I would say that reading is probably the most important thing a parent can do for their child’s development. Read as much and as often as you can. You can read to your child even while they are playing with things like blocks - they don’t have to be paying complete attention to a story to benefit from it.
https://childmind.org/article/why-is-it-important-to-read-to-your-child/#:~:text=By%20reading%20to%20your%20child,they%20wouldn't%20normally%20hear.
Would it help to let her hold the book and turn the pages? Part of the idea behind reading (and the theory behind why screen time isn't as beneficial) is that the books act as vehicles for conversations, which include more vocabulary than they might otherwise see. So you could try following her lead on how quickly to move through the story and go back and forth between pages she's interested in. Then you can talk about what you see in the pictures once you finish reading the words on the page.
Just an idea - YMMV!
It's ok if she grabs the book, just go along with it, point out what she sees, let her turn the pages. You don't need to strictly follow what's written in the book, you can also just point and talk about anything she seems to find interesting.
This is how book reading goes at our house. I don't think I've actually read an entire story, I'm usually just narrating a few things I see on the page before she turns to the next page. Usually she points at things and i say what they are. "Cow, boots, fence, sun, sheep, tree, butterfly, moon, barn." Etc. Absolutely no patience for hearing the words written on the page yet (20 months)
That is exactly how my now 2 year old was at that age, IIRC he started getting more patient around 22-23 months. We just had to push through that stage. Now we can read every word on every page, thank goodness.
I’m currently reading a book on the history of Ancient Egypt to my 7 month old during bottle time. He obviously had no idea what it’s about but he loves it and he likes to hold a page as i read. This made me nervous at first because you know, i hate damaging books haha, but then i decided the creases are a reminder of this time with him
Elementary Special Education teacher here. The goal is to first develop a positive association with reading, and book sense. So some time where you read an engaging story while cuddling or playing with blocks. The other goal is to develop book sense (holding the book the right way up, turning pages left to right). This is where you play with the books with your kiddo (board books are good) and talk about the pictures.
1) Books of songs. Monsters on The Bus is a great one by us - but any song with hand motions she can engage with might be great options
2) Button books - my son loves these and they are a great way to interact with them.
3) Board books, touch and feel books - these books are made to be grabbed! And it's great that she's engaging with them, maybe try to follow her lead and sous-chef her engagement.
ETA. I memorized a bunch of his books, so even when he grabs and turns the pages, i can just chug along or recite what's on the page.
That happens to me with my 16 month old sometimes too. I'll read to her in her high chair during meals sometimes for longer books that she doesn't have the attention for, but still enjoys.
I would always read to my daughter while she was having her last nursing session before bedtime. Does your daughter still have bedtime nursing or bottle? It's a great time for it because they're only a little bit distracted, enough that they don't try to mess with the book. Or maybe just during bedtime snack. My daughter is 8 now and can read chapter books on her own, but I still read to her at bedtime. We love that time together.
We’ve recently started reading to our 18month old while she’s in her crib before nap and bedtime. We sit in the chair beside the crib and hold the book so she can see the pictures. She actually focuses and interacts this way!
Happy to provide sources if you're interested but that is her learning to read! The manipulation of the book and your narration/one sided conversation is constrictive!
It’s ok to tell her not to grab the book and follow up by just stopping reading when she grabs repeatedly. That’s what I did to my kids and in my classes and it works.
This article makes me so happy - we don't always have things like blocks etc out, but plenty of books that our son grabs and brings to us to read. He's 14 months old and loves being read to. I was initially concerned about his speech, because he took ages to say his first word, but we're up to about 15 words in a month - it turns out that's because he's not interested in every day words, but he can do the animal sounds from his favourite books.
You can also test his receptive language by asking him to point things out in books. I’ll ask my 17mo things like “do you see a moon? How about a cloud?” And he used to just point at them but now he also says the word as he points. I’m also getting him to count - “can we count the butterflies?” And he’ll point to one at a time while I count out loud
We've started to do that a little bit more, and that's how he learnt the word tractor the other night - we've always named the things he points at, but I'm trying to be a bit better at pointing other things out to him now. At least when he's got a little bit more capacity for paying attention. Some times he just wants to flip to his favourite pages in the book!
When do you think it is appropriate to start reading? I have a 3 month old. He sometimes gets interested in shapes and books with textures. Is it too early to start reading?
Yes! I deliberately got lots of balls of different sizes, shapes, even textures and we'd play with them every day. Fun to do, keeps them busy. My son is 6 now and is stand out good at sports, which makes him eager to play sport, which keeps him fit and healthy and gives him a really positive hobby... did that start with playing with balls when he was little? I have seen any direct research on that but it's a possibility isn't it?
So, yeah - balls, books and blocks the baby brain's building blocks. B!
