A drum circle can be used for teaching rhythm to preschoolers. Distribute hand drums to the class and announce that you will have a drum circle with a drum leader. Tell students that the leader will bang out a rhythm and the rest of the class will repeat it unison. Start as the leader, and tap a simple rhythm. Based on how well the class is able to repeat it, make rhythms that are more complex. Eventually, you can string some simple rhythms together and repeat them in a loop. After a while, appoint a student in the class to become the rhythm leader.
A drum circle is a great opportunity to let young children explore rhythm for themselves. Sit everyone in a circle and distribute hand drums and other percussion instruments that your school has on hand. Play recorded music that your students can drum along to. Start with some simple children's music and see if your students can keep the beat. Show them how to do it, but also let them come up with their own rhythms to go along with the music. Play more complex music, such as a jazz recording, and let your young students drum along as they see fit.
You can also use a drum circle for helping students learn the rhythms of certain words. Sit everyone in a circle and distribute drums. Have the children in the circle say "one, two, three, four" and tap out the rhythm along with it many times. Go around the circle, but replace the last two beats with the name of an animal suggested by the students. The students must say the name of the animal while tapping out its rhythm, for example, "One, two, al-li-ga-tor." The rest of the class must repeat the rhythm.
Preschool students sing many songs in class. Use this to your advantage for a drum circle. Start tapping out the rhythm to a familiar song without revealing the song title to the students. Let them join in as they start to figure out the rhythm. Once the song is done, ask students to guess the song. Ask for student volunteers to drum songs that they know, or do more of your own.