Social-Emotional Development
Bunny Breathing
This breathing strategy allows children to release stress and disengage when needed. Teach the children to hold two fingers like bunny ears and straighten them slowly as they take an inhale and bring the two fingers down as they slowly exhale. Do this three times.
Cognitive Development
Sorting in 3’s
Think of all the rhymes that have highlighted the number 3 (Three Blind Mice, Three Bears, Three Little Pigs etc.) Gather or print 3 of each bear, mice and pig, and place masking tape either on the floor or the table. Label each column as bears, pigs, and mice. Support your child into sorting them out by threes.
Language Development
Rhyme Time
Rhyming is an important pre-reading skill to practice with children. Try and play with some rhyming skills in your conversations throughout the day! Here are some fun rhymes you can try out:
1. When we ride in the car we go far!
2. Lunch is yummy, is it grumbling in your tummy?
3. Hop, hop, hop and then we stop!
4. When we dance with our feet we can make a beat!
See if you can rhyme with this list below!
Physical Literacy
Going on a Bear Hunt
Children are fascinated by the world around them, especially when they find new items to explore. Hide several items your child can hunt for outdoors. While outside, tell them that they are bears on the hunt for food and treasures. Make it more exciting by doing the bear crawl to find these items. Encourage other movements bears may make such as stretching to reach high places to make it more physically challenging.
Creative Activity
Building Stick Houses
Have you and your child collect sticks, wood chips, leaves, and twigs from outside, or use craft popsicle sticks. Provide a sheet of paper (can be construction paper, cardboard, or plain paper) with glue. Ask your child if they remember the story ‘The Three Little Pigs’ and how one of the pigs had to build a stick house. Tell your child that they will be building their own stick house, with popsicle sticks, and all the sticks, wood chips and twigs that they found outdoors.
Additional Resources
https://www.crayola.com/athome – This website has a collection of videos and art instructions for young children.
https://www.yummytoddlerfood.com/blog/ – Mommy blog about foods toddlers will eat and made easy