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Toddler Activities

Snowball Toss Alphabet Game for Toddlers

January 1, 2021 By Trisha

I’m always looking for ways to get kids moving and learning especially in winter when we’re stuck inside more.

Let’s practice letter recognition and letter sounds with a pretend snowball fight.

Toddlers and preschoolers will love this snowball toss alphabet game. And, once you’re done playing you can move on to more fun activities for toddlers.

Help your kids learn their ABC's with this fun Snowball Throw Alphabet game for toddlers and  preschoolers.

Disclosure: There are Amazon Affiliate and other affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

Materials You’ll Need for the Snowball Toss Game

Snowballs

Card stock(or paper)

Paper cutter (or scissors)

Tape (I used masking tape.)

Marker

Paper plates (or something similar – use plastic bowls, plates, or even pieces of paper)

I found 10 indoor snowballs for $3 at the Target dollar spot. Walmart is selling 20 indoor snowballs for about $10. You can also get indoor snowballs on Amazon. You could even make your own snowballs from balled up socks or crumpled paper.

The indoor snowballs remind me of giant pom poms, but they are weirdly squishy. You know how real snow feels when you make a snowball – that squishy, crunchy feeling? The indoor snowballs replicate that feeling.

Set Up Your Snowball Throw Alphabet Game

I used a paper cutter to cut a piece of white card stock into 1-inch squares. Then, I wrote a letter on each paper square. I drew a line at the bottom of each lowercase letter and some of the uppercase letters just so it was easy to tell which direction the card went.

Your toddler or preschooler will have fun moving and learning their abc's with this simple gross motor Snowball Toss Alphabet Game

I used uppercase and lowercase letters for our matching game. You could play the matching game with the same case to work more on introducing letters.

Select 10 letters to work with. (This helps focus on just some of the letters instead of the entire alphabet. If you have more snowballs, feel free to use more letters.)

Your toddler or preschooler will have fun moving and learning their abc's with this simple gross motor Snowball Toss Alphabet Game

Tape one lowercase letter to each snowball.

Now you’ll need a landing zone for the snowballs. I used small paper plates. You could use containers or even pieces of paper.

Tape one uppercase letter to each landing zone.

Your toddler or preschooler will have fun moving and learning their abc's with this simple gross motor Snowball Toss Alphabet Game

Place the uppercase letters on one side of the room. We lined the paper plates up near the wall.

Make a pile of snowballs on the other side of the room.

Practice the alphabet with this fun indoor snowball game for toddlers

Play this snowball toss alphabet game

Have your child pick up a snowball and find the letter on it. Ask him to say the name of the letter. (You can also have him say the letter sound.)

Now have your child throw the snowball across the room (towards the paper plates). I had my kids throw the snowballs at the wall.

Next, have your child pick up the snowball and find it’s matching letter on a paper plate. Say: “You have the little (lowercase) letter e. Can you find the big (uppercase) letter E?” Have her place the snowball on the correct letter.

Your toddler or preschooler will have fun moving and learning their abc's with this simple gross motor Snowball Toss Alphabet Game

Keep throwing snowballs and matching letters until you run out.

Then, you can reset the game and play it all over again. Use the same letters or practice different ones. (We stayed on the same set for a while. We’ll switch out the letters and play again another day.)

Your toddler or preschooler will have fun moving and learning their abc's with this simple gross motor Snowball Toss Alphabet Game

My toddler (age 2.5) and my preschooler (age 4.5) equally enjoyed this snowball toss alphabet game. They loved getting to throw the snowballs at the wall and then had fun finding the right letter.

Sometimes my toddler read the letters upside down and just made a match with whatever he thought the letter was. I had to have him slow down a bit and help him double check the letters.

Your toddler or preschooler will have fun moving and learning their abc's with this simple gross motor Snowball Toss Alphabet Game.

I love how this game gets kids moving and working on gross motor skills (throwing, bending, running, etc.) while practicing the alphabet.

Your toddler or preschooler will have fun moving and learning their abc's with this simple gross motor Snowball Toss Alphabet Game.

More Winter Themed Activities for Toddlers

Practice your numbers with this fun Snow Numbers Activity that uses real snow.

Use snow as a canvas for some Snow Painting.

Make a fizzy snow dough sensory bin.

Try some penguin painting, an easy art project that’s perfect for toddlers.

Learn your ABCs with this fun gross motor Snowball Throw Alphabet Game for Toddlers

Find All Your Supplies Here

You may already have some of the supplies you need at home. I know I always have a roll of tape and some card stock. But, if you’re looking to buy some of the supplies, here are a few that I recommend.

Are you looking for more kids activities?

