- Dressing up. Put together a basket of clothes/accessories to suit different types of weather. For example, sun hats and winter hats, sunglasses, welly boots, scarves and gloves. Encourage your child to explore and to try and dress themselves.
- You could also use the various clothing items to talk more about different parts of the body. 'The hat goes on your head'. 'I'll put the gloves on my hands' etc.
- Make 'rainmakers' using tubes or plastic bottles and filling them with uncooked rice, lentils etc. to create sound. Let your child help with filling the rainmaker then watch as they enjoy making lots of noise!
- Songs about the weather include:
The sun has got his hat on.
Rain, rain go away.
It's raining it's pouring.
I hear thunder.
Five little leaves.
The rainbow song.
Incy Wincy Spider.
- If we get any rain, get those wellies on and go puddle jumping!
- Use chalk to draw rainbow colours on the pavement.
- A summery fruit salad is a great opportunity for toddlers to practice picking up and eating finger foods.
- Use lots of language relating to 'time'. For example, 'It's breakfast time.' 'It's time to get dressed' 'It's time for your bath' etc. Toddlers love routine and begin to recognise and anticipate regular activities.
- Continue singing lots of number songs and encouraging your child to copy number names.
- Continue to read lots of books together and remember there are stories for all ages on YouTube, Cbeebies website etc.
Understanding the world:
- If you search for 'Summer sensory trays' on Google there are lots of fun ideas for exploratory play.
- Small world play with animals, people and vehicles. Encourage your child to use sounds in their play.
Expressive arts and design:
- Add a drop of food colouring to a bowl of dry rice. You could do this with several colours and have rainbow rice to explore. This could also be done with porridge oats for a more taste-safe activity.
- Water play with rubber ducks etc. The pouring water could be rain.
Have fun and stay safe!