How to Play with Toddlers: Games to Play With Toddlers

Playing With Your Toddler

 Why Explore 

Exploring is an essential part of healthy and happy development for your toddler. Exploring nurtures your toddler's curiosity and aids in crucial toddler brain development by creating situations and engaging them in activities in which they can use all five senses to discover the world around them. Touch has been found to help support a toddler's growth and development, including improved cognitive performance and increased alertness.

 Exploring with your toddler 

Toddlers are just starting to discover how this big, exciting and complicated world works, using their bodies to explore everything from the kitchen floor to the sandbox. Playtime gets to be even more fun with toddlers. They are in full discovery mode and learning to communicate better with gestures, sounds and words. In addition, they are learning to stand on their own two feet and walk both forwards and backwards.

Even better, soon they'll be running, jumping and climbing. They'll also use their fingers and hands to explore in more complex ways (so make sure you are ready for some exercise). Every child has a different style of exploring. Some toddlers are very action orientated. Others will enjoy a calmer play and get great pleasure from quiet playtime.

 Games to play with your toddler 

1. Running, Climbing and Action Games

   Classic games for kids like "Ring Around the Rosie" and "Piggy in the middle" are games that most toddlers enjoy and encourage them to move, sing, listen, take turns and cooperate. As always, going to the park, playground and play dates in the garden provide opportunities to run, climb and play with other children. On a rainy day, try activities for kids like creating an obstacle course indoors or building a tent and telling a story.

2. Let's Do It Again…and Again…and Again

   Repetition is how toddlers learn to figure out how things work and fit together. They may fill a box with toys and dump them out repeatedly to comprehend full and empty and in and out. In addition, toddlers may want to hear the same story over and over or sing the same song again and again. This type of repetition helps a toddler to know what to expect and provides a sense of security and control. Even better, it helps them to explore through learning, mastering new skills and helps boost their self-confidence.

3. Name That Tune

   As toddlers learn through imitation, they'll enjoy singing songs and you reading books with words that rhyme to them. Words are easier to learn when they rhyme or are put to music. To engage your toddler, try pausing a song. Do they know the next words? Dance to the music with them and exercise their legs and arms. This is a wonderful way to help a toddler express themselves and experience the freedom of movement.

4. Busy Hands

   A large part of exploring for toddlers is discovering and learning how to make things work. Toddlers use their fingers and hands to push buttons, put things into boxes and dump the box, or turn pages. Knowing how to push and pull allows your toddler to play music and enjoy a treasured book. In addition, your toddler may also enjoy finger painting, colouring, playing with dough or squeezing water from a sponge.