Listen With Your Ears / Let's Taste Red

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can help the brain pathways make new connections.

Activities for Toddlers

 

Listen With Your Ears

The following game is a wonderful way to develop listening skills in your children. The idea is to have the children identify sounds without seeing what is making the sound.

Before you begin, choose three or four sounds that the children will be identifying. Let them watch you make the sounds as they listen.

Some suggestions are: Tap your foot on the floor, crunch paper, clap your hands, and ring a bell.

Now play the game. Make the same sounds one at a time behind a door or desk. They should only be able to hear the sound.

After each sound is made, ask the children to identify the sound. When they have identified it, let them copy the sound themselves.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – What sounds can you make with your mouth?
For developing the idea – Let’s walk around the room together and find other sounds that we can hear.
For moving forward – I’ll make a sound with my hands. Tell me what you hear. (You can clap, snap, and pound.

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Let's Taste Red
Color recognition is a skill children begin to develop at a young age.

Color and shape are ways children observe and categorize what they see. These characteristics encourage children to define and organize the diverse world around them.
Understanding color is a tool for learning many skills from math and science to language and reading. For example, when your child learns to understand the similarities and differences between colors and shapes, she is using the same skills she needs to recognize the differences between letters and numerals.
Give the children an opportunity to taste red foods, such as strawberries, raspberries, tomatoes, apples, rhubarb, and red peppers.
Talk about each food. Discuss the color, the texture, and the taste (sweet, sour, or something else).

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Tasting all of the red food was fun. Did you have a favorite?

For developing the idea – I like the picture that you made. Tell me about your picture. Do you want to have any of those foods for dinner?

For moving forward - Let’s make a grocery list. What red foods do you want to buy at the super market?

Music Parade!

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can help the brain pathways make new connections.

Music Activities for Infants and Toddlers

Parades
If you have musical instruments in your classroom, a parade is a great activity for the kids.

Marching to music teaches rhythm. Playing the various instruments teaches eye-hand coordination plus listening skills.

Put on your favorite marching music, pass out the triangles, cymbals, drums and shakers and enjoy the parade. Music by Sousa is always a good choice.

One of the most popular toddler music game is a musical parade. A music teacher might bring in several instruments such as triangles, cymbals, drums, and horns and let the toddlers march around while playing the instruments. But, what if you don’t have musical instruments to spare? The solution is to help the kids to make their own!

Here are some ideas for making your own:
Fill containers part way with beans or grains and seal them well. These make great shakers.

Decorate toilet paper tubes, punch one or two holes in the sides, blow on one end and you have a flute. Do the same with a paper towel roll and you have a clarinet.

Buy some jingle bells at the dollar store.

Glue sandpaper on old blocks and rub them together.

Simply clap your hands together or toot with your voice.

The children will enjoy the parade and want to do it again and again.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Let’s march together to this wonderful music.

For developing the idea – As we march around the room, lets play our instruments loudly and then softly. The music will tell us what to do.

For moving forward – If we had an animal parade, what animal would you be?
If we had a favorite person parade, who would you be….grandpa, farmer, baby?
If we had a vegetable parade would you be a carrot or a green bean?

Here are some book suggestions about parades.
"The Great Doughnut Parade" - by Rebecca Bond
"Parade" - by Donald Crews
"Christmas Parade" by Sandra Boynton

Recommended products from Discount School Supply®:
Giant Plush Stacking Ring (TALLRING)
Plush Handykid Tools - 7 pieces (MYTOOLS)
Karen Katz Board Books - set of 4 (KATZLIB)
Maestro Baby Instruments - set of 4  (MAESTRO)
Career Toddler Costumes - set of 6 (PCTCSET)
Popular Children's Songs CDs - set of 4 (TODCDS)

Sorting Colors / Where Are Your Eyes?

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can help the brain pathways make new connections.

Activities for Infants

 

Sorting Colors
Exploring and responding to books about colors.

 

Read the book "A Color of His Own" by Leo Lionni to your little ones.

 

Sit on the floor with a child in your lap.

 

Place in front of you several toys and stuffed animals.

 

Start sorting the toys by color. “Let’s find all of the toys that have the color red and put them together.” Continue sorting by changing the color.

 

Start sorting with two colors. After the toys are sorted, pick up a toy with red and say the following poem.

 

Red, Red, let me see

When I find you, how happy I will be.

 

Point to the red and take your baby’s hand and put it on the red color.

 

Next, do the second color that you have chosen.

 

Blue, Blue, let me see

When I find you, how happy I will be.

 

Point to the color blue and take the baby’s hand and put it on the blue color.

Alternate the colors back and forth.

 

After you have played the game several times, you can add a third color.

 

Always use the same toys for the colors that you choose.

 

Here are some suggestions for other books about color.

 

"Blue Hat, Green Hat" – by Sandra Boynton

"What Does Bunny See?: A Book of Colors and Flowers" - by Linda Sue Park

"Bright Baby Colors" – by Roger Priddy

 

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence – Talk about colors everywhere and help the children become more aware of colors. 

