These fall themes for preschool will get you all set with your fall preschool lesson plans. It is a preschool theme that is loved by teachers and children with all the wonderful sights, smells, and seasonal delights.
I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers. – Lucy Maud Montgomery
Autumn means different things to different people. I know quite a few people who say fall is their favorite time of year, especially if they get to experience the seasonal and weather changes. The leaves changing, the smell of cinnamon and apples, and the winding down from the busyness of summer can bring peace and reflection. Fall is a time to cherish the earth’s last beautiful display for the year. Henry David Thoreau said,
I would rather sit on a pumpkin, and have it all to myself, then be crowded on a velvet cushion.
Fall is also one of my favorite times to plan preschool activities for my fall preschool lesson plans. As children spend less and less time outside, they need more and more indoor activities to keep them stimulated and engaged. Lesson planning can be time-consuming on top of the never-ending list of what needs to be done, which is why I’ve put together a list of fall themes lesson plans. My fall themes focus on common autumn ideas such as:
- Apples
- Leaves
- Pumpkin
- Family
Fall Themes for Preschool Lesson Plans
I’ve made a free printable preschool theme list to help with all your planning!
Get the best learning activities for 3-5 year olds at your fingertips
We hope to make your life easier and your lesson plans more exciting with this collection of fall themes, fall activities, and even some fall lesson plans.
All About Me Theme – Children, much like adults, love to talk about themselves! Children can learn about their own features and attributes, as well as their community. Make it easy with done-for-you all about me lesson plans! This is an easy place to incorporate name recognition and activities, such as tactile name writing practice or this simple craft. We also have a whole list of all about me activities! And all about me books are perfect for circle time.
Grab the free All About Me poster below to guide your preschoolers as they share how truly unique they are!
We’ve also got all about me lesson plans for either preschoolers or toddlers in our preschool store or toddler store!
Apple Theme – From taste testing, art, apple books, and apple picking, there’s so much to do with apples! This theme can easily be used in the fall, with tons of related preschool apple activities. Our friends at Preschool Teacher 101 have an entire apple theme lesson plan in their store.
Back to School Theme – A perfect time to go over class rules, routines, classroom jobs, the schedule, and to see what the classroom offers. It’s also a great time to show off your centers and introduce an age-appropriate visual calendar! You can incorporate lots of great back to school books, or this fun back to school countdown craft! Or find many more ideas in this back-to-school lesson plan from Preschool Teacher 101!
Bear Theme – Watch out! It’s a — bbbbbbear. This preschool theme is a sure win! These animals live all around the world, so you can use it to incorporate everything from geography to colors. There are a ton of bear-related books, including the wonderful Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? and themed activities to go along. And of course, no bear theme would be complete without going on a bear hunt! Our friends at Preschool Teacher 101 have a super fun bear-themed lesson plan in their store if you’re in need of more great ideas!
Community Helper Theme – Each year Fire Prevention Week falls during the week with October 9th, so if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, it is the perfect time for this tried and true preschool theme! We love to include doctors and nurses, teachers, garbage and recycling collectors, veterinarians and more. Here’s a great list of community helper lesson plans! Use clean-up songs to teach how kids can be helpers, too! We also have entire community helper lesson plans in both our preschool store and toddler store.
Cooking Theme – After the heat of summer has passed, fall is a great time to get back in the kitchen. You can make bread in a bag, homemade ice cream, a snack for tea time, or anything else that gets kids excited about the kitchen. We love all of the great hands-on activities over at Planning Playtime.
Dinosaurs Theme – A beloved preschool theme that kids naturally adore learning about. We’ve got you fully covered for a DinoNovember, or any other month! Here’s a great list of dinosaur lesson plans. Check out these amazing dinosaur songs, and don’t miss the dinosaur books! Don’t miss our dinosaur 10-frame counting mats, perfect for a prehistoric math center. Grab them for free below!
Or have it all done for you! Grab an entire dinosaur-themed lesson plan in our preschool store or toddler store.
Fall Theme – Whenever the season changes, I use that as my perfect opportunity to make it my preschool theme for that lesson plan. Autumn is a perfect overview of what the kids will be experiencing soon with the cooler weather. Fall books, pumpkin art activities, crafts, fall songs, and fall science activities can be found in abundance! Capture the beauty of fall in a sensory bottle, and incorporate the season into your math practice with fall ten frame counting mats. Get an entire fall lesson plan in our preschool store or toddler store.
Family Theme – As the days get shorter and cooler, there is more opportunity to focus on indoor family activities. Family is a perfect preschool theme that can tie into All About Me or Thanksgiving. It is also a great way to help build community and to get to know more about your students. Get an entire family lesson plan from some of our favorite teachers at Preschool Teacher 101!
Fantasy and Fairy Tales Theme – This theme is one of my favorites that I did either as a Halloween alternative or after Halloween. After kids go trick or treating, they want to talk about it and keep doing it, so I just went with it. Cue the dramatic play! We bring in all of their costumes they want to share and keep going with their interests. See this fairy tale lesson plan from Preschool Teacher 101 to make your theme even more magical!
Farm Theme – One of the most beloved preschool themes! Farms are great for sensory activities and learning about animals through farm books and farm songs. You can even use the animals as a gateway to math with our farm animal ten-frames and these farm counting mats! Grab a done-for-you farm lesson plan in our preschool store or toddler store.
