When I was in sixth grade, my teacher told me I had the attention span of a toddler (I've always remembered that... a perfect example of how hurtful words can stay with you!), but it's not until recently that I've come to understood just how short the attention span of a toddler is! For Wesley, it's about 3 minutes max - if he's really interested in something! And apparently that's right about the average for his age.
Nothing challenges your creativity like being a mother... I feel like I have to constantly be on my toes, coming up with new ways to keep my little busy-body entertained and out of mischief. You know that eerie, 'it's much too quiet in here' feeling you get when they're up to something? That happens far too frequently if Wesley is bored. Last week mommy's favourite slippers went in the toilet.
Anyway, I thought I'd share some things that Wesley and I have been up to lately in attempt to keep the little man entertained and engaged. Oh, and if you're interested, a GREAT resource for other fun and creative activities for toddlers is The Toddler's Busy Book by Trish Kuffner. Wesley is still a bit young for many of the activities (it's for ages 1.5-3) but I can't wait to try them out on him soon!
Moon Sand
This is a really weird/cool-textured sand that apparently is something akin to what sand feels like on the moon. It almost feels wet, but it's not, and it clumps together really easily so it's great for moulding. I made this today and Wesley had a blast with it.
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| Moon sand - not a great picture; it looks much cooler in 'person'! |
You can buy it, but it's pretty pricey and so easy to make yourself!
It's just:
2 cups fine sand (I used craft sand from Michaels)
1 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup water
Mix the ingredients together with your hands until you get the desired texture. Store it in an open container (it will dry out quite a bit) and then just add a tablespoon or so of water when you want to play with it again.
Felt Boards
This really takes me back to my elementary school days! We had a fantastic librarian who would always bring out the felt board for storytime. It really brought books to life for me as a young child. Wesley takes after his mom and loooves "reading" so I thought this would be a fun addition to our storytimes together.
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| Characters for the wonderful book 'Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?' |
For my felt board I bought a large art canvas from Michaels and then just covered it with a flannel receiving blanket using staples.
I've made a few sets of props and, not trusting my artistic abilities with felt and scissors, I chose to use interfacing (sometimes called pellon) which is a transparent, stiff material you can get from the fabric store which is used to make things like collars more rigid. It works so well for felt boards because it sticks beautifully to the flannel and is see-through so you can just trace your pattern, cut it out and presto - ready to go! I coloured my characters in with crayons as well.
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| Old Macdonald Had a Farm |
Homemade Playdough
A classic, with endless hours of creative possibilities ... or about 3-5 minutes, if you're 16 months old!
Here's the recipe I use which makes really soft, perfect-every-time playdough:
2 cups flour
2 cups water
1 tbsp cooking oil
1 tsp cream of tartar
1 cup of salt
food colouring
Place all the ingredients in a large pan. Cook slowly on medium-high heat and stir until the playdough thickens. Let cool. Place in an airtight container and put in fridge. Enjoy!
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