Summer theme for toddlers: a week of activities
A summer theme lesson plan for toddlers: what a day looks like, then the week's circle time (two or three minutes, on laps), books, craft, song, snack, letter and outside time, each with what changes at this age.
A day of the summer theme with toddlers
- Arrival and free play on the floor.
- Sing “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” with actions; repeat it while you change and feed.
- Hold and pass something real for the week (sun), and say its name.
- Snack: a toddler-safe version of ice cream in a bag (check the recipe's lines for under-4s).
- Outside: a short walk looking for hot.
- Read Kip and the Crab on laps, pointing and naming.
- Nap, then the song once more at pick-up.
Summer circle time
- Hello song: sing hello to each child by name.
- Look out of the window together: sun, rain or clouds?
- Show the theme: hold up something real and name it.
- Sing: Row, Row, Row Your Boat.
- Read: Kip and the Crab (level 3).
Infants and toddlers: two or three minutes, on laps.
Summer theme books
- Kip and the Crab (level 3, free on peabody.kids): A summer day at the beach.
- Fish in a Dish (level 2, free on peabody.kids): Water and something kind.
- The Sun Is a Star (read aloud, level 5): A read-aloud: true facts about the sun.
- Tom and the Big Fish (read aloud, level 6): A read-aloud: a silly fishing day.
Infants and toddlers: one book, read every day; point and name.
Summer craft: Paper-plate sun
You need (4): paper plate, yellow paint or crayon, yellow and orange paper strips, glue stick.
- Color the plate yellow.
- Glue strips all round as the rays.
- Draw a face on your sun.
With a grown-up. No heat, nothing hot.
Infants and toddlers: let them touch and hold the materials while you make it; nothing small enough to swallow.
Summer song: Row, Row, Row Your Boat
The words
Row, row, row your boat, Gently down the stream. Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, Life is but a dream.
Traditional; public domain. From Top 52 nursery rhymes with lyrics.
Summer snack
Ice Cream in a Bag from the Peabody Kitchen: picture steps, allergy swaps and safety lines on the recipe.
Letter S activities
SsS is for sun. Print the two pages (a trace page and a color page).
Infants and toddlers: skip the trace page; show the picture page and say the word.
Outside activity: Shade or sun
Call "Sun!" and everyone runs into the sunny part; call "Shade!" and everyone runs to the shade.
Summer theme for 2 year oldsSummer theme for 3 and 4 year oldsSummer theme, all ages
Checked 2026-10-30