Join our fun Facebook community, Creative Family Fun for Busy Families, for daily activities that are great for kids and families. We’ll chat, share, and have fun. It’s a safe and private place to share ideas for family and kids activities.

I’d love for you to join me! Just click the link below, request to join, and answer the questions (they’re easy, I promise). Come join the fun! Join the Creative Family Fun for Busy Families community here.

Fun Color Games for Toddlers

December 27, 2020 By Terri Thompson

Do you want to introduce colors to your toddler?

The best way is to do it through play, which is why these fun color games for toddlers are perfect for learning. Your little ones will play and have so much fun learning all about colors.

Help your little one learn with these fun and hands-on color games for toddlers. They'll have so much fun learning while they play.

Disclosure: There are Amazon Affiliate and other affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

Color Games for Toddlers

All of these activities will keep you toddler active while they explore colors. And, they won’t just be learning about colors. Some of these games also incorporate texture, sorting, or fine motor skills.

You’ll want to try all of these fun ideas!

Color Games for Toddlers

You little ones will have so much fun learning with these fun hands-on color match games for toddlers.

Backyard Color Match Game for Toddlers

Take your learning outside and play this fun color match game with your little one.

Indoor Color Scavenger Hunt for Preschoolers and Toddlers

Use colored paper to find missing items throughout the house. Your toddlers will love this scavenger hunt.

Color Search and Find

Photo Credit: www.3dinosaurs.com

Help your little ones find items to match their color cards.

No-mess Color Mixing Art

Photo Credit: www.mamasmiles.com

Use paint in a bag to explore color mixing with this no-mess activity.

Simple Color Sorting Game for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Photo Credit: www.mamasmiles.com

Learn about colors and sorting with this simple color sorting game.

Mess Free Rainbow Activity

Photo Credit: www.thekeeperofthememories.com

Explore all the colors in the rainbow with this fun and mess-free activity.

Touch & Feel Colour Cards

Photo Credit: www.teach-me-mommy.com

Explore color and texture with these DIY touch and feel color cards.

Car Color Sort: Outdoor Math

Photo Credit: theeducatorsspinonit.com

Practice sorting your toy cars with this fun outdoor color game.

DIY Color Wheel Toy

Photo Credit: www.naturalbeachliving.com

Let you toddler practice matching colors with this fun DIY color wheel.

Easy Color Sorting Activity

Photo Credit: www.naturalbeachliving.com

Practice sorting colors with colorful containers and buttons.

Sweeping Colors Sorting Activity Inspired by the Cat in the Hat

Photo Credit: inspirationlaboratories.com

Practice sorting colors with this fun gross motor sweeping game.

Pom Pom Color Sort

Photo Credit: busytoddler.com

Sort your pom poms by color with this fun sorting activity.

Are you ready to have some fun? Choose one (or more) of these color games for toddlers. You and your little one will love every minute of it!

Help your little one learn with these fun and hands-on color games for toddlers. They'll have so much fun learning while they play.

You may also like one of these toddler activities:

Shape Crafts for Toddlers

Construction Truck Alphabet Matching Games for Toddlers

Let’s Go on a Listening Walk

Number Rocks Counting Game for Toddlers

Color Fun for Toddlers

In addition to the fun color games listed above. Here are a few more fun colors toys that are great for hands-on learning with your little one.

Get inspired with fun family activities

Join our fun Facebook community, Creative Family Fun for Busy Families, for daily activities that are great for kids and families. We’ll chat, share, and have fun. It’s a safe and private place to share ideas for family and kids activities.

I’d love for you to join me! Just click the link below, request to join, and answer the questions (they’re easy, I promise). Come join the fun! Join the Creative Family Fun for Busy Families community here.

Number Rocks Counting Game for Toddlers

December 20, 2020 By Trisha

Let’s make learning to count a fun game with rainbow number rocks.

Use these number rocks to practice counting and number recognition in a counting game for toddlers. You could use the number rocks to practice math skills with preschoolers and elementary ages, too.

Make a fun set of rainbow number rocks to help your toddler practice counting. Includes DIY instructions and fun counting games to play.

How to Make your Number Rocks

Select some rocks from your child’s rock collection or buy a bag of rocks. I found mine at the dollar store. Paint the rocks. Acrylic paint usually turns out brighter but washable tempera paint works too.

Be careful using small rocks as they can pose a choking hazard. Always supervise. If your child likes to put things in his mouth, choose large rocks.

These rocks are perfect to use and easy to paint!

Depending on your paint and rock colors, you may need two or three coats. I recommend allowing your rocks to dry on wax paper or freezer paper. They have a tendency to stick to newspaper and then the paint peels off.

Once the paint is dry, you can write or paint numbers on the rocks. I did the numbers 1-10 for my toddler. I also did 11-20 for my 5 year old.

