Food Strings

This fun activity teaches dexterity and is just plain fun for most toddlers because it also involves foods they love. Tape a piece of yarn or a shoelace to your child’s high chair, then give them items to string on. If you have a younger toddler it is probably best to start with something like pretzels which have a larger hole to put the string through. As they get older or more experienced you can try things like fruit loops, cheerios, and other similar items.

 

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Fun in a Box

A cardboard box presents a whole world of opportunities. If you don’t have any large boxes, ask around at a few local businesses, many are more than willing to get rid of a couple, and you’ll have an activity that will keep your toddler busy for hours.

Here are a few different ways a box can be turned into fun:

Tunnel

Leave both ends open and let your little one crawl through it.

Fort/house

Cut a door in one side and a window. My son had fun for hours open and closing the door and looking out the window. With a box house you can also teach your child some etiquette. I taught my son that when a door is shut it is polite to knock and ask to come in. He enjoyed taking turns being outside the house and knocking and then being inside the house and answering the door. We also worked on saying hello (he has goodbye down).

Puppet Show Stage

Cut the box along one corner and open it up so that it stays up on end. Cut a large whole in the center for the puppets. Aiden (my son) enjoyed using different items as puppets. If your toddler is younger, they may not be able to set up a story with the puppets, but they will enjoy turning on music and making the puppets dance. You can also do favorite nursery rhymes with the puppets and games like peek-a-boo.

Art Easel

Cut the box along one corner and then fold it over another side so that it looks like a triangle. Set the box on the floor, poke a whole in each of the top corners of the box and slip yarn through and tie the ends so that the yarn doesn’t fall through the holes in the box. Use clothespins, paper clips or file clips to hold up a piece of paper. Let your toddler draw. You will need to watch them closely because art products may be non-toxic, but it still isn’t a good idea to let them chew on them.

 

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Pillow Playground

Toddlers love to climb, jump and roll around. They have just learned many of these skills and it is great fun to be able to try them out. If its cold outside or rainy and you can’t let them run around outside or go to the park for an outlet, toddlers will often climb on furniture and can end up getting hurt.

Instead, put a bunch of pillows on the floor and let them crawl over them and play in them. It kept my son happy at play for nearly an hour and a half and that’s a long time for a 19 month old.

Variations:

Spread pillows out and help your toddler step over them.

 

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