Fire Safety Theme – Fire safety is a great preschool theme to do in October! There are lots of practical ways to teach children how to prevent fires, as well as what to do if one occurs. Plus, I always loved doing a trip to the fire station! This could also be part of a community helpers theme.
Halloween Theme – Halloween can be spooky, but it can also be sweet and fun! Our not-so-scary monster books are a perfect fit! Check out this cute ghost sensory smash for a sweet activity that’s sure to be a crowd-pleaser, and don’t forget the Halloween songs! There are some super fun Halloween activities at Planning Playtime. And our friends at Preschool Teacher 101 have an entire Halloween Bundle lesson plan.
Hibernation Theme– Many animals prepare to and begin hibernating during the fall season. Help children learn even more about animals by teaching which animals hibernate and why. Maybe bring in some special cozy blankets and make nap time extra fun. A visit to your local library will yield books about which animals hibernate. This theme can also be incorporated into the bears’ lesson plan.
Leaves Theme – One of the most recognizable aspects of the fall season is the changing color of leaves. During the fall months, colored leaves are absolutely magical. Not only is this a great time to teach children about the different types of trees and leaves, but it’s also a great way to get hands-on with art projects using leaves and playing in leaf piles. Check out the many leaf science experiments your class can do! Preschool Teacher 101 has a great leaves lesson plan.
Mindfulness Theme – Learning how to be calmer, manage energy levels, and find relaxation is so helpful for preschoolers who are always managing big emotions. Preschool Teacher 101 has a wonderful emotions lesson plan! This is the perfect theme for introducing yoga, and the easiest way is with our FREE animal yoga pack!
You can also check out yoga books, and kid yoga videos. Incorporate brain breaks to help relax or rejuvenate. Mindfuless can even be used outdoors!
If you’ve already got the FREE animal yoga pack and still want more, you can grab these yoga cards in our store!
Music Theme – Music is one of the best ways to teach children. In fact, it’s been proven that music actually makes children smarter! Paint to music, dance to new songs, and learn about different musicians and composers. There are also lots of songs that teach a variety of concepts! Music can be used anytime during the day: to say hello or goodbye, during circle time, to transition from one activity to another, and to introduce or reinforce new concepts. Check out this ultimate guide to preschool songs! For a printable list of great kids’ songs to always have on hand, fill out the form below.
To make music easily accessible during circle time, grab these song cards and song sticks from our store! There are 35 song posters that can be used as song cards, along with matching song sticks to make choosing songs even more fun.
Monsters Theme– This is a perfect fit around Halloween, or even when children start talking about their fears. This preschool theme doesn’t need to be a scary one – check out these not-so-scary monster books for kids! Or grab an entire Monster lesson plan in the Preschool Teacher 101 store.
Nocturnal Animals Theme – Bats, owls, hedgehogs, cats, and other animals are nocturnal. This is a fun preschool theme that allows you to explore and learn more about these fascinating creatures. This theme can easily tie in with Halloween or hibernation themes, as many of these nocturnal animals also hibernate. Check out the super fun Bats lesson plan from Preschool Teacher 101!
Numbers Theme – Get children counting and learning the foundational number sense skills with a preschool number theme. There are so many ways to make this fun, like with themed ten-frame mats. This can also be a great time to teach children their phone number!
Snag our themed counting cards to have the perfect resource on hand for every season! Use these math counting cards to teach children counting, number recognition, one to one correspondence, and quantity. It works like magic with helping children to learn foundational math concepts in a fun, inviting, and hands-on way! You can find them in our store.
Pumpkins Theme – Fall and Halloween are such fun events to plan activities around, and pumpkins are by far the most exciting. They make a great shape to incorporate different activities as well as actually exploring the pumpkin itself. Enjoy some pumpkin books, pumpkin crafts, and pumpkin art projects to get you started! Or get this entire pumpkin lesson plan from Preschool Teacher 101.
Spiders Theme – Spiders can be creepy, with all their eyes and many legs, but they can also be so cute (see this pet spider craft!) Here are some great spider facts. Around Halloween time or with the purpose of exploring insects, spiders make a great theme! Throw some spiders in the sensory table for some fun exploration. See the fun spider lesson plans from Preschool Teacher 101.
Squirrels Theme – Squirrels are super cute with their fluffy tails, and they run super fast. This theme is perfect to include with an animal theme, or even physical activity! There are lots of animal songs about squirrels, too.
Thanksgiving Theme – Thanksgiving is a holiday full of history and family. This is a great time to touch on historical facts, or to help teach children about thankfulness and sharing. Check out this list of hands-on Thanksgiving activities for kids, and there are lots of awesome books about gratitude and thankfulness to use during this theme. Don’t miss our list of Thanksgiving songs! See the Thanksgiving lesson plans from our friends at Preschool Teacher 101.
I hope you enjoy autumn as much as I do. If you would like additional lesson plans and theme ideas, visit The Ultimate List of Preschool Themes or see our library below!
Themes by the Month
- August Preschool Themes
- September Preschool Themes
- October Preschool Themes
- November Preschool Themes
- December Preschool Themes
- January Preschool Themes
- February Preschool Themes
- March Preschool Themes
- April Preschool Themes
- May Preschool Themes
- June Preschool Themes
- July Preschool Themes
Themes by Season
- Thanksgiving Ten Frame Counting Mats - November 17, 2024
- Easy Outdoor Color Changing Volcano with Baking Soda and Vinegar - September 10, 2024
- Rainbow Sensory Bottle - March 3, 2024
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