Top 5 Indoor Activities That You Can Play with Your Toddler.
These awesome indoor activities for toddlers have been shared by guest contributor, Rachel.
Toddlers are naturally curious, active and playful creatures. They love to explore the world around them, climbing, discovering and trying to learn more about the things their eyes can see and hands can touch! Sometimes it is difficult to keep them entertained when you have to be indoors.
Educational resources like this here are great, but some days call for interaction and some fun new indoor activities that you can play with your toddler at home. This is why it is the time to come up with enjoyable and age-appropriate activities for your toddler to make sure you keep them safe while nurturing their need for exploration.
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If you have a curious, adventurous and independent toddler, it helps to have a few ideas on hand. These will help your little learner understand her thoughts, feelings, and behaviors more. Here are my top 5 awesome indoor activities for toddlers that you can play with your toddler right now. These are fun and educational at the same time.
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1. Hide and Go Seek Mr. Bear
If you have a young adventurer in the house, what better way to leverage that amazing trait than to give them some adventure to experience! Most likely, your toddler also enjoys a game of hide-and-seek? This game brings out curiosity and the desire to explore.
To play this game, grab your child’s favourite toy such as a Teddy Bear. Then, hide this toy anywhere in the house. Your child will now try to find the missing toy by listening to some clues you give them. Be sure to use plenty of adjectives. Try to explain something about the location of the bear, so she can search for it successfully.
Some clues might be “Bear is in a soft and cushy place for sitting” (couch or bed), or “in a cold place” (refrigerator), or “in a place where there are lots of green and colorful things” (patio or garden). Let your toddler bring a flashlight and accompany them as she searches for Mr. Bear. She will love the experience of searching for something and finding where it is in the end!
In this activity, your child is developing certain skills. They are: listening to directions, problem-solving, following directions, using gross motor skills and this can help improve memory through repetition.
2. Let’s Play Dress Up!
All kids love playing dress up. This fun indoor activity allows them to imagine they’re a character from their favourite movie or book, whether it’s a superhero, a beautiful princess, or a brave knight. Why else are Halloween parties a big hit among kids if they’re not into dressing up, right? And some of the best indoor activities for toddlers can also be played while in dress up outfits.
Even though it’s not Halloween, that doesn’t mean dressing up can never happen! Bring out the costumes and accessories and let your child pick out the stuff they want to wear. Double the fun by dressing up with them. It should be a great bonding experience that you’ll enjoy, as well. Some of the best memories are made through play… But if there are kids similar age around, it’s best to let her experience this activity with them.
Not only is dressing up fun but it also enhances several developmental skills in your child. Playing dress up with others helps improve your toddlers social and language skills. Most importantly, it is a great activity that boosts imagination and creativity.
Take dressing up a notch higher by setting up a mini play with your child and their friends. Maybe a mini Fairy-tale play, that would be fun! Let them choose the Fairy-tale they would like to re-enact and help them with some props and an imaginary stage. Better yet, allow them to come up with their own story and invite the other parents to watch this amazing performance!
3. Music Night
Music helps improve a child’s language development, memory, as well as eye-hand coordination and fine motor skills, particularly if you let her play different musical instruments. Playing music with your toddler is a great idea for a fun and educational indoor activity!
Come up with a music night at least once a fortnight, or even every week, where the whole family plays a musical instrument each and sing songs together. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but the idea is it has to be enjoyable for all. Dad plays the piano or guitar, Mum plays the tambourine, and your child plays the xylophone or the triangle… Anything goes!
This is not only an exciting activity but also an excellent bonding moment among all family members. You can even come up with your own song and create original beats and rhythm with your musical instruments.
Music nights with the family can help enhance certain skills in your child including creativity, turn taking, collaboration, language development, good memory, and social skills.
4. Paint a Picture.
Bring out the Picasso in your toddler by giving them a chance to paint and create something using their hands. If your little one is fond of using the crayons to turn the nursery walls into some kind of abstract mural, then a better indoor activity would be to give them a large piece of paper where they can use crayons or paint instead.
You can provide your toddler with a model or a subject to look at and try to paint. Or just allow them to use their imagination in creating a lovely picture. You could take your toddler to the window or a glass door and have them create their own version of what they can see. Allow them to use their choice of crayons or poster paint (be sure these are kid-friendly materials like this and it might be best to supervise them). Perhaps go to the kitchen and have them paint an orange or an apple.
Looking at and studying a model’s colour and shape before they can paint it helps enhance your toddler’s cognitive skills as much as her sensitivity. A toddler becomes aware of colour, shape, size, and form of the object as they try to paint. Once you hang the painting up on the fridge or wall, your toddler will feel a sense of pride in them self for being capable of creating something amazing!
Remember like this activity, the best indoor activities for toddlers involve a fun process, it doesn’t really matter what the end result is, it is more important that the process is novel, educational and engaging for them.
5. Simon Says
This is a classic game that simply never gets old… Even for kids-at-heart!
Simon Says is a fun game that helps your kids listen to and follow directions. It is a great skill to encourage that can definitely be used at any stage of life. You can begin with simple and very easy instructions like “touch your toes”, “wave your hand”, “wink an eye”, etc.
Eventually, you can come up with trickier commands to really check how well your child can follow these. You’ll be amazed by what your little one can do! Check out this twist on the classic game, where the directions are geared to promote emotional awareness and empathy.
Simon Says is an enjoyable activity that kids love. It helps promote your toddlers listening skills, ability to follow directions, receptiveness, obedience, and even vocabulary as they learn new words for body parts or movements that you teach them. Try taking turns.
Play These Great Indoor Activities for Toddlers Today!
Playing is not just purely recreational, it is also something that can be very educational. Consider playing these fun indoor games with your toddler. Show them that learning can be fun and exciting at the same time. I’m sure you will love spending more time with your children. Watch them learn as you play these amazing games.
Do you have any awesome indoor activities for toddlers?
I would love to hear about them below in the comments.
This article was a guest contribution from Rachel Lee, founder of thebabylover.
About Rachel: “Only being 36, I understand that becoming a new mom is incredibly exciting but also challenging. I remember having a multitude of questions when it came to my pregnancy, taking care of a newborn child, and raising little ones. That is why I decided to create this blog. I wanted to share the vast amount of knowledge with other mommy’s who need help with everything regarding pregnancy and child care”. Visit Rachel at her Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest.
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Mennah @ BusyMamaTips says
These look interesting and fun 🙂 thanks for sharing. I like the hide and seek one, children like a challenge for sure!