When children reach their toddler years, they start to explore their surroundings and interact with other kids. This formative stage is also where they begin to learn new things like colors, shapes, numbers, letters and more.
While it may be too early to send them to a real school, they can start joining classes for toddlers in Ahwatukee or nearby communities. Your kids can join sessions to have a feel of the classroom setting and develop a love for learning.
Since these are very young children, their teachers do not give them formal lessons. Instead, concepts are taught through games and play. They are encouraged to touch, smell, hear, see and taste different things to have a better understanding of the world. Here are some valuable games and play activities are given to toddlers.
Puzzles
Puzzles stimulate children’s minds and develop their problem solving skills. There are jigsaw and 3D puzzles appropriate for toddlers. Alternatively, to make it even more fun and educational, you can let toddlers create puzzles as an activity with their classmates. The activity develops their tactile skills as well as their creativity.
Creating Buildings
This requires shoeboxes, cylindrical cartons, craft board paper, glue, old colored magazines, colored paper, crayons and others. The children can create houses, silos, barns and other buildings with the use of scrap or with arts and craft boards. They can embellish the buildings with colored paper cuttings or with clippings from old colored magazines.
The kids may need assistance with scissors, but they would greatly enjoy gluing colored paper to the cardboard. Shoeboxes can be used as frames for the structures. Old potato chip cylinders can also be used.
Freeze!
This is a classic children’s game that is fun for all ages. Play some music, and let the children dance. When the music stops, they should freeze in position. Those who keep moving are removed from the game. The last person not caught moving while frozen wins the game.
Simon Says!
Another traditional game with simple rules. One kid gives instructions that the others follow. However, these have to be prefaced by “Simon says.” The children who do not follow instructions lose. If the command is not prefaced by “Simon says,” the children should not follow. As the game progresses, more of the children are taken out of the game, and the last person following instructions wins.
Musical Chairs
This is yet another traditional parlor game, which can be configured for kids. There should be one fewer chair than the number of participants. When the music begins, the children dance around the chairs. When the music stops, they sit down on the chairs. The kid who has no seat is removed from the game. The game continues with one less chair, and the music is played again. The last kid who gets to sit down on a chair wins.
There is a wealth of children’s games that teach various lessons, especially socialization. Most of these games require toddlers to interact with their playmates. They learn to work together and share. Enrolling children in toddler school allows them to be with other kids their age. This not only lays the foundation for their education but also teaches them the importance of making friends.