 

For developing the idea – Use color words to talk about different objects in the room.

 

For moving forward – Suggest other ways to sort the toys. You can sort by size, toys with wheels, toys that make sounds or different textures.

 

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Where Are Your Eyes?
Say this poem with the children and ask them to point to the different parts of the body as they are mentioned and do the action.

Where Are Your Eyes? – Author unknown
Where are your eyes? Show me your eyes--Pretty eyes can see.
Where are your eyes? Show me your eyes--Shut them quietly.
Where is your nose? Show me your nose--Pretty nose can blow.
Where is your nose? Show me your nose--Wiggle it just so.
Where is your mouth? Show me your mouth--It can open wide.
Where is your mouth? Show me your mouth--How many teeth inside?

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Can you open and close your eyes? What else can you do with your eyes?

 

For developing the idea – Can you say “I like to smell.” and tell me something that you like to smell with your nose.

 

For moving forward – One reason to open your mouth is to yawn. Can you think of another reason? Yes, eating.

Three Little Kittens / Clothes Conversation

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Activities for Toddlers

 

Three Little Kittens

 

This wonderful poem is great for acting out. Choose someone to be the mother and three children for the kittens.

 

Three little kittens
They lost their mittens
And they began to cry,
Oh, mother dear, we sadly fear
Our mitten we have lost.
What! Lost your mittens,
You naughty kittens!
Then you shall have no pie.
Mee-ow, mee-ow, mee-ow.
No, you shall have no pie.

 

The three little kittens
They found their mittens,
And they began to cry,
Oh, mother dear, see here, see here,
Our mittens we have found.
Put on your mittens,
You silly kittens,
And you shall have some pie.
Purr-r, purr-r, purr-r,
Oh, let us have some pie. 

    ~ Author Unknown

 

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence – Ask the children, "Have you ever lost something? How did it make you feel?"

 

For developing the idea – Ask the children, "Where could the kittens look for their mittens? Your hands!"

 

For moving forward - "Let’s say the poem again. You be the mother and I will be one of the kittens."

 

If you are in a classroom, say the poem together with all of the children and let them act out the various parts. They love to do the crying parts!

 

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Clothes Conversation

Show the children three kinds of clothing. For example, a boot, a heavy jacket, and a hat. Try to select articles of clothing that the children wear and are familiar with.

 

Show one article of clothing at a time and talk about why people wear this kind of clothing. 

 

Make a list with the children of the different kinds of clothes that people wear.

 

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence – Ask the children, "Are you wearing any of the clothes that we talked about?"

 

For developing the idea – Ask the children, "Do you have boots? Where do you wear them?" Ask the same questions about other articles or clothing. If the child is wearing a sweater, then ask about the sweater.

 

For moving forward - Let’s look together at the magazines and you show me pictures of clothes to wear when it is cold. You can continue looking at magazines for clothes in different seasons, at different times of day, and at different places.

Head and Shoulders / Poetry in Rhythm

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Music Activities



Head and Shoulders
Here is a new way to sing or say this popular song.
Head and shoulders baby, one, two, three
Head and shoulders baby, one, two, three
Head and shoulders
Head and shoulders
Head and shoulders baby, one, two three

Now say the words and do the actions.
Head and shoulders baby – touch your head and shoulders and clap on “baby.”
One – hold your right arm out straight to the side and clap once.
Two – hold your left arm out straight to the side and clap once.
Three – hold your right arm out straight to the side
Repeat Above
Next
Head and shoulders – do actions
Head and shoulders – do actions

Back to the Beginning

You can say this chant with any two body parts. Knees and ankles, nose and hips, etc.
Start slowly and go faster and faster.
 
Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – "Let’s say the chant together and do the actions."

For developing the idea – "I’ll name a part of the body and you show me where it is."

For moving forward - "What are some other parts of the body that we could say in our chant?"

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Poetry in Rhythm
Music teaches the rhythm of language.

When you sing, you put vowels and consonants in a rhythmic pattern which enhances language.

Young children recognize words, sounds, rhythms, tones and pitches long before they talk, sing or dance. So, the more music your child has in her life, the better she will speak and read.

The following game develops rhythm through speech and develops wonderful listening skills.

Select a favorite poem or song.

I have chosen “Baa Baa Black Sheep” for this example.
Ask the children to “echo” what you say.

Adult - Baa, baa, black sheep
Children - Baa, baa, black sheep
Adult - Have you any wool?
Children - Have you any wool?
Adult - Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full.
Children - Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full.
Say each line and accent the first word.
BAA baa black sheep,
HAVE you any wool?

Now say two lines ..."Baa, baa, black sheep, have you any wool?"

Let the children say the next two lines, “Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full."

Think of interesting ways to say tor sing the words for the children to copy.

Speaking rhythmically is a wonderful pre-reading skill.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – I’ll say some words and you copy what I say. (use the same or a different song.)

