Critters in the Litter

Activities-emphasize sense of touch and smell

 Water it!

Don’t forget to water our flowers. They are always thirsty during the summer. The early morning is the best time to water, but they will take it when they can get it! 

Skills developed:  Observation, gross motor.

 Watch Me Grow!

Stand next to a tall post that has been inserted into the ground. Have your tot stand with his back to it. Make a mark for his height. Write his name on it. Measure the growth of the plants with blocks. How many blocks does it take to reach the top of the plant. 

Skills developed:  Mathematical (counting/measurement)

 Can you name this garden animal?

What can:

move a rock that is 60 times its own body weight (That is like you lifting a truck!)

breathe through their skin

live for 12 years

produce as many as 1,500 offspring a year

sing in a definite and changing rhythm

Did you guess an earthworm? Earthworms are a great garden friend. A pound of worms eats ½ pound of kitchen scraps each day. Worms turn these dead plants into rich organic soil. Anything that comes from a plant can be composted.

Smell the compost. It should have a sweet, earthy smell. When adding food scraps to the compost, bury them. That will keep them from getting smelly. 

Skills developed:  Sense of touch, sight, smell.

 Smell the Flowers…and Herbs

Your toddler had a fully developed sense of smell at birth. You may have memories associated with smells.

Pick 2 of these items with easily identifiable smells. Say, “Let’s smell the flower.” Hold a flower up to her nose and show her how to smell it. After you have smelled 2 things put them on the table. Ask your child to point to “the flower.” Help her point if she doesn’t know how and then smell it again together. 

Skills developed:  Sense of smell

 Expose your little one to a variety of sensory stimuli-colors, music, language, natural and mechanical sounds, touch, smell, taste-to ensure that, as an adult, she will have the most flexible brain power for learning. Listening, watching, and giving words to experiences demonstrates interest in children and makes them feel like their thoughts and words are important.

Flower Scent

Provide a variety of flowers for smelling.  How does it smell?  Which flower scent do you like the best? 

Skills developed:  Sense of smell, sight, touch.

The Smelly Game

Select three different items that have a distinct odor, for example, an orange, a pickle, and lilacs. Suggest to your child that you both pretend to be bears on a walk. Say, “Little Bear, I smell something good.” Pretend to pick an orange from a tree. Take off some of the skin and let your 2-year old smell it. Continue with the other tow items that you have selected.

Say, “Little Bear, let’s sit in the grass and smell these things again.” Finally, say to your little one, “Would you like to taste one of the things that we have smelled?” 

Skills developed:  Sense of smell and taste.

 Feely Bag

Can you guess what is inside without looking? Use items with different textures such as marshmallows, cotton balls, sandpaper, rocks, seeds, fabric in the bag. Put the items out on the table. Put one item in the bag while your tot closes her eyes. Have your tot feel the item inside the bag. When they have felt it, put the item with the other things. Can they guess what it is? Have them point to it. 

Skills developed:  Sense of touch, sight.

 Micro-hike

Explore in the circle with the magnifying glasses. Can you find any ants? Seeds? Rocks? Flowers? 

Skills developed:  Observation, sense of touch.

 Take a hike!

Look for creepy crawlies. Underneath old logs and rocks are great places to look. Don’t forget to watch out for poison ivy-leaflets three, let it be! 

Skills developed:  Gross motor, sense of sight, touch, smell.

 Baby Bird

This is a nice game to play outside in warm weather.

Sit down on the grass with your toddler curled up in your lap. Pretend to be asleep and then wake up. Say “ come on, baby bird, it’s time to fly.” Very slowly get up and flap your arms like wings. Fly around the yard and then say, “let’s fly to the tree.” Give specific directions to help your toddler learn the names of objects. Whisper to your baby bird, “it is time to go back to the nest.” Go back to where you were sitting, and let your baby bird curl back into your arms. Repeat this game over and over. You might even ask your baby bird to fly by himself, then come back to the nest.

