Activities for Spirited Kids
It is hard to come up with activities for kids who are always on the go. These are some of the things that we have done with our little man to keep him living, loving, and learning. Hopefully, they will give you some ideas…
Activities for Spirited Kids Sub Categories
Alphabet Tracing Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers
Alphabet tracing is one of the best ways for toddlers and preschoolers to practice the alphabet, learn how to write, and practice their fine motor skills. Below are some of our favorite alphabet tracing activities.
Write a letter with a yellow marker and then trace it in black
I learned this one from Edison’s preschool teacher. She writes the alphabet letter with a yellow marker on white paper. Then, he just traces it with another color. This is an especially good way for children to sign greeting cards.
This is one of my favorite ways for Edison to practice alphabet tracing because it also keeps him entertained while he is waiting for dinner. I just give him a pencil and he traces the letters until dinner is ready. I keep a wet wipe handy and he just wipes it off as I set down his plate. As with everything like this, I got mine for cheap at Amazon.com.
Cover a chalk board with chalk and use your finger to write the letter
Hold a piece of chalk sideways and use it to coat a chalkboard. Then, use your finger to draw letters of the alphabet. Give your child the chalk and have them trace the letters. When they have finished, just use the chalk to scribble over it and do it again. From the WildEdisons.com post: Toddler Alphabet Tracing Activity.
Trace letters on signs
Any sign with big letters that is within their reach presents a good alphabet tracing opportunity. Obviously, they would use their finger instead of a writing utensil, but the principle is the same. I like garage sale signs and sale signs at grocery stores.
Use the Wipe Clean Letters Alphabet Tracing Book
This book is fantastic for practicing alphabet tracing. We have had it since he was a toddler, but he still uses it as a preschooler. The book has heavy cardboard pages where my son can trace the letters and then wipe them off. I keep the marker on a shelf where he can’t reach it, but happily bring it down every time he wants to use it (which is a lot). He will trace the letter on each page. When he is finished, I give him a baby wipe to clean the pages. (In the past, I have had issues with wipe-off books getting stained if you leave marker on it for a long time. We would rather be safe than sorry. Plus, he enjoys the act of cleaning up the alphabet tracing pages.) The last I checked, you could still get this at a discount on Amazon.com.
Incoming search terms:
- toddle write letter tracing
- toddler tracing pages
- tracing activity for toddler
- todler alphabet trace
- alphabet tracing for toddlers
- preschool tracing
- letter tracing for toddlers
- letter tracing for children
- alphabet tracing mats
- tracing activity for toddlers
Related Posts:
Toddler Books We Love: Best Books for 2 Year Olds
My 2 year old son loves books, but it is no accident. We spend a lot of time reading reviews on Amazon.com, talking to his teachers, and asking other parents of 2 year olds. I love when we get a box in the mail, and he jumps up and down yelling. “New books? New books?” Yes, I probably have a little problem, but hey…He isn’t jumping up and down asking for cookies.
At any rate, below are some of our favorite toddler books. All kids are different, but I would consider them some of the best books for 2 year olds.
PS…In case it isn’t obvious, I get our books and a lot of other toddler stuff from Amazon.com. There is no tax, most stuff has free shipping, and it is a heck of a lot cheaper than our local chain bookstores. If you aren’t a millionaire and don’t need it tomorrow, I suggest looking there first.
Sorry. Now, to continue with my 2 year old’s favorite toddler books…
Llama Llama Red PajamaBuy it at a discount through Amazon.com >>
I enjoy this book as much as my son does. We both identify with the story of a baby llama freaking out because he is scared that his mother is gone. Plus, the pictures are so expressive. Even though the book is about llamas, I have seen the exact same expressions on my 3 year old’s face. I mean, look at the cover…
Read the reviews >>
Bear Hugs
Buy it at a discount through Amazon.com
Every time my son picks this book, I roll my eyes because we have read it SO MANY TIMES. But, then I change my tune because he gets so involved as we read. I know that most of it is memorization, but it is so cool that he “reads” along with me. It is clearly designed for children that are getting ready to learn how to read.
Read the reviews >>
I Like Stars
Buy it at a discount through Amazon.com >>
In case you haven’t noticed, I tend to gravitate towards books that are written to help children prepare to read. This is another one of our favorites. It is about stars. Duh. But, I like the fact that we can talk about the different colors and practice counting as we go. “Star” is one of the words he recognizes by sight when we are out and about, and it is definitely because of this book.
