Everyday stories and books can teach your preschoolers comprehension and listening skills. Ask your preschoolers to sit in a circle and read them a short story. Select one child to tell you what the story was about and another child to tell you one character's name in the story. Ask a few questions about the story and have the children respond with the correct answers. Another idea is to read the same short story to the children every day for a week. At the end of the week, select one preschooler to repeat the same story without the book. The other children can help him by sharing facts they remember from the story.
Games, such as "Mother May I," "Duck, Duck, Goose" and "Simon Says," help preschoolers learn to listen and comprehend at the same time. For young children, use simple instructions such as "Simon says clap four times" or "Simon says pat your head." Once the children understand the game, give them harder commands like "clap three times and spin two times." Give each child a chance to be the "mother" in "Mother May I" and "Simon" in "Simon Says." Games such as "I Spy" also improve the listening skills of preschoolers.
Some songs will teach preschoolers how to listen and follow instructions. For example, play the song "Hokey Pokey." Teach the preschoolers how to listen to the words and do as the song says. Another song is "Head, shoulders, knees and toes." The song goes "Head and shoulders, knees and toes, head and shoulders, knees and toes, eyes and ears and mouth and nose, head and shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes." As the children sing the song, they must point to the corresponding body part.
Other ideas include everyday directions and a listen-and-draw activity. Teach children to follow directions by asking them to do a task. For example, ask a child to go over to the crayon box and get three crayons. If he follows the directions correctly, award him with a sticker. Give each child a sheet of paper. Tell the preschoolers step-by-step what to draw. They must listen to the instructions carefully. For example, tell them to draw three circles on top of each other and a face on the top circle. See which preschoolers come the closest to drawing a snowman. This will teach the children to listen carefully to instructions.