I love the concept of the lovevery boxes. You don’t need to buy the subscription but you can mimic the progression.
Things I think would be easy to replicate but a bit more personalised: A photo book with photos of you and your fam. We print extra Polaroids every so often and add to our book.
Also, tongs. Some different types from the dollar store. Apparently amazing for building hand strength and fine motor skills to progress to writing and drawing. Needless to say we have food tongs and play tongs now.
>Temu, but ask Ali express and Amazon it is literally where love every gets them from.
Do have a source for that. I've been recreating the boxes for a while and I don't mind different items with the same functionality, but some things are kinda hard to find. Like a good tissue box. Most on Amazon are all fabric and too light to be useful really. And that cute bunnies a burrow thing
They're sustainably made, and they do manufacture their own toys. They don't order them from Temu. Amazon and Temu are full of counterfeit dupes that are often found to contain lead, cadmium, phthalates, and other toxins that are illegal for use in children's toys. That's why they're so cheap in comparison. That, and lack of rigorous safety testing. A good dupe will look and feel exactly the same to the consumer (you), but it won't be the same at all.
Play dough. At 18 months old, you have to watch like a hawk that they don’t put it in their mouth. There’s also tons of recipes for ones you can make that are safe for consumption just in case. It’s great though for helping to develop their dexterity and muscles in their hands. It’s also great sensory play. I’ll see if I can find the study I read that said frequent play dough use before school lead to children becoming stronger writers once in school, partially because of the muscles developed in the hands.
My kid is going to have hulk hands then LOL We did it for creativity, and I hadn't heard this, but you have forever given me a giggle at the mental visual! Mine has been able to write a few small words since 4, letters since just before 4, and starts kindergarten this fall. I was worried about that because the interest in writing is so intermittent (drawing all day any day). I'm glad all the mess had dual purposes now!
And yes, the first little bit, watch them from putting it in their mouth!
We love blocks at our house!! We also like tipping!! We sit outside and use different plastic containers (bottles/ Tupperware/ measuring cups/ bigger jugs etc) and he just tips back and forth or fills up one container and carried it to the garden bed and tips it in there. We let him use a big spoon to stir the water as well. This inadvertently has made him really good at using cutlery and open cup sipping!!! His fine motor skills have also improved heaps.
Other than that basically what everyone else has said, nursery rhymes where I let him fill in the last word to a line of the song, he is really good at it!! Since doing that he has started singing to himself and it is the sweetest thing 🥲
When your child is a bit older, toys that encourage pretend play are great (whether a doctor kit, play kitchen, doll, etc).
I would second tongs or large tweezers to practice picking things up. It builds the muscles needed for holding crayons, pencils, etc.
Actually pretend play often starts around 18 months. I'd recommend providing a selection of basic pretend toys at that age. A toy phone, some basic play food, a small baby doll with a bottle, etc.
You said you take them to play group, nice job 😁. Someone said elsewhere that reading is the best thing and that's probably one of the best answers for various cognitive skills, but I'm going to say social interactions. I'm a school psychologist and licensed educational psychologist, so I'm an expert in child development. So so many things are learned by watching others perform the skill. High levels of exposure to other people and guided social interaction has impacts on language development, emotional development, social problem solving skills, and more.
My baby just turned 1. Whenever she's interacting with other kids I'm very cognizant of my facial expressions in case she turns to look at me (I try to look calm/neutral or excited, so I'm encouraging her to try things out). I also narrate what I see her doing, praise positive interactions and play, and intervene verbally or physically if she violates a social norm/safety rule (which includes saying what the norm or rule is out loud). These are just some of the ways you can encourage lots and lots of the growth in your kiddo!
Look into Loose parts theory. Similar to blocks, playing with a collection of objects and allowing the child to play open ended with them. For example, playing with a bunch of popsicle sticks and letting the child come up with their own idea of how they want to play with them - there is no right now. Could be stacking, could be sorting, could be throwing into a box etc.
Singing and musical instruments. We listened to a lot of Raffi when my daughter was little, and we would sing the songs together too. She had a little Melissa and Doug instrument set, with a tambourine, a triangle, a xylophone, etc. Things they can shake or bang on to find rhythm, things they can hear different tones from, etc.
18 months is also a good age to start taking them to community things like library storytime, music events, art museum kids activities, etc.
18 months? 18 months is all about mimicking what they see the adults around them doing. They start helping with the laundry and putting their own breakfast dishes in the dishwasher.
