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EGG CARTON TRAINS
Here is a fun activity using empty egg cartons and toilet paper tubes.
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HOOK ON THE TRAIN
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One child is chosen to be the engine of a train. |
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This child chugs around the room and then backs up into another child. |
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The new child connects onto the train by grabbing on to the waist of the engine. |
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Then these two children chug around the room and back into another child. |
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The game continues until all of the children have hooked onto the train.
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COLOR TRAIN
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Paint (or cover with paper) five shoe box bottoms. |
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Make each box (or train car) a different color. |
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Now hook the boxes together with string or large paper clips to create a color train. |
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Set out a pile of small toys with at least three toys per color of train car. |
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Let your children take turns placing the colored toys into the corresponding train car. |
Variation: NUMBER TRAIN - You could add numbers to each train car and have children put the correct number of objects into each car. |
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COLORED TICKETS
This game will require at least 12 children. For smaller groups, just use two or three different colors of paper.
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TRAIN TUNNEL
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Create a train track on your floor with masking tape. |
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Set a small table over the track and drape it with a blanket on two sides to create a train tunnel. |
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Encourage your children to pretend to be trains as they crawl along the tracks and go through the train tunnel.
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DRAMATIC PLAY
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Place train items in your dress-up area to encourage train play. |
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Provide engineer hats, train whistles, tickets and a hole punch. |
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TRAIN TRIPS
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Sit in a circle and have your children take turns telling about any train experiences they have had. |
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If they have never been on a train, have them tell where they would go if they could travel on a train. |
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FREIGHT TRAINS
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TUNNELS AND BRIDGES
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Just Me – Marie H. Ets |
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A Friend Is Someone Who Likes Me – Joan Anglund |
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The Important Book – Margaret Wise Brown |
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Peter’s Chair – Ezra Jack Keats |
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Are You My Mother – P.D. Eastman |
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MODEL TRAIN
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Look for someone who could bring in a model train and set it up for your children to observe. |
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Perhaps your children could make small box houses or stores to set out with the model train. |
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TRAIN CAKE
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A cake can be made to look like a train, by cutting a sheet cake into six rectangular pieces. |
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Turn the pieces sideways and cover them with frosting. |
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Place a marshmallow on the front section to represent a smoke stack. |
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Cut additional marshmallows in half to create wheels. |
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Attach the wheels to the sides of the train cars with toothpicks. |
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SNACK TRAINS
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Cut empty egg cartons in-half lengthwise. |
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Give one half section to each child for a train. |
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Set out snack “cargo” in bowls, such as; raisins, mini-marshmallows, tiny crackers, cereals, plus serving spoons. |
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Have children run their trains along in front of the snack bowls and fill up their freight trains with “cargo”.
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CHUG, CHUG, CHUG
Tune: “Jingle Bells”
Chug, chug, chug; chug, chug, chug,
Chugging down the track.
See our little choo-choo train
Chugging down and back.
We are cars – all lined up,
Chugging just like so.
Hear our whistle toot-toot-toot
As down and back we go.
Elizabeth Scofield
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DOWN BY THE STATION
Tune: “Down By The Station”
Down by the station
Early in the morning.
See the little puffers
Standing in a row.
See the station master
Turn a little handle.
Chug, chug, chug, chug,
Off they go!
Traditional
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LITTLE BLACK TRAIN
Little black train chugging down the track.
First you chug down, then you chug back.
Then you blow your whistle and come to a stop
And all the happy passengers jump right off!
Jean Warren |