How to Include Mermaids in Your Preschool Lesson Plans
Mermaids are a delightful way to spice up many a preschool lesson plan! Swimming, camping and ocean lesson plans are great examples of themes which can include mermaids. Also, some fables such as The Little Mermaid provide a great backdrop for the use of mermaids in your preschool lesson plan.
Young children are full of awe at life. Add a touch of myth, such as mermaids, and they are absolutely amazed! Their eyes light up with delight and their speech becomes excited and full of impossible possibilities!
There are many ways that you can include mermaids in your lesson plans and I will give you a few ideas here. Just be sure to emphasize to your preschoolers that mermaids are fictional. They are not real, but it is fun to pretend!
Preschool Books about Mermaids
Three Little Mermaids by Mara Van Fleet
Fancy Nancy and the Mermaid Ballet by Jane O’Connor, illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser
Your preschoolers will love both of these books, but be careful with the first, as it is a novelty book with pull-tabs. It also is a touch and feel book, providing a sensory experience for your students. This book would be a great inclusion in a 5 Senses theme.
The second book will inspire a mermaid recital in your dramatic play area, so be sure to lots of sparkly tutus in the dress up area! This book would be a great addition to a dance theme.
Mermaids in the Preschool Art Center
If you are doing a lesson plan on Rainbow Fish, be sure to include some mermaids just for fun! Since you will probably be using colorful sequins on your Rainbow Fish art, just add some mermaids in the background for your preschool students to decorate, as well.
Another idea is to use the sparkly colors of a mermaid’s tail to teach the concept of colors to your preschoolers. Give each preschooler a coloring page of a mermaid. Supply glue and sequins. Instruct your students to glue on the sequins, but specify one color at a time.
Gross Motor Mermaid Fun
If you are fortunate to have access to a swimming pool with life guards, take your students swimming and have them try to “swim” while holding their legs together! Just make sure that they are wearing life vests and that a teacher is next to them. Another idea (on land) is to have your preschoolers pretend to be mermaids by lying on their sides on the floor, holding their legs tightly together and trying to “swim”.
Mermaid Talk
For a language activity, have your preschool students work together during circle time to tell a mermaid story! If you like, use mermaid puppets as an aid. What do you think a mermaid has to say?
Similar articles by Susan Sonnen:
Preschool Lesson Plan: Ocean
Preschool Lesson Plan: Starfish
The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe: Using the Nursery Rhyme in Preschool Lesson Plans
