Early Childhood Development

Top of the mornin’ to you! If you can’t tell St Patricks Day is another one of my favorite holidays. There are so many activities and hands-on resources to choose from. Holidays allow you to teacher basic learning concepts, in a fun, interactive way. St Patricks Day activities are perfect to introduce or reinforce those tricky math and phonics skills while having fun too.

Pot of Gold

Little ones can practice recognizing and writing their letters with this resources. This is perfect for pre-kindergarten all the way to first grade learners. Students will pull out a pot of gold and then find it on their own sheet. There are five different activity sheets that corresponds with this activity ranging from tracing, matching, and writing the uppercase and lowercase letters. This St Patricks Day activity is perfect for independent work, small groups, whole group, and even centers. It would also make the perfect morning work for St Patricks Day. Grab yours here!

Shamrock Sums

I love looking for any way that I can make math more engaging for my students! This St Patricks Day addition activity will keep students so engaged. This resource provides several different pages of addition problems ranging from 0 – 10 facts. Students will color in the shamrocks to help them solve the addition problem and then write their answer on the line provided. This St. Patrick’s Day activity would be ideal for high preschoolers and kindergarteners. This resource would make the perfect center or checkup to see whether the students have mastered solving addition problems. You will WANT this in your classroom!

Catch the Leprechaun: St Patricks Day Craftivity

I LOVE this Craftivity and that it is perfect for basically any student. However, it is specifically geared more towards Pre-K to first grade students. Students will love getting their hands painted and being able to see the final result. Which is a cute little leprechaun for them to take home. To add a writing component, older students can write the why they are lucky or some wishes they would make if they caught a leprechaun! Like seriously how cute?! And it is so easy with little prep or clean up. You will definitely want to add this to your wish list!

I can’t wait to see all the fun you have with these St Patricks Day Activities! Be sure to let me know which one was your favorite below!

Does your child know how to write his or her own name? If not, no worries because these 5 name writing practice tips are going to help you get started. Name writing does not have to be painful. In fact, it can be really, really fun for both you and your child. Think back to when you first started writing your name and how awesome and accomplished you felt. Do you want the same for your child? Then, read the tips below.

Why Do We Need to Practice Name Writing?

First things first, your name is what sets you apart from everyone else. It was probably a long time ago when you first learned how to write your name, but I bet you remember how you felt. You watched everyone you cared about write or sign their names on important papers, checks, and notes just to name a few. That’s when you really wanted to learn how to write your name too.

Second, when you child enters Kindergarten if they know how to write their first name they are ahead of the game. Many kids come in not knowing how to write even the first letter of their name (which isn’t a bad thing). However, it helps.

Name Writing Practice Tips

Stickers

Kids LOVE stickers. What better way of getting them to learn their name then through the tactile piece of stickers.

One way you could use them would be to write your child’s name on a piece of construction paper. Then, have your child peel stickers off of a sheet and use them to trace their name.

If your child is older and knows how to use a pencil to trace. You can use stickers like connect the dots. Place the stickers on a piece of paper to serve as an outline for the letters. Then have your child connect the stickers to form their name.

Letters

You child will love this fun game. Write you child’s name on a piece of paper or an index card. Then cut it into strips so that one letter is on one piece. Hide the letters around the house and see if your child can find all of them. Once they find them, work together or have your child place them in the correct order (age depending).

Another fun activity using letter pieces is to put them in a sensory bin. Now, when I say sensory bin I don’t want you to think anything too expensive. It can be as simple as a plastic bin filled with rice and other odds and ends. Throw the letter cards in the mix, stir it around, and have your kid dig around to find the letters. Once they find them all, have them do the same thing as above.

Water

What kid doesn’t like to play in water? When you add a fun aspect, like water, to a learning aspect it is going to be a guarenteed success.

Write your child’s name in chalk on a sidewalk or chalkboard. Then have your child make their name disappear by using a paint brush dipped in water, a water pen, or even a squirt gun. They will be having so much fun, they won’t even realize they’re learning.

