Hello. I recently pulled my son from daycare, we had him there 4 months and I was not pleased. We now have a nanny that comes to our home everyday and watches both of our children. Since the weather has been so frigid, I am running out of ideas for age appropriate activites for him to do inside. We do Playdoh, color and have played with rice and buckets for texture and helping him learn to scoop and such. I was wondering if any moms who were a bit more creative than I , could help me with some more activites to try for my son. It seems most art projects are geared toward 3 yrs or older. Since our nanny is new, we aren't letting her drive with the children just yet which rules out COSI, etc. Thank you for your help, I need some creativeness!!!
Not sure if this is what you're looking for, but I take my 22 month old to Gymboree classes. She absolutely loves it!
Although your oldest son is not yet 2, have they done any simple cooking project together? My little ones love to make pudding, pouring and whisking and of course tasting! Our favorite simple cooking snack is mini muffins. Martha White makes an easy mix that just needs milk. My kiddos love to add blue coloring to the blueberry flavored muffins along with blue sprinkles on top. It is great fun! I was previously a preschool teacher, and was then a nanny before I started my own family so I am thinking from experience.
Kids love to make tents with blankets and sheets. If you don't mind, let them take the cushions off the couch to add to their tent building. Flashlights are fun inside under the blanket. Or they may just have fun jumping on the cushions!! I know my kids love to do this.
Since it is winter, when we do have some snow accumulation, bring the snow inside! Put it into a large mixing bowl with some kitchen utensils and let the exploration begin. You can even put mittens on so little fingers don't get too cold.
When I was a nanny, the family that I worked for supplied me with sort of a surprise bag. It resembled that of a"Barney's Bag", if you are familiar with that. That show was a big hit back then...Anyway, the mom filled it with special things that I could do with the children when the winter days were slow and boring. There were craft supplies, toys, a special movie, stickers etc.
As for craft projects...have you heard of Foamies? They come in all shapes and sizes and are fun to glue and make collages for little ones. Your nanny can be in charge of the glue and your son can take control of the creative aspect.
Have you tried to Google activities? I know this can be time consuming but you can find some good activities out there.
Have fun! Hope this helps a bit for you and your nanny
I am a child care provider and one of my favorite "idea" books is called "The Toddler's Busy Book" by Trish Kuffner. There are tons of ideas, and most are very simple things. For instance, the 20-month old I watch as well as my 3-year old, love "blanket rides" which is simply pulling them up and down the hallway (laminate floors) while they lay on a blanket. Another favorite is a music parade. I usually play a children's music CD and then we march around, each with an instrument of some sort. (baby piano, drum, rattle, etc.) For exercise when it's cold, we do stretching and gymnastics. (rolling, somersaults, walking the balance beam (tape on the floor). You can find ideas on websites also. Hope this helps.
R.
Like you said until you allow her to drive with your child it is a bit more limited.
My kids like water play in our sensory tub...similar idea you are using with dry rice and such only with water, ice cubes, you can even put shaving cream into a big container and let him paint and draw with it. I even allow them to put it on the tabel and color a picture with it.
Dress up play??
Good luck