Make a fun set of rainbow number rocks to help your toddler practice counting. Includes DIY instructions and fun counting games to play.

Counting Games for Your Number Rocks

We put all of the rocks in numerical order and practiced counting them.

Next, you’ll need to gather some toys to be counted. We used our collection of ducks as well as Little People animals and people. Cars, blocks, DUPLO, stuffed animals, or any type of toy you have at least 10 of will work. It’s okay to mix and match as needed.

Place the number rocks in a bucket or container. Have the toys in a pile nearby.

Ask your child to choose a number from the bucket. What is the number? Have him say the number or repeat the number after you say it.

Place the number rock on the ground. Ask your child to find that many toys.

Say, “That’s the number 7. Can you put 7 ducks next to the number?” Help count the toys as your child places them down.

Set that rock off to the side and return the toys to their pile.

Let your child choose another number rock. Have her say the number and place it on the ground. Count out that many toys.

You could also have your child find the number rock that matches the number of toys he has out.

My toddler had 4 animals out. He wanted to add a goat. Now we had 5 animals. I asked him to find the number 5.

Make a fun set of rainbow number rocks to help your toddler practice counting. Includes DIY instructions and fun counting games to play.

Then, he wanted to find the next number (the 6) and add another animal. He continued counting this way for a while.

Add an animal, find the number rock to match the number of animals.

With the number 8, he wanted to count out a new set of toys. He chose Little People figures.

After they were all lined up, we practiced counting them again.

If you don’t have number rocks, you could use number magnets or write numbers on paper or tape numbers to the side of blocks. The goal is to work on seeing and naming the numbers (number recognition) as well as counting.

Fun Toys to Use With Your Number Rocks

More Counting Games for Toddlers

Apple Counting Rocks – Paint rocks to look like apples and use them for counting practice.

Counting Ducks Toddler Math Game – No number rocks in this game, just ducks and containers.

Garbage Truck Counting Game – If your toddlers love garbage trucks, they will love this fun game.

Construction Truck Alphabet Matching Activity for Toddlers

December 11, 2020 By Trisha

Does your toddler love trucks? Build on that interest and practice learning letters with this Construction Truck Alphabet Matching Activity for Toddlers.

With this activity, we’ll work on letter recognition, letter sounds, and differentiating between upper case and lower case letters.

Help your toddler and preschooler learn the alphabet with this fun Construction Truck Alphabet Matching activity. It's a fun and hands-on way to learn.

Construction Truck Alphabet Matching Activity for Toddlers

Supplies Needed for Toddler Alphabet Game

  • Paper
  • Marker
  • Construction truck (we used a dump truck and a scooper construction truck)
  • Painter’s tape (optional)
  • Paper circle punch (optional)

Set-Up Your Alphabet Matching Game

The setup for this alphabet game is super easy. All you need are letters and a truck. I used a paper circle punch to cut out paper circles. Then, I wrote a letter on each circle – capital letter on one side, lower case on the other side. I drew a line under each of my lower case letters just so you can tell which way to read the letters. Instead of paper letters, you could use magnet letters. (Just be sure to supervise when using magnets especially if you choose small letters. I like these jumbo wooden letter magnets from Melissa and Doug.)

Next, you need a starting place and a landing area for the letters. I used painter’s tape to mark these areas. Double check your surface before using tape on it. Short term is usually fine for painter’s tape. If you leave it on too long (like overnight), it can damage your surface. Instead of tape, you can use a piece of paper or a tray.

Write capital letters on the tape or paper at your landing area.

Place all of your paper letters on the starting lines. I had the lower case letters facing up. The goal is to match the lower case letters with the capital letters written at the landing area.

How to Play This Alphabet Matching Game

Encourage your child to choose a paper circle. What letter do you see? Ask your child to say the name of the letter. (You can also work on letter sounds.) If she doesn’t know the name of the lower case letter, have her turn the circle over and look at the upper case letter. Does she know the name of the letter now?

Have a construction truck carry the letter to the landing area.

Match the paper circle to the correct capital letter at the landing area. Say: “Can you find the letter ___?”

You could also point to the capital letters and have your child say the name of each one until you get the matching letter.

Place the paper circle on top of the correct capital letter. Take your construction truck back to the start and get another letter.

My toddler loved playing this construction truck alphabet matching game. It was a great way for me to realize what letters he already knows and which ones he could use more practice with.

Once we had done all 26 letters, he wanted to play again. And so we did.

More Alphabet Learning Games for Toddlers

Snowball Toss Alphabet Game – Practice letter recognition and letter sounds with a pretend snowball fight.

Alphabet Jumping Games – Pretend to be frog and get jumping from letter to letter.