Paint

Again, who doesn’t love paint? It is a no brainer.

An activity that is my daughter’s favorite is dot painting. For this activity, you will write out your child’s name. Then you can give your child either dot markers, q-tips, or cotton balls to dip into paint. Have your child dot their name. My daugther asks for this activity again and again. So, I am sure your child will love it too.

Toys

My last name writing practice tip would be to incorporate toys whenever necessary. They now make all types of personalized puzzles, blocks, and games for your child which is a perfect opportunity to practice their name.

We really love our daughter’s personalized name puzzle. We found it on Amazon and love how the easy the pieces can be used.

If you don’t want to purchase any unnecessary toys (because let’s face it our kids have way too many, am I right?) Then, use what you have, friend, If you have blocks lying around, stick some post its on them and have your kiddo place them in the right order to make their name.

Final Thoughts

1. Do not be worried if your child doens’t sseem interested. Like I said in other posts, go off of how they are feeling. If they aren’t into it, don’t force it because you will only make things harder on you and them.
2. Fun, creative activities will always yeild more results. The more you make learning activities fun and engaging, the more likely your child will be willing to do them.
3. Start small. Remember when you first started learning your name, you didn’t know your first, middle, and last in a week. So, don’t expect your child to have those mastered either.
4. Don’t oversimulate your child. One activity at a time and for a long period of time. Don’t swithc activities or try to do one acgtivity a day. Children need time to process new expereinces and this is no different.
5. Relax. It is so easy to get caught up in what you think your child should be doing as their age. Every child is differnet and unique. One thing I can guarentee you is that they will all learn, but they will all learn in a way that is best suited for them.

Peace, love, and learning vides!

If you tried one of these tips, let me know in the comments. I love seeing what you guys are up to.

Have a quesion or what more advice, drop it down below too!

What could be more fun than playing with toddlers? If you said nothing than you’re right! Now I’m not talking about the toddler playhouses or the toddler playpens. While those are great, I don’t know about you but I don’t have a lot of money lying around. Nor do I desire to fill my home with toys that my toddler will play with once and then that’s it. But how exactly can with play with toddlers? And how can we make sure by playing with toddlers we are giving them the important skills they need later on in life?

In this post, I will be giving you five mom tested and toddler approved activities that focus on the five areas of development. And the best part…they’re FREE! You can also check out my Facebook page where I have 10 Free Virtual Toddler Time videos for you and your little one!

How to Play with Toddlers

Toddlers love when activities are high interest and have simple rules or directions. They also really enjoy activities that incorporate their whole bodies. My toddler loves anything that involves singing, dancing, jumping, really any type of movement.

Toddlers also enjoy “quiet” time activities as well. Quiet activities involve drawing, painting, coloring, writing, reading, anything that can be done with little to no whole body movement.

The number one question I get from parents is that they are not sure how to initiate or start playing with their toddler. They want to do it the “right” way and I think some are appalled when I tell them there isn’t a “right” or “wrong” way. The only right way to play with your toddler is to find something they are interested in and use that.

Some items you can use to play with toddlers are:

• Dolls/Action figures
• Puzzles
• Dress up clothes
• Stuffed animals
• Blankets/Socks/Shirts/etc
• Colored paper/pens/pencils/crayons
• Paint
• Pompoms/clothespins/counters
• Anything you can find around the house

Games to Play with Toddlers

Games are probably a toddlers most favorite type of activity. I have realized that when it comes to playing with my own little one, if I make the activity into a game she buys into it a lot more. This does not have to take a lot of thought. For instance, one of our favorite games is to see who can put her clothes away faster, mommy or her. So an otherwise mundane chore for me is made into a fun game that makes her want to play along and help with the work.

Cognitive

The first area of development in young children is cognitive. Cognitive development is controlled by the brain and deals with all aspects of learning and processing information.