For developing the idea – This time I’m going to sing a song just using the word “la.” See if you can copy me.

For moving forward – You sing a song and I will copy you.

Products from Discount School Supply® that I recommend:
Multicultural Velour Soft Babies - set of 4 (ALL4BY)
Green Toys Pizza Parlor Set - 27 pieces (GRNPIZZA)
Musical Scarves Movement Set - 19 pieces (DANCESET)

To See and To Smell / Oh, My Goodness! Oh, My Gracious!

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Activities for Infants

 

To See and To Smell

The current brain research says that what babies see and smell create brain connections. The external senses—vision, hearing, smell, and touch stimulate the neurons to connect with one another.

 

Exposing your baby to many different sensations will broaden his awareness of himself and the world.

 

Try gently rubbing your baby’s arms with different fabrics. Satin, silk, wool, and terrycloth are good fabrics to start with.

 

Use descriptive words as you rub the fabric on your baby’s arm. Some words that you can use are soft, silky, scratchy, cool, rough, and smooth.

 

Give your baby an opportunity to experience different smells. Go outside and smell the air, the flowers, the grass, and a leaf.

 

Cut in half a lemon, a lime, and an orange. Enjoy the smell of the freshly cut fruit.

 

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence – Repeat one of the activities for three consecutive days. 

 

For developing the idea – After three days, do the activity one time and then add a new activity. For example if you were rubbing a fabric on your baby’s arm, the new activity could be rubbing the same fabric on your baby’s cheek.

 

For moving forward – Give a fabric to your baby and let him rub it on your arm. Ask him to rub it on the parts of your body that you rubbed on him. 

 

Repeat the same idea by giving him a piece of fruit for you to smell. Respond with appropriate words.

 

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Oh, My Goodness! Oh, My Gracious!

The newest brain research says that when children receive warm, responsive care, they are more likely to feel safe and secure and to be able to build attachments to others.

 

To encourage a sense of security and safe feelings, say the following to your child.

 

Oh, my goodness,

Oh, my gracious,

Look who’s here, look who’s here.

Oh, my goodness,

Oh, my gracious,

It’s my favorite (child’s name)

 

Hold your child close and give him a big hug.

 

Repeat the poem again and when you hug your child, hold him high in the air and then bring him down for a big kiss.

 

Try rocking him, slowly spinning him around, or any other loving motion.

 

Your little one will absolutely love this!

 

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence – Say the rhyme and leave out your child’s name for her to fill in. 

 

For developing the idea – Play the game using a stuffed animal and say the name of the stuffed toy. 

 

For moving forward – Clap your hands as you say the rhyme. When you come to the name at the end of the rhyme, hold your hands over your head and clap several times.

The Wonderful Box / Family Language

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Activities for Toddlers

 

The Wonderful Box

 

The following story is from my book "The Complete Book of Activities, Games, Stories, Props, Recipes and Dances For Young Children."

 

You will need a box wrapped in pretty paper with a toy inside. In this version, there is a top in the box. That idea can be changed.

 

Tell this story to the children:

 

Look at this wonderful box. It’s all wrapped up. with pretty paper and a pretty bow. It’s a present. I wonder what’s inside? Do you wonder what’s inside?

 

What do you think is in the box? Maybe it’s a ball. Maybe it’s a doll. Maybe it’s a rattle for a baby.

 

Let’s pick up the box to see if it is heavy or light.

 

Let’s shake the box to see if we can hear something.

 

Maybe it’s a book. Maybe it’s a toy car. Maybe it’s a jack-in-the-box. Let’s find out.

 

Let’s take off the bow and carefully take off the paper. We might want to use it again.

 

OK! Are you ready to see what’s inside?

 

Look! It’s a top!

 

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Talk about the box and use descriptive words.

 

For developing the idea - “What would you put in a box for a surprise?”

 

For moving for forward - “If a rattle is in the box when you shake it, would you hear a noise? What else could be in the box that makes a noise?”

 

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Family Language

 

Discuss the names in a family. Mother, father, brother, sister, grandmother, etc.

 

Ask each child, "What do you call your mother?" There will be a variety of answers...Mommy, Mama, etc. 

 

Let each child share what they call their mother.

 

Continue on with sharing names of other family members.

 

Remember to count pets as members of a family.

 

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence – Can you tell me names of your family members?

 

For developing the idea - What do you do with each family members? Do you play with your sister? Do you read stories with your grandmother? How about your dog or cat? Do you play with them?

 

For moving for forward – If you were a father, what would you say to me? If you were a dog, how would you play with me?

 

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Families Books - set of 7 (FAMBKS)

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• Ages 3 years and up

Singing with Bells / Funky Sounds

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Music Activities for Infants and Toddlers

Singing with Bells

Place a jingle bell inside an empty film canister. Tape or glue the lid on securely. Shake the canister and sing familiar songs like "This Old Man," "A B C Song," and "One Elephant."

