Lovable Preschool Valentine’s Ideas: Join in the Festivities

Soon it will be the sweetest holiday! Plan a fun-filled day to celebrate with your little ones with these preschool Valentine ideas. These ideas are age-appropriate and essential for making crafts, games and activities run smoothly. Whether you're a preschool teacher searching for creative ways to enjoy Valentine's Day with kids, or a mom planning on baking something special to bring to your child's classroom, these ideas will make everyone's heart happy.

I "Chews" You Valentine

Cut hearts out of red cardstock, then use a zig-zag pair of scissors to cut the heart in half. Glue the top half to the top of the clothespin and the bottom half to the bottom of the clothespin. Draw or glue googly eyes to complete the craft.

Valentine Shaving Cream Art

Playing with shaving cream is a wonderful sensory activity for little ones, and when they add paint to it, they can create something extraordinary. For this activity, simply add shaving cream to a shallow tray and spread evenly, drizzle washable paint over the shaving cream and hand your kiddo a skewer to swirl around. Place a paper heart cut-out on the shaving cream with paint, remove it and place the heart on a flat surface covered with butcher paper to dry completely.

Heart Lollipops Decorating

It's no secret most kids have a sweet spot for lollipops, so why not let them spruce up simple lollipops for Valentine's Day? Using a decorating icing tube and candy eyes, they can create the sweetest Valentines to share with their classmates.

Egg Carton Flower Bouquet

Using egg cartons, the kids can create a beautiful flower bouquet to surprise a loved one on Valentine's Day.

Supplies needed:

• Egg cartons
• Scissors
• Glue
• Paint brush
• Acrylic paint in different colors
• Fine glitter
• Mini pom poms
• Pipe cleaners
• Colored paper - this can be construction paper, or get creative by upcycling old coloring book sheets

Instructions:

1. Cut out each egg cavity/holder and trim the edges.
2. Cut the corners from top to bottom.
3. Trim the tops to create rounded petals.
4. Lay trimmed egg carton flowers out on a covered surface and start painting. Simply squeeze some paint in the center and paint the flower until it is completely coated.
5. Add glitter while paint is still wet. Allow to dry completely.
6. Poke a hole at the base of the flower.
7. Insert a piper cleaner through the hole.
8. Glue a mini pom pom in the center.
9. Using colored paper, cut out leaves and glue two leaves to the stem.
10. Repeat the step until you have the amount of flowers needed. Create a pretty bouquet by tying a ribbon to hold all the flowers together.

Heart Stamping

Bend a toilet paper roll so it makes a heart shape, and add tape around the whole tube to hold the heart shape. Have your child dip the end of the toilet paper in paint and stamp away on a sheet of heavy cardstock paper.

Button Garland Making

Gather large heart buttons and have the little ones help create a sweet Valentine's Day garland to decorate their classroom. Threading can be tricky for young kids, so make sure you opt for large buttons with big holes that are easy for small hands to manipulate, and use any kind of string with a child safe plastic needle.

Handprint Salt Dough Heart Frame

This a lovely craft the teacher can give the kids to take home as a special keepsake.

Supplies needed:

• Salt dough
• Heart-shaped cookie cutter
• Mod Podge all-in-one glue and sealer
• A sharp knife
• Acrylic paint in the color of the kid's choice
• Small photo

Instructions:

1. Mix up a batch of salt dough.
2. Flatten your salt dough to about .5 " thick.
3. Press your child's hand into the salt dough.
4. Cut around the handprint using a sharp knife.
5. Cut a heart shape out of the handprint using a heart cookie cutter.
6. Allow your salt dough handprint to dry completely.
7. Have student paint their handprint frame.
8. Seal salt dough handprint using Mod Podge all-in-one glue and sealer.
9. Glue a small photograph behind the heart cut-out.

Heart Cookie Decorating

Use store bought cookie dough to make heart-shaped cookies using a cookie cutter. Bake cookies following the package instructions, set out sprinkles in small bowls and icing tubes for the kids to decorate their heart cookies as they please.

Valentine's Day Pizza

Have the kids create pepperoni hearts using a small heart cookie cutter. They will be thrilled to customize their own pizza for Valentine's Day (and to eat it too).

