Together We Grow

Materials: You and your child 

This activity helps your child learn the names of their body parts through rhyme, song, and movement—and notice when something in the pattern changes!  

Invite your child to sing “Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes” with you. 

Then begin to recite the following poem: 

“Wiggle, wiggle, 1 2 3  

Can you wiggle your (head) for me?“ 

(Show your child how to wiggle your head.) 

“Wiggle, wiggle, 1 2 3  

Can you wiggle your (shoulders) for me?“ 

Continue through the head, shoulders, knees, and toes.  

Repeat the poem and begin to include other body parts. This may surprise your child, as it doesn’t follow the pattern. 

To end, follow the original pattern of head, shoulders, knees, and toes.  

Prompting Questions: 

• What body part can you wiggle next? 

• How can you show me where your feet are? Tummy? Can they be a part of our song? 

Materials: different sizes of blocks, building materials, and other manipulatives and toys (animal and people figures)  

This activity builds your child’s math vocabulary by exploring size and comparison words during play. As children build, hold, and observe objects, they naturally start using words like “big,” “small,” and “tall” to describe what they see. 

In an open area, inside or outside, set out different building materials, blocks, and manipulatives for your child to use while building. 

Talk with your child about their work and incorporate simple math terms into your dialogue. Use terms like big, bigger, biggest, and small, smaller, smallest as you analyze materials and creations together with your child. 

If your child has a play tape measure, feel free to bring it out! Measuring something together is fun, even if the numbers don’t quite make sense yet. Stick with simple words like “big” and “small” to keep it easy to understand. 

Prompting Questions: 

• Where is the biggest part of your structure? 

• Can you point out the smallest piece you used to build with? 

• If you could choose something big to use in your structure, what would it be? 

This activity will help your child… 

• Practice back‑and‑forth communication through pretend play and interaction  

• Strengthen fine motor skills as they scoop, pick up, and pour using their fingers  

• Begin early counting with support and repetition  

• Build confidence and pride by completing simple, meaningful tasks 

Materials: 

Small cups or bowls, a spoon or scoop, dry items (cereal, beans, pasta, oats, or rice), Optional: toy plate or placemat 

How to try it at home: 
Set up a small “café” on a table with cups, bowls, and scoops. Place dry ingredients and scoops in larger bowls that children can scoop from when “serving” food.  

Invite your child to scoop, pour, and “serve” food to you or a stuffed animal. Narrate what they are doing and pause often so your child can respond with sounds, gestures, or words. 

For younger toddlers, you can use “hand-over-hand” guidance to assist them in scooping and pouring. They might also use their hands and fingers – which is great fine motor practice!  

As they scoop and pour, count together (“Let’s put in one… two!”) or ask simple questions like, “Who are you cooking for?” or “Do you want more or all done?” 

Celebrate their efforts, spilling and trying again are part of learning! Children build confidence when they complete small tasks and proudly share their “meals.” 

As your child becomes interested, you can use this experience to give them an active role in preparing their own meals such as scooping their own cereal into a bowl! 

This activity will help your child… 

• Explore how objects feel, move, and change through hands‑on sensory play 

• Strengthen memory and flexible thinking through simple pretend play 

• Practice back‑and‑forth communication during shared, everyday experiences 

• Build fine motor skills through scrubbing, pouring, and handling materials 

Materials: 

A shallow tub with a little water (no more than 1 inch deep), play dishes, cups, bowls, or plastic measuring cups and clean reusable containers, nail brush or washcloth, small amount of bath soap, towels 

How to try it at home:  

Set up a shallow tub of soapy water on a table or on the floor with a towel underneath and one nearby for drying. Add a few child‑safe dishes, a washcloth or nail brush, and invite your child to start washing! Talk with them about what they are doing and enjoy the experience together. 

“These dishes need a good scrub. Wash the inside and outside of the bowl. Great work!” “The soap smells so good!” “Would you like help drying the dishes?” 

Try asking… 

• “Which dish will you wash next?” 

• “How does the water feel?” 

• “Listen to the bubbles popping. What do they sound like?” 

Materials: a large basin, sink, or bathtub, an electric hand mixer, and body wash 

Bubble Foam gives children an opportunity to experience a different texture and substance, awakening their senses to explore imagination, create, and experience pure joy! 

Using a hand mixer (adult use only), whip together (2minutes on HIGH) the ingredients below until stiff peaks form. 