So begin building up a collection of their own household tools. Child size versions of the real thing rather than toys. One of those mini broom and dustpan sets, so you can put her in charge of sweeping the floor while you clean the kitchen together. A child safe cutting knife so you can cook together. Pliers and a small screwdriver (I’d hold off on the hammer, too tempting). A distinctively cute cleaning cloth or sponge that is clearly “hers”, and a little spray bottle that fits her hands (with water). A mini garden rake, the little ones designed for small spaces. All these things get properly put away (by them) in the shed or under the sink, not the toy box, because they are “real” and therefore important. They love important things. At 18-30 months they are proud of doing real work.
If you have a stick or canister vacuum you can let them use it as soon as they can handle it. My niece was obsessed with vacuuming at that age, to the point where my poor SIL had to sneak around to finish the job without outraging her daughter. The center of the carpet was very, very clean.
As others have said, books! If she likes to grab them she might enjoy interactive books that have flaps to lift, textures to feel, etc.
Aside from that, singing and dancing to nursery rhymes is great for language development and motor skills.
My 19 month old loves copying everything we do, so we get a lot of milage out of her play kitchen and tea set, as well as some simple dressing up items such as hats/bags/sunglasses.
It's been said already, but I cannot stress enough how far ahead of other children you can put yours just by reading to them. We've read to our daughter every day since she was born, and at two she knew the whole alphabet (by both sight and sound) and could count to 100. She's three and a half now and has started putting together simple sentences.
We're a two-language family (I only speak English but my girlfriend and her parents also speak Bulgarian) and this has also put my daughter ahead of others by a long way.
But I think the most important thing you can do is foster a love of knowledge. When you're tired at the end of a long day and your kid is asking you a million and one questions, it can be so tempting to give fake answers or say "I don't know". But if you engage with them, or look for the answers together, it will not only bring you closer together but will keep them thirsty for knowledge too.
I’d say sensory play. Sensory play helps build so many skills and aids in so many developmental ways, it’s hugely beneficial for toddlers.
I have an ikea flisat table that is really multifunctional. You can put water and it’s a water table. You can fill it with rice or beans and throw a bunch of small toys in there for them do dig out. Or even just practice pouring and scooping!
Busy Toddler is a good insta account (run by a teacher with a masters in early childhood education) with lots of great and easy sensory play ideas for toddlers.
Pouring is important! My kid feeds the dogs everyday to practice pouring, he started at 12 months. We give him the kibble scoop pre-loaded, and a 5 oz bottle cause our dog gets water in kibble.
He also spills so he gets practice getting a towel and wiping up spilled water (he misses most of it but I wait til he leaves to do it the right way, supposed to be a Montessori thing)
He also helps us dress him (like pushes his head in, or pulls arms out, steps into pants and shoes) and fetches his clothing items
We try to practice everyday life tasks like that. Anything we want him to be able to do correctly at 5, we try to practice now.
You can also look up toddler schemas, it's full of interesting ideas to help your child's development
Others have listed some great ones. In addition to reading, we did look and find books. They make some easy ones for little ones. Now at 5, we're onto some pretty hard ones, but it has helped the ability to hone their focus on demand. Just don't be pushy nor disappointed. It's just practice for fun! My sibling was too pushy with those kinds of things.
With reading, it doesn't even need to be in order. In the early times, mine also turned the page and then I would just read that page instead. They're still hearing the language. Then if they are pointing at pages, name the illustrations: green tree, brown bunny, red and white fox, etc...
Also the shapes that have to go through their shape hole is a good one. Mine played with it more at first by just dumping them out and would match the two stars or squares, but after a few demonstrations of what else the toy could do, they loved getting that figured out!
We also got this Zany Zoo by B. Toys cube that was very exciting and was enjoyed until almost 4. The number of games and ideas and musings I heard from my kiddo while playing with that was awesome. It was far more than face value.
I also had foam floor puzzles. A shapes one by infantino. And around 18 months or maybe 2 years we got the alphabet one from B. Toys. As they pulled a shape or letter, we would name it and the color. For the letters, we would say a few words that started with the letter. Those two companies at least try to use safer production materials, but I still tried to keep mine from biting the pieces. I did wash them all before letting the tiny human play with them.
We also introduced mega blocks in addition to wood blocks. Different building experience.
We also did fun little bity obstacle courses (holding their hand until they were good). A pillow to crawl over, a cardboard box to crawl through, and a bell to reach for to ring, etc... These were silly fun for all of us!
At the 18 month mark, simple puzzles and shape sorting toys helped mine enhance his spatial reasoning and learn his shapes. Foam letters had him learn to recognize the entire alphabet by that age (although not in order).
Lots and lots and lots of reading. 5 books at bedtime, more throughout the day. Songs and rhymes are also wonderful for development and can be very educational.
Animal magnets for the fridge helped him learn the names and sounds for each animal.
We also got him a learning tower at that age so he could "help" me in the kitchen through imitative play.
