Perfect for learning numbers and color sorting!

March has brought some rain to Southern California this year. As a California native, who has been through the California drought, I am grateful for it! 

I am all for the rain, because it is so rare to see in Southern California! 

But for my toddler…she is not too fond of the rain.  She sees the rain as the reason we are not at the park, which is very understandable. So I started to think…

How can I change my toddler’s perspective on the rain? 

I told her about how great the rain can be for our environment. When we are driving, I point to the hills that surround our town and show her how beautiful it is to see it green again! 

At the end of a rain storm, I surprised her by walking through our neighborhood in rain boots and jumping in “muddy” rain puddles! (Anyone have kids who watch Peppa Pig?) LOL. 

Then we take out her toy binocular and search for

RAINBOWS!

This inspired me to make a fun rainbow themed learning activity for my daughter (3.5 years old)! I always try to create a printable or do DIY activities with my daughter at home to minimize screen time as much as possible. 

I am not going to lie, we give our daughter screen time everyday.

But we have noticed that if we don’t turn on the TV in the morning, then she is in a better mood for the rest of the day and does more creative play. We then turn the TV on in the evening when I am making dinner.

But…when we turn on the TV in the morning, our whole day seems to be filled with more arguments, tantrums, and she tends to not listen and is in a negative mood all day. It is harder to take her away from the TV if she watches it during the day.

What do you do with your kids and screen time?!

In the mean time, below is a 

FREE PRINTABLE to give your TV a break! 

Let’s have our kids play and learn!
(I am a big advocate for kids learning by play!)

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What do I need for this activity?

▷ Rainbow Colored Materials
(we used Fruit Loops!) You can use pom poms, play doh, etc. 

▷ FREE PRINTABLE (download at the end of the post)

The great thing about this Build a Rainbow. Count the Rainbow! Activity is that you can use many different materials. We used Fruit Loops cereal, because they have all the colors of the rainbow. Feel free to use different items, like, candy, dyed pasta, or anything around your house!

A popular choice is play doh (click here to get a 10 pack for only $.80 each container)

This printable is open-ended so you + the kids can get creative!

My daughter and I have fun choosing different materials for this activity, especially, because we love to reuse and replay with these mats numerous times.

↡ ↡ CLICK BELOW FOR PRODUCT LINKS ↡ ↡

How to Play this Activity!

Have your little one find the specific colored material that corresponds with the color of the rainbow!

For example: Purple Fruit Loops go on the Purple line of the rainbow. 

Once they have finished each color, count how many materials they used to complete each color. 

For example: For Tenley, she used 2 Fruit Loops for Purple!

This is a great time to tell your child that the numbers can change if you use different materials! I told Tenley that the numbers would be different if we used pom poms!

Reuse + Replay Tips!

TIP: For better durability to reuse and replay with this free printable, place them into plastic sleeve protectors or laminate them after printing.

(This is my favorite laminator and it’s only $23!)

OR feel free to print them as many times as you want.
(link below) 

↡ ↡ CLICK BELOW FOR PRODUCT LINKS ↡ ↡

Combining learning with fun means kids are more than likely to remember their numbers in the future.

Fun + Educational = A recipe for success!

hope you + your kids enjoy this fun

♡ St. Patrick’s Day ♡

Build a Rainbow
Count the Rainbow!

• FREE PRINTABLE! •

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Want MORE
St. Patrick’s Day Activities
for the kids?!

[click here] 
for the St. Patrick’s Day
Numbers Activity Mats!
FREE PRINTABLE

↡ ↡ PIN IT on PINTEREST ↡ ↡