Toddlers are often a mystery to their parents. They’re learning words but inconsistently use them. They want to do everything themselves without your help until suddenly, they can’t do anything for themselves. Toddlers are still learning tons of new skills every day, and it can be exhausting to keep up!
Guided activities are an excellent way for parents and caregivers to connect with toddlers learning new skills and support them in their learning. If your child attends daycare, there are many childcare activities offered that you can replicate at home. Here are ten creative learning activities to enjoy with your toddler.
Physical Development
- Balloon Pop:
Balloon pop is not just reserved for birthday parties; it’s also an interactive game that can promote learning in toddlers. As they eagerly burst balloons with numbers, colors, or shapes written on them, they hone their hand-eye coordination, refine their fine motor skills, and enhance their overall physical dexterity. This playful activity not only provides sensory stimulation but also encourages your child to develop better control over their movements, making it an excellent choice to foster their physical development while having a blast.
2. Obstacle Courses
Toddlers love to run and jump, climb, slide, kick, and throw. Set up a simple obstacle course in the living room or outside. Have your toddler run between obstacles. He can jump in and out of a hula hoop or over a small pillow. Crawl under the coffee table. Throw a ball into a laundry basket. Don’t forget to model each skill and play along!
3. Hide and Seek
Playing hide and seek gives opportunities for toddlers to practise counting, being still and quiet, and keeping their eyes closed while counting. Toddlers love the anticipation of both seeking and hiding.
4. Playdough
Playdough supports creativity and fine motor skills as toddlers practise rolling, pinching, and shaping the dough. Work together to create different shapes and objects and talk about what you’re making.
5. Dancing
Put on some tunes and get moving! You can play some of your childhood favourites or play nursery rhyme songs. Teach classics like “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes” or “I’m a Little Teapot.” Dance together and encourage your toddler when they make up their own silly dances.
6. Drawing
Drawing with crayons, markers, or pencils helps toddlers with fine motor skills and spatial awareness as they learn how to keep the crayon on paper. Colouring books with large, simple shapes are fun for older toddlers, or they might practise basic shapes like circles or triangles.
Language Development
7. Singing
Singing helps children to practise putting words into context. You can also introduce new words through songs and help children understand different types of words. For example, if you sing The Wheels on the Bus, you can act out the action words or point to pictures in a book for nouns.
8. Storytelling
Reading with your toddler helps to broaden their vocabulary. You can also tell stories about a real-life event, such as visiting grandma or a trip to the doctor’s office. You can narrate your daily activities and encourage your child to participate. Ask simple questions and encourage them to use language to describe their surroundings.
9. Language Classes
Toddlers are great candidates to learn a second or additional language because their brains are still so malleable. If your childcare programme offers language classes, you can encourage your child to continue practising that language at home. Get a copy of a book they’re reading in their language class and read it together at home. Name different objects in the house in your toddler’s first and second language. Sing songs together or practise the new language during familiar daily activities such as meals or the bedtime routine. You can also use language learning apps like FabuLingua. It’s designed specifically for kids and uses interactive stories and award-winning techniques to make the learning process faster and more effective.
Brain Development
10. Play Pretend
Encourage your toddler to use their imagination. Act out scenes from a favourite book with some of their stuffed animals. Give their dolls different voices. Dress up and pretend to be a character from a favourite show or movie. Getting your toddlers involved in play-acting can help them learn empathy for others. Pretend play can also help children process new or challenging situations and develop higher-order thinking skills.
11. Blocks and Puzzles
Building with blocks and completing puzzles helps toddlers think logically and solve problems. Toddlers learn to think through situations such as, “My tower keeps falling over; how can I get it to stand up?” “This puzzle piece doesn’t fit here. What should I do next?” Puzzling can also help with short-term memory as toddlers learn how pieces go together after practising for a while.
Many childcare facilities offer many extracurricular activities that are fun for your toddlers and support their learning and development. When you repeat similar activities at home, you help your child make connections between school and home and reinforce their developing abilities.
