Whether you are home all day, one day or part of a day with your baby/toddler, you can pick and choose from the following ideas to keep your young one active, engaged and learning.
Morning Routine
When my daughter wakes up, we have a little routine in such a way that she knows what to expect and what comes next. After getting myself ready (sometimes with her and sometimes before she wakes up), I put an outfit on my daughter. (I pick out the week’s outfit on Sunday evening.) Then she points to her feet to get her socks and shoes on. We usually read a book that she chooses and then head to the bathroom to brush her teeth. Finally, we will eat breakfast together. Sometimes she sits in her high chair while I prep it and sometimes she is in the kitchen with me.Remember to take care of you, too!
As a mom, it is easy to forgot self-care and taking care of ourselves can easily fall to the bottom of the list. My goal this summer is to go on a bike ride or stroller walk after breakfast each day. My daughter loves both activities and it is a great way to get in some exercise.The Daily Schedule
This summer, my two nieces who are eight and five, will be spending the day with us so I have a detailed schedule for each day. I purposely include play time that incorporates the five stages of child development: cognitive, social and emotional, speech and language, fine motor skills and gross motor skills. Here are just a few ideas of what you can include from each stage. Many activities fall into more than one stage.
Example Schedule:
An example of a day’s schedule at home might look like this:8:30 Wake up, morning routine, breakfast
9:00 Bike ride or walk in stroller
10:00 Play time - cognitive activities (puzzles, sorting toys, stacking toys etc)
10:30 Arts/Crafts/Coloring/Sticker Books - fine motor skills
11:00 Music Time, listen to music, play music, play musical instruments along to music
11:30 Lunch
12:00 Gross Motor Skills, Recess: Walking, Running, Dancing - physical activity for child
12:30 Reading Time - speech and language skills
1:00 Nap Time
3:00 Snack, playtime (cognitive activities & social and emotional skills)
3:30 Exercise together (gross motor skills - playing outside, walking together etc)
4:00 Relax together, my daughter enjoys Sesame Street and Beat Bugs
You’ll discover what your child enjoys doing and where you can repeat activities. As your child grows, her ability to play independently will increase. In the meantime, relish in the time together! Do what you can and if you miss an activity one day, it’s okay! Learn more about the stages of child development and see what other ideas suit you and your family best.
As always, I hope this blog post gave you some ideas for engaging in learning and playing with your child.