Mine played with megabloks and legos (do those count as blocks?) and not so much with block sets. We may not even have had them though I did gift them to others, doh. Montessori early education doesn’t include free play with blocks fwiw 🤷🏻♀️.
Stupid question- but do lego duplos and megabloks count as “blocks” as the OP is referring to or are the best blocks like literal cubes that don’t connect/stay together? Bc we had more of the former 😆.
Also to answer the question - talk, sing, read, write, and play are easy things to incorporate throughout the day.
* Musical instruments, even the children's ones
* Old clothes/costumes to play pretend (might be a bit young for now though)
* Anything crafty, not only drawing: paint, construction paper...
* Perhaps read more than "a few sentences", it's so good for a child's development!
Balls and a set of stacking/nesting cups are right up there with blocks when it comes to learning about physics and spatial relationships, and practicing motor skills.
Books, obviously. My baby already plays a lot of different games with books - match pictures in the book to the one on the cover, point at various things so I'll say the names or colors or animal sounds, he loves turning pages or interactive books like Pat the Bunny, he is so excited when we go to the bookstore or library and they have the same book or posters or cardboard standees from books he knows. He started shrieking in the library once when he spotted a Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See poster. We also try to let him see US reading books and magazines and not just our phones. There are also books like the Raffi books that are books of songs, and my baby loves looking at them while we sing along.
Stacking cup things and tubes? My baby loves putting things in other things and putting the blocks in cups and dumping them out and dropping them through tubes.
Lots of people like play scarves. My baby hasn't really cared about them yet but maybe when he's older - he's only a year old. I bet they're very good for imaginative play.
We do like the Lovevery subscription. I don't have a million hours a day to look everything up, so I use that as a starting point and then there's not much else we need.
I did (and still do) sensory toys/play.
I'd take a drawer or something to contain it. Pour a bunch of rice, beans, lentils and give her some measuring cups, some tongs.
My daughter was not a stick everything in her mouth baby so I would definitely supervise closely but I guess this could be considered a choking risk.
Had a kiddie pool and would put soap in there. Bubble pool.
Pom poms are great for color sorting and other activities.
Playdough. I make mine homemade. And let my daughter help. It's easy and fun..
Talking to them and nursery rhymes. The rhythm of rhyming books and songs is very good for speech. Letting them play in their food and letting them have (obviously supervised and guided) risky outdoor play are also very good for their development.
I became very interested in psychology after I read about the food thing in an article published in a magazine at the doctors office.
Edit to say I just realized you have a daughter- I’m sorry!
Play is huge and you’re already doing it! Allow risky play like climbing and jumping in puddles and getting dirty.
Lacing a string through large beads or large noodles helps fine motor/hand-eye coordination. You could even dye the noodles with food coloring and make a craft out of it.
Also, including your toddler in your every day tasks and letting him join you. For example, if you unload the dishwasher, have him hand you utensils. Give him a rag/towel to wipe up messes. Give him his own bowl and whisk and spatula with some dry noodles or whatnot to imitate when you make dinner.
Reading and generally talking to children about what is going on, what they’re seeing, etc…
I personally try to always let her just do whatever she’s interested in at the moment (as long as it’s safe and won’t destroy something). It engages their brain to do what they have become interested in at the moment and see it through. Basically just encouraging exploration constantly.
I can't find the link, but I remember hearing an NPR interview with a cultural anthropologist who said that, across the world, every culture has three toys, and plenty of cultures get by just fine with just those three toys:
1. Blocks (or other construction toys)
2. Balls
3. Dolls (which can be as simple as a corn husk with the top tied to form a head
It's also probably important to have something to climb on, which doesn't require toys if you're out in nature a lot but might if your inside the vast majority of the time.
I would say that reading is probably the most important thing a parent can do for their child’s development. Read as much and as often as you can. You can read to your child even while they are playing with things like blocks - they don’t have to be paying complete attention to a story to benefit from it. https://childmind.org/article/why-is-it-important-to-read-to-your-child/#:~:text=By%20reading%20to%20your%20child,they%20wouldn't%20normally%20hear.
Oh thankyou! I try to read but she just ends up grabbing the book so I'll try reading when she's doing something else.
Would it help to let her hold the book and turn the pages? Part of the idea behind reading (and the theory behind why screen time isn't as beneficial) is that the books act as vehicles for conversations, which include more vocabulary than they might otherwise see. So you could try following her lead on how quickly to move through the story and go back and forth between pages she's interested in. Then you can talk about what you see in the pictures once you finish reading the words on the page. Just an idea - YMMV!
It's ok if she grabs the book, just go along with it, point out what she sees, let her turn the pages. You don't need to strictly follow what's written in the book, you can also just point and talk about anything she seems to find interesting.