¼ Cup body wash (use your child’s bath wash for this) 

½ Cup water 

Food coloring (optional) 

Gather the bubbles and put these in a basin for your child to touch, move around, and create with. The bathtub or kitchen sink may be a good option for this activity but be mindful of the food coloring if you decide to use it. It could stain surfaces. 

This is also a great activity for the outside. If you have access to a hose, cleanup is easy! 

Prompting Questions: 

• What does the foam feel like? 

• How does it smell? 

• How did you move it around? Could you get the foam to stick to itself and become tall, or what did you make with it? 

Tips for Success! 

• Decide where you want your child to play with the Bubble Foam. 

• Have all the ingredients ready to make Bubble Foam before inviting your child to experiment. 

• Add some spoons, ladles, and plastic containers to use with the Bubble Foam. 

• Add other toys like plastic cars that can get wet and/or model animals.

• An additional idea is to make Bubble Foam ahead of time, cover and freeze it for 2-3 hours, for a very different experience! 

Materials: A clean plastic water bottle without the lid, bubble solution, towels, and a shallow pan or tray. 

Water Bottle Bubbles supports fine motor skill development, inquiry, cause-and-effect, and the use of everyday items in new ways through trial-and-error. 

Pour the bubble solution into a shallow pan or tray.  

Clean out a water bottle and remove the lid.  

Invite your child to dip the mouth of the bottle into the bubble solution—model how to squeeze the bottle gently to create a bubble through the top. 

Now your child can blow the bubble off, or make it pop! 

Tips for Success! 

• Have everything prepared before inviting your child over to explore Water Bottle Bubbles with you. 

• You may also want to arrange some bubble wands, so your child can use what they are used to before showing them something new. 

• Model patience and taking turns with your child, or have more than one water bottle available to use for siblings and yourself. 

• If you are unsure about doing this indoors, use your child’s bathtime to try it out. 

Materials: a tray, a few random but well-known items that will fit on the tray (4-6), and a kitchen towel or cloth to cover the tray. 

The “What Is Missing?” activity supports memory, vocabulary, and language (specifically color and shape), self-regulation, inquiry, and reasoning skills. 

• play hammer 

• book 

• hand soap 

• plastic plate 

• spoon 

• toy car 

Collect items (start with 4) and lay on a tray and cover the tray with a cloth. Some items that may be interesting but known could be: 

Invite your child to look at the tray of items with you when you uncover it. Look at each item and verbally describe what each one is. 

“I see a spoon that you like to eat yogurt with.” 

“Here is a yellow hammer.” 

“This plate is green, and its shape is a circle.” 

Tell your child you are going to take one item off the tray, and they have to guess which one is missing. You need to be very sneaky to pull this off in front of your child. Get one of the items and put it out of sight while keeping the tray covered. 

Say, “What’s Missing?” 

Uncover the tray and show your child. 

“What is not here anymore?” 

To jog their memory, you can start by describing each item again. To get familiar with the game, it may be necessary to put the item back, show the tray, then take it away again, so they know what you are asking about. 

Prompting Questions: 

• What items do you like the most? 

• Which item did you think I was going to take away? 

• What items would you like to place on the tray? 

Tips for Success! 

• Have the tray of items arranged and ready for your child before inviting them over to play. 

• Start with only 4 items, and if that is too difficult, try 3 instead. You can also add 1 item at a time to make this more challenging. 

• Describe each item on the tray, naming colors, shapes, and how your child may use the item to help their memory form new connections to language. 

Materials: Clean and safe recycled plastic bottles (caps removed or glued down) to be pins, a small ball 

Bowling supports gross motor muscle strength, hand-eye coordination, persistence, cause-and-effect, problem-solving, and bonding. 

Collect and set up 3 to 6 empty plastic bottles in a group or triangular formation to serve as the pins. Model to your child how to roll the ball to knock down the pins. Then, have your child help to set the pins up again. 

For the younger toddlers: Use hand-over-hand guidance to help them roll the ball towards the pins. Clap your hands and show your child how to clap theirs when you have success in rolling the ball or knocking down a pin. 

“Let’s clap, yay!”  

Gently help your child clap their hands together. 

Prompting Questions: 

• What if we used a different ball or rolling object? Will it help knock down all the pins? 

• What would happen if we were farther from the pins? 

• What else could we use for pins? 

Tips for Success! 

• Have the pins and ball ready before inviting your child over to engage in this activity. 

• Encourage cheering and acknowledgement when cups are knocked over! 

• Start with 2 or 3 pins if you find that your child is frustrated with setting the pins back up. 

