Social-Emotional Development
Sleeping Bag Snore
Provide a sleeping bag or folded blanket for your child. Encourage them to get into the sleeping bag and pretend to be sleeping and snoring. Taking loud deep breaths in and exhaling slowly.
Cognitive Development
Backyard Camping
Set up a small tent in your backyard or use a sheet to create one inside or out. Encourage your child to “set up camp”. Follow your child’s lead on how to do this. It may include things like gathering sticks to build a “campfire”, putting a sleeping bag or blanket in the tent, providing dishes, pans and pretend food, having a picnic in the tent, etc. As your child creates their own playscape they are practicing problem solving, creative thinking, planning and organizing skills.
Language Development
Camping List
Encourage your child to write a list of the items that they would need to pack to go camping. Help with writing and spelling depending on your child’s ability. Invite them to draw a picture or map of their campsite. Write down your child’s words about their picture with their permission.
Physical Literacy
Leg Lift Toy Drop
Encourage your child to lie down on their back on the floor. Place an empty bin above their head and a pile of stuffed toys by their feet. Invite them to pick up a toy with their feet and lift their feet up over their head and drop the stuffed toy into the bin. Repeat until all toys are in the bin.
Creative Activity
Campfire Art
Using yellow and orange paint, encourage your child to paint a campfire. When the painting is completed, add small sticks or popsicle sticks to the painting for logs. Add sticks with cotton balls for marshmallows, if desired.
Additional Resources
https://www.storylineonline.net/ - Running out of books to read? Visit this website for a selection of books read aloud by actors and actresses.
http://www.earlyliteracylearning.org/index.php - This Centre for Early Literacy Learning website has some posters for parents on simple ways to enhance literacy learning through everyday activities and routines. From the home page click on products and then choose CELLpops and posters from the drop-down menu for ideas to use with your infant, toddler or preschool child.
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