Play this game with the bell.

Sing to the tune of "If You’re Happy and You Know It."

Shake the bell in the air, in the air, (hold your hands over your head to shake the bell)
Shake the bell in the air, in the air,
Shake the bell in the air and hold it up right there,
Shake the bell in the air, in the air.
Shake the bell on the side, on the side, (hold hands to one side for shaking)
Shake the bell on the side, on the side,
Shake the bell on the side as you smile very wide,
Shake the bell on the side, on the side.
Shake the bell down below, down below, (shake the bell below your knees)
Shake the bell down below, down below.
Shake the bell down below and smile and say “hello,”
Shake the bell down below, down below.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence - “This jingle bell will make our singing sound beautiful.” Sing several familiar songs and shake the bells.

For developing the idea –“Which song did you like singing? Can you think of another song we could sing?”

For moving forward – “Do we have to shake our bells all through the song or could we shake them at certain times?” Try singing “Mary Had a Little Lamb” and only shaking the bells on word “lamb.”

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Funky Sounds

 

Brain research says that auditory discrimination of various types of sounds must be developed in order to be able to process letter sounds.

 

This activity is an important pre-reading experience.

Locate several types of containers with lids.

 

Fill each container with a different object such as sand, buttons, bells, stones, beads, birdseed, etc.

 

Securely attach the lid with super glue and/or tape. You can decorate the outside of the container if you like.

 

Give your child the opportunity to shake and make some noise with each filled container. You may even wish to leave one container empty just for novelty.

 

Talk to your child about the different types of sounds you hear when the container is shaken.

 

Choose familiar songs to sing as you shake the different containers. You might sing some of them loudly or softly, in a high or a low voice. Let the sound help you decide what to do with your voice.

 

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence – Shake each container and talk about how it sounds. Is it loud or soft? Is it light or heavy? Is it tinkley or thundering?

 

For developing the idea - Select a container and ask your child to select one also. Choose a familiar song and sing and shake together.

 

For moving for forward – Go outside with your child. Listen to the different sounds. Airplanes, birds, the wind and cars.

 

Products from Discount School Supply® that I recommend:

Wooden Wind Chimes - set of 12 (BREEZY)

Kitchen Bottle Collection - set of 5 (BOTTLES)

Big Mouth Animal Puppets - set of 8 (FUNPUP)

Brawny Tough Jingle Wrap - set of 10 (JBELLSET)

Gold Jingle Bells - 150 pieces (BELLS)

Cluster Bells (CLUS)

 

Outside Exploring / Seek and Ye Shall Find

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Activities for Infants

 

Outside Exploring

 

Brain research says that early childhood experiences exert a dramatic and precise impact, physically determining how the intricate neural circuits of the brain are wired.

 

The brain takes in information through the senses (sight, smell, touch, taste, and sound) and translates that information into a response.

 

Playing outside on a lovely day is a wonderful way to experience all of the senses.

 

There are so many things to do.

 

Let your baby crawl in the grass while you crawl along with him.

 

Name each thing that your baby seems interested in.

 

Smell flowers, tickle with grass, look for bugs, etc.

 

Rolling over in the grass is fun to do and your baby will enjoy the light, prickly feel of it.

 

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Say to your baby, “We are having fun playing outside.”

 

For developing the idea – Do activities that use the senses. Look at flowers, smell the flowers, listen to the birds, touch the grass, and taste some herbs.

 

For moving forward – Repeat the same activities and use say the name of the body parts you are using. For example, “I see the flowers with my eyes.” or, “I smell the flowers with my nose.” Continue on with all of the senses.

 

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Seek and Ye Shall Find

 

Brain research says that an infant’s brain can discern every possible sound in every language. By ten months, babies have learned to screen out foreign sounds and to focus on the sounds of their native language.

 

Listening for the source of a sound is a very good game for developing auditory awareness.

 

This kind of game needs to be played in the early years to strengthen brain connections for the future.

 

You will need a wind-up clock that makes a nice sound.

 

Hold the clock and sing a little tick, tock song with your baby.

Tick, tock, tick tock

Goes the clock,
Tick, tock

 

Now take the clock and put it under a pillow.

 

Ask your little one, “Where is the tick tock?”

 

Help guide him to the clock, using the sound to locate it. Once he understands how to play this game, he will want to do it again and again.

 

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence – Hide the clock in the same place several times so that your baby will know exactly where it is.

 

For developing the idea –Begin hiding the clock in different places while your baby is watching you.

 

For moving forward – Ask your little one “where shall we hide the clock?”

 

Recommended Products from Discount School Supply®:

Time Buddy (AP40015J)
 

 

Five Plum Peas and The Salad Game

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Activities for Toddlers

Five Plum Peas

A delightful action poem that uses fine motor skills and alliteration.

Five plum peas in a peapod pressed.
One grew, two grew, so did all the rest
They grew and they grew and they never stopped,
They grew so big that the peapod popped! 

Make fists with your hands and press the knuckles together.

