Have your child collect items like rocks and leaves. Arrange them in a pattern such as one rock, two leaves, one rock, two leaves. Then mix them up and ask your child to recreate your pattern. Can they remember the order? Have them take a turn making a simple pattern for you to remember.
Author: Sarah Childs
The Size Game
Invite your child to hunt for objects of different sizes. How many small things can they find? What about big things? Make it harder and ask them to find things that are medium-sized or huge. Talk about what they see and what is the same and different.
Grocery Cart Sort
While grocery shopping, ask your child if they can manage the cart by sorting your shopping into vegetables, fruits, frozen foods, or by color. Can they find a way to keep the boxes lined up so they don’t topple over?
Find the Opposites
When you’re waiting somewhere, ask your child to play “Find the Opposites” with you. You call out something big and they respond with the opposite, something small. Start with easy comparisons, like big and small, high and low, or near and far.
Guessing Game
Anytime you’re waiting in line, ask your child to guess how long until it’s your turn. How many numbers can you count? Or how many times will you sing a favorite song? Take turns inventing new “Waiting Games.”
Color Count
Challenge your child to find as many things as they can that are blue. Get creative by limiting the game to a specific time (three minutes or so) or place (the grocery store.) Have them count how many they find. Switch it up by looking for letters or objects instead.
Chore Conversations
When you have a sink full of dishes, turn the chore into something fun. As you scrub, ask your child to talk about the shapes of each dish. “What else is round like this bowl?” Have a conversation around their response. Remember, there are no wrong answers!
Bath Time Counting
Think of all the things you can count together at bathtime! Toes, of course, but what about the number of times you pour water on your child? Let your child think of things to count too. Take turns counting and talk about what you’re doing.
“Which is Heavier?”
A store can be a great place to build your child’s brain on the go. Give them something like a banana and an apple to hold. “Which is heavier? Which is larger? Which is softer?” You can do this with any items, in any aisle, in any store!
Word Pattern
Pick three food words such as “banana, apple, pear” to make a word pattern. Repeat with your child three times. Have them pick three food words and make a pattern three times: “fork, spoon, plate.” Talk about what word comes first, second, and third.
