Preschool children love to play games. Whether it’s with other children or with you, they can never seem to get enough play time. At this age, children are steady enough on their feet to run, skip and jump, according to the Kids Health website. They can also understand games with rules. Take this time with your preschooler to get in some quality playtime.
Indoor Fun
Small children usually like to play the “hotter or colder” game. You can make it even more fun by hiding small toys or food treats around the house. Let you child start looking, while you say, “You’re getting warmer” or “You’re getting cooler,” whichever the situation calls for. Children love a good hunt.
The Great Outdoors
On a hot, sunny day, you can have the children play car wash. They will be having fun and cleaning their riding cars at the same time. You provide some sponges and some shallow dishes of soapy water. Set up a car wash area and let your children wash their cars. If some neighbor children have riding cars, have them bring them over, too. The kids can work together to wash the cars. They might have so much fun; they will want to wash their other toys, too.
Little Magicians
A 2008 study by the University of Hertfordshire in England found that children who learn to perform magic tricks are more confident and sociable, according to the Disney Family website. The ice breath trick is easy enough for your preschooler to do with some help from you. Get a plastic cup that is not see-through. Cut a sponge and place it on the bottom of the cup. Make sure the sponge fits tightly in the cup. Have your child put an ice cube in the cup. Put a small amount of water in a see-through glass, and your child is ready to perform. He will tell his audience that his breath is so cold; it can turn water into ice. What he will do is to pour the glass of water into the cup with the sponge. Then, he will blow on the cup, wait a few seconds for the sponge to absorb the water, and turn over the cup. The ice cube will fall out, making it appear that he has turned the water into ice.
Learning Games
Teach your children their body parts by playing “Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes.” You will sing,”Head and shoulders, knees and toes,” while touching those parts of your body. Sing that part two times and then sing, “Eyes and ears and mouth and nose,” while pointing to those parts. End up with the head, shoulders, knees and toes. You can speed up the song after your children get the hang of it, or you can add more verses with more parts, such as your pinkie or your belly button.
Motor Skills
Set up an obstacle course. Not only will the children have fun, you will be helping them with motor skills. You can set this up indoors or outdoors. Just make sure you have a large enough area so that your children don’t get hurt by bumping into anything. Set up cardboard boxes for the kids to crawl through, a pile of cushions for them to jump on, and line up some empty 2-liter plastic soda bottles for them to jump over.
Photo Credit
- child balancing image by Katrina Miller from Fotolia.com