On "one", straighten your thumbs and touch the tips together.

On "two", do the same with your index fingers. 

Continue with your middle fingers, ring fingers and pinkies on "so," "all," and "rest," respectively. 

Now you should have your hands palm to palm, with the finger tips touching. 

As you say "they grew and they grew" you start moving your hands apart, showing bigger and bigger . . . slow it down . . . stretch it out . . . by the time you get so big "that the peapod" you should be reaching as wide as possible then on "POPPED" you clap your hands together very fast and very loud.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence –“ Show me how you made the pea pods pop.”

For developing the idea –“ Can you say “pea pods pop” slowly? Now can you say it fast?”

For moving forward – “What other words start with the same sound as “pea pods”? (some ideas…pepper, potty, pickle)

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The Salad Game

You will need:

A chef’s hat

Pictures of foods that are in a salad.

Seat the children in a circle.

Talk about salads and the different ingredients that are in a salad.

If possible get a chef's hat to play this game. Choose one child to be the chef and she stands in the middle of the circle.

Each of the children sitting on the circle decide what food they would like to be if they were in a salad. Go around the circle and let each child tell you what food they are. If someone can't think of something, you can help them. It is okay for the children to repeat the same foods.

Say to the chef. "Chef, would you like some lettuce in your salad?" The chef answers, "Yes, I would like some lettuce in my salad." 

Whoever is the lettuce (it can be more than one person) gets up and goes into the middle of the circle and stands next to the chef.)

Continue on until every child is in the circle. Then say "Toss the salad!" and all the children jump up and down until you say, "Time to eat the salad."

Children really like this game.

Song: Fruits and Vegetables by Jackie Silberg. Can be found on award winning CD Touched By a Song.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence - What do you like to eat in your salad?

For developing the idea – If you were making salad, what would you put in it?

For moving forward – When you go to the super market, what are some of the salad vegetables that you see there?

Drum Songs and I Use My Brain

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Music Activities

Drum Songs

Play music for the children with drum parts. Jazz is particularly good because there are often drum solos for listening.

Encourage the children to pretend they are playing the drums with the music.

Show the children different ways to make drumbeats to the music.

Hit your fists on different surfaces.

Use wooden spoons or rhythm sticks to play on different surfaces.

Play imaginary drumsticks in the air.

Using a hand drum, play a steady beat and ask the children to follow you as you move in and out around the room. As you walk, skip, hop (you choose) sing the following song to the tune of “London Bridges.”

We are moving to the drum

Rum tum tum, Rum tum tum

We are moving to the drum

Now we stop.

When you stop, sit down on the floor and sing the song again as the children pretend to play a drum.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence – Listen to the drums in some music and talk about if it is fast, slow, loud, or soft.

For developing the idea – Listen to the music again and pretend to play the drums when you hear them.

For moving forward – Visit a music store and look at drum sets or invite a drummer to the classroom.



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I Use My Brain

From infancy, as babies develop, the sounds of rattles and musical toys intrigue them. Toddlers begin composing their own rhythmic patterns by banging on pots and other surfaces. A tune on the radio or television can spontaneously inspire a toddler to respond by swaying and bouncing his little body. 

Here is a rhythm action poem that develops motor skills and identifies body parts.

I Use My Brain by Jackie Silberg

I use my brain to think, think, think

(touch your head with your index finger)

I use my nose to smell

(touch your nose)

I use my eyes to blink, blink, blink

(blink your eyes)

And I use my mouth to YELL

(yell)

I use my mouth to giggle, giggle, giggle

(touch your mouth)

I use my hips to bump

(sway your hips)

I use my toes to wiggle, wiggle, wiggle

(wiggle your toes)

And I use my legs to jump

(jump)

Here are some additional ideas for playing this rhythm game depending on the age of the child.

1. Clap the rhythm of the poem. Notice that the rhythm is the same every other line.

2.Clap two lines and speak two lines.

3. Clap two lines and stamp two lines.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:

For building confidence - Say the poem and do the actions with the child.

For developing the idea - Say the poem and ask the child to do the actions.

For moving forward – While holding a doll or stuffed animal, point to the doll’s body parts as you say the poem.

Products from Discount School Supply® that I recommend:
Indestructible™ Infant Books - Set of 6 (INDY)

Nursery Rhymes, Games and Songs - Set of 3 Board Books (FUNBK)

Bilibo® (BILIBO)

Babbles and In and Out

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Activities for Infants

Babbles

This game is a wonderful language developer.

Listen closely to the rhythm of your baby’s babble and you will discover that she babbles a bit and pauses. The pause is waiting for you to respond with some babble or words.

Then you pause, and the baby will pick up on that and babble again.

You are teaching the art of conversation.

Try it! You will be amazed.

When babies begin to make babbling sounds, they start with lots of “p” “b” and “m” sounds.

If you say a lot of words using those sounds, you will be helping to develop their language skills.

Sing songs starting all of the words with the same letter sounds.

