Child Home Learning: Infant and Toddler Themes

Learning is not an activity that's reserved only for the classroom among children, and this is a theme parents should be highly cognizant of. There are many ways to promote learning and education within the home, including many that kids won't even recognize as "learning" as they're happening, and also including methods that help further the themes your kids are learning in school or other child care environments. 

At Devlin's Child Development Center, we're proud to offer the very best child care services in Utah, including daycare, preschool, after-school care and more -- and we regularly interface with parents about how to promote and maintain learning when kids are at home. In this two-part series, we'll move up the age spectrum starting from youngest to oldest, looking at some quality themes parents may consider for at-home learning.

Infants

For the youngest children out there, those who are just beginning to understand language and their surroundings, parents can capitalize on everyday activities and make them learning opportunities. Talking about colors while you're out grocery shopping, counting things as you go about your day or pointing out letters and numbers around the house are all excellent ways to help children learn.

Here are some other themes to consider:

• Regular reading and story time: Listening to stories is a great way to help children learn language, vocabulary and narrative skills.
• Songs and nursery rhymes: Singing familiar songs and reciting well-known nursery rhymes are both fun ways to help children learn about rhythm, melody and counting.
• The world around them: As infants start to become more mobile, they're naturally curious about their surroundings. Parents can help foster this curiosity by naming things they see and pointing out colors, shapes and sizes.
• Fresh air: Where possible, take infants outside for a walk and let them explore. Nature is a great teacher, and fresh air is good for growing minds and bodies.

Younger Toddlers

As young children progress just a bit further in their development, they're eager to learn more about the world around them. Parents can help toddlers explore this curiosity with a variety of activities, including:

• Note their interests: When toddlers are interested in something, they tend to ask a lot of questions about it. Parents can help foster this natural curiosity by noting their child's interests and providing materials or activities that support it.
• Songs and stories: Like infants, toddlers love listening to stories. But they're also starting to be able to follow along more easily, so parents can look for books that have more complex stories and rhymes.
• Role-playing: Toddlers love pretending to be people, animals or things they see in their everyday lives. Parents can help by providing props and costumes to facilitate this type of play.
• Expanding horizons: As toddlers grow, they become increasingly aware of the world outside their homes and families. Parents can help by exposing them to different cultures, religions and lifestyles through books, stories and visits to places like museums or ethnic restaurants.

In part two of our series, we'll work up the age spectrum even further. For more on how to promote continued learning among children within the home, or to learn about any of our child care programs or services, speak to the caring staff at Devlin's Child Development Center today.