Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
1 part peanut butter
1 part nonfat powdered milk
1 teaspoon honey (optional)
Mix all ingredients together.
Cloud Dough
This dough has a springy texture.
Variable Yield
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
1 part salad oil
6 parts flour
1 part water
Mix the oil and flour together.
Gradually add water until the desired consistency is reached.
Oatmeal Fundough
This dough has a unique texture. It is edible but does not taste good. In addition, it does not store well, so go ahead and throw it away after your child is done playing.
Makes 2 cups
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
2 cups uncooked oatmeal
1 cup flour
¼ cup water
Mix all the ingredients together. Let your child knead the dough.
Rubber Dough
You will be surprised at the unique texture of this dough.
Makes 2 cups
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 15 minutes
2 cups baking soda
1½ cups water
1 cup cornstarch
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over a medium heat. Stir until mixture reaches a boil.
When the dough is thick, remove it from the heat and cool it on a flat surface.
Store in airtight containers.
Kool-Aid Dough
A very popular dough, this looks and smells terrific.
Makes 2 cups
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
1 cup sifted flour
½ cup salt
3 tablespoons oil
1 package Kool-Aid
1 cup boiling water
Mix all the ingredients together. Once the mixture cools, let your child knead the dough.
Pumpkin Pie Dough
Here is fun seasonal dough. Be warned that it does not taste as good as it smells!
Makes 2 cups
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 20 minutes
5½ cups flour
2 cups salt
8 teaspoons cream of tartar
¾ cup oil
1 ounce pumpkin-pie spice
Orange food coloring
4 cups water
Mix all the ingredients together over low heat.
Stir constantly until mixture reaches the consistency of mashed potatoes.
Remove from heat. When cool, knead.
Mud Dough
Your child will love this dough’s muddy texture.
Makes 2½ cups
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
½ cup cold water
1 tablespoon oil
2 tablespoons brown tempera paint
½ cup salt
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1½ cups flour
Mix the water, oil, and paint together.
Stir in the remaining ingredients and knead together.
Snow Dough
This dough has a very nice appearance and texture.
Variable Yield
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
2 parts flour
1 part salt
Water
White tempera paint powder
White glitter
Mix all the flour and salt together.
Gradually add water until you reach the desired consistency.
Sprinkle in the white tempera powder and glitter for color and effect.
Bread Dough
This dough is great for fine detailed work. When it dries, it looks like porcelain.
Variable Yield
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
White bread without crust
White craft glue
Food coloring
Let your child shred bread into tiny pieces.
Add glue and have your child knead the dough until it reaches a proper consistency (not too gooey).
Add either bread or glue as needed. Add a few drops of coloring as desired.
Clay
Homemade Clay
The thicker the sculpture, the longer it takes to dry.
Makes 3 cups
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 30 minutes
2 cups baking soda
1 cup cornstarch
1¼ cups cold water
Mix all the ingredients together and cook over a medium heat while stirring constantly.
When mixture reaches the consistency of mashed potatoes, remove from the heat and place on a clean counter or plate.
Cover the clay with a damp cloth until it is cool.
Knead the clay, and mold and sculpt as desired.
Toothpaste Clay
This is an unusual clay. Your child can squish and mold it like putty, but it will dry overnight.
Variable Yield
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
1 part toothpaste (not gel)
2 parts white glue
4 parts cornstarch
1 part water
1–2 drops food coloring
Mix toothpaste, glue, and cornstarch together. Gradually add water and food coloring.
Dryer Lint Clay
You will be amazed at the result of this project.
Makes 3½ cups
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 20 minutes
3 cups dryer lint
2 cups cold or warm water
2⁄3 cup flour
3 drops oil of cloves
Mix the first three ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. Stir constantly to prevent lumps.
Add the oil of cloves. Continue stirring until peaks form.
Remove from heat and let cool. You can shape this by hand or place in molds.
Dry for three or four days.
Holiday Ornaments
This clay hardens in the oven.
Makes 3 cups
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 45 minutes
1½ cups flour
1½ cups cinnamon and nutmeg mix
1 cup salt
1 cup water
Holiday cookie cutters
1 straw
Mix all the ingredients together. Add more water if dough is dry and does not hold together.
Have your child knead the dough and then roll it out to a disc ¼ thick.
Show your child how to cut out shapes from the dough using cookie cutters.
Use the straw to poke a small hole in the top of the ornament.
Bake at 300°F for ½ hour or until the ornaments are hard.
Chalk
Spray Chalk
Your child can spray this on beach sand or snow.