Read the reviews >>
Hare and Tortoise Race to the Moon
Buy it at a discount through Amazon.com >>
I actually found this book when I was pregnant. I was looking for books with high contrast images because I read that babies found them more interesting. Well, my son wasn’t really interested in it as a baby. No surprise. But, now as a 2 year old, this is one of his favorite books. This is one we have to hide or else we would have to read it every night.
Read the reviews >>
Pajama Time!
Buy it at a discount through Amazon.com >>
My neighbor, with 4 boys of her own, introduced us to this fantastic toddler book. Pajama Time! was one of her youngest son’s favorite books, and now it is one of my 2 year old’s favorites as well. We love all of Sandra Boynton’s toddler books, but this one has a special place on the book shelf.
Read the reviews >>
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
Buy it at a discount through Amazon.com >>
This toddler book was a lot more fun to read before my son learned his alphabet. Now, it takes forever to read each page because he has to point out every letter. There are worse things that he could be doing though. I can’t complain. Either way, this is definitely one of my 2 year old’s favorite books.
Read the reviews >>
No David!
Buy it at a discount through Amazon.com >>
Honestly, I wasn’t keen on this book at first. It was page after page of stuff I did not want my 2 year old doing. But, it grew to be one of my favorites because it gave us an opportunity to talk about all of the bad things that David was doing. It really sunk in too. Once at dinner, my son opened his mouth with chewed up food. Then, he promptly shut his mouth and said, “No, David!”
Read the reviews >>
The Little Red Caboose
Buy it at a discount through Amazon.com >>
This golden book is a classic, and we know why. I have had to hide this book more times than I should admit, because my 2 year old requests it every time he sees it. I like the message too. Everyone is important, even if they are just a little red caboose.
Read the reviews >>
Let’s Go to the Zoo
Buy it at a discount through Amazon.com >>
OK. If you have a 2 year old, you know that lift the flap books rock. They are more than just a book. They are an activity. I like this particular book because there are lots of things to talk about. My son likes it because it has tons of flaps on each page.
Read the reviews >>
Hop on Pop
Buy it at a discount through Amazon.com >>
This was one of my favorite books growing up, and now that I have been reading it to my son I remember why. OK…So the story is a little thin, but the words are simple and memorable. (I still remember most of it from when I was a kid, and now my 2 year old happily reads along. It has lots of site words, so it is good for pre-readers.
Read the reviews >>
Incoming search terms:
- best books for 2 year olds
- best toddler books
- best books for two year olds
- great books for 2 year olds
- best books 2 year olds
- good books for 2 year olds
- best books for 2 year old
- top books for 2 year olds
- best books for a 2 year old
- books for 2 year olds
Related Posts:
The Significance of Toddler Activities for Child Development
The mind of the young child is frequently likened to very soft, adaptable clay: Impressible and responsive. All through infancy and early childhood years, there are countless sensory paths just waiting to get formed. These will impact how well a child interacts with and functions in the world. The toddler age is known as a important period for child development. Variety is of the utmost importance, because different types of toddler activities will stimulate different centers of the brain.
Ingenuity
The innovative process has a vital role in child development. Engaging in unstructured artistic toddler activities educates your child how to come up with new concepts and perspectives, and enables her to cultivate her feeling of self and find out her unique personal aesthetic tendencies. Imaginative pursuits can also be excellent for growth of the fine motor control and concentration. You can stimulate your toddler by providing tools. Nearly anything enables you to create something, from colors, finger paint and construction paper to sticks, plant seeds and beads. You can also make a game of trying to find patterns and forms in things like tiles, grain, clouds and shadows.
Thinking
One of the very first opportunities for teaching your toddler thinking capabilities is when they begin to eat by themselves. Meals in many different shapes, colors and sizes could be amazing resources for this specific purpose. You might find your toddler organizing their food items by logical classification: by size, color, type, or shape. Which means that your little one’s brain is learning to identify differences and similarities.
A lot of parents have been frustrated by the limitless flow of whats, whys and hows coming from their toddler. However, this is possibly among the best chances to teach reasoning abilities. Try to answer their questions honestly and to the very best of your ability. If you do not have the answer, let them know. Admitting that you don’t know something demonstrates to your toddler that nobody is infallible.
Language
The capability to communicate is necessary so as to perform among people, and the sooner your child learns, the better a start she will have. Some effective toddler activities include reading to your child, speaking with her and have her participate in name games in which you have her repeat the names of various things. Whenever your little one responds correctly, reward her with praise.
