Magnetic Tiles and Glow Sticks

Have you and the kiddos tried magnetic tiles? They are the first item on my list of materials for preschool engineering activities. We’ve begun exploring them at home, and it’s been a blast. Check out what we did with magnetic tiles and glow sticks!

Are you following Fun-A-Day on Pinterest?

glow sticks and magnetic tiles for glow-in-the-dark fun

Amazon links included in this post.

For Engineer’s birthday, I got him a set of Picasso Tiles. Based on the reviews I read, they’re comparable to Magna-Tiles but with a smaller price tag. So far, they’ve been a huge hit and seem incredibly sturdy and well-built (I’ll let you know if that changes in the future, though)!

The kiddo loves creating and building with all kinds of materials, thus the nickname I use for him on Fun-A-Day! 🙂 The Picasso Tiles definitely intrigued him, and he’s used them for hours at a time.

To celebrate his birthday, he invited a couple of friends to a sleepover party at our place. After pizza and cake, we settled in to watch a movie (Star Wars, in case you’re wondering) “movie theater-style”. The kids turned all the lights off and pretended they have a movie theater all to themselves. They broke out glow sticks and glowing balloons while the movie was going.

This led to exploring the magnetic tiles with the glow sticks and balloons, which cracked me up! They used the balloons and the light from the movie to construct various creations. From there, the glow sticks were added as decoration and lighting to the buildings.

Construction took place on and off during the movie, with breaks to play with the balloons and have in-depth discussions about Star Wars characters! All in all, it was a fun night with the kiddos.

The children led this activity, and I loved watching what they got up to. I was allowed to play for a while, too, but their creations always turned out better than mine! 🙂

Here’s some of the learning that can (and did) take place when using glow sticks and magnetic tiles in the dark:

• Colors and shapes
• Color mixing
• Three-dimensional structures
• Light refraction
• Light reflection

Have your children/students ever explore this way? If so, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below or over on Fun-A-Day’s Facebook page!

Hands-On Science Materials

Everyone learns differently. But young children seem to be more interested in learning when they are able to connect with the subject. And that’s where hands-on science activities come in! I find that letting children get involved in learning gets them excited to explore science more often. With that in mind, you might want to keep your classroom stocked with some great science materials.

Check out this list and decide which items will work well in your classroom (I may get commissions for purchases made through links in this post):

• Science magnet kit
• Magnifying glass set
• Kid-friendly tongs
• Jumbo eye droppers
• Sensory tubes
• Safety goggles
• Pipettes
• Science mix and measure set
• Sensory bottles
• Sensory bins
• Butterfly net set

The children are going to absolutely love learning about these science tools. And I know they’ll love getting to use them even more!

What are your go-to hands on science materials in the classroom? Let us know in the comments below!

Done-for-You Preschool Resources

Planning meaningful lessons for students week after week, all while balancing other teaching responsibilities and a personal life, can be a daunting task. That’s where Preschool Teacher 101 comes in to save you time!

Preschool Teacher 101 is excited to share with you some amazing lesson plans, activity packs, and much more! We offer a wide variety of themes that are frequently used in preschool classrooms, as well as some less common (but super interesting) themes. Click on the images below to learn more about some of my favorite products we offer!

Join The Pack from Preschool Teacher 101 today for exclusive access to our amazing products. And we even have three different membership options to suit your needs!