Letter X Preschool Activities (And Free Preschool Lesson Plan X is for X-ray)
Whether you are planning a letter of the day preschool for a crowd or you just want some activities for your child, sometimes it’s hard to come up with ideas for X. (Xylophone doesn’t give us too much to work with. Am I right?!) But these activities include games, music, books, science ideas, crafts, and more! Kids will enjoy and learn from these creative and hands-on Letter X activities for preschool. This post includes all you need to teach the free preschool lesson plan X is for X-ray.
This lesson continues our alphabet lesson plan series and is intended to help make your experience teaching preschool in your home easier, educational, and more fun.
Preschool at Home
Most importantly, the best part of doing preschool at home is the chance to teach my kids (and whatever buddies are with us) the things that really matter, laugh together, and shower them with love at this young and important age. My hope is that these lesson plans and activities help you in your efforts to do the same.
If you haven’t seen my quick tips for getting started with successful home preschool, check them out.
Use and share these plans to talk, sing, read, write, and play your way through the alphabet; these kinds of activities are the foundation of building strong readers. You can use our full lesson plans, or, of course, pick individual activities to do with the Littles in your life. Lastly, I am also a budget-friendly Mama, so no worries there: our activities are always easy on the pocketbook. Now, let’s get to it!
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Visit the Preschool Lesson Plan Index to see what free plans are published or in the works!
Update: You can now get ALL of the Alphabet Lesson Plans, Checklists, and Printables, (plus Bonus Ideas and 75+ exclusive preschool printables!) all in one budget-friendly digital product…A to Z and Beyond! Preschool Curriculum.
INTRODUCTION
First off, gather on the floor for circle time and start with a welcome song. We have been singing, “Hello to All the Children of the World”. Each week we have been briefly spotlighting one of the countries or features in the song.
Earlier we talked about the line that says, “We speak in many different ways!” One way to speak that is not in the song is with sign language.
Today, we’ll learn signs to represent the lines “And children who live down by the sea.” Each of these words can be found in this super helpful signing dictionary that shows how to make the signs.
Remember, we learned the sign for “children” before. We put our hands out with palms facing down. Then we pat down and pat out as if we are patting the tops of children’s heads.
Sign “live” by putting your thumbs up by your waist, palms facing your stomach. Then move your hands up to your shoulders.
To make the sign for “by,” hold out one hand with your fingers together, thumb up, and palm facing your stomach. Put the other hand in the same form and start it a few inches behind the first hand. Move the back hand to touch the front hand, so they are “by” each other.
One way we can sign the word “sea” is by touching your chin with the sign for W (three fingers held up and spread out), and then having both hands move smoothly up and down and forward like they’re going over waves.
Sing the song again, reviewing all the signs learned so far.
Write and Play: Letter X in Playdough
I introduced our letter for the day, X! Both uppercase and lowercase X are made with straight lines that cross over each other.
We practiced the shape of the letter x by playing in playdough. First we rolled a small ball of dough and smashed it flat on the counter. Next we drew an X in the dough with a toothpick. Last, we pushed corn kernels into playdough to form the letter.
We made X, and then we wrote other letters with the corn kernels too. Additionally, we just played with the playdough for a minute.
Write and Read: Without X Mini Book
I introduced the sound of the letter x, and we practiced making the sound together. Next, Little #4 folded and colored the mini book Without X (Free Printable included in Free Lesson Plan Checklist). She practiced writing her name and tracing the X’s as well.
As I mentioned, sometimes with X, we get stuck with xylophone (which doesn’t even help preschoolers learn the common sound of X!) or X-mas. But this book is fun because it shows how X is used in a lot of great words, just not always at the beginning! By the end of the book, preschoolers learn “That is why X is eXtra special!”
My daughter loved reading this mini book over and over to whoever would listen.
Talk: What’s an X-Ray?
Next, I introduced the topic we’d spend most of the day on today: X is for X-ray.
X-rays are a form of electromagnetic radiation, which is a way that energy moves. This article has a lot of interesting information about X-rays. Wilhelm Conrad Röentgen discovered X-rays in 1895 and received the first Nobel Prize in Physics for the discovery. X-rays are used in countless ways, including keeping travelers safe, killing cancer cells, and, of course, taking pictures of bones.
We talked about how X-ray pictures of bones and teeth can be taken at the hospital after you get hurt, at the dentist to check your teeth, or other times as well.
This is an X-ray of teeth.
And here is an X-ray showing broken bones.
We get X-rays to help us get and stay healthy. We talked about what it means to be healthy. I asked why Little #4 loves her body, and we shared what we’re grateful to be able to do with our bodies. This was a wonderful opportunity to add to a healthy foundation for positive body image.
