How to Make Games to Play With a Toddler or Pre-Schooler From Household and Natural Items

Toddlers and preschool age children will play with most things and do not require expensive toys or games to make them happy. Playing games and exploring things with your young child is a fun and wondrous experience and you are teaching them at the same time. Your house and the outdoors are full of items you can turn into games and activities to share with your child.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• 5 or 6 small items with different textures like a piece of felt or ribbon, a cork, and a ball or coins and a dollar bill
• 5 or 6 small items with simple shapes like a cookie cutter, ping pong ball, a crayon and a balloon that hasn't been inflated
• A brown paper lunch bag
• Pieces of grass, leaves, flowers and other things gathered by you and your toddler or preschooler
• A large fish bowl or gallon jar with a lid

1. Place the small objects with simple shapes into the brown paper sack and have your child feel them and then tell you what each thing is before they get it out of the sack to see if they are right or not. Touching and picking each item up is great for small motor skill development and having a sensory experience.
2. Go outdoors and gather natural things out of the yard or on a short walk in a park or down the street with your child. These items can represent any season, like a dried cicada skin, a leaf, flowers, twigs, empty insect cocoons or pretty rocks.
3. Take a fish bowl or gallon jug and let your child place the items they collected outdoors inside in any order or pattern they want. Talk about what each item is with your child. This is a great science lesson
4. Lay the different textured items out on a table and let your child touch them. Talk about whether the items are smooth or rough, etc.

Tips & Warnings

• You might purchase large inexpensive plastic beads at an arts and craft store, letting your young child pick out colors they like. Your child can string them on a piece of yarn and you can tell them what each color is and have them repeat the color.
• Adding a few drops of food coloring to sand in different dishes and making designs in empty baby food jars with your child is another fun thing you can share.
• These are all inexpensive ways to create and share a special play time with your child and have fun together while making play a learning experience.