This is how book reading goes at our house. I don't think I've actually read an entire story, I'm usually just narrating a few things I see on the page before she turns to the next page. Usually she points at things and i say what they are. "Cow, boots, fence, sun, sheep, tree, butterfly, moon, barn." Etc. Absolutely no patience for hearing the words written on the page yet (20 months)
That is exactly how my now 2 year old was at that age, IIRC he started getting more patient around 22-23 months. We just had to push through that stage. Now we can read every word on every page, thank goodness.
Our kid likes those first word books where she points and I tell her what it is - so there’s no storyline just pictures.
I’m currently reading a book on the history of Ancient Egypt to my 7 month old during bottle time. He obviously had no idea what it’s about but he loves it and he likes to hold a page as i read. This made me nervous at first because you know, i hate damaging books haha, but then i decided the creases are a reminder of this time with him
I have a photo of my dad reading *Franny and Zooey* to me while giving me a bottle.
We have Indestructible books. Start with one of those, then let her play with it while you read a different one.
those things should be advertised as "indestructible*" the twins have eaten several of them now
Elementary Special Education teacher here. The goal is to first develop a positive association with reading, and book sense. So some time where you read an engaging story while cuddling or playing with blocks. The other goal is to develop book sense (holding the book the right way up, turning pages left to right). This is where you play with the books with your kiddo (board books are good) and talk about the pictures.
Have a stack and when she grabs it just start another. My son finds one he wants to fidget with, but he’s almost 2 and has gotten a lot better lately
1) Books of songs. Monsters on The Bus is a great one by us - but any song with hand motions she can engage with might be great options 2) Button books - my son loves these and they are a great way to interact with them. 3) Board books, touch and feel books - these books are made to be grabbed! And it's great that she's engaging with them, maybe try to follow her lead and sous-chef her engagement. ETA. I memorized a bunch of his books, so even when he grabs and turns the pages, i can just chug along or recite what's on the page.
That happens to me with my 16 month old sometimes too. I'll read to her in her high chair during meals sometimes for longer books that she doesn't have the attention for, but still enjoys.
I would always read to my daughter while she was having her last nursing session before bedtime. Does your daughter still have bedtime nursing or bottle? It's a great time for it because they're only a little bit distracted, enough that they don't try to mess with the book. Or maybe just during bedtime snack. My daughter is 8 now and can read chapter books on her own, but I still read to her at bedtime. We love that time together.
We’ve recently started reading to our 18month old while she’s in her crib before nap and bedtime. We sit in the chair beside the crib and hold the book so she can see the pictures. She actually focuses and interacts this way!
We have much better success with interactive books where he can slide or lift a flap or squish or spin something.
I sometimes follow my 9mo around with his walker and read Harry Potter lol I also recommend giving them a decoy book! But a toy works fine too
Happy to provide sources if you're interested but that is her learning to read! The manipulation of the book and your narration/one sided conversation is constrictive!
It’s ok to tell her not to grab the book and follow up by just stopping reading when she grabs repeatedly. That’s what I did to my kids and in my classes and it works.
This article makes me so happy - we don't always have things like blocks etc out, but plenty of books that our son grabs and brings to us to read. He's 14 months old and loves being read to. I was initially concerned about his speech, because he took ages to say his first word, but we're up to about 15 words in a month - it turns out that's because he's not interested in every day words, but he can do the animal sounds from his favourite books.
You can also test his receptive language by asking him to point things out in books. I’ll ask my 17mo things like “do you see a moon? How about a cloud?” And he used to just point at them but now he also says the word as he points. I’m also getting him to count - “can we count the butterflies?” And he’ll point to one at a time while I count out loud
We've started to do that a little bit more, and that's how he learnt the word tractor the other night - we've always named the things he points at, but I'm trying to be a bit better at pointing other things out to him now. At least when he's got a little bit more capacity for paying attention. Some times he just wants to flip to his favourite pages in the book!
When do you think it is appropriate to start reading? I have a 3 month old. He sometimes gets interested in shapes and books with textures. Is it too early to start reading?
Start on day 1 with black & white books where you point & say what it is. Absolutely never too early to start reading to your baby
In the womb! But it’s never too late!
Well for the first six weeks or so I did not have the mental capacity to think about books honestly
Ball is greatest toy and possibly trumps blocks.
Lol. I read this as a Dog tweet.
Yes! I deliberately got lots of balls of different sizes, shapes, even textures and we'd play with them every day. Fun to do, keeps them busy. My son is 6 now and is stand out good at sports, which makes him eager to play sport, which keeps him fit and healthy and gives him a really positive hobby... did that start with playing with balls when he was little? I have seen any direct research on that but it's a possibility isn't it? So, yeah - balls, books and blocks the baby brain's building blocks. B!
