Toddlers are visual learners! This is a great activity for teaching parts of the body and helping little ones translate reality into drawings.
Materials:
- Kraft paper of different sizes (the bigger the better!)
- Markers or crayons
Instructions:
- Start slow by pointing at different body parts and saying their names aloud.
- Ask your little one to imitate you and point at the same body part and repeat the name aloud as well. By mirroring your actions, your little one will practice observing and imitating while also strengthening their language development and comprehension.
- Find a spacious and comfortable area in the home and prepare your piece or pieces of paper. If you are relying on printer-sized sheets of paper, you can tape them together to make a larger sheet!
- Have your toddler lie down and trace their body with a marker or crayon. This is a great way to teach your child patience! If your little one doesn't have the patience to lay down, you can start small and trace a single body part such as a hand or foot.
- Have your little one color in their silhouette.
Extensions & Adjustments:
There are lots of opportunities for customization based on your toddler’s age and skills:
- For kids 3 years and old, you can ask them to draw on more details, such as clothes, shoes or uniforms. Halloween costumes is so much fun and a great way to spur creativity. You can also be more anatomically correct and illustrate details such as hair and facial features. This not only improves their dexterity, it always improves their recall memory!
- For kids 4 years and old, you can introduce more complex teachings, such as organs (lungs, heart, etc.) and bones (a great opportunity to introduce the skeleton).
Be creative and have fun!
Author: Denisa Mitu