Welcome to Lakewood at Home for Toddlers! These activities are tailored for children aged 12-26 months, but may appeal to a wide range of ages. We hope you will join the greater Durham community by sharing your experiences in the comments. We will be considering your comments as we craft future invitations.
Flowers
For a music and movement invitation you and your toddler can do the gestures to this Flowers fingerplay. You can ask questions like, “What color flower will you pretend to be?” “What colors are the different flowers?” “Where might you see flowers?”
Flowers
Flowers tall,
(let tall fingers stand up)
Flowers small,
(let little finger and thumb stand up)
Count them one by one,
Blowing with the breezes
In the springtime sun!
1,2,3,4,5
(touch each finger as you count)
Neighborhood Walk
For a gross motor invitation we think it will be refreshing for the toddlers to go for a neighborhood walk! They can label or point to things they see on the walk (a dog, car, squirrel, bus, fire truck etc), You may ask questions like, “Where do you think that truck is going?” “What sound does a dog make?” “What do you think we will see on the walk?”
Utensil Art
Materials: child-safe paint, large paper or tray, utensils such as whisks, spatulas, chopsticks
Find a space where paint splatters are okay (outside, on a table protected by an old shower curtain, etc.), tape paper to the surface, or set out a cookie sheet or washable tray, a cup of paint, and utensils. Invite your child to explore what they can do with the paint using these novel tools.
Water Exploration
After what may be a whole-body painting with utensils experience, you can extend the invitation to include cleaning the utensils (and your toddler). They may use the utensils and paint cup to toddlers scoop and pour water in the kitchen sink, bathtub, or in a bucket outside. Stay close to your child while they are exploring water. You can ask questions like, “How does the water feel?” (examples; warm, cold, etc) “What else can you do with the water?” “What happens when you put a duck in the water?” “What happens when you put a car in the water?” “Look the duck floats but the car sank (in the water.)”
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