All About Me Preschool Activities

One of the most popular back to school themes for preschoolers is “All About Me.” so this blog post, loaded with all about me preschool activities (also great for the Pre-K age range) is a great one to start off the school year. The preschool activities that can be incorporated in this theme range from family identification, name knowledge, body parts and even identifying emotions. This blog includes 10 fun and simple activities that can be included in an “All About Me” preschool theme that you’ll want to do tomorrow! These All About Me worksheets are a great place to start with a theme!

All About Me in Preschool

When considering planning a thematic unit in a preschool classroom, it’s important to include all center areas, so that children have access to learning about the theme in different ways.

In a typical preschool classroom, there are eight different center areas. Centers are a great, interactive space for preschool OT providers to work alongside the preschooler in their natural learning environment while collaborating in a push-in model of therapy interventions. These preschool center spaces include:

1. Circle Time/Gross Motor Area
2. Block Area
3. Dramatic Play
4. Library
5. Math/Science
6. Art
7. Sensory Table
8. Cozy Corner/Quiet Area

Thematic play based units incorporate each area in a unique way. If you are wondering how to set up your classroom into centers, this blog gives amazing tips on where to place centers in the classroom space, and what to include in each area. 

Once your classroom is set up, and you are ready to plan your “All About Me” theme, take a peak at all the information about your incoming class of students. Having resources on hand to meet the ability levels of each student is helpful. In the Level 2 The OT Toolbox Member’s Club, we have a done-for-you set of All About Me resources.

Planning ALl About Me Preschool Activities

Learning about what makes them each unique and special will help you decide what activities to plan throughout the first month of school. Here are some different aspects to consider:

1. Learning objectives? What is being discussed in the classroom curriculum and how to incorporate All About Me into the topics?
2. What is the family situation? (multicultural, specific events or situations that might impact social/emotional and regulation needs? Who is raising the child, How many siblings do they have? Any kids in foster care? Any specific life events that might impact sleep, nutrition, or learning?) Each of these components will help you be sensitive to their needs and prevent talking about any triggering topics. 
3. How old are the students? Do you have a class of mixed aged children or are they all the same age range?
4. Specific needs- Do any of the students have developmental delays? Are there any students with specific diagnoses? Are their IEPs or 504 plans to consider?

Using our All About Me quick screening tool helps to establish a relationship with the child while screening or evaluating for specific skills.

Now comes the fun part, planning all of the activities! Here is a list of activities that you can do in each area of your classroom for the “All About Me” theme!

All About Me Circle Time: 

Circle time is a great area of the preschool classroom to facilitate learning and play while engaging the child in their personal interests…and learning a bit about the child to foster familiarity. Here are our favorite occupational therapy circle time interventions.

1. Sing the song and read the book “We All Sing With the Same Voice” (see video below)
2. Have a chart/graph of the classroom eye colors. 
3. Encourage children to talk about their families and what traditions they have. 
4. Can’t forget the pets! Have a day where children bring in pictures of the pets to share. 

All About Me Block Area Activities

The block area is a great space to build fine motor skills with blocks. Try these specific activities to target an All About Me theme.

1. Build My House: Provide various building materials such as wooden blocks, carboard boxes and fabric pieces. Encourage the children to create houses and structures that represent their home. 
2. My Family Blocks: Prepare wooden or plastic blocks with family members taped onto them. It could be a printout of their family photos or a drawing of different family members (mom, dad, grandma, siblings.)
3. Feelings Towers: Provide a variety of blocks in different colors. Each color represents a different emotion (e.g. red for anger, blue for sadness, yellow for happiness). Encourage the children to build towers that represent how they feel at that moment. Then, extend this activity with a feelings check in activity using the blocks.

All About Me Dramatic Play

We know all of the dramatic play benefits, so using pretend play in an all about me theme is a great use of time during the first few weeks of preschool or Pre-K.

