Simple Action Words For Pre-K Children
Teaching simple action words for pre-K children is useful because doing so will lay the groundwork for other important lessons in the future. By the second grade or so, children will start working with the different parts of speech. Instilling the idea early that "action words" are a class of words by themselves, will make learning the concept of verbs easier. Additionally, teaching young children to read and write action words is useful, before they are often familiar with many of the words already.
Action Words For Pre-K
Here is a list of some simple action words for pre-K children. They are all appropriate words, because they are actions that the children perform, read, or hear about in their daily lives.
Some of them are related to other fields, and can be worked on in tandem with other subjects. For example, students could do small science projects to learn about the five senses.
- taste
- smell
- hear
- see
- listen
- feel
- touch
- run
- walk
- jog
- bike
- skate
- do
- go
- turn
- twist
- shout
- jump
- laugh
- cry
- scream
- yellow
- play
- swim
- color
- draw
- paint
- build
- create
- read
- write
- sing
- joke
- tell
- lie
- fib
- glue
- cut
- sharpen
- doodle
- leave
- come
- enter
- exit
- wake up
- sleep
- skate
- eat
- drink
- dance
- squeeze
- taste
- lick
- sneeze
- cough
- break
- make
- skip
- ride
- decide
- plan
- buy
- shop
Teaching Simple Action Words
There is not only one successful method for teaching any sort of subject. Different classes need to work at different paces, and have lessons which are appropriately geared towards them. However, some general suggestions exist for the teaching of action words to a preschool classroom.
- Do not introduce the subject as a lesson on verbs. The word "verb" is going to greatly confuse a group of four year olds. At the end of the session, you could tell the students that these words are called verbs, and end it at that. A full lesson on parts of speech is not really suitable for this age group though.
- Ask students to come to the front of the room. Have them color, read, talk, etc. and then ask the rest of the class what they are doing. This method is a way of introducing the concept of action words.
- Have each student engage in an activity, and then tell you what they are doing. Remind them that they are using action words by telling you what they are doing.
- Use flashcards, if your plan is to stimulate reading and recognition. Start with pictoral flashcards, and then move on to words. Allow the students to match the action with the concept, before asking them to try and memorize the abstract notion of language.
- Have students draw pictures of different actions. Ask them to tell the rest of the class what actions they drew.
- The students can engage in miniature science projects to learn about the senses. For example, they could have a "sight" station (frog vs. tadpole), and a "touch" station (star fish vs. shell). If you are experimenting with the sense of taste, please make sure none of the little ones are allergic!
- Pair similiar words together. For example, talk about "walk," "jog," and "run" together, so that students understand the differences amongst them.