Rebekah - posted on 07/08/2009 ( 4 moms have responded )
Fun ideas for AT HOME! :)
1. Stash a few new dollar store toys and pull them out when you have a busy day ahead of you.
Skills learned: What your preschooler can learn will depend on the toy. Some of the possibilities: colors, shapes, and new words (names of objects). Imagination!
2. Give your preschooler an assortment of buttons to play with.
Skills learned: Your preschooler will practice motor skills making pictures, learn shapes and colors, and recognize the need to pick up after an activity.
3. Put in home videos for your preschooler to watch.
Skills Learned: Your little one(s) will learn to recognize people, improving their memories. Your preschoolers will also learn a little lesson in technology - that you can take pictures and watch them on television. Videos can stimulate language skills, as preschoolers are likely to talk about the video and point out things they see - and maybe ask questions about them.
4. Have your preschooler pair up the socks in the clean laundry.
Skills Learned: By helping you fold the laundry, your preschooler will gain confidence in abilities - especially when daddy (or mommy) says, "Good Job!" when he (she) gets their socks out - in addition to learning how to help care for your home. Tips: Make contests out of some of the tasks your preschooler helps you do. Maybe see how many socks your preschooler can find in the pile of laundry, or give your little one a dime or quarter for her bank for every plastic container put away in the cupboard.
5. Have your preschooler make different faces on white paper plates.
Skills Learned: These paper plate faces will help your preschooler learn about different emotions - and the facial expressions that go alone with them - in addition to improving his/her drawing and artistic skills.
Note: Can also help your child learn to express the emotions they feel inside, encourage your little one to use the paper plates when it's hard to come up with words for what they are feeling.
6. Let your preschooler stamp envelopes while you are paying bills.
Skills Learned: This activity will help your preschooler begin to learn about the grown-up responsibility of paying bills - the process of writing them out, putting the checks in envelopes, and putting stamps on the envelopes. Go to the mailbox and mail them together to teach your child the final step.
7. Let your preschooler help you clean with their own little spray bottle.
Fill the bottle with water (or part vinegar, safe for kids) and give them a rag.
Skills Learned: This activity will help your child learn the importance of taking care of all your family's belongings as special gifts from God.
8. Have your preschooler help you make homemade noodles.
Messy but FUN! :)
Skills Learned: From helping to make noodles, your child ca learn how to prepare the meal, practice motor skills serving the noodles, and gain responsibility in helping to make dinner.
9. Preschooler got the fidgets, pop in an exercise video! (Don't forget to join in too.)
Skills Learned: Will learn basic exercise movements and will practice and improve balance and coordination.
10. Give your preschooler their own kitchen cupboard.
Select a lower cupboard in the kitchen that is out of the way if you need to cook and away from hot ovens, etc. Let them put their plates, bowls, thermoses, cups, etc. in this cupboard and let it become "their" cupboard. Your little one will enjoy sorting, stacking and lining up the dishes. Making music out of them, etc.
Skills Learned: Which items fit inside others, gain practice building with and stacking the items, and get an understanding of what different materials feel like and sound like when tapped (okay, more like pounded) against other items.
11. Let your preschooler help wash the car.
Skills Learned: To take care of things and recognize that things are really God's possessions, which deserve the best care. Your little one will also learn confidence in abilities - especially if you don't let him/her see you get the missed spots!
Just a few... if you do any of these, would love to hear about how they worked for you. :)