Materials: a mirror and your child 

The Many Faces of Me is an activity that practices emotion recognition and naming. Reflection plays a key role in understanding oneself as separate and becoming self-aware. 

This is a fun activity to do when getting ready in the morning after brushing teeth. Make funny faces in the mirror together. 

Point at you and point at your child in the mirror. 

Start to have your child make a happy face after you do it. 

“Here is my happy face. Show me your happy face.” 

“I have a sad face. What does your sad face look like?” 

“When I’m excited, I look like this! What does your excited face look like?” 

Have fun and look to see if your child is making some different faces. Identify their facial expressions when they make them! 

Prompting Questions: 

• Do you know anyone who is always smiling? 

• Who is sometimes sad? How can we help them? 

• What can you do when you feel angry? 

Tips for Success! 

• Think ahead of time when to do this game in your getting-ready morning routine or pick another time. 

• Be sure your child can see themselves in the mirror. You may need to use a stepstool or a full-length mirror so they can see their whole face and yours. 

• Reflections in windows while shopping is another great option! 

Materials: A way to transport your child safely, by walking, wagon, stroller, etc., on a sidewalk. If you are in a downtown/ shopping area, there will be many more signs to point out.  

Signs Around Me supports language, early shape and color recognition, print awareness, communication through gesturing, and practice in taking turns. 

During a walk with your child, begin pointing out signs in different colors and with different meanings. You can even do this while stopped safely when driving somewhere or throughout local stores while you run errands.  

Your child might recognize people depicted on a pedestrian crossing sign. You can describe the sign as yellow and add, “Yes, people are walking just like we are! This sign here (point and draw attention to it) tells us it is safe to cross”  

You may want to point out a red stop sign and model what to do when you see this. “This is a stop sign; it tells me that we must ‘stop’ and look both ways before we cross. It tells cars the same thing!”  

Other signs or symbols could be from stores and business establishments. Think about some of your favorite places to go together: restaurants, shops, local libraries and parks, etc. These familiar and well-loved places are ones your child will certainly notice as you point them out!  

Prompting Questions: 

• Where else do we see signs? 

• What do signs help tell us? 

• How can we make a sign? 

Tips for Success! 

• Finding bright-colored signs that are close by, not across the street or two blocks away, is easier for young learners to see. 

• Pointing out different kinds of signs that have interesting symbols is best. Think of that animal shape or food sign. 

• When your child begins pointing at other people, places, and things besides signs, they want to hear what they are and what to call them. As your child continues to work on language and memory, they may ask (in their own way) that you keep repeating what certain signs and items are. 

Materials: clean plastic bottles with lids (start with at least 2), paper/wrapping paper, tape, hot glue (or tape) to keep the lid on, items to fill half the volume of the bottle, and items that sound different. 

Examples of possible “noisemaking” materials are: rice, beans, sand, liquid, oats, pebbles, twigs, beads or loose craft items 

This exciting sensory activity supports sound recognition, cause-and-effect, curiosity, large- and small-muscle strength, and taking turns.  

Use enough of one material to fill up the plastic bottle to half of its volume. Be sure to secure the lid with glue (hot glue works well) or with tape.  

Wrap the bottle with a piece of paper or wrapping paper to cover the items inside the bottle.  

SAFETY TIP: Your child will try to take the lid off; maintain active supervision while your child has access to the sensory bottles. 

Ask your child to listen closely to the sounds as you shake the bottle. Give them a turn to try shaking. 

Here are some questions to guide their thinking:  

• “This is what [ITEM] sounds like in our bottle!” 

• “The [ITEM] gets very loud when we shake it hard and fast! And they get quiet when we shake it slowly and gently.” 

Try this out with other bottles that are filled with different materials. Talk about the sounds as your child shakes and explores these sensory bottles.  

They will want to unwrap the bottles, which is part of the activity! When they do, talk about what is inside.  

• “You unwrapped the bottle and look what is inside!  

• “The [ITEM] gets very loud when we shake it hard and fast! And they get quiet when we shake it slowly and gently.” 

Prompting Questions: 

• What do the bottles sound like if we roll them?  

• What happens if we roll it on a hard floor? Carpet? 

• How can we make the sounds loud?  

• How can we make the sounds quiet? 

Tips for Success! 

• Make these bottles ahead of time so the glue or tape can dry and be tested to keep the lid on.  

• Introduce the bottles by shaking them and asking,  

“Did you hear that? Listen…” 

• Have the paper wrapped around the bottles before inviting your child to explore them. 

