Preschool presidential themes can extend through the entire curriculum. Take your social studies lesson and turn it into a literacy-themed activity by reading an array of age-appropriate books. Start at the beginning with George Washington, and then pick and choose a few notable names. Try "The Story of George Washington" or "The Story of Abraham Lincoln" by Patricia A. Pingry, "My First Biography: Abraham Lincoln" by Marion Dane Bauer or "Presidents' Day" by Anne Rockwell.
Create a variety of activities around a presidential portrait theme. Start the lesson with a portrait craft, letting the preschoolers draw their own presidential portraits based on pictures or illustrators' drawings. Point out how the presidential hair styles and clothing have changed over the years. Have the kids compare a historical portrait of George Washington with a modern-day one of Barack Obama. Take the activities a step further by making the portraits into presidential puppets. The children can draw presidential portraits onto paper plates. Tape a craft stick to the back to make puppets for presidential-themed plays.
Combine the historical aspect of a presidential theme with a practical lesson about U.S. currency. Preschoolers can learn to identify the presidents by looking at real coins or reproductions -- or pictures -- of paper bills. Start the themed activities off with an open-ended question such as, "Why do you think that some of the presidents are on our money?" Extend the lesson into math activities, having the kids count how many Abraham Lincoln's -- pennies -- are in front of them, or help them to add one George Washington dollar to another dollar to get two.
Don't forget that the United States isn't the only county with a president. Presidential themes in the preschool classroom provide ideal opportunities to teach young children about world cultures. Discuss how other countries have a person who "leads" the nation. Use the correct vocabulary such as president or prime minister to describe each country's head. Transition the activities into learning about how other people across the globe live. Make a chart that lists the similarities and differences between their president and the leader in other countries.