1. Family Dress-up: Set up a dress-up area with a variety of costumes and props that represent different family members, occupations and cultural outfits. Encourage the children to choose costumes that reflect their own families or cultures. 
2. All About Me Interviews: Set up a mini-interview station, that mimics a news station. This can include an old video camera, a microphone and some costumes for news stations. Or it can be a clipboard, paper and some different pictures for them to circle during the interviews based on the information they receive. 
3. Add Cultural Food Set: In the play kitchen area, add some foods and menus from different cultures and cuisines. Children can cook and share their favorite home meals with each other. 

All About Me Books

Preschool and books go hand in hand. We love to foster social emotional skills through books, and discovering who we are an in individual supports emotional development skills in the preschool years.

Add some “All About Me” books to the library area. If you have had children create some pages that include drawings of their families, this is a great place to compile the paper together into their own “class book” and add it to the classroom library.

These are my top 5 favorite All About Me books for preschoolers (Affiliate links) As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases.

1. Marvelous Me: Inside and Out
2. What I Like About Me
3. Sammy Goes to Preschool: Celebrating Diversity Among Friends
4. I Like Me
5. My Body

All About me Math/Science

1. Body Parts Activities encourage children to learn about the different parts of their bodies in a play based way. My favorite is adding bandaids to the baby dolls so children can talk about the different parts of the body while learning about being a doctor, and becoming more comfortable visiting the doctor’s office. 
2. My Body Flashcards and posters: You can make your own by taking pictures of each body part of the kids in your class, or you can download flashcards and posters in The OT Toolbox Member’s Club.
3. Measuring Heights: Place a measuring tape or ruler in this area and encourage children to measure their heights. Help them chart or graph the results, comparing height of their friends and learning the words “taller, shorter, and same.”

All About Me Art

1. Self- Portrait Collage: Trace each child on butcher paper. Provide them with colored paper, markers, crayons, glue, yarn, fabric pieces and other scrap pieces. Encourage children to create self-portraits by filling in their outline. 
2. Name Art: Write each child’s name on a piece of paper and invite them to decorate it using various art supplies. 
3. Handprint Art: Trace each child’s handprint and ask them to find items inside magazines that they like. Have them to cut out the pictures and glue them inside and around their handprint. Allow them time to share what pictures they like and why.

All About Me Sensory Activities

Sensory play activities offer time to learn about our bodies, the world around us, and how we respond to sensory activities.

1. Add Mr. Potato Head parts to  various sensory materials (such as rice, uncooked beans, oats, flour, rocks) and have children put them together. 
2. Write all of the children’s names on 3×5 cards (one on each card) and hide them inside the sensory bin. Print out pictures of all the students in the class. When the children find a name, have them match the name to the photo of the child. 
3. Print out pictures of all of the students’ faces. Laminate them and then cut each face in quarters. Hide the pieces in the sensory bin, then have the children put together for “puzzle faces” of their friends when they find them in the sensory bin. 

Cozy Corner/Quiet Area/Calm Down

Including a Cozy Area/Calm Down Area/Quiet area in every classroom is very important. It provides a place for children to retreat to when they are feeling overwhelmed. Find out all of the reasons why including a Calm Down Area is important. 

1. Include items that help children calm down and identify their feelings: Introduce Soothing Sammy to the calm down area of the classroom to help children positively engage in calming down and discussing their feelings. This three-step program incorporates tactile prompts and visual cues, guided  by the firefly presence of Sammy, a golden retriever. As children explore the story of “Soothing Sammy,” the simple and age-appropriate images reinforce how to calm down, making it  accessible even for 2 year olds. After reading, the classroom can create their very own calm down kit (Sammy’s House) by using an empty box and following the directions in the back of the book. Once they place the sensory calm down items inside, add the plush golden retriever to the house and place it in the calm down area of your classroom. Encourage the children to visit Sammy’s house and read his book whenever they feel overwhelmed. This calming activity aids in promoting emotional regulation. 

“All About Me” is one of the most exciting thematic units to be completed with preschoolers. They not only learn more about themselves, but they learn about their friends and their teachers. Completing an “All About Me” unit brings classrooms closer together and encourages new friendships to be formed.