger hunts, or sidewalk chalk can support fine and gross motor development while tying back to your academic goals. You don’t need to overhaul your program; just tweak it to match the season. Children stay excited to come to school, and you stay on track with developmental goals.

With a thoughtful mix of fun and focused instruction, your summer can be both productive and relaxed, all while supporting continued learning.

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Summer Activities for Kids

Warm days and open-ended play make summer the perfect time to try new things with your preschoolers. If you’re looking for summer activities for preschoolers that check all the boxes, (think hands-on, fun, a little messy), but still focused on learning, then you’re in the right place.

This season is all about relaxed routines and teaching through experiences that feel like play, not pressure. Check out these super fun learning activities for summertime, anc check out this post featuring 20+ free summer printables for preschoolers.

Educational Summer Activities for Preschoolers

Summer is the best time for preschoolers to explore hands-on learning activities. These fun summertime learning activities for preschoolers feature crafts and activities promote a variety of learning such as art concepts, science, fine motor skills, and sensory input. And the best part is most of them can be taken outside!

Summer Theme Activities for Preschoolers

What summer preschool themes do you teach in the summer? Or, need some summer preschool lesson plans? I’ve got you covered!

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Support literacy growth all summer long with our printable activities—and get those kiddos ready for kindergarten!

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Add a splash of learning to summer with our hands-on summer math activities!

FAQs About Teaching Preschoolers in the Summer

What do you teach preschoolers in the summer?

Lessons for preschoolers in the summer are mostly the same as during the other seasons. Preschoolers still need to learn literacy, math and prewriting skills, as well as science concepts and social-emotional skills. All those things remain important.

But summer learning activities open up additional themes that we might not teach during the traditional school year. Some topics that are best learned during the summer are swimming and water safety, fire safety, and bike safety. You can also do a dessert theme, a watermelon theme, or an ice cream theme!

How do you teach preschoolers about the summer season?

A good way to teach preschoolers about the summer season is to show them a calendar and explain that summer occurs during the months of June, July, and August in the Northern Hemisphere, or December, January, and February in the Southern Hemisphere. Try these free summer theme preschool lesson plans.

Then you can talk about the weather that we experience and the activities people enjoy during the summer. Remember that summer can feel different based on where you live, so try doing some science experiments, stem activities, and loads of sensory activities, too.

What are some preschool themes to teach in the summer?

There are many themes that preschool teachers can cover during the summer. Think about it…what do you like to do in the summertime?

Some popular summer themes for preschool include ocean theme, beach, sports, ice cream, camping, transportation, desert, zoo animals, and gardening. You can teach about dinosaurs, around the world, construction, bubbles, insects, or flowers and trees.

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