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Home » Activities » Practical Life Activities for Toddlers

Practical Life Activities for Toddlers

This post may contain affiliate links. See my disclosure .

I’m sure that I’m not alone in admitting that every so often I find myself in an uninspiring slump or creative block. Call it what you will but it’s an uncomfortable place.

Practical Life Activities for Toddlers

So the other day as I sighed and moped around my kitchen trying to pull a meal together, my two-year-old interrupted me to ask, “What’s that?”

“Oh that is a dish strainer, honey. That’s where we place dishes to dry.”

‘I want to play this game.’

‘oh, it’s not really a game, sweetheart,’ I answered quickly.

He sighed but then excitedly announced, ‘I’m going to get my dishes!’

Ah-ha.

A child putting dishes in a drying rack

So I pulled the strainer off the shelf (still waiting for that two-step stool), which was empty, shockingly, and let him at it.

Watching him organize, try to fit dishes and cups in, etc was beautiful, and, the best part? I had very little to do with that beauty.

Later that evening he did a similar thing when I was using our hand vac to suck up some rice (oh sensory tubs, how I love you). He said, ‘I do it?’

Absolutely, my sweet boy, absolutely. He held the vac with two hands, watched and listened to the sucking, and played around with that sensation by placing the vac on his feet. Awesome.

So I guess my point to this post is to let your child take the lead. This approach is particularly helpful when you find yourself stuck on ideas. A wonderful reminder to take a step back and breath every once in a while because the beauty is right there in front of you.

Thanks for reading!
Marnie

Tagged With: Infant & Toddler, Preschool

About Marnie Craycroft

Marnie hails from Maine where she spent summers buried in sand and winters buried in snow. She is the daughter of a nearly four decade veteran of the public school systems. Teaching has always been a part of her life. She founded Carrots Are Orange in 2010.

Carrots Are Orange is a Montessori learning and living website for parents and teachers.

Marnie graduated from Wesleyan University in 1999 with a BA in Economics. She spent nearly a decade working in investment management. In 2006, she earned her MA in business from the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business.

Marnie moved to the west coast in 1999 and currently lives in Boulder with her husband and three sons. She is Montessori trained. Her work has been featured on Apartment Therapy, Buzzfeed, PBS Kids, BabyCenter, the Melissa & Doug blog, Huffington Post, and WhattoExpect.com. Besides writing, passions include running (usually after her three sons), photography, and outdoor adventures.

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