Prompting kids to dream about what they want to be when they grow up will help them to think about more than just the present and is a perfect opportunity to talk about goals. For this Creative Preschool theme (When I Grow Up I Want to Be) we talked about the future, sang a song, drew a self-portrait, and did some writing with a printable color and write page (available to download for free). With all the When I grow up activities for kids included in this post, your kiddos are sure to make being a grown up look so fun!
Kids generally start out wanting to mimic their parents, but later they will branch out as they figure out their own identity or explore their current interests. I always said I wanted to help people when I grow up and tried nursing, psychology, and several other things…no I am a mommy and have 2 kiddos to help-yay! More often than not Little Tiger says she wants to be a Shooting Star (her version of a rock star) and sing on the radio when she is a teenager so I can hear her and Little Dragon wants to be a Rock Star and play the guitar in a band. I was surprised to hear their answers when we did this activity because they were all new professions (keep reading to find out what they said this time).
As we did this activity we mainly focused on community helpers, but there are so many jobs the sky is the limit. With how fast industries change, it is very possible that the jobs our kids end up in as adults haven’t even been invented yet–crazy right!?! 🙂 Whatever they chose I wanted them to realize that wishing to be something doesn’t make it happen.
When I Grow Up Activities for Kids
When I Grow Up Discussion
I had my kids think about what they want to be when they grow up and then I asked them what kind of goals they would need to reach before they could become their desired profession. Little Tiger said she wanted to be a toy maker so she decided she would need to learn about different types of toys and practice making them. Little Dragon said he wanted to be a race car driver and a helicopter pilot and he would need to get tools to fix them.
Then we talked about why we become something and the kids said so we can buy things and eat food. I think that thinking about the “why” makes reaching the goals more important.
When I Grow Up Pretend Play
Provide children with dress up supplies and let them play. My kids turned into doctors and helped make one another healthy, and then they found more patients to help and lined them up in the hallway…thank goodness our stuffed animals are so patient because there was quite a long line :).
Follow A Little Pinch of Perfect’s board DIY: Dress Up & Pretend Play on Pinterest.
When I Grow Up Color and Write
Have child draw a picture of themselves as their chosen profession. You can prompt them to imagine what setting they would be working in, what they might see, or what they would wear. There is also a space for them to write their profession. I wrote Little Dragon’s for him and wrote the words on a separate paper for Little Tiger to write on her paper.
More Growing Up Activities by the Creative Preschool Team
“When I Grow Up” Emergent Reader Printable by I Heart Crafty Things
When I Grow Up- Fortune Teller Fun by Pink Stripey Socks
“When I Grow Up” Digital Photo Challenge by Hand Made Kids Art
When I Grow Up Flashcards and 3 Ways to Play by School Time Snippets
‘When I Grow Up’ Collage Craft and Printable by Artsy Momma
When I Grow Up Song
The kids loved this YouTube song by The Workers called “When I Grow Up”
Free Printable: When I Grow Up Coloring Page
Download available via Google Drive. You do not need a Google account to download. It’s always a good idea to laminate (affiliate link)
Thanks for joining in today’s activities!
I love this activity and printable thank you. My kids are always talking about what they want to be when they grow up. And the youtube song is catchy ;). I pinned your activity to my language pinterest board.
Hi Ayan, Thanks so much for the kind words and the pin. I totally agree about the song, my kids wanted to listen to it over and over again :). Have a good day 🙂
What a fun way to combine art and writing for young children. I especially like the creative play part of the activity!
This looks like a great activity! Love all the different components.
This activity is so cute. We have homeschoolers who linkup at Literacy Musing Mondays. I would love to have you share your posts with us. Here is this week’s link: http://maryanderingcreatively.com/literacy-musing-mondays-love-reading-community/
Loved this! Visiting from the Hearts for Home Blog Hop! And definitely pinning this one for later!
I love the pic of them holding up their artwork dressed up ♥
Thanks Amanda! I love it when they play dress up!!!
These printable are adorable! My kids would love them! Pinning and printing some now.
Hi Jennifer, Thanks so much for the pin and I am so thrilled to hear you will be using them with your kids!!!