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How to Teach Pre-Kindergarten Health

From basic hand-washing techniques to more advanced concepts such as nutrition and exercise, health is a vital topic for the young student. Teaching prekindergarten-aged children health lessons can help them to better understand their own bodies, discover the biological sciences, learn about physical safety and even become a part of keeping themselves well. Preschool teachers and parents can use simple, hands-on activities supplemented with discussion to educate young learners about health-related issues.

Instructions

    • 1

      Choose one specific health topic to teach. Select a concept that relates to other areas of the classroom curriculum or is of particular interest to the children. For example, if you are starting a unit on living things, explore humans, or even bacteria and viruses, as living organisms.

    • 2

      Discuss your chosen health topic. Sit in a circle with the children and open with a question such as, "Why do we wash our hands?" or "What is a healthy food?" Allow the children to respond. Ask if they have any questions, and answer accordingly.

    • 3

      Create, or find, at least two hands-on health activities that relate to your chosen subject. Implement an experiment or discovery-type project in the classroom or at home. For example, try a simple sensory experiment for a body systems theme. Place different smelling items, such as vanilla extract or lemons, in containers and ask the children to sniff. Make predictions about what they smell, and then do a big reveal.

    • 4

      Document the health activities to help solidify the concepts as well as provide a visual reminder for the children of what they have learned. Take photographs to post in the classroom, ask the children to draw health-related pictures or start a health journal. Help the preschoolers write simple health words, such as "body," "food," "fruit" or "safety" on the pages of a notebook or sketchbook. Encourage them to add crayon or marker drawings to the words for explanation.

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