• Allow your child to unwrap the bottles. 

• If your child continues to show interest in the 2 bottles you made, add 1 or 2 more with different sounds! 

Materials: Food you have during meals with your toddler  

Why This Activity Helps: 

Is That Yummy supports feeding, attachment, memory, and social interactions. 

How to Do It: 

During mealtimes, sit with your child, help them eat, and describe the foods they are tasting. You can describe your own food and talk about how “yummy” your food is as well.  

Have your child try feeding themselves with the proper utensil. You can use hand-over hand to model if needed.  

For older toddlers or as your child is interested, you can embed some elements of family style dining into your meal times:  

• Let your child pick between a couple of options.  

• Invite them to scoop items onto their plate.  

• Have them get their cup or utensils needed for the meal.  

Prompting Questions: 

• What foods do you think are yummy? 

• How can we ask for more? 

• What makes you smile while you are eating? 

Tips for Success! 

• Have a consistent place for eating meals. 

• Be sure to provide a spoon, a napkin, and a fork for your child each time they eat, so they have a choice of how to eat. 

• Allow your child to have a drink they can easily access without having to ask. 

• Sit with your child while they eat and while you eat. It is important that you model for your child what to do. While meals can be stressful, having a positive attitude toward food preparation and eating is best. Social interactions at mealtimes are positive reinforcements for language and emotional development.  

Materials: Empty boxes, cardboard tubes, and plastic bottles (round, cylinders) and containers, painter’s tape or chalk 

Why this Activity Helps:   

Sorting Shapes with Recycled Materials promotes hand-eye coordination, math and science concepts of shapes and sorting, memory, and decision-making skills.   

How to Play:  

Draw with chalk outside, or use painter’s tape inside to make a large rectangle and circle. Make them big enough to put items inside the shape. Start with a recycled item and talk about the shape with your child. Model how to place the item inside the outlined shape. Continue looking at each shape, naming it, and assisting your child with placing it inside the matching shape. 

Keep the play going by finding more shapes around your home. Your child may recognize and get shapes from a puzzle, from a sorting toy, play dishes, etc… 

As you sort, narrate what is happening and ask prompting questions to encourage conversation. Conversations about shapes, size, color, and more are great for continuing to build their foundational knowledge of core concepts.  

More open-ended questions will lead to conversations that encourage critical thinking, imagination, and bonding.   

Prompting Questions:  

• Where should the next piece go?   

• How many rectangles are in the rectangle? Let’s count them together. 

• I wonder what other shapes are in our home?  

Tips for Success! 

• Have some recycled materials of only rectangles and circles (round) before inviting your child to play.  

• Stay with your child and support them in deciding where an item needs to go. 

• Be ready to follow the lead of your child, and watch to see if they have other ideas for the recycled items. 

Materials: a round object or ball and an open area, objects to create an obstacle (recycled materials, blocks, cones, etc.). 

You will be amazed at how your child can think around a problem with this activity! Moving the ball in a different way than usual is a problem-solving task that supports flexible thinking, imagination, perseverance, body control, spatial awareness, and bonding. 

Set up a series of obstacles that your child can move the ball through to get from one place to the next.  

Ask them to keep the ball on the floor, and move it from the middle to a wall, or other space. You can give directional language as they move. Example: “Move the ball around the cones”.  

Use the questions below to ask your child to move the ball in other ways. 

Prompting Questions: 

• What if we couldn’t use our hands, what are some other body parts we could use? 

• Can you show me how to use your knees (elbows, only pointer fingers, etc.) to move the ball? 

• How long would it take if we used our noses to push the ball? 

Tips for Success:  

• Have the ball and obstacle set before inviting your child to play. 

• Cheer on your child! Even if they don’t reach the end of your obstacle course, they tried and that counts.  

• Model other ways to move the ball to get your child started.  

• Offer the words of encouragement and prompts like “Try again” or “Wow! That was a creative way to move the ball”. This will encourage perseverance, creative thinking, and problem solving.  

Materials: Toy animals that can get wet, water, and soap in a plastic container, and a towels/washcloths/sponges/etc.  

This activity fosters empathy and kindness in young children as they explore how to care for toy animals. You can help model how to care for animals while washing, being careful of their eyes and ears, and being gentle when drying them.  

This activity will also build vocabulary, imagination, and motor skills as the dive into this fun, sensory experience.  

Set out toys for washing, washcloth, brush, and towel next to the container with water and soap.  

