Sheila Ellison - 365 Games Smart Toddlers Play, 2E: Creative Time to Imagine, Grow and Learn

Copyright 2006 by Sheila Ellison
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The Library of Congress has cataloged the previous edition as follows:

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Ellison, Sheila.

365 games toddlers play / by Sheila Ellison.

p. cm.

ISBN-13: 978-1-4022-0586-6
1. ToddlersDevelopment. 2. Child development. 3. Play. 4. Parent and child. 5. Parenting. I. Title: Three hundred sixty five games toddlers play. II. Title.
HQ774.5.E45 2003
649.55dc21

2003005851

Printed and bound in the United States of America

LB 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3

To Alisa Ikeda, for the creative contribution of activities, ideas, and enthusiasm she poured into this book. Alisa is a writer, certified instructor of infant massage, wife, and proud mother of two, Sawyer and Sadie. She lives in Marin County, California. Shes an active member of Mothers and More as well as an advocate for public policies that are mother-, child-, and family-friendly. Alisa holds a BA in sociology and writes regularly about parenting, family, and social issues.

To my children, Wesley, Brooke, Rhett, and Troy, for proving that my parenting theorieswhich began as experiments on them when they were toddlersactually work!

Life is a game for toddlers. Everything everywhere calls out to be touched, manipulated, jumped on, tasted, and examined. Being a young explorer is serious businesslearning, testing, and pushing the limits to see just how much you can get away with before somebody noticesand it takes a lot of energy! Toddlers are thrilled when parents arent afraid to get down on the floor with them; plunge their hands into the mud, paint, or dough; dance wildly to homemade instruments; or put on a silly puppet show. Toddler time is full of wonder, interaction, explaining, setting limits, and teaching social skills. It is also a time for parents to learn a great deal about how exciting and new the world can be when experienced from a toddlers perspective. So dive in. Use the activities on the following pages to have fun with your toddler. Dont be afraid to wander off the beaten path into new territory; draw outside the lines, use your imagination, make up your own variation to an activity as you encourage self-expression. It is in the everyday moments that life happensso make those moments special.

The advice in the Words of Wisdom sections of this book was given to us by parents from across the country who wanted to pass on their tricks, tips, secrets, and wisdom to you. We would like to thank them for sharing their experiences with us. Were always looking for good advice to be added to future editions, so write to us care of Sourcebooks or visit Sheila Ellison at www.CompleteMom.com.