Table Activity: Dirt & Cars

Cooper loves cars. I think I must have said this in more than one post, LOL. But when I need a quick and easy table activity to keep him entertained for 15 minutes, this is a winner. All I did was pour some brown rice into a cooking pan. Then I gave some cars to Cooper. Cooper thinks he is driving his cars through “dirt”. Quick, Simple, Engaging, Loving it!

We’ve been using this activity during table time and during times of transition.

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How to Fit Learning Activities into Your Toddler’s Day

I break the day up a bit with my son’s learning activities (2.5 years old). We do 4 different types of learning activities
1). Circle time
2). Structured Learning
3). Table Time
4). Family Game Time
Optional: Times of Transition

I use times of transition as educational times as well. I just have Cooper do a brief table time with a short activity he can do independently.

1. Circle time: We do calender activity, weather, sing our songs, chant our nursery rhyme, bible memory verse, phonemic awareness game/ activity, and usually a read aloud. (15-30 minutes, depends on read aloud and his attention span)

2. Structured Learning: We do bible, phonics, math, science/ social studies, and arts/ crafts. Some days we do all these subjects, and other days we only do 2-3. We almost always do bible, phonics, and math. I pick and choose from the Littlest Learning Activities and to them during structured learning time. I also create many of my own lessons and ideas. You can find them on the blog I have started for teaching Cooper called, “Teaching Toddlers and Preschoolers”

3. Table/ Blanket Time: I use this as a time for Cooper to do an activity at the table that he can do independently that reinforces the skills that he has already learned. I also use this time to let him play at the table or blanket, so it is not necessarily always academic.

4. Family Game Time: 2/3 the time this is educational. I like to get my husband in on Cooper’s learning. So we tend to play games that reinforce the skills that Cooper is learning. Most of the time, it is just repeating an activity we did earlier in the day, but now Cooper gets to show dad what he learned. Cooper LOVES to do his learning activities and games with dad. He gets so proud of himself.

8:00 Wake Up, Breakfast
8:30 Free Play
9:00 Circle Time (while his sisters have Blanket Time)
9:15/9:30 Outside Play
10:00 Structured Learning (while his sisters nap)
11:00 Snack & Read Stories
11:30 Independent Play Time
12:30 Lunch
1:00/1:15 Play with Mommy
2:00-4:30 Nap
4:30 Snack & TV
5:00 Table Time/ Blanket Time (while his sisters have Independent Play Time)
5:30 Free Play or Outside Play
6:00 Dinner
6:30 Family Play
7:15/7:30 Play with Daddy
8:00 Family Game Time or Read Stories
8:15 Bedtime Routine
9:00 Asleep

The twins (13 months old) only have about 15-20 minutes of structured learning right now. I do it in the morning after they first wake up. They are also read to at snack time. They have blanket time in the playroom while Cooper does circle time, so they hear us sing our songs and chant our rhymes, but obviously they are too young to participate yet.

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Structuring Your Toddler’s Day (two naps a day)

When I first wrote my post about structuring your toddler’s day, I wrote it for when my son was taking one nap a day. But most toddler’s don’t drop the morning nap and move to one nap a day until they are closer to 15-18 months old. My son Cooper dropped the morning nap at 12 months, which is early. My twin daughters are 12 months old and are still taking 2 naps a day. While there are days they only take one nap (due to activities we have planned outside the home), 5-6 out of 7 days they are still taking two naps a day. I thought it would be helpful to write out their schedule at 12 months for parents who are looking to structure their toddler’s day while still on two naps.

Click on each activity to learn more about them. Check back frequently as I add more links to the various activities as I blog about them.

For a sample schedule of a toddler on one nap a day, please see my post entitled Structuring Your Toddler’s Day (one nap a day)

7:00 Nurse, Potty, Dressed for the Day
7:30 Structured Learning/ Free Play
8:00 Breakfast
8:30 Free Play in Playroom & Circle Time
9:00 Outside Play
9:45/10:00-11:00 Nap
11:00 Nurse, Potty, Diaper Changes
11:20 Independent Play Time
12:15 Lunch
12:45 High Chair Activity (AKA Table Time/ Transition Time)
1:00 Play With Mommy inside or Outside Play
1:30 Story Time & Quiet Play with Mommy
2:00-4:00 Nap
4:00 Nurse & Snack, Potty, Diaper Change
4:30 Blanket Time
5:00 Sibling Play
5:30 DVD in Playroom (while Mommy gets dinner ready) or Play with Daddy if he is home from work already
6:00 Dinner
6:30 Family Play
7:00 Bath
7:15/7:30 Nurse/Bottles, Followed By Bed

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