Toys for Toddlers Around the Home
Household Items are a Source of Entertainment for Young Children
Sep 20, 2009
Toddlers are often fascinated by ordinary objects found around the house. Parents can use this curiosity to their advantage and create fun activities for their children with the simplest of objects. Here are five ideas of household items that make great toys for tots.
Homemade Bubbles
Blowing bubbles is a great indoor or outdoor activity for young children. They love seeing them float and pop. Bubbles can easily be made at home by mixing dishwashing liquid and water. Add a splash of food colouring to the mixture to create colourful bubbles. Homemade bubble wands can be fashioned out of items such as cookie cutters, soda can rings and pipe cleaners bent into different shapes. Toddlers are too young to blow bubbles, but can watch as a parent or caregiver does the honours. Special care must be taken to avoid getting bubbles in a child's eyes.
Making Music With Bowls and a Wooden Spoon
Mixing bowls and wooden spoons can be invaluable household items for the parent who needs to get some work done in the kitchen while watching their young child. Toddlers can sit on the floor and with wooden spoon in hand, make their own brand of music. As they beat against a variety of bowls and containers, they’ll delight in the different sounds they produce.
Most kitchen cupboards are kept off-limits to little ones. However, designate one as a play cupboard and keep it filled with mixing bowls and other age-appropriate toys or items. This is a good way to keep a toddler occupied.
Cardboard Boxes Make Great Caves
The toddler who receives a gift may sometimes be more interested in its packaging than in its contents. That’s why instead of tossing cardboard boxes in the garbage, parents can keep them as amusements for their young children. Large boxes can serve as caves, which little ones will love climbing in and out of. They will enjoy filling smaller boxes with toys or objects, emptying them and then filling them back up again. Parents can leave boxes in their child's play area and periodically change the contents to keep them interested. Similarly, plastic containers of a variety of shapes and sizes are fun for toddlers to stack.
Laundry Baskets
Toddlers will love being taken for a ride in a laundry basket. They can sit in the basket and be pushed, pulled or slid around in circles. The pace of these basket rides should be tempered to ensure the basket does not tip over. Toddlers may also like pushing an empty laundry basket around the house. Supervision is required at all times when a child is playing with a laundry basket and they should not be allowed to climb in and out of one by themselves.
Sock Puppets
Old socks that have been lying around the house can be used to make hand puppets for children. They are quick and easy toys to make. Simply take the sock and using a felt-tipped marker, draw on a mouth, nose and eyes. Then with sock on hand, make the puppet come alive with silly voices. A sock puppet can become a character for a toddler to interact with, especially if it’s one that sings songs, tells stories and swoops in for kisses.
There is no need for parents to break the bank buying a lot of expensive kids’ products. With a little imagination, household items can make great toys for toddlers.
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