Heart-Shaped Binoculars

Paint two toilet paper rolls in the color of your choice. Allow them to dry completely. Fold the toilet paper rolls into heart shapes and glue both rolls together. Place holes on either side of the binoculars with a hole punch, then thread a piece of string through the holes to finish your binoculars.

Heart Flower Wreath

Use a piece of cardboard to create a heart, or simply purchase a heart styrofoam for the kids to decorate with artificial flowers.

Valentine's Day Photo Booth

Using large red poster board, trace a heart and cut it out using an X-Acto knife. The kids can have fun taking pictures on Valentine's Day.

Valentine's Day Play Dough

Making non-toxic homemade play dough for the little ones is the way to go. Have heart-shaped plastic cookie cutters in all sizes, so they can keep themselves entertained.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup water
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1/3 cup salt
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• Red food coloring, or any other color of choice

Instructions:

In a saucepan, mix all the ingredients together and cook over low/medium heat, while stirring. Continue stirring until the mixture is thickened. Remove the dough and place it onto wax paper or a plate to cool.

Heart Pop-Up Valentine's Day Card

A handmade Valentine's Day card is a special way to show a loved one how much you care, and it's important to teach kids all the fun ways they can express their love. The little ones will have fun layering large, medium and small heart doilies using double-sided tape or glue sticks to create a heart pop-up card. They can use crayons or washable markers to add a personalized message to their handmade Valentine's Day card.

Valentine's Day Breakfast

Plan a lovely breakfast before the kids leave for school on Valentine's Day. Using a heart cookie cutter, you can spruce up pancakes, waffles and even sunny-side up eggs.

Heart-Shaped Watermelon Pops

Using a heart-shaped cutter and popsicle sticks, make a delicious and healthy snack such as heart-shaped watermelon pops.

3D Rainbow Hearts

Decorate your classroom with a colorful 3D rainbow heart garland. To create each heart, glue two hearts back to back in the same color, with the garland string in the middle. Create as many 3D hearts as you wish, in all different colors of the rainbow.

Heart-Shaped Ice Cubes

Jazz up your plain ice cubes by making fruit ice cubes for the kids' drinks. Customize them with any fruit of your preference. Simply cut fruit into smaller pieces to fit a heart ice cube tray or mold, and add double boiled filtered water to keep the water as clear as possible after frozen. Place tray in the refrigerator overnight before serving.

Red Velvet Milkshake

Ingredients:

• 2 cups vanilla ice cream
• 4 tbsp. red velvet cake mix
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• Whipped cream (optional)
• Heart sprinkles (optional)
• Fresh strawberries

Directions:

1. In a blender, add ice cream, cake mix, milk, and vanilla extract. Blend until smooth.
2. Pour milkshake into glasses and top it with fresh strawberries, whipped cream, and heart sprinkles if desired.

Handprint Valentine's Day Art

As a fun classroom Valentine's Day activity, glue a giant white heart to a red poster board, then have the kids coat their hands with red washable paint to create handprints in the center of the heart.

Love Bug Lollipop

Cut two hearts out of red cardstock. Glue the ends together to form wings. Attach a lollipop to the center using glue or tape, and add googly eyes to the lollipop.

Valentine's Day Headband

Cover a plain headband with colorful pipe cleaners. Attach two antennae by curling two pipe cleaners. Cut two hearts out of cardstock and punch a hole in each heart to insert and secure the antennae.

Conversation Heart Wooden Picture Frame

Have the kids paint a wooden picture frame and decorate it with conversation hearts. They can add their own pictures to create a gift for a loved one.

Fingerprint Love Bug Craft

Fold the cupcake liner in half and cut out a heart. Coat little one's thumb with washable black paint and use the thumb to make the love bug's head on construction paper. Glue the heart on the construction paper (body of the bug). Add in some fingerprints on the cupcake liners and draw antennae using a marker, or make them using pipe cleaners.

Egg Carton Love Bug Caterpillar

By upcycling egg cartons, the kids can create their own Valentine's Day caterpillar.