Skills developed: Bonding, gross motor, listening.

 See the Little Spider

This fingerplay lets you and your toddler share some fun. Walk your fingers along his arms and legs like a crawling spider.

See the little spider climbing up the wall

(walk your fingers slowly up your child’s arm)

See the little spider stumble and fall

(walk your fingers quickly down your child’s arm)

See the little spider tumble down the street

(walk your fingers down your child’s leg)

See the little spider stop at your feet

(stop at your child’s feet)

Now find a spider to quietly watch or look for spider webs. Notice the delicate silk and designs. 

Skills developed:  Listening, language, sense of touch and sight.

 Songs with actions:

Crawling Ants, Flying Butterflies,

Hopping Grasshoppers

(Tune: Are You Sleeping?)

Crawling ants, crawling ants,

on the ground, on the ground

Crawling, crawling, crawling,

Crawling, crawling, crawling

All around, all around

Flying butterflies, flying butterflies,

In the air, in the air

Flying, flying, flying

Flying, flying, flying

Everywhere, everywhere

Hopping grasshoppers, hopping grasshoppers,

In the grass, in the grass

Hopping, hopping, hopping

Hopping, hopping, hopping

Very fast, very fast

Bugs (Tune: Are You Sleeping?)

Big bugs, little bugs,

Big bugs, little bugs,

See them crawl,

on the log.

Creeping, creeping, creeping

Never, never falling

Bugs, bugs, bugs

Bugs, bugs, bugs

The Hollow Log (Tunnel)

Look for hollow logs. Who lives inside them? How about underneath them? Remember to return the log carefully back to where it was.

 At home use boxes, pillows, and sheets to make a “hollow log.” Show your toddler how to crawl through the “hollow log.” Tell her, “Let’s crawl into the ‘hollow log.’” Start crawling and encourage her to follow. Comment with “We are inside the hollow log” and “Now we are outside the ‘hollow log’”

Skills developed: coordination, gross motor, language, creative play.

Stepping-stones (Lily Pad Pond)

This is a version of the balance game “Twister.”  You will need a package of paper plates and a little imagination. Scatter the plates around the floor so that the child can step between them. Now imagine the ground is the sea and the sea is full of sharks. Only the plates are safe. Can she cross the room to rescue teddy and get back safely? A foot in the water means she looses her toe. (You may have to give the smallest children a hand the first few times you play.) 

If your child is easily scared, pretend the plates are lily pads on a pond. Pretend to be frogs jumping to the other side to find the best insects for lunch.

Skills developed: balance and planning skills.

Outdoor Fun

Take your toddler outside and discover all kinds of wonderful things.

Feel the wind in your hair

Feel the raindrops on your face

Smell a flower

Watch a butterfly

Hold a worm in your hand

Lie in the grass and look at the clouds

Squish your toes in the mud

Care for plants and watch them grow

Taste fresh fruits and vegetables from the garden

Skill developed: Nature Appreciation

 Lucky Ladybugs

Did you know

…if a ladybug lands on you it is considered good luck?

…they are also called ladybird beetles?

…they come in all different colors, like yellow and orange?

…they can have any number of spots (each species has a different number of spots)?

...are great garden friends? (they eat lots of aphids-an undesirable garden pest)

…you can buy ladybugs for your garden?

…you need to water the garden then let those ladybugs go (in the evening) and they will stay as long as there is food for them?

Skills developed:  Observation

Will you read to me?

Take a moment to enjoy a book

What Brain Research Says:

Reading or telling a story to your child will help “grow” her brain and encourage her to associate books with what she loves the most-your voice and closeness. An adult’s vocabulary is largely determined by speech heard within the first three years.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar-snack

Read story to the group. Have them pretend to be a very hungry caterpillar and snack on some of the food the caterpillar in the story did. Finish with a mint or lettuce leaf if you like. You can use cheese shapes and bread shapes for the different types of food.

Drink through a straw and pretend it is a butterfly tongue (proboscis).