Trés-Belle : House Hold Activities for toddlers

Hey everyone :)

So this next post is just some handy little activities to keep your little ones entertained and away from technology for a little while, it gives you time to try to do the ironing, wash floors or even to have a sneaky cuppa :) All these exercises I have picked up during my many years of working in a Montessori and childcare setting. They are so simple yet effective.

If your toddlers are anything like Lucy and are constantly on the go and finding new things to play with then these activities will be brilliant for their little minds :)

Most if not all the following activities develops concentration, fine and gross motor skills, pincer grip, hand eye co-ordination, practical life skills and more.

So you always hear parents saying "they play with the box more than the toy" this is because their imaginations are on the go constantly. They can make anything out of a box -, a house, a robot, a bed, anything at all!! So this is why using household items really get them intrigued because it's not a "normal" toy and it's real life objects.

Spooning lentils

So first up is a simple activity I can guarantee will keep your little one entertained for a long period of time. When Lucy gets stuck in to this she could be doing it for up to a half an hour which is just the perfect amount of time to get the house in order. So what it is, is just 2 bowls, fill one with some lentils, porridge oats or rice, whatever you may have in your kitchen press and a spoon. Sit down with your little one and show him/her how to spoon the lentils from one bowl to another (starting left to right and then right to left) . And Voila they will want to take over immediately and do it themselves. Lucy loves this activity and sometimes gets so carried away she ends up pretending to make cakes or having her breakfast :)

Benefits of this exercise: fine motor skills, hand eye co-ordination, concentration and imagination.

Pegs

This is a great one for the pincer grip :) All you need is about 5 or 6 pegs and a small round bowl. Sit down beside your little one and show him/her the pegs in the bowl and then place them around the bowl as pictured below, The younger ones might just place the pegs on the bowl upside down as Lucy tends to find it difficult to grip but you will see how that develops over time :). I find wooden pegs a little bit safer as plastic ones tend to break easily or can get caught on their little fingers. Do just keep an eye on them that they only put the pegs around the bowl and not on themselves to prevent injury.

Benefits of this exercise: Hand eye co-ordination, pincer grip, fine motor skills, language, counting, concentration.

Dust pan and brush

So this is probably a very obvious one and if your little one is anything like my little Lucy and loves helping mammy clean up then this is perfect for them. Give them a dust pan and brush , make it so it is their own one and they will have your floors gleaming in no time :P This is great for their practical life skills, help them prepare for the real world haha!

Benefits of this exercise: motor skills, hand eye co-ordination and self development.

Cake pop stands

So I picked these up ages ago in Deals and threw them in to a drawer and forgot about them, until Lucy found them that is. So she brought them to me to open them up for her and I was amazed by what she started to do. So firstly she started to count the cake pop sticks and then proceeded to stick them in to the cake pop stand and told me how she was making a house and after that she told me she was making a birthday cake, absolutely brilliant for their imaginations .

Benefits of this exercise: Hand eye co-ordination, fine motor skills, counting, concentration, language and imagination

So these are just some examples of items you can use around the house to keep your little ones mentally and physically busy, they are so simple yet effective!! If you try these out with your kiddies please let me know how they get on :)

Keep an eye out for more exercises and Halloween crafts in the very near future :)

Thank you all for reading

Until Next time

Lots of love