In the world, our kiddos see and hear way too much about how bodies “should” be. Any chance I get, I love to help my children feel that their bodies are a gift.
Read: Human Body from DK Eye Wonder
We looked through Human Body (DK Eye Wonder). This is a fascinating nonfiction book that covers all the body systems. There are really intriguing close-up pictures. The book has a ton of pictures with enough words to teach but not be overwhelming.
Click image for purchasing information.
Another really cool book is Uncover the Human Body: An Uncover It Book
Because the model isn’t supposed to be removed, this isn’t going to be the book you throw in the crib for naptime. But a slightly older or book mature preschooler would love it. This book makes an awesome gift.
Click image for purchasing information.
We looked through the book, discussing each system, pointing to different parts of our own bodies, and answering questions.
Sing: The Skeleton Dance
Next it was time to get up and move with a family favorite song: The Skeleton Dance. Although this might be thought of as a Halloween song, I love it. It gets kids moving and shaking. The song reviews different body parts, as well as left and right. The catchy tune will keep you bouncing long after those little skeletons stop dancing.
Read: Going to the Doctor
We get X-rays sometimes when we go to the doctor, but the doctor also does a lot of other things. They might give us a check-up, cast, or medicine. We might even need a shot to help us not get sick.
I had checked out every “Going to the Doctor” book from our library. We read one here at preschool and then the others throughout the week, so that I could find a good one to recommend. Out of all the ones we read, my Littles and I preferred Splat the Cat Goes to the Doctor
In Splat the Cat Goes to the Doctor, Splat is excited to go to the doctor, but then his friends make him nervous. He goes and finds out the doctor is not so bad after all. Splat is a funny, relatable character and makes this book a lot of fun.
Click image for purchasing information.
In Goofy Goes to the Doctor, Goofy is a little nervous about going to the doctor. Mickey and Daisy help him see what it’s like. I really appreciated that in this book Mickey and Daisy even prepare Goofy to get a shot by teaching him a helpful thinking trick.
Click image for purchasing information.
Books are a great way to prepare kids for future experiences, especially if they are a little unsure about those experiences. Try one of these books, or do like I did and search at your local library.
Sing: Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes
Again, it was time to get up and move! We sang the classic Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes. The best part of this song is repeating it several times and getting faster and faster each time, until you’re singing jibberish and hitting yourself in the face. 🙂
Write and Craft: A Happy Healthy Me
Get out some craft supplies and start with the prompt, “What makes you feel happy and healthy?” Have kids create whatever they want to show the answer to that question.
It might be a poster, picture, book, sculpture, or collage. There’s no right or wrong here, and it’s fun to see what kids choose to create.
Sing: Hokey Pokey
Next, we sang The Hokey Pokey. We took turns choosing which body part to put in and shake about. This is also a simple way to practice right and left again.
Play: Healthy Body Treasure Hunt
After singing, we did a Healthy Body Treasure Hunt!
I created the Healthy Body Treasure Hunt (included in Free Lesson Plan Checklist) as a fun way to review some healthy habits.
The Littles followed the clues around the house. Sometimes as they found clues, we briefly chatted about that healthy habit. Mostly, it was fun to find the clues as quickly as possible.
As an example, Clue #1 says, “When you wake up in the morning and before you go to sleep, make sure you do this thing so all your teeth you can keep.” Clue #2 was found in with the toothbrushes.
Of course, going with our theme for the day, X marked the spot where the prize was found!
In the prize bag, the kids found items to help them be healthy, including new toothbrushes and children’s toothpaste, an apple each, and Band-aids. You could also include hand sanitizer, soap, an Exercise Game, or anything to encourage healthy habits. The dollar store is a great place to find these kinds of prizes.
Eat: Foods that have the Letter X
We had the healthy snack from the prize bag!
Some other foods that have the letter x in the name are mini boxes of raisins, Stax, Twix, a snack mix, or something exotic. You could also serve anything that can make an X, like stick pretzels or veggie straws.
Sing: Goodbye Song
We closed up by reviewing our letter of the day: what Letter X looks and sounds like. We talked briefly again about how amazing it is to have a body, and I encouraged Little #4 to make healthy choices.
To finish off, we sang our goodbye song and see you next week!
Our next preschool lesson will be Letter Y is for Yawn! It has a lot of fun activities!
Leave a comment and share what activities your Littles are enjoying, what types of posts you’d like to see, or any other questions or thoughts you have. I love hearing from you. Share pictures on social media using #lovinlifewithlittles. Thanks for visiting, and Happy Preschooling!
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