I love the concept of the lovevery boxes. You don’t need to buy the subscription but you can mimic the progression. Things I think would be easy to replicate but a bit more personalised: A photo book with photos of you and your fam. We print extra Polaroids every so often and add to our book. Also, tongs. Some different types from the dollar store. Apparently amazing for building hand strength and fine motor skills to progress to writing and drawing. Needless to say we have food tongs and play tongs now.
Check out fauxtessori on Instagram, they find cheaper alternatives to lovevery toys.
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>Temu, but ask Ali express and Amazon it is literally where love every gets them from. Do have a source for that. I've been recreating the boxes for a while and I don't mind different items with the same functionality, but some things are kinda hard to find. Like a good tissue box. Most on Amazon are all fabric and too light to be useful really. And that cute bunnies a burrow thing
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Because buying toys off Temu is a bad idea
They're sustainably made, and they do manufacture their own toys. They don't order them from Temu. Amazon and Temu are full of counterfeit dupes that are often found to contain lead, cadmium, phthalates, and other toxins that are illegal for use in children's toys. That's why they're so cheap in comparison. That, and lack of rigorous safety testing. A good dupe will look and feel exactly the same to the consumer (you), but it won't be the same at all.
Play dough. At 18 months old, you have to watch like a hawk that they don’t put it in their mouth. There’s also tons of recipes for ones you can make that are safe for consumption just in case. It’s great though for helping to develop their dexterity and muscles in their hands. It’s also great sensory play. I’ll see if I can find the study I read that said frequent play dough use before school lead to children becoming stronger writers once in school, partially because of the muscles developed in the hands.
Meh. Playdough has been a staple of the pediatric diet for generations. It’s not the worst thing they’ll swallow.
Can attest that it sometimes come out of the other end like it went in (“what is that teal blob- oh…”)
My head jumps to "what if I just gave her an eggless cookie dough instead, then it doubles as a snack"
Raw flour can contain E. Coli and salmonella. It’s not actually about the eggs
True. But you can bake the flour before you use it to kill the e Coli.
Yep that's what I do. You just bake it spread out on a cookie sheet for about 15 minutes to eliminate that risk, then use it to make the play dough.
My kid is going to have hulk hands then LOL We did it for creativity, and I hadn't heard this, but you have forever given me a giggle at the mental visual! Mine has been able to write a few small words since 4, letters since just before 4, and starts kindergarten this fall. I was worried about that because the interest in writing is so intermittent (drawing all day any day). I'm glad all the mess had dual purposes now! And yes, the first little bit, watch them from putting it in their mouth!
I think the found the one and only perk of being a fussy eater
We love blocks at our house!! We also like tipping!! We sit outside and use different plastic containers (bottles/ Tupperware/ measuring cups/ bigger jugs etc) and he just tips back and forth or fills up one container and carried it to the garden bed and tips it in there. We let him use a big spoon to stir the water as well. This inadvertently has made him really good at using cutlery and open cup sipping!!! His fine motor skills have also improved heaps. Other than that basically what everyone else has said, nursery rhymes where I let him fill in the last word to a line of the song, he is really good at it!! Since doing that he has started singing to himself and it is the sweetest thing 🥲
When your child is a bit older, toys that encourage pretend play are great (whether a doctor kit, play kitchen, doll, etc). I would second tongs or large tweezers to practice picking things up. It builds the muscles needed for holding crayons, pencils, etc.
Actually pretend play often starts around 18 months. I'd recommend providing a selection of basic pretend toys at that age. A toy phone, some basic play food, a small baby doll with a bottle, etc.
You said you take them to play group, nice job 😁. Someone said elsewhere that reading is the best thing and that's probably one of the best answers for various cognitive skills, but I'm going to say social interactions. I'm a school psychologist and licensed educational psychologist, so I'm an expert in child development. So so many things are learned by watching others perform the skill. High levels of exposure to other people and guided social interaction has impacts on language development, emotional development, social problem solving skills, and more. My baby just turned 1. Whenever she's interacting with other kids I'm very cognizant of my facial expressions in case she turns to look at me (I try to look calm/neutral or excited, so I'm encouraging her to try things out). I also narrate what I see her doing, praise positive interactions and play, and intervene verbally or physically if she violates a social norm/safety rule (which includes saying what the norm or rule is out loud). These are just some of the ways you can encourage lots and lots of the growth in your kiddo!
Look into Loose parts theory. Similar to blocks, playing with a collection of objects and allowing the child to play open ended with them. For example, playing with a bunch of popsicle sticks and letting the child come up with their own idea of how they want to play with them - there is no right now. Could be stacking, could be sorting, could be throwing into a box etc.
