Whether we are crossing the road, or supporting our children’s early learning and kindergarten readiness, looking and listening are important strategies. They will be the plays-of-the-day. Some looking activities might be:
- Share a picture book together. Talk about the pictures. Check out the details such as color, shapes, textures, etc.
- Have some paper, paints, colors, chalk and other resources for your child. If necessary cover the whole kitchen floor with newspaper and dress your child in very washable or no clothes in case they need a bath, clothes and all.
- Make a craft box with all kinds of goodies for putting together. Sticky contact paper is wonderful for attaching stuff and doesn’t drip off the counter.
- Playdough gives some 3-d visual stimulation. So do blocks and other construction materials.
- Go on a shape or color walk around the neighborhood to see what there is to see.
- Play I Spy when waiting.
For some listening fun:
- Sing some songs together. That requires listening to each other and to the music.
- Play some music for your child to dance to.
- Instead of looking at a book, listen to the recording of a one.
- Tell a story to your child. The only pictures will be the ones that the words paint.
- In a safe place, close eyes and listen to the sounds. Can you guess them?
- Very young children love to listen and imitate animal sounds,and there are lots of stories for that. Or, you may be able to find some animal sounds and have your child guess the animal.
These are just a few plays-of-the-day for listening and looking. Would you agree that the letter L has lots of learning fun?