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Night and Day theme for 3 and 4 year olds: a week of activities

A night and day theme lesson plan for 3 and 4 year olds: what a day looks like, then the week's circle time (ten to fifteen minutes, with a child holding the book), books, craft, song, snack, letter and outside time, each with what changes at this age.

Plan this week for 3 and 4 year oldsThe whole night and day week

A day of the night and day theme with 3 and 4 year olds

  1. Arrival, sign-in, and a job from the helper chart.
  2. Circle (ten to fifteen minutes): calendar, “Which animals are awake at night?”, sing “brahms' lullaby”, then Not Yet, Ted.
  3. Centers, with the craft at one table: day and night plate.
  4. Letter N: trace it once, then hunt for N around the room.
  5. Snack: Owl Toast, with children pouring and counting.
  6. Outside: night and day.
  7. Rest, then a longer read-aloud: The Moon Follows Me.

Night and Day circle time

  1. Good morning song, then say each name together.
  2. Calendar: the day, the date and the weather.
  3. Ask: “Which animals are awake at night?”
  4. Sing: Brahms' Lullaby.
  5. Read: Not Yet, Ted (level 3).

Threes and fours: ten to fifteen minutes; let a child hold the book.

Night and Day theme books

  • Not Yet, Ted (level 3, free on peabody.kids): Bedtime, not yet.
  • Sit, Tap, Nap (level 0, free on peabody.kids): A day that ends in a nap.
  • Dad Naps (level 0, free on peabody.kids): Sleep, in a pattern for twos.
  • The Moon Follows Me (read aloud, level 6): A read-aloud: the moon at night.

Night and Day craft: Day and night plate

You need (4): paper plate, yellow crayon, dark blue crayon, star stickers.

  1. Color one half yellow with a sun.
  2. Color the other half dark with a moon.
  3. Add stars to the night side.

With a grown-up. No heat, nothing hot.

Night and Day song: Brahms' Lullaby

The words

Lullaby, and good night, with roses bedight, With lilies o'er spread is baby's wee bed. Lay thee down now and rest, may thy slumber be blessed, Lay thee down now and rest, may thy slumber be blessed.

Johannes Brahms, 1868; public domain. From Top 20 lullabies with lyrics.

Night and Day snack

Owl Toast from the Peabody Kitchen: picture steps, allergy swaps and safety lines on the recipe.

Swap: Bread → gluten-free bread; Peanut butter → sunflower seed butter.

Letter N activities

NnN is for night. Print the two pages (a trace page and a color page).

Threes and fours: trace N and n once, then find N in the room and in the book.

Outside activity: Night and day

Call "Day!" and everyone runs and plays; call "Night!" and everyone lies down still, eyes closed.

Night and Day theme for toddlersNight and Day theme for 2 year oldsNight and Day theme, all ages

Checked 2026-10-30