If you are a work-at-home mom, your kids are already with you every day at work. But you can still observe National Take Your Child to Work Day. Make the day memorable – and your kids feel special – just by listening to their dreams and ambitions, and planning activities geared to their age level and interests.
Preschoolers love pretend play and dressing up. Choose activities that are simple, fun, and that do not require a long attention span, or perfect behavior.
Activity Ideas For Preschoolers
- Anything That Involves Dressing Up: Children love costumes and mimicking adults. Let young children dress up like a firefighter, police officer, ballerina, and play the part for the day. Wearing a costume in public on any day is a treat for young children, even if they are too young to understand why they are dressing up.
- Agriculture/Horticulture: Plant flowers in a cup, or a small garden that your child can help you tend. Visit a local nursery and choose hardy plants your child can transfer into a planter.
- Artist: When it comes to young children and art, the sky is the limit. Kids love anything that is tactile, messy, and lets them freely create whatever suits them. Offer crayons, markers, paint, modeling dough, glitter, craft sticks, and glue, and let your child just have fun. Display their creations in a mock art show on a door, wall, window, or refrigerator.
- Beauty Consultant: Get out the nail polish and makeup and let your child give you a makeover. Stores that sell cosmetics or children’s toys usually carry water-based nail polish safe for toddlers. There are also many dolls that come with washable makeup, or permanent “makeup” that changes when you apply warm or cold water to the doll’s face. Complete your new look by having your child style your hair with clip on ribbons and bows.
- Chef: Let your child be “chef for a day” and decide what you will have for dinner. If your child is too young to read or write yet, make a shopping list by drawing food items or cutting out pictures from magazines. Encourage your child to choose something that they can actually help prepare, cook, and serve.
- City Engineer: Build a “super city” with blocks, cardboard boxes, train sets, etc. Create a city zoo with animal figures.
- Dancer: Crank up the music and let your child put on an impromptu dance show. Even better, dance with your child and get in a mini work-out while supporting their love of the arts.
- Public Service Careers: If your child is interested in a public service career, contact your local fire or police department and ask if they have tours, coloring books, stickers, or other promotional literature about public health and safety issues. Ask if there are any special events already going that day for Take Your Child to Work Day.
- Real Estate Tycoon: Get a children’s version of Monopoly and let them have fun buying up all the railroads and charging you rent for landing on Board Walk! Take older preschoolers to an open house or model home and ask which one they would buy.