Have a conversation with your baby and use the same sound over and over again.

Current research is saying that babbling is a very important sign of good language development.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Sing the melody of a familiar song using the same sound for the words. Using the beginning sound of your baby’s name is a good way to start.

For developing the idea – Repeat the same sound several times and then put it in a word. For example, ba, ba, ba, ba, ball. If you are using the baby’s name, say his name after repeating his beginning sound.

For moving forward – Using the sounds that your baby makes, imitate those sounds and add words that start with those sounds.

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In and Out

Early experiences shape the way circuits are made in the brain.

Understanding spatial concepts like in, out, over, under, and behind are important for brain development.

Playing games that encourage this understanding will benefit your baby in future years.

Start with inside and outside. Take a large paper sack¾the kind that your cat would like¾and put a favorite toy inside. Help your baby find the toy and take it out.

Put it back in again and keep playing the game over and over. Soon your baby will put the toy inside the sack by himself.

Make up a silly song or group of words, such as the one below, and say it each time you put the toy back into the sack.

Sacky, wacky, toysie, woysie
Boom, boom, boom (say the last boom in a bigger voice)

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Play the game several times and compliment your baby each time he takes the toy out of the sack or puts it into the sack.

For developing the idea – Give him a different toy and ask him to put it into the sack and take it out.

For moving forward – Find different containers to put toys into. Perhaps a basket, a box or a bowl.

Rain on the Green Grass

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Activities for Toddlers

My name is…..
This is a game that I play in my classes for parents and babies. It is very popular.

You will need a brightly colored rhythm stick. A lummi stick is perfect because of the small size.

You will also need some smiley face stickers

Decorate the stick with the smiley face stickers.

The ideal situation for this game is to have one adult with each child. That way, if the child is not speaking yet, the adult can speak for them and move their arms up and down.

Seat the children in a circle and pass the stick around one child at a time. The child who is holding the stick taps it on the floor and says "My name is -----, and I like -----." Then she passes it on to the next child.
The children really enjoy this game and also discover that they have similar likes. This game is also excellent for eye-hand coordination and language development.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence: Say to the child, “I like the way you hit the stick and told what you liked.”

For developing the idea: Ask the child, “Can you tell me other things that you like?”

For moving forward: Say to the child, “Let's draw some pictures of things that you like.”

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Rain on the Green Grass
Say the following poem together:
Rain on the green grass
Rain on the trees
Rain on the rooftops
But not on me

Let the children name three things that it can rain on. For example, sidewalk, kitty cat, and windows. Always end with the same last line "But not on me."

Rain on the sidewalk
Rain on the kitty cat
Rain on the windows
But not on me!

Continue to name things that can be rained on and then put them in the rhyme.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence: “Let’s say the rain poem again.”

For developing the idea:  “Let’s look out the window see the different places the rain could fall.”

For moving forward:  "How does rain feel? How does rain smell? How does rain taste?"

Jack In the Box and Babies Love Faces Activities

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Activities for Infants

Jack in the Box
Repeating a small motor skill, such as squeezing a squeaky toy, develops neural circuits that move from the brain’s thinking areas into the motor cortex and out to the nerves that move the muscles. Encourage babies to practice small motor skills to stimulate brain growth. This is a wonderful game to help fine motor development.

Show your baby how to make a fist.

Then take the thumb of his other hand and put it into his closed fist.

Practice opening and closing his hand to make a fist.

Now practice pulling his thumb in and out of his fist.

Say the following rhyme.

Jack in the box
You sit so still – thumb is in the fist
Can you come out?
Yes, I will. – pull thumb out of the fist
Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence: "Can you show me your thumb? Can you make a fist?”

For developing the idea: “Can you put your thumb in my fist? (hold out your fist)
Can you put your thumb in your fist?”

For moving forward: Take a favorite stuffed toy and show your little one how to take the toy’s hand or paw and put it into his fist.

Say the poem again and play the game.

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Babies Love Faces
Babies are very content when they look at faces.

When your baby sees your face, she will be happy and delighted.

Say the following poem with your face about eight to twelve inches from your baby’s face:

Hello, hello, I love you very much.
Hello, hello, my fingers they can touch.
Hello, hello, I’ll touch your little nose. (touch baby’s nose) Hello, hello, I’ll kiss your little nose. (kiss baby’s nose) 

Repeat this poem and change the last two lines to different parts of your baby’s face - ears, eyes, cheeks, lips.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence: Say the poem again and give your baby a kiss at the end of each line of the poem.

For developing the idea:  Change your voice as you say the poem. Babies love to hear “parentese” voices. (high pitched)

For moving forward: Say the poem while holding a toy doll. Take the baby’s hand and put it on the doll’s nose, cheek, and parts of the body in the poem.

Babbles and Music & Rock-a-Bye Baby

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Music Activities

Babbles and Music
When babies start to babble, they begin with open vowels (Ohs and Ahs).