Supplies needed:

• Egg cartons
• Acrylic paint
• Paint brush
• Mini cups (disposable or whatever you use for crafting)
• Scissors
• Hole Punch
• Glue
• Glitter (optional)
• Pipe cleaners in different colors
• Googly eyes
• Heart stickers (optional)
• Black marker

Directions:

1. Cut egg cartons in sections of four cavities.
2. Trim the edges using your scissors.
3. Paint all four cavities using acrylic paint in the colors of your choice.
4. Sprinkle them with glitter immediately. Let them dry completely.
5. Add googly eyes using glue.
6. Draw mouth using black marker.
7. Cut a piece of pipe cleaner to create a small heart. That will be the antennae. Secure it on the head of the caterpillar using glue.
8. Punch holes on both sides of each cavity.
9. Cut pipe cleaners in eight small pieces. Insert them into the holes.
10. Add mini heart stickers to bring the Valentine's theme to life!

Valentine's Day Discovery Box

Love You to Pieces Card

Have your child rip up scraps of construction paper in different colors. Draw a heart on a blank card and spread a thin layer of glue over the entire heart. Encourage your child to add all the pieces of paper to the heart. Use a marker and write Love you to pieces on the card.

White Chocolate Popcorn

Drizzle melted white chocolate over popped popcorn, then add salt and heart sprinkles. Allow chocolate to harden before serving. Place popcorn in clear bags or treat cups, and tie it with a Valentine's Day inspired ribbon.

Valentine's Day Heart Hunt

Hide hearts in various places around the house. Set a time limit for the heart hunt. Give kids a cup to collect all the hearts they find. When time is up, the child who found the most hearts wins.

Conversation Hearts Towers

Give each student a box of conversation hearts. Tell each child to try to make a tower as tall as they can using conversation hearts. The highest tower wins!

I Heart Counting

Have 10 hearts cut-outs with numbers one-10 on them. Trace 10 hearts (using one of the heart cut-outs) on drawing paper and write numbers one-10 on them. Hide the hearts around the classroom. Give a basket to one student and start the hunting. Once the kids collect the hearts, they are expected to read the number on each heart and match it to the corresponding traced heart on the drawing paper.

My Heart Is Bursting

Fill up small treat cups with Valentine's Day surprises. Cut tissue paper squares and cover snack cups, securing tissue paper with rubber bands. Hot glue snack cups on a poster board, forming a large heart. Have each student burst a cup to find the surprises.

Hershey's Kisses Unwrapping

Whomever can unwrap the most Hershey's kisses in a minute wins.

Heart Marshmallow Race

Students must use straw suction to pick up heart marshmallows from one plate and move them to another.

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

Surprise the kids with delicious red velvet whoopie pies that make the perfect Valentine's Day treats.

Ingredients:

• 1 package red velvet cake mix
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Cream cheese frosting tub
• Red food coloring
• Fresh raspberries (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, combine cake mix, eggs, oil and vanilla extract. Beat on low to medium until well combined.
2. Transfer batter to pastry bag. Cut a 1/2-in. hole in the tip of bag. Pipe hearts onto parchment-lined baking sheets, one inch apart.
3. Bake hearts until edges are set (about six to eight minutes). Cool on baking sheet for two minutes. Transfer to wire rack to cool.
4. Tint cream cheese frosting with red food coloring until you reach a soft shade of pink.
5. Spread cream cheese frosting on bottoms of half the heart cookies. Top with remaining heart cookies. Enjoy!

Tweeze Me

Using a pair of tweezers in one hand, students must move as many conversation hearts from one plate to another in one minute.

Cupid's Arrows

Stick a cinnamon heart gummy on one end of a pretzel stick to represent the arrow tip. Cut the top off the other heart gummy to represent the feathers and stick on the other end of the pretzel.

Strawberries and Snickers Kebabs

Cut strawberries and fun-size Snickers bars in half. Thread strawberries onto bamboo skewers, alternating with the Snickers pieces. Transfer strawberries and Snickers kebabs to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and freeze for at least four hours. Drizzle kebabs with caramel, and sprinkle with coarse sea salt.

Start Planning Early

If celebrating Valentine's Day is something you look forward to every year, plan ahead and make a list of crafts, games and activities you think the kids will enjoy doing as a group. Have the kids help create fun decorations for the classroom a month in advance in preparation for Valentine's Day, or make a keepsake craft to bring home.