How to Create an Activity File for Toddlers
Because the attention span of a toddler is shorter than the amount of time it takes the average parent to clean up a spilled glass of milk, the number of activities it takes to keep a toddler occupied can easily run into the dozens on one day alone. Small children should certainly be given the opportunity to play on their own or with other children; however, showing them how to do certain activities will give them ideas for their own play. Spending the time to create an activity file can pay off every day for months to come.
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Things You'll Need
- Cardboard grocery carton (approximately 2’ long x 18” wide x 15” deep)
- Carton to cut up for dividers
- Masking tape
- Several dozen sturdy gallon-size self-closing storage bags
- Permanent marker.
- Various materials for each activity as listed below
Instructions
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Use a quiet evening to assemble the file box itself. Cut the second carton into dividers that will fit into the grocery carton. Label the dividers by writing with permanent marker at the top. Dividers should be labeled: Paint, Sorting and Counting, Alphabet and Games.
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Tape the dividers in. Make approximately six sections about six inches apart. You will be filling the plastic storage bags with items for each activity, labeling the bag and storing the bag in the appropriate section of the activity file.
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Fill bags for the “Paint” section. In one bag put two small bottles of tempera paint, two small brushes and some paper. With these materials you will be showing your child how to use each brush for only one paint color. In another bag, put a box of school watercolors, a brush, some paper and a plastic cup. For this activity, you will be demonstrating how to wash the brush between colors. For a third kind of painting, place a jar of finger paint and a roll of shiny shelf paper in a bag. In the last bag, place a large house-painting brush. You can take the child outside and give her a bucket of water to “paint” the house.
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Create a “Sorting and Counting” section. In one bag put six small Styrofoam cups that you have marked with six different colored dots; also put in five buttons or game chips of each color for sorting. In another bag, put a set of “dominoes” that you have made by drawing a line down the center of index cards and affixing an animal sticker on each side. For a third activity, fill a bag with another set of 20 index cards; ten of these will have the numerals 1-10 printed on them while the other ten will have a corresponding number of dots. Put a tiny piggy bank and ten pennies in the last bag for this section.
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Create an “Alphabet” section. In one bag place a small spiral notebook and a glue stick. Write one letter of the alphabet on each page of the notebook. Add magazine cutouts that your child can glue onto the correct page. In a second bag put a set of alphabet cards; line these up in a path around the house and teach the child to follow along as you walk over them singing the “ABC” song. For a third activity, make large cards, each with a letter in the child’s name; help the toddler arrange them down in the correct order. In the last bag, print out a half-dozen sheets with large block letters randomly placed; give the child a self-inked stamp and have him stamp names as you say them.
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Create a “Games” section. In one bag put a small ball and some empty spice jars; set up a “bowling” game and challenge the child to roll the ball and knock over the jars. In the second bag, put a small teddy bear or other stuffed animal used only for this purpose; hide the bear saying “Little Teddy wants to hide—look for him somewhere inside.” For a third activity, put long pieces of yarn of various colors in the bag; make circles from the yarn on the floor and give directions such as “Run to the red circle” and “Jump in the green circle.” For the last bag in this section, place a box of dominoes to be used for building at first and later for counting.
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Tips & Warnings
Bring out only one or two of these activities on each day so that they will be something special when they are used.
Even for toddlers, do not let your child use materials such as yarn lengths and coins without supervision.
