Make your own educational printables

Falling into a rut with your preschooler is so easy. Every day starts to look the same: Breakfast, TV, color, play kitchen, lunch, nap, TV. Shake things up by making your own educational printables. You'll find many websites -- such as the ColoringBookFun, Printables Center at Family Education and even here at SheKnows -- that offer free printables that you can modify to fit your preschooler perfectly.

Here are a few things to consider when choosing which are best for your child:

Age-appropriateness

Look for printables geared toward your child's age. Many websites list printables by age, so zeroing in on what you need shouldn't be hard. Review the printable before you print it to make sure it's on your child's level.

>> Activities for enriching quality time with your kids

Seasonal appropriateness

Search for printables that match the current season to help your preschooler get a better understanding of the holiday or time of year. Holiday-themed coloring pages and word searches are easy to find.

customizability

If the pages can be altered, change them to fit your child's life. Change the main character's name to that of your child or the pet's name to that of your pet. Many websites let you make word searches and crossword puzzles yourself! Try Discovery Education's Puzzlemaker or the wordsearch maker at teach-nology.com. Use words and questions that have to do with your child's life and interests.

Alernate uses

You don't have to use the printables for the instructions' stated purpose. Explore your creativity. For example, print out and cut up a coloring page to make your own puzzle.

>> How our children really learn

Variety

Keep as much variety as possible in your printables. Focus on math one day and reading the next. Let your child have a choice in what you will do. Print out several items ahead of time and present your child with two or three options before you begin. Go with whatever he chooses. This will make him feel more powerful and more likely to participate without a tantrum.

 >> 6 Classic games your child will love

more ideas

Use teachers' websites.

Many websites are dedicated to helping teachers create printables for their classrooms at little or no cost. Take advantage of these sites as you look for new ways to teach your preschooler.

Use characters.

Try to find printable games, crafts, worksheets and coloring pages that depict your child's favorite characters. This will help him get excited about the activity and may even increase the amount of information he absorbs. PBS Kids, Nickjr.com and Crayola/Disney offers hundreds of free educational printables themed around their popular characters.

Try printing in color! It may boost your ink costs a bit, but it'll help your printables catch your preschooler's attention.

More at-home learning on SheKnows

Printable educatonal activities
Printable coloring pages
Printable games and activities