Activities

It doesn't take a lot of money-just a little imagination to create fun activities you and your child can do together. Here are some you'll both enjoy.

Learning the Letters

Pick three letters and write each one on two index cards (stick with all capitals for now). Put the six cards facedown and show your child how to turn over two at a time to look for a match. When she finds a pair, set it aside; when she doesn't, turn the cards over and try again. Gradually add more letters to the mix (no more than 10 at a time, though, so it's not overwhelming).¹

Picture It

Purchase an inexpensive, 4"x 6" photo album with plastic sleeves. Gather snapshots of grandparents, friends, siblings, etc. and insert them on the right. On the left, insert 4" x 6" index cards with the person's name and a word or two to describe them. Kids love to look at pictures, and it will also help your child remember who's who.²

Love Notes

Let your child create her own postcard by drawing or painting a picture on one side of a 4" x 6" index card. Turn it over and ask her to dictate a message for you to write. Add the address and a stamp, and mail to a family member or favorite friend.²

Hear the Chimes

String beads, bells and other noise-making objects onto thin strands of yarn or fishing line. Tie them onto an embroidery hoop or a wire hanger twisted into a circle, with the strings spaced closely enough so the objects strike each other and make music when the breeze blows. Hang the chimes on your porch or in a tree.²

Print a Game

Printable coloring pages, puzzles, craft templates and more are available at http://familyfun.go.com/printables.³

Get Active Games

Find exercise/fitness oriented activity appropriate for toddlers & parents. It's great to plan special outdoor activities together to encourage your toddler to be active and make exercise fun. When it's fun, they probably won't even realize it's exercise.⁴

Point for the Trees

Get a book that easily identifies trees with pictures of leaves, bark, shape, etc.. Spend a little time studying the trees with your toddler and assigning point values to each type of tree (i.e. 5, 10, 20 points). Look at the weather report and plan a hike (1-3 hours) in a natural area on a nice day. Take your book, point values, a notebook and a pen. On your hike, try to find as many trees as possible in a given amount of time and write them in your notebook along with the points. Encourage your toddler to point for the trees to earn points!⁵

Reward them after your hike for the points they earned with a healthy snack like an apple with peanut butter and a bottle of Nursery® Sesame Street® Distilled Water.

Other Fun Games to Keep Your Toddler Active are:

• Freeze Dance
• Alligator Swamp
• Good Clean Fun
• Duck, Duck, Goose⁶

Lunch Box Basics

Toddler on Aisle Three