Makes ½ cup
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
1 cup water
4 tablespoons cornstarch
3 drops food coloring
Mix all the ingredients and put into spray bottles.
Eggshell Chalk
This chalk is only for sidewalk use.
Makes 1 stick
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 20 minutes
4 eggshells
1 teaspoon flour
1 teaspoon very hot tap water
Grind clean dry eggshells to a fine powder.
Add 1 tablespoon of this power to the flour and hot water.
Mix until a paste forms.
Roll paste into a cylinder an
d wrap in waxed paper.
Allow to dry for three days, then remove the paper.
Sidewalk Chalk
Homemade chalk is cheaper, and creates less dust.
Variable Yield
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 3 hours
2 cups water
2 cups plaster of Paris
2 tablespoons powdered tempera paint
Stir all ingredients in a large bowl and let set for a few minutes.
Spoon the mixture into molds. (Tape one end of a toilet paper tube closed to create a jumbo chalk mold.)
Let chalk dry for at least three hours before removing from the mold.
Miscellaneous Materials
Silly Putty
This project is messy, but the result is nicer than the commercial product. Sometimes this is also called slime or ooze.
Variable Yield
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 15 minutes
2 parts white craft glue or starch
1 part liquid starch
Mix together. If the mixture stays stringy, add a drop of glue. If it’s too brittle, add more starch.
Chill for at least three hours.
Add either glue or starch as needed. Add a few drops of coloring as desired.
Goop
This is a messy but fun sensory material.
Variable Yield
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
2 parts cornstarch
1 part water
Let your child use his hands to mix the ingredients together in a shallow bowl or container.
Have him explore what happens when he adds more water or cornstarch.
Jewels and Gems
Mix this up in a large dish bin.
Variable Yield
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 3 hours
2 cups rock salt
6 to 8 drops food coloring
½ cup white craft glue
Waxed paper
Mix the salt and food coloring together.
Add the glue and mix thoroughly.
Mold into gem and jewel shapes.
Set on waxed paper to dry.
Super Bubbles
Here is a bubble solution that will form more durable bubbles than the solution you buy at the store.
Makes 1½ cups
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
1 cup water
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
4 tablespoons liquid dish soap
Mix all ingredients in a jar or container with a secure lid.
Lick-and-Stick Stickers
Now your child can make his own stickers, and they will taste good too!
Makes ½ cup
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 30 minutes
2 tablespoons boiling water
1 tablespoon flavored gelatin
Shallow cup or dish
Decorated bond paper or magazine and newspaper clippings
Cotton swabs
Add the boiling water to the gelatin powder; stir until dissolved.
When it is cool, place the mixture in a shallow cup or dish and your child can use it as sticker glue. Stickers can be made of bond paper or even magazine and newspaper clippings. Show him how to use the swabs to paint on the glue.
When the glue is dry, your child can lick and stick the sticker wherever he wants.
Classroom Paste
It is not hard to make a paste similar to the one you remember from elementary school.
Makes 1½ quarts
Age group: 18–40 months
Duration of activity: 10 minutes
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup cold water
4 cups boiling water
1 tablespoon alum
½ teaspoon oil of wintergreen
Mix flour and sugar in bowl, then slowly add in cold water to make a paste.
Add the boiling water and transfer the mixture to a saucepan.
Bring to a boil and stir until mixture is thick and clear.
Remove from the heat and add the alum and oil of wintergreen.
APPENDIX B
Recommended Resources
Other Toddler Activity Books
Herr, Judy. Creative Learning Activities for Young Children. (New York: Delmar Thomson Learning, 2000).
Kohl, MaryAnn. First Art: Art Experiences for Toddlers and Twos. (Silver Spring, Maryland: Gryphon House, 2002).
Masi, Wendy. Toddler Play (Gymboree). (Minneapolis, MN: Creative Publishing International, 2001).
Pica, Rae. Moving and Learning Series: Toddlers. (New York: Delmar Thomson Learning, 2000).
Rowley, Barbara. Baby Days: Activities, Ideas, and Games for Enjoying Daily Life with a Child Under Three. (New York, NY: Hyperion, 2000).
Schiller, Pam. The Complete Resource Book for Toddlers and Twos: Over 2000 Experiences and Ideas. (Silver Spring, Maryland: Gryphon House, 2003).
Warren, Jean. Toddler Games: Simple Seasonal Games Designed Especially for Toddlers. (Totline Publications, 2002)
Parenting Books
Bowers, Ellen. The Everything® Toddler Book, 2nd Edition. (Avon, MA: Adams Media, 2010).