Next are new sounds and combinations, with Ps, Ms, Bs, and Ds.

Sing a song using the same vowel sound for the words. A good song is Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.

Instead of “Twinkle, twinkle, little star,” it could be “ma ma ma ma ma ma ma.”

When your baby hears you sing with the same sound, he will try to mimic you. Current research is saying that babbling is a very important sign of good language development.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence: Sing a familiar song with the same vowel sound. When your baby starts to copy you, praise her and give her a hug.

For developing the idea: While your baby is singing along with you, clap her hands together and sing with great enthusiasm.

For moving forward: Sing the same song and change the vowel sound every two lines. Starting with “ma ma” and “ dada” is familiar to your baby and is a good way to start.

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Rock-a-Bye Baby
Rock-a-bye baby in the tree top
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock
When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall
And down will come baby, cradle and all

Providing warm, responsive care to young children strengthens their biological systems and help them handle their emotions. A strong, secure connection with your child will help him withstand the ordinary stresses of daily life.

Hold your child in your arms and rock him back and forth as you sing lullabies and other soothing songs, such as the following:
            Goodnight, Irene
            Hush Little Baby
            Kumbaya
            Rock-a-Bye Baby
            Swing Low, Sweet Chariot
            By’m Bye
            Sleep Baby Sleep

Use a rocking motion to calm your child and develop trust between the two of you.

After the last line of the song, hold your toddler close and give him a big hug.

Brain research says that exposure to music affects spatial-temporal reasoning. Such reasoning underlies math, engineering, and other disciplines.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence: Sing the song and rock your child in different places and at different times of the day.
For developing the idea: Sing the song while your child holds a doll or stuffed animal and rocks it in his arms.

For moving forward: Act out the song and fall down at the appropriate place.

Products from Discount School Supply® that I recommend:
Size and Shape Puzzles - Set of 6 (SSPS6)
Sound Puzzle Box (AP21J)
Indestructible™ Infant Books - Set of 6 (INDY)

Ordering a Pizza & Pass the Potato

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Activities for Toddlers
Communication with a young child creates the patterns for understanding. Laughter, especially, helps in releasing feel good chemicals and responses in the body, thereby increasing attachment and feelings of self-worth.  

Ordering a PizzaYou will need pictures of pizza.

Ask the children if their parents have ever ordered a pizza by telephone.

Talk about what information you would give on the phone.

What kind of pizza?

What size pizza?

Your name.

Your address.

Your telephone.

Have a pretend conversation with the children and order a pizza.

After you have played this a few times, you will see the children start to play this game with their friends.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence –Ask the child “what kind of pizza do you like to eat?”

For developing the idea –Tell the child that you are going to pretend to talk on the phone and order a pizza. As the child to tell you what he would like on his pizza.

For moving forward – Look at the pictures of different pizzas and talk about what others like to eat on their pizza.

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Pass the Potato  You will need pictures of potatoes and a large russet potato.

Talk about all of the ways that you can cook a potato…boil, fry, mash, bake, etc

Sit the children in a circle and sing the following to the tune of the song "London Bridges."

Round the circle, here it comes

Here it come, here it comes

Round the circle, here it comes

Pass the potato
As the children are singing this rhyme, they pass the russet potato from one to another. When the rhyme is finished, the child left holding the potato gets to come into the circle and pretend he is eating a potato. He can also tell what kind of potato he is eating...mashed, fried, boiled, etc.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Let the children tell you what kind of potatoes they like.
For developing the idea – What sound does the word “potato” start with?

For moving forward – I’ll name some words and you tell me if they have the same sound as “potato.” Pig, party, happy, funny, pony……etc.

Cardboard Music & Animal Songs

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Music Activities for Infants and Toddlers

Cardboard Music
Playing this game will develop rhythm and memory.

You will need a toilet tissue paper tube (ARTROLL) for each child.

Show the children how to make a musical sound by singing into the tube.

If you sing "toot, toot, toot" you will make an interesting sound.

Try "toot tooting" familiar songs like " Happy Birthday" and "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star."

Playing this game is a forerunner to playing a kazoo and later perhaps a wind instrument.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Ask the child to toot a song and you sing along.

For developing the idea - Try tooting the songs in a high voice and a low voice.

For moving forward – Pick out three favorite songs and play them together. Let the child choose which song he will toot in the morning, the afternoon and the evening. 

If your child is enjoying this, change to new songs every few days.

This is a great pre-cursor to poetry and reading in general.

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Animal Songs
This activity encourages creativity, cognitive thinking and the joy of singing.

Young children are particularly fond of songs, games and books about animals. 

The more that you sing with your child, the better language he will have and the better reader he will be.

Here are some songs about animals. Can you think of some more?

Itsy Bitsy Spider, Five Little Ducks, Old Macdonald, All the Fish, Shoo Fly, Bingo, and Hickory Dickory Dock.

A wonderful website to find Animal Songs is Kididdles.com.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:For building confidence –Sing an animal song with the child and praise him for doing such a good job.

