When it comes to doing a fun dinosaur theme in preschool, you just have to expect some extra excitement.
You can channel that excitement and turn it into a fun learning movement activity with this printable that promotes taking turns, movement, and developing attention spans – all at the same time.
Your little learners will have a blast pretending to be their favorite dinosaurs!
Dinosaur Movement Activity
Here are the supplies you will need to set-up this fun learning activity in your classroom.
- One Soft Pocket Cube
- Printable Dinosaur Movement Cards (see printable below)
- Scissors
- Paper
- Optional: Laminator
Start by printing out the movement cards, then cut them apart and place them inside your soft pocket cube. You can also laminate the cards for durability if you would like them to last longer.
Dinosaur Movement Game
Each movement card includes directions for moving like a specific dinosaur. Here are the movements included below.
- Twist like a Tyrannosaurus Rex
- Stretch your neck like a Brachiosaurus
- Flap your arms like a Pteranodon
- Swing your tail like a Stegosaurus
- Run like a Velociraptor
- Tiptoe like a Triceratops
How to Play the Dinosaur Roll and Move Game
First, gather your students in a circle and invite one child at a time to roll the cube in the middle of the circle.
Then, read the sentence on top of the cube aloud each time it is rolled. The children will start to remember the phrases on their own quickly.
Invite the children to move their bodies to match the words used to describe the dinosaur. You can keep rolling the cube and playing as long as this activity holds their interest.
As you’re playing this game with your students they will be practicing valuable skills that will help them be successful in school and life. Waiting for a turn is a very difficult for young children which helps them develop self-regulation skills.
When children are moving like dinosaurs they are learning how to follow directions and listen, all while developing their gross motor skills.
This activity is perfect for indoor recess too!
More Dinosaur Activities
Dinosaur Sensory Bin (Pre-K Pages) – With this sensory bin, your preschoolers will have so much fun digging for dinosaurs!
Dinosaur Literacy Activities (Pre-K Pages) – You can help your kids celebrate all the different types of dinosaurs by extending the learning into your literacy center activities.
Dinosaur Math Activities (Pre-K Pages) – As your kids participate in these fun, hands-on dinosaur math center activities around a common theme, they will begin to develop important math skills that will help them build a solid foundation for future math success.
DIY Bones for Dinosaurs Dig (Pre-K Pages) – Here’s a super quick and easy recipe to make your dinosaur bones. Your little paleontologists will love digging for pretend dinosaur bones in your sensory table!
Fizzy Dinosaur Eggs (Pre-K Pages) – Dinosaurs are always a fun topic or theme to explore with preschoolers. Something about dinosaurs seems to grab the mind and imagination of children. This fun science experiment will add even more excitement to your dinosaur explorations.
DIY Fossils with Salt Dough (Pre-K Pages) – Introduce your children to the job of a paleontologist. Start by explaining that paleontologists are scientists who study dinosaur fossils. Then, invite your kids to create fossils with this simple salt dough recipe. Afterwards, they can hone their paleontology skills by digging for the fossils in a sensory bin!
