What you need:
- Just you and your child!
What to do:
1. Take your child on a tour of your home and help her explore what she sees. Even if she is already walking, pick her up to give her a different visual perspective on the things she sees from the floor.
2. As you walk around with your child, point out and name different things in each room. You might want to focus her attention on things she has not noticed before, such as the way a ceiling fan goes around and around, or the way a couch has both hard parts and soft parts.
3. Let your child explore through touch too. She can look under pillows on your bed, squeeze toothpaste out of a tube, or turn on and off a light switch. You can also remind her about what happens in each room — which room is for sleeping, which room is for eating, and so forth.
4. Next, head outside! Describe all the sights, sounds, smells, and textures you can find there. Your baby can feel the soft green grass, the scratchy bark of a tree, or the smell after it rains. You might just be surprised at what interests your child most!
Learning benefits:
- encourages language development
- stimulates senses
- develops observation skills
