Learning through play: fun activities for kids

Your toddler is learning every single day and at an accelerated rate. There are a number of fun activities for kids that can have a huge impact on how your child grows and affect areas such as how they socially interact with other children, how they perceive themselves and also how they will think in the future.

Here are some forms of play that can help your toddler to grow and develop:

Ball games

Getting your toddler to engage in ball games can prove highly beneficial for their development and is just one in the long list of fun activities for kids. It helps with hand-eye coordination, a sense of timing and improving attention span. It will help with their general judgement skills as they will need to work out how to roll, bounce and then throw the ball. They will also learn social skills such as team work and coordinating with others.

Building blocks

Building blocks and shapes are great for helping to develop your toddler’s hand-eye coordination skills, logical thinking, and giving them a general understanding of shapes. Building blocks will also help your toddler to develop skills they’ll be able to use later in mathematics due to the problem-solving and analytical aspect of the activity. The strategic nature of building and working out how many blocks they will need to successfully achieve their goals will also help them develop planning skills. This achievement and sense of accomplishment will help to increase their self-esteem and overall awareness of their capabilities.

Painting

Painting is great for fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, as well as giving kids an opportunity to unleash their creativity. They’ll also be learning cognitive skills as they witness the consequences of actions they have carried out. They will explore new colours and learn how these connect to their senses and emotions. This outlet means that children are able to express themselves better and experiment with releasing thoughts and feelings. The sense of accomplishment will also be very rewarding for them and help to build up their confidence.

Music

Music is an extremely expressive medium and can affect so many areas of your toddler’s development. Listening to music will enhance their listening skills, make them more sensitive to sounds and also give them a chance to move their body in time with a melody or rhythm. It will open up different parts of their brain and get them to engage with language and vocabulary.

Pretend play

Pretend play can be counted as one of the most natural and instinctive processes when it comes to fun activities for kids. It allows your toddler to develop problem-solving skills, helps them develop the ability to mimic real-life situations and encourages them to express their emotions. Some of the most important developments are the social and communication skills that are gained when playing with other children. Their imagination will evolve rapidly and they will make significant advancements concerning language and vocabulary. And finally they will become more aware of themselves and the role that they play in a wider context, which is sure to come in handy in later life.

Photo by Rafiq Sarlie