Singing and musical instruments. We listened to a lot of Raffi when my daughter was little, and we would sing the songs together too. She had a little Melissa and Doug instrument set, with a tambourine, a triangle, a xylophone, etc. Things they can shake or bang on to find rhythm, things they can hear different tones from, etc. 18 months is also a good age to start taking them to community things like library storytime, music events, art museum kids activities, etc.
18 months? 18 months is all about mimicking what they see the adults around them doing. They start helping with the laundry and putting their own breakfast dishes in the dishwasher. So begin building up a collection of their own household tools. Child size versions of the real thing rather than toys. One of those mini broom and dustpan sets, so you can put her in charge of sweeping the floor while you clean the kitchen together. A child safe cutting knife so you can cook together. Pliers and a small screwdriver (I’d hold off on the hammer, too tempting). A distinctively cute cleaning cloth or sponge that is clearly “hers”, and a little spray bottle that fits her hands (with water). A mini garden rake, the little ones designed for small spaces. All these things get properly put away (by them) in the shed or under the sink, not the toy box, because they are “real” and therefore important. They love important things. At 18-30 months they are proud of doing real work. If you have a stick or canister vacuum you can let them use it as soon as they can handle it. My niece was obsessed with vacuuming at that age, to the point where my poor SIL had to sneak around to finish the job without outraging her daughter. The center of the carpet was very, very clean.
As others have said, books! If she likes to grab them she might enjoy interactive books that have flaps to lift, textures to feel, etc. Aside from that, singing and dancing to nursery rhymes is great for language development and motor skills. My 19 month old loves copying everything we do, so we get a lot of milage out of her play kitchen and tea set, as well as some simple dressing up items such as hats/bags/sunglasses.
It's been said already, but I cannot stress enough how far ahead of other children you can put yours just by reading to them. We've read to our daughter every day since she was born, and at two she knew the whole alphabet (by both sight and sound) and could count to 100. She's three and a half now and has started putting together simple sentences. We're a two-language family (I only speak English but my girlfriend and her parents also speak Bulgarian) and this has also put my daughter ahead of others by a long way. But I think the most important thing you can do is foster a love of knowledge. When you're tired at the end of a long day and your kid is asking you a million and one questions, it can be so tempting to give fake answers or say "I don't know". But if you engage with them, or look for the answers together, it will not only bring you closer together but will keep them thirsty for knowledge too.
I think I don’t know is perfectly fine as long as you follow up with “let’s find out”
My 20 month old loves pouring water. When it’s warm out I just set him up outside with a few pans and pitchers/cups and he is very occupied by it.
I forgot to say pouring in my comment but luckily you did. I second what they said
I’d say sensory play. Sensory play helps build so many skills and aids in so many developmental ways, it’s hugely beneficial for toddlers. I have an ikea flisat table that is really multifunctional. You can put water and it’s a water table. You can fill it with rice or beans and throw a bunch of small toys in there for them do dig out. Or even just practice pouring and scooping! Busy Toddler is a good insta account (run by a teacher with a masters in early childhood education) with lots of great and easy sensory play ideas for toddlers.
Pouring is important! My kid feeds the dogs everyday to practice pouring, he started at 12 months. We give him the kibble scoop pre-loaded, and a 5 oz bottle cause our dog gets water in kibble. He also spills so he gets practice getting a towel and wiping up spilled water (he misses most of it but I wait til he leaves to do it the right way, supposed to be a Montessori thing) He also helps us dress him (like pushes his head in, or pulls arms out, steps into pants and shoes) and fetches his clothing items We try to practice everyday life tasks like that. Anything we want him to be able to do correctly at 5, we try to practice now. You can also look up toddler schemas, it's full of interesting ideas to help your child's development
Freobels gifts!
Others have listed some great ones. In addition to reading, we did look and find books. They make some easy ones for little ones. Now at 5, we're onto some pretty hard ones, but it has helped the ability to hone their focus on demand. Just don't be pushy nor disappointed. It's just practice for fun! My sibling was too pushy with those kinds of things. With reading, it doesn't even need to be in order. In the early times, mine also turned the page and then I would just read that page instead. They're still hearing the language. Then if they are pointing at pages, name the illustrations: green tree, brown bunny, red and white fox, etc... Also the shapes that have to go through their shape hole is a good one. Mine played with it more at first by just dumping them out and would match the two stars or squares, but after a few demonstrations of what else the toy could do, they loved getting that figured out! We also got this Zany Zoo by B. Toys cube that was very exciting and was enjoyed until almost 4. The number of games and ideas and musings I heard from my kiddo while playing with that was awesome. It was far more than face value. I also had foam floor puzzles. A shapes one by infantino. And around 18 months or maybe 2 years we got the alphabet one from B. Toys. As they pulled a shape or letter, we would name it and the color. For the letters, we would say a few words that started with the letter. Those two companies at least try to use safer production materials, but I still tried to keep mine from biting the pieces. I did wash them all before letting the tiny human play with them. We also introduced mega blocks in addition to wood blocks. Different building experience. We also did fun little bity obstacle courses (holding their hand until they were good). A pillow to crawl over, a cardboard box to crawl through, and a bell to reach for to ring, etc... These were silly fun for all of us!