Driveway ABC Game – Head outside with some chalk to play this outdoor alphabet game.

Do you want to do more activities with your kids?

Join our fun Facebook community, Creative Family Fun for Busy Families, for daily activities that are great for kids and families. We’ll chat, share, and have fun. It’s a safe and private place to share ideas for family and kids activities.

I’d love for you to join me! Just click the link below, request to join, and answer the questions (they’re easy, I promise). Come join the fun! Join the Creative Family Fun for Busy Families community here.

Thanksgiving Board Books for Toddlers

November 10, 2020 By Terri Thompson

When my girls were little, we had so many board books. Books for every holiday and every day in between.

So, if you’re looking for some great ideas for Thanksgiving board books, I’ve got you covered.

Here are some old favorites, some new favorites, and of course, some well-loved characters.

Find some great new books to read with your babies and toddlers this fall season with this list of fun Thanksgiving board books.

Disclosure: There are Amazon Affiliate and other affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

Fun Thanksgiving Board Books for Babies and Toddlers

Whether you’re looking for your kids’ favorite character (like Curious George and Llama Llama) or you want a simple way to introduce your little ones to the Thanksgiving holiday, I’ve got you covered.

This list of books are all perfect for your little one.

Are you ready to stock your library?

Thanksgiving Board Books

Fun Thanksgiving board books that are perfect for babies and toddlers.

Llama Llama Gives Thanks by Anna Dewdney

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Llama Llama and his family give thanks in this simple rhyming book. This is shorter than the usual Llama Llama books which makes it perfect for babies and toddlers.

Five Silly Turkeys by Salina Yoon

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

This fun Thanksgiving counting book was a favorite of my two girls when they were little. Plus, the shiny, crinkly feathers are a fun feature!

Thankful by Eileen Spinelli

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Learn to be thankful for your everyday blessings with this simple rhyming book. It's a great choice for bedtime!

A Very Thankful Prayer by Bonnie Rickner Jensen

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Say a simple, rhyming prayer of thanks to God for fall and Thanksgiving blessings.

Where Is Baby's Turkey?: A Karen Katz Lift-the-Flap Book

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Search for baby's stuffed turkey and find all sorts of fun Thanksgiving items in this interactive lift-the-flaps book.

Happy Thanksgiving, Curious George

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Follow Curious George on his Thanksgiving adventures with this simple tabbed board book.

The First Thanksgiving: A Lift-the-Flap Book by Nancy Davis

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Learn about the history of Thanksgiving with this colorful lift-the-flap book that's age-appropriate for your toddler.

Thanksgiving Parade by Kelly Asbury

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

This simple rhyming book give you a kids-eye-view of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

My First Thanksgiving by Tomie dePaola

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Learn about traditional celebrations of Thanksgiving with this simple board book.

Spot's Thanksgiving by Eric Hill

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Follow along as Spot makes a pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving.

Corduroy's Thanksgiving by Lisa McCue

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Join in with the fun as Corduroy hosts a Thanksgiving dinner for his friends.

Biscuit Is Thankful by Alyssa Satin Capucilli

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Read along to find out all that Biscuit is thankful for in this sweet book.

Duck & Goose, Find a Pumpkin by Tad Hills

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Help Duck & Goose find a pumpkin in this fun oversized board book. This one is fun for both Halloween and Thanksgiving.

Five Little Thank-Yous by Cindy Jin

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Read about five important thank-yous with this fun board book shaped like a handprint turkey.

The Itsy Bitsy Pilgrim by Jeffrey Burton

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Babies and toddlers will love this fun Thanksgiving twist on the traditional rhyme, "The Itsy Bitsy Spider."

Otis Gives Thanks by Loren Long

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

Giving thanks makes Otis happy and you can read all about the things he is thankful for with this fun book.

The Thankful Book

Photo Credit: www.amazon.com

This board book version of one of our favorite Thanksgiving books is a fun and colorful celebration of the things we are thankful for.

Which of these books are you going to read to your little ones this year?

Find some great new books to read with your babies and toddlers this fall season with this list of fun Thanksgiving board books.

More fun Thanksgiving Activities

Thanksgiving Crafts for Kids

Gratitude Tree and Leaves

Handprint Turkey Cards

Thankful Turkey Easy Thanksgiving Activity at Busy Toddler

Do you want to do more activities with your family?

Join our fun Facebook community, Creative Family Fun for Busy Families, for daily activities that are great for kids and families. We’ll chat, share, and have fun. It’s a safe and private place to share ideas for family and kids activities.

I’d love for you to join me! Just click the link below, request to join, and answer the questions (they’re easy, I promise). Come join the fun! Join the Creative Family Fun for Busy Families community here.

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