| TODDLER TIPS
- Areas are conducive to a toddler’s daily activities. Open areas for push and pull toys, art, eating, and water and sand play activities. Soft areas set aside for a quiet play.
- Artwork displayed just above reach, but low enough for toddlers to look at. Caregiver displays pictures of children and their families.
- Environment and schedule are predictable and repetitive allowing toddlers to form expectations, repeatedly practice emerging skills, and feel the security of a familiar routine.
- Space is organized into interest or activity areas (art, water/sand, dramatic play, construction, etc.) for solitary or parallel play. If possible the room is separated making it difficult to for running toddlers to disturb toddlers engaged in concentrated play, and creating clear traffic patterns.
Toddler Functions
- Climbing – stairs, small gym, boxes, etc.
- Pushing – doll carriage, mowers, poppers, shopping cart, etc.
- Pulling – stringed pull toys, wagon, etc.
- Crawling through/under – boxes, tunnel, furniture, etc.
- Stacking – boxes, blocks, etc.
- Throwing – soft balls, balled newspaper, bean bags, etc.
- Riding – riding toys, kiddie cars, pony on wheels, etc.
- Rocking – rocking horse, rocking chair, rocking boat, etc.
- Grasping – squeeze toys, small stuffed animals, cups, spoons, bean bags, etc.
- Pounding – pounding bench, xylophone, boxes and spoons, pots, pans, and large plastic spoons, etc.
- Turning – telephone dials, toys with turning knobs, toy radio, containers with screw lids,
- Fitting together – puzzles, large pop beads, etc.
- Filling and dumping – sand and water, containers with objects, etc.
- Pouring – sand and water play, etc.
- Cause and effect – busy box, jack-in-the-box, etc.
- Target experience – shape sorter, giant pegs and peg boards, stacking rings, etc.
- Stacking/nesting – stacking toys, nesting toys, rings, boxes, etc.
- Matching – any sets of objects that can be matched by characteristics, such as color, shape, size, etc.
- Reading exploration – cloth books, hard cardboard books, plastic books, etc.
- Looking age-appropriate colorful wall-hangings within eye-contact of the toddler, small hand mirror with safety glass, magazines, photographs, pets, action toys, etc.
- Talking – dolls, puppets, telephones, books, pictures, flannel boards with accessories, photos, etc.
- Listening – records/tapes with record/tape player, musical instruments, music boxes, etc.
- Observing – magnifying glass with things to look at, pets, natural substances such as shells, rocks, gourds, or pine cones, mirrors, etc.
- Exploring fluid play experience such as sand/water, rice, etc. with appropriate accessories,
- Sensory – items you can smell, touch, taste, hear, etc.
- Problem-solving – simple experiments such as sink/float, magnets w/things to pick up, scale with things to weigh, nesting cups, counting frames/experiences, etc.
- Creative (stroking) – items/experiences that support the stroking motion, such as easel painting with appropriate sized brushes and paper, easel drawing with crayons, chalk, markers, etc.
- Creative (smearing) – non-toxic shaving cream, paint, paste or glue, finger-paint, etc.
- Creative (molding/squishing) – play dough and accessories, non-toxic shaving cream, sponges, finger-paints, goop, etc.
- Creative (tearing/cutting) – scissors, magazines, newspaper, wallpaper, tissue paper, etc.
- Creative (crafting) – collage items with paste/glue and appropriately sized paper, etc.
- Imaginative/dramatic play – kitchen area (stove, sink, refrigerator, picnic basket, play food, etc.), table and chairs, telephones, cleaning items, iron/ironing board, doll furniture, multi-cultural dolls, doll clothes, accessories for care-taking, feeding, diapering, sleeping, etc. dress-up clothes for men and women (hats, ties, purses, shoes, costumes, etc.)
- Self-help skills – items/experiences that encourage skills such as lacing, buckling, snapping, zipping, buttoning boards, etc.
* Information based on NAEYC Developmentally Appropriate Practices and CCC
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