Model next to your child what to do and how to wash the animals. Notice their body parts, how to be gentle and keep the animal safe, and the names of each one. As you wash together, include conversations about animal noises, what they look like, where we might see them, and more. These rich conversations will enhance their vocabulary and language.  

**Important** While you are not using a lot of water, do not leave your child alone with an open container of water.  

Once all washed up, find a place to put it for drying. Offer a dry towel that your child can use to gentle dry each one. Again, add rich language and narration throughout the process.  

Extend the experience with a prompt like “I wonder what these animals do after they’ve taken a bath?”. This can get your child thinking about the next stage of their play and how they might want to use the animals. For example: will they be ready for some food, to take a nap, or to play again?  

Prompting Questions: 

• How did you wash the (animal)’s ears? Nose? Feet? 

• What would happen if the animal didn’t want to have a bath to get clean? 

• Is there another way animals can clean themselves? 

Tips for Success! 

• Decide where you will have this activity. 

• Have all items ready (soapy water, towels, animals, wash cloths, etc.) before inviting your child to come and play. 

• Expect spills and wet clothes (you and your child). If your child becomes upset at getting wet, reassure them and get a dry shirt so they can continue to play and development can continue. We are all washable and will dry! 

Materials: Empty food boxes, cartons, and other containers safe for building, a large space to create 

Building together supports children’s creative thinking, problem solving, and concepts like balance, measurement, and shapes. When you engage and interact together you are also building language and communication skills along with strong and positive relationships!  

Set out your recycled boxes, containers, and cartons in a large space (playroom, outside, living room, etc.). Invite your child to come build with you! As you are building prompt them with questions:  

• “Can you tell me about what you are building?”  

• “Wow! I love how you used [name item] to [name action”. That was really creative!”  

• “My tower fell; how can we fix it?”  

• “I see lots of shapes here. Look this is a [name shape], can you find another [name shape]?”  

• “Is this [shape] bigger or smaller than this [shape]?”  

Keep the fun going by adding other elements such as cars, people, and more of your child’s favorite building toys to the experience.  

Tips for Success! 

• Talk with children through the experience. Use descriptive words and an encouraging tone of voice. 

• Follow the lead of your child by supporting what they decide to do with the materials.  

Materials: You and your child 

Bubble Pop! Supports attachment, imitation, language, imagination, memory, early literacy and math, rhythm, and rhyme.   

Demonstrate how a bubble can grow from small to large through pantomiming (pretending there is a bubble). No materials are needed, as you will be using your hands to make the imaginary bubble. 

Lead your child and announce you have a little bubble (imaginary) as you use your hands and arms to extend them a little bigger, just as a bubble grows! While singing or chanting, change the pitch in your voice to go up the musical scale from a lower pitch to a higher pitch as you say: 

“Bubble, bubble, bubble (pause), bubble, bubble, bubble (pause), bubble, bubble, bubble (pause) Pop (clap)!” (The bubble is so big your arms are extended all the way out from your body.)  

Repeat and invite older infants to follow along with your motions. 

Prompting Questions: 

• What happened when the bubble popped? 

• When I have a low voice, the bubble is small, but then what happens? 

• When the bubble can’t get any bigger, what happens? 

Tips for Success! 

• Be sure you turn to face your child and are not interrupted by outside “pings.”  

• Facing your child with them on your lap, sitting up on the floor in front of you, or in tummy time (propped up if needed) with you lying on your tummy is best. 

• Repeat the chant and watch your child’s face. When do they start to anticipate the clap at the end, or “Pop!”? 

Materials: You and your child, soap, running water, a towel 

Washing Hands supports a healthy body, sequencing, healthy habits, memory, relationships, and attachment. 

Choose a song you and your child know to sing while washing hands. It could be you make up a song about the steps of washing hands or sing a nursery rhyme or other song you both love.  

Model what to do washing your hands with your child, through the last step of drying hands on a towel. 

Prompting Questions: 

• We don’t want germs do we? 

• Should we scrub the germs off? 

• Can we rub the paint off? How? 

• Will you show me how to wash my hands? 

Tips for Success! 

• Be sure your child has access to a stool to reach the faucet, can turn on the faucet and reach the water, can pump soap, make bubbles, and rinse. Can your child reach a towel? 

• Singing a song helps children wash their hands for a longer time, assuring more germs are washed away. Be sure the song you pick isn’t too long! 

• Positive words every time your child washes their hands will help them to make a good choice to do so again.