Exploration
Youngsters are usually curious and like to explore. Inside the house, in the park, or in your back yard, encourage your child to search in, under and around things. They will certainly identify countless things that captivate them. If you enjoy to grow plants, let your toddler assist you. Such activities improve their appreciation of the environment, and make them learn that the world is a huge, diverse place.
If you would like to learn more about the benefits of toddler activities in child development, you should also read this article about the significance of toddler activities.
Related Posts:
How To Get Your Child to Sleep In…This Works!
The problem with young children is that they have no concept of time. When they wake up, it is time for everyone to get up whether it is 4:30 or even earlier. And, young children can’t just go make themselves breakfast while we lounge around in bed until a reasonable hour.
We were going crazy. Sure, Little Man was sleeping through the night, but he was getting up so early that we were still loosing sleep. And, since he couldn’t tell time, it was impossible to convince him that it was not time to get up.
It took me forever to find this thing, but once I did, it changed our lives. It is not really an alarm clock. It is actually kind of the opposite of an alarm clock. Rather than telling your child to wake up, it tells them it is NOT time to get up. (Queue angels singing.)
It is simple. You set the night light on the clock and then set a wake up time. Instead of a bell ringing to wake your child up, the color of the light changes. It took all of 30 seconds to explain to our child that he cannot get up until the light turns green.
Now, instead of him demanding to get out of bed at 4:45, we hear a sweet little voice at 6:00 in the morning (or much later!) saying, “Mommy. The clock turned green. This has even made it into our family jargon. When we put him to bed, we say, “I’ll see you when the clock turns green.” And, he says things like, “Mommy, when the clock turns green can we play trains (cars, transformers, whatever.)
Oh, and it has a digital and analog display with a button that says the time out loud so he is actually learning how to tell time too.
If you have a young child that gets up way too early, you have to try this thing. You might be able to find it locally, but I just got ours from Amazon.com.
Related Posts:
Pencils…A Million Preschool Activities in One
I once asked Edison’s teacher what I should be working on with my son at home. She answered, “Give him a pencil and paper. That is all he needs at this age.”
Honestly, I thought the answer was a little cheap until I gave him a pencil and paper and watched him try to write. He kind-of looked like a pig trying to knit. I didn’t get it…He does great with crayons, pens, markers, etc. There was just something about using a pencil to write that was extra hard for him.
Nothing like a good challenge.
We picked up a package of those extra big, preschool pencils to make it a little easier. We also spent $1 on a manual pencil sharpener, the kind where the shavings are contained in a little cup. Then, we set about practicing with pencils. His fine motor skills and “writing” have already improved. Plus, he has tons of fun while accidentally learning valuable preschool skills.
Below are some preschool activities for pencils:
- Sharpening Pencils - Who would have thought that this chore would be so much fun for a preschooler. Edison is fascinated with watching the shavings curl. He also loves emptying the pencil sharpener.
- Erasing - Now there’s a mark…Now there isn’t…The first time I brought out the pencils, Edison spent a good 15 minutes erasing things. Can we say fine motor skill development?
- Name Writing - Having a preschooler practice writing his or her name kills a lot of birds with one stone.
- Correcting Misspellings - I wrote Edison’s name on a piece of paper and purposefully replaced the “d” with a “c”. He figured out it was misspelled, erased the “c” and did his best to write a “d”. We did this with a bunch of words.
- Educational Write-A-Mats - I just love these things. They are place mats that you can write on. (Click here to see what I am talking about…) We have the United States map, the world map, the phonics place mat and the one for learning to tell time. Not only do they keep his table space clean, but they keep him occupied while we are getting dinner ready.
- Drawing By Instruction - Sometimes, I will just ask my preschooler what he wants to draw. Then, I walk him through it. For example, if he says “a rocket!”, I say, “let’s start with a big rectangle.” I demonstrate by “drawing” a rectangle with my finger on the paper so he knows where to start. Then, I walk him through adding fins, windows, boosters, etc. This activity makes it fun to practice fine motor skills.
- Tracing - Whether my preschooler is tracing his hand, tracing cookie cutters, or tracing things from around the house, it is a great way to practice his fine motor skills.
- Shading - Did you know that if you hold a pencil at an angle, you get a wide line that is perfect for coloring in large areas? Of course you knew that, but maybe your preschooler doesn’t. Edison thinks it is pretty freakin’ cool.
- Quick, Travel Entertainment - Now-a-days, I always keep a pencil and a tiny pad of paper in my purse now, for those boring moments in waiting rooms or in the car. What a life saver.