Brazelton, T. Berry. Touchpoints. (Boston, MA: Da Capo Press, 1992).
Douglas, Ann. The Mother of All Toddler Books. (New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, 2004).
Eisenberg, Arlene. What to Expect: The Toddler Years. (New York, NY: Workman Publishing Company, 1994).
Hewitt, Deborah. So This Is Normal Too? (St. Paul, MN: Redleaf Press, 1995).
Margulis, Jennifer, ed. Toddler: Real-Life Stories of Those Fickle, Irrational, Urgent, Tiny People We Love. (Jackson, TN: Seal Press, 2003).
Murphy, Jana. The Secret Lives of Toddlers: A Parent’s Guide to the Wonderful, Terrible, Fascinating Behavior of Children Ages 1–3. (New York, NY: Perigee Trade, 2004).
Shonkoff, Jack P., ed. From Neurons to Neighborhoods: The Science of Early Childhood Development. (Washington, DC: National Academies Press, 2000).
Books for Your Toddler
Breeze, L., and A. Morris. This Little Baby’s Bedtime. (New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company, 1990).
Brown, Margaret Wise. Goodnight Moon. (New York, NY: Harper Festival; board edition, 1991).
Carle, Eric. The Very Hungry Caterpillar. (New York, NY: Philomel, 1994).
Christelow, Eileen. Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed. (New York, NY: Clarion Books, 1998).
Eastman, P. D., illus. Are You My Mother? (New York, NY: Random House Books for Young Readers; board edition, 1998).
Keats, Ezra Jack. The Snowy Day. (New York, NY: Viking Books; board edition, 1996).
Kingsley, Emily Perl. I Can Do It Myself. (Racine, WI: Western Publishing Co., Inc., 1980).
Westcott, Nadine Bernard. I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly. (New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company, 1988).
Index
ABC Dominoes activity, 230
Act It Out activity, 127
Action plays, 105–07
Air-Travel, 46–47
All about Me activity, 179
All-about-Me Book activity, 181
Animal Sounds activity, 49
Animals, 202–05
Anytime activities, 24–26
Apple Prints activity, 238
Arctic Animal/hibernation, 248–50
Art/exploration, 63–79
Astronomy/nighttime activities, 157–58
Away from home activities, 45–62
Baby Bonnet Doll activity, 123
Back Blackboard activity, 15
Backward Upside-Down Day activity, 40
Backyard/nature activities, 145–58
Bag Puppets, 130
Ball Painting, 70
&nb
sp; Basketball, 142
Bath-time activities, 12–14
Beach activities, 57–59
Beach Fantasy activity, 36
Beach Towels, 58
Beachcomber activity, 35
Beanbag Toss, 28
Bend and Stretch activity, 20
Big Feet, Little Feet activity, 175
Big Head Puppets, 129
Binoculars, 158
Bird activities, 213–15
Birds That Fly activity, 105
Birthday Blocks, 283
Birthday Cake, 229
Birthday Parties, 282–85
Black Magic activity, 66
Bleeding Tissue Paper activity, 98
Blob Race, 289
Block building, 124–26
Block City activity, 125
Blossom Trees activity, 252
Blowing Games, 195
Blown Pictures, 152
Boats That Float, 84
Bowling, 142
Box Train, 38
Brush the Tooth activity, 188
Bubble Bonanza activity, 91
Bubble Catch activity, 90
Bubble Prints activity, 76
Bubble Tools, 92
Bubble Wrap Fun, 94
Bugs! activities, 148–50
Build a Person activity, 178
Butterfly Feet activity, 149
Buzzing Bee activity, 111
Calming/rest-time, 15–17
Camping Theme, 119
Can You See? activity, 61
Captions, 161
Car-Travel, 48–49
Catching Butterflies, 148
Categorization skills, 52
Celebration Picture activity, 259
Changing Colors, 146
Chanukah, 272–74
Character in a Bag, 127
Children, special needs, 189–200
Children with autism activities, 192–93
Christmas, 275–76
Cinderella’s Shoe, 220
Circle Chase, 137
Circle Prints, 223
Circus Theme Party, 281
Clap Your Hands, 283
Cleanup Is Fun!, 21
Cloud Pictures, 152
The Clown Says activity, 141
Cobbler Cobbler activity, 55
Coffee-Filter Butterflies, 150
Cognitive disability activities, 196–97
Collages, 51, 74–75
Collect Rain activity, 34
Color activities, 224–26
Coloring activities, 64–67
Community helpers activities, 205–07
Cooperative game activities, 134–36
Corn Rolling, 239
Cornucopia activity, 239