My absolute favorite activity to play with my little one in this area is Sunshine ABCs. You take a paper plate color or paint it yellow, write the ABCs around the rim, write the abcs on clothespins and then have your toddler match the letters together. This activity supports cognitive development by teaching them their letters and how to recognize them.

Fine Motor

The next area of development is fine motor. Fine motor development deals with your child’s fingers. This area helps them hold pencils, crayons, etc and be able to pick up objects with their thumb and pointer finger.

My little one loves picking up and sorting objects based on color. Her absolute favorite activity for this is sorting teddy bear counters into colored cups. Everything you see in the photo cost less than $20.

Although I promised you FREE activities. So, another activity we do for this area is I take different sheets of colored paper and lay them out on the table or floor. Then I take another sheet and tear it into small pieces or crumble them up. Then, my little one has to sort the smaller pieces of paper onto the right color. She loves this activity and the best part is once it is made I just store it in a Ziploc bag to be used again and again.

Gross Motor

Gross motor development is the third area of development. This aids your little one with kicking, running, jumping, hopping, skipping. Basically anything that deals with whole body movement.

This activity is super simple and so much fun for toddlers. Sock throwing! Yup you read that right, sock throwing. What you do is take socks, ball them up, set up a laundry basket, and throw those socks into the basket. This is a game that you will come back to time and time again. Every time my little one helps me with the laundry she always grabs the socks and starts throwing them.

Pretend Play with Toddlers

Pretend play and toddlers are like peanut butter and jelly. They love to pretend they are princesses, doctors, teachers, mommys/daddys, just about anything they can think of. A lot of parents message me about how exactly to join in with their toddler while they are pretending. So, let’s answer that question right now.

It really is as simple as just playing along with them. Wear the crowns, drink the pretend tea, change your voice, etc. In short just be silly with them. No one is watching you, judging you, or recording you to broadcast on the TV or social media so let yourself be a kid again.

I absolutely love playing pretend with my little one because of how wild her imagination is. But, I also know that these moments are fleeting and in a few years I will be looking back and longing remembering the times where she was super happy running around the house in her superhero cape.

Speech/Language

Speech and language development is the area that focuses on your child’s ability to speak and converse with others. This is an area where I have the most difficulty. I am always worried about my little one’s language development because to me this area is the most important.

Pretend play and speech and language go simultaneously together. My little one’s favorite pretend play game is to be princesses and have a tea party. We dress up, sit around the table or on her bedroom floor, and drink pretend tea out of her Peppa Pig tea cups. This is a time for us to laugh, talk about her day, talk about my day, and tell stories. Most of the time we talk about princesses and what they do all day. 

It is so important to make this time as authentic as possible. I have found that my little one responds the best when the interaction is not forced. For instance, if you let your child talk freely, they will be able to gain a deeper level of development in their speech and language.

A simple activity for this area would be pretending to be superheroes. Grab some bath towels, secure them around your necks, and run around and talk about superheroes. Toddlers will love this!

Social-Emotional

This area is SO important! Social-emotional development deals with your child’s emotions towards themselves and others as well as how they interact with other children. This area of development helps them regulate their feelings that often affect how they react to their classmates and teachers in the later years.

The simplest activity for this area would be to play the emotions game with your toddler. My little one absolutely adores this game and wants to play it all the time. You simply say, make a ____ face. Then your child should make a face that matches the emotion said. As your child grows you can then expand the game by asking questions, such as what would make you _______, what is something that makes you happy, etc.

How to Play with Toddler Boy

I get so many questions about what activities to do with a toddler boy. The answer is truly simple. Toddlers boys would definitely enjoy all the activities mentioned above, maybe not the tea party/princess idea, but definitely everything else. 

I find that toddler boys really like activities that involve using lots of gross motor skills. If you can tie any of the other areas of development and make it into a movement game I am sure toddler boys would love it. 

Are you a parent to a kid who is starting Kindergarten? Then you may want to check out my latest post here. You can also check out my Facebook page where I have 10 Free Virtual Toddler Time videos for you and your little one!