DIY Toddler Circle Time Board
As a former preschool teacher and nanny, I have used many different types of boards for circle time. When looking for a board for Elani, I was either underwhelmed by what the boards provided or overwhelmed by the prices! Also, Elani will be two soon so I did not need there to be a lot on the board. She does not need to know the date all the way to the year right now, but I can always update the board as she gets older.
The more that I searched, the more I realized that I could just make a board on my own. So, I did! With the help of Pinterest, I found some great resources and created a personalized board for Elani. I wanted it to be simple, clean, and easy for her to use. If you are interested in creating your own board, I have some great tips and resources for you!
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The first step that you want to take is to decide what you actually want on the board. I chose the board content based on what I am already working on with Elani as well as things that I would like her to know in the near future.
I had never reviewed the days of the week with Elani, but I knew that I wanted them to be on the board. I used the space that is free of content cards when they are not in use. I can always move them to the outside of the board when I adjust the content and need more space.
Elani can recognize all but 5 of the letters of the alphabet, but that is upper case letters. She still has a while to go with lower case letters so I wanted to make sure the board included both. I have foam letters and numbers as well as an alphabet, shapes, and numbers puzzle that are a fun, tangible items for her to manipulate while we do circle time. Unfortunately, I still need something like this for lowercase letters. Colors and shapes have been the most difficult for Elani so I knew that they needed to be on the board. Though is doesn’t have a diamond shape, this is a great sensory toy for shapes and colors.
Elani also knows all of her numbers up to 10, but we are still working on counting to 10. For this reason, I wanted both numbers and objects so that we could work on counting. I used counting bears in my classrooms and will definitely be purchasing them for her.
The weather was the last part that I included. I considered added a person or animal to dress depending on the weather, but I already had a wheel so I decided to use the space for that. I got it in the Target Dollar Spot so I can’t link it, but it’s always good to check out what they have available.
I found so many great resources for the cards that I wanted on Pinterest. They were easy to download and print. I used my laminator often when I was teaching so I was excited to bring it back out. I love this one because it is quick and has never jammed! You do not have to use brand specific laminating sheets. I bought these ones a long time ago and have yet to go through them.
I created the headings myself, but I used online resources for all of the content. I decided to do a letter, color, shape, and number per day instead of per week because I can change it based on her understanding. For example, if she is still having difficulty identifying a certain shape, we simply do that same shape the next day as well. These are the sites that I used for my board content.
1. Days of the week (she also has a weather wheel)
3. Colors
4. Shapes (I am attaching a different resource because I had to write in “diamond” instead of “rhombus” for the ones I used. This site has many great flashcards!
5. Weather
I wanted the cards to be small so I printed two or more pages worth of flashcards on one sheet of printer paper when I was making them. This also uses few pages if you have an ink delivery service.
This is the size of the board that I purchased. I originally made her circle time board on a larger board, but I didn’t like how spaced out everything had to be to accommodate the size. I ended up remaking her board on a smaller tri-fold board and I love it. Attaching everything to the board was simple with this velcro. I bought a lot, but I plan to use it for more things in the future. It is incredibly strong and the dots are not going anywhere…no matter how hard she pulls.
Elani loves her board and I am so excited that I am able to customize it to her needs as she grows. It felt great to put it together myself. She requests circle time every day (sometimes multiple times a day) because it is such a fun and interactive learning experience for her. I hope that this helped you if you are considering creating your own board. Best of luck!