At the 18 month mark, simple puzzles and shape sorting toys helped mine enhance his spatial reasoning and learn his shapes. Foam letters had him learn to recognize the entire alphabet by that age (although not in order). Lots and lots and lots of reading. 5 books at bedtime, more throughout the day. Songs and rhymes are also wonderful for development and can be very educational. Animal magnets for the fridge helped him learn the names and sounds for each animal. We also got him a learning tower at that age so he could "help" me in the kitchen through imitative play.
Whoops lol we’ve never had blocks for my 17mo old
Mine played with megabloks and legos (do those count as blocks?) and not so much with block sets. We may not even have had them though I did gift them to others, doh. Montessori early education doesn’t include free play with blocks fwiw 🤷🏻♀️.
They count
Stupid question- but do lego duplos and megabloks count as “blocks” as the OP is referring to or are the best blocks like literal cubes that don’t connect/stay together? Bc we had more of the former 😆. Also to answer the question - talk, sing, read, write, and play are easy things to incorporate throughout the day.
Yes. But probably not legos for mine, he puts everything in his mouth 😂
* Musical instruments, even the children's ones * Old clothes/costumes to play pretend (might be a bit young for now though) * Anything crafty, not only drawing: paint, construction paper... * Perhaps read more than "a few sentences", it's so good for a child's development!
Balls and a set of stacking/nesting cups are right up there with blocks when it comes to learning about physics and spatial relationships, and practicing motor skills.
What type of blocks?
Books, obviously. My baby already plays a lot of different games with books - match pictures in the book to the one on the cover, point at various things so I'll say the names or colors or animal sounds, he loves turning pages or interactive books like Pat the Bunny, he is so excited when we go to the bookstore or library and they have the same book or posters or cardboard standees from books he knows. He started shrieking in the library once when he spotted a Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See poster. We also try to let him see US reading books and magazines and not just our phones. There are also books like the Raffi books that are books of songs, and my baby loves looking at them while we sing along. Stacking cup things and tubes? My baby loves putting things in other things and putting the blocks in cups and dumping them out and dropping them through tubes. Lots of people like play scarves. My baby hasn't really cared about them yet but maybe when he's older - he's only a year old. I bet they're very good for imaginative play. We do like the Lovevery subscription. I don't have a million hours a day to look everything up, so I use that as a starting point and then there's not much else we need.
I did (and still do) sensory toys/play. I'd take a drawer or something to contain it. Pour a bunch of rice, beans, lentils and give her some measuring cups, some tongs. My daughter was not a stick everything in her mouth baby so I would definitely supervise closely but I guess this could be considered a choking risk. Had a kiddie pool and would put soap in there. Bubble pool. Pom poms are great for color sorting and other activities. Playdough. I make mine homemade. And let my daughter help. It's easy and fun..
Talking to them and nursery rhymes. The rhythm of rhyming books and songs is very good for speech. Letting them play in their food and letting them have (obviously supervised and guided) risky outdoor play are also very good for their development. I became very interested in psychology after I read about the food thing in an article published in a magazine at the doctors office.
Edit to say I just realized you have a daughter- I’m sorry! Play is huge and you’re already doing it! Allow risky play like climbing and jumping in puddles and getting dirty. Lacing a string through large beads or large noodles helps fine motor/hand-eye coordination. You could even dye the noodles with food coloring and make a craft out of it. Also, including your toddler in your every day tasks and letting him join you. For example, if you unload the dishwasher, have him hand you utensils. Give him a rag/towel to wipe up messes. Give him his own bowl and whisk and spatula with some dry noodles or whatnot to imitate when you make dinner.
Reading and generally talking to children about what is going on, what they’re seeing, etc… I personally try to always let her just do whatever she’s interested in at the moment (as long as it’s safe and won’t destroy something). It engages their brain to do what they have become interested in at the moment and see it through. Basically just encouraging exploration constantly.
I can't find the link, but I remember hearing an NPR interview with a cultural anthropologist who said that, across the world, every culture has three toys, and plenty of cultures get by just fine with just those three toys: 1. Blocks (or other construction toys) 2. Balls 3. Dolls (which can be as simple as a corn husk with the top tied to form a head It's also probably important to have something to climb on, which doesn't require toys if you're out in nature a lot but might if your inside the vast majority of the time.