For developing the idea - Pick an animal song and ask the child to make the sound of that animal. Now sing the song in the animal voice that the child made.

For moving forward – Make up a song with the child about an animal. It’s best to use a familiar tune like “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” Here is an example.

Bobby had a little dog, little dog, little dog,
Bobby had a little dog
It’s fur was black and white.

Products from Discount School Supply® that I recommend:
Indestructibles™ Nursery Rhymes Books - Set of 6 (INDY2)
Maestro Baby Instruments - Set of 4 (MAESTRO)
Circus Sorting Train Banner - 29 Pieces (CHUCHU)

Giggle Box & Sweet Little Bunny Activities

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.
Activities for Infants
Communication with a young child creates the patterns for understanding. 

Laughter, especially, helps in releasing feel good chemicals and responses in the body, thereby increasing attachment and feelings of self-worth.

Giggle Box
Help your baby know how special she is by imitating and mimicking her sounds.
When your little ones begins to giggle, giggle right along.

Laugh often and show spontaneous joy at what your baby can do.
Bring a favorite toy to life. Take that teddy bear or puppet and have it dance, sing, and move about. Be prepared for lots of giggles.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Let the favorite toy jump up and down while you laugh together.

For developing the idea - Do some more actions with the stuffed animal. Rock it in your arms and sing a song.

For moving forward – Give the stuffed animal to your baby and let him rock the toy or move it up and down. You may need to help him at the beginning.

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Sweet Little Bunny
You will need a toy bunny.

Hold the stuffed animal in your hands and say the following:

Sweet little bunny hopping on the ground - hold the bunny and hop it up and down
Sweet little bunny looking all around - turn the bunny around

Look up high - hold the bunny high in the air

Look down low - bring the bunny down to the ground

Run, run, run

Oh, Oh, Oh, - run with the bunny

Sweet little bunny, where did you go? - hide the bunny behind your back

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – After saying the poem again, give the stuffed animal to your child. Ask her to hold the bunny high and hold the bunny low. Move her hands up and down as you ask these questions.

For developing the idea – Hold your child in your arms and say the poem letting her hold the stuffed animal. Move her arms accordingly with all of the actions.

For moving forward – Pretend you are the bunny and do the actions in the poem. Encourage your little one to copy you. 

Two books that go nicely with this activity are:
The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown
The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter

Creating a Story

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Activities for Toddlers
Creating a Story
This game will help develop vocabulary.

You will need a variety of small objects to put into a paper bag. For example, a set of keys, book, a small toy, or a spoon.

Remove each item from the bag one at a time, and create a story by adding one sentence for each item as it removed.

For example: Once upon a time there were some keys on the floor – Key
When I picked up the keys, I laid them on a book. – Book

Continue on making new sentences with each word.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Use the same words again in a little story.
For developing the idea - Put two new objects in the paper bag. Take them out and use the words in your story.

For moving forward – Draw a picture with your toddler about the story.

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Can you Name?
Ask the children if they can tell you what is in their house…tables, chairs, lamps, tv, etc. 

Sing this song to the tune of "London Bridge" and leave out the last word for the child to fill in.

Tell us please, what’s in your house
In your house
In your house
Tell us please, what’s in your house
Tell us …..(Lakeesha)
(Lakeesha names something in her house)

Continue singing this song about trees, animals, flowers, food, and more.

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Can you name some of the things at your house?
For developing the idea - What do you like to do in your house at a table?
For moving forward – What does your mother do at a table? What does your grandpa do at a table?

Bumpin' Along

These games will help to grow the brains of infants and toddlers. Whether it’s through singing, dancing, cuddling, rocking, talking, smelling, or tasting, you can encourage the brain pathways to make new connections.

Music Activities

Bumpin' Along  Singing and moving together with a young child develops fun and bonding. We all have good memories that involved music.

Sit on the floor with your child on your lap.
Sing this popular folk song to the tune of "Ten Little Indians" as you bounce your child up and down.

Bumpin along in my little red wagon
Bumpin along in my little red wagon
Bumpin along in my little red wagon
Look out, here comes a bump!
(swing your child over to one side)
You can make up additional verses such as:
Oh, oh, the wheel is broken
Oh, oh, the axle's broken
I'm gonna get my hammer and fix it
Always end the song with the same words…look out here comes a bump!

Ideas for taking this activity to the next level:
For building confidence – Sing the song and use the child’s name in the song. For example, “Betsy is riding in her little red wagon.”
For developing the idea - “Let’s pretend to ride in something different. Maybe a car or a tricycle.”
Let’s go riding in a pretty red car…etc.

For moving forward – Let’s pretend to ride on a train, or an airplane.(make up new words for the song)

Products from Discount School Supply® that I recommend:
Pull Along Zoo Animals (PULLZOO)
Toddler Movement Scarves - Set of 6 (MOOVIT)
Basic Rhythms™ Bongos (DESI)