A Toddler Game or Two...

For Your Mobile Toddler

The transition from a crawling and rolling baby to a walking and climbing child allows your toddler to be involved in an array of toddler games that allow him to really get excited and have fun. He can dance, drive his first ride on toy and manouevre through a tunnel.

**TIP- This is the time to child proof your house if you have not yet done so. Toddlers need to be kept safe from many kitchen items, electrical devices and sharp corners. For more tips on this topic please go to this Help Sheet.

Push Along
For youngsters who are not yet walking a heavy-based push along will help to give him balance. It needs to be carefully selected for children who are not walking rather than more lightweight push alongs like prams which will not support a toddler who is still attempting to walk.

Aiding Walking
Once your toddler can walk she needs to refine her skills to be able to stop, sit down and start again. Picking up items is a perfect activity. You only need to provide a bag and objects to pick up.
She will soon develop the ability to climb, jump, slide and jump. Plenty of practice at your local playground on a low slide and swing will help.

**TIP- Once your child is walking she will always be wanting to walk rather than sit in a pram/buggy. Allowing her to walk at certain times will keep her happy and allow you to keep a reasonable pace most of the time. Perhaps she can walk the last block before getting home or from one side of the park to the other. When in the pram she will enjoy spotting games or having a toy to hold as a distraction from the fact that she is not walking.

Ring a Ring of Roses
Children love games where they get to fall down so any singing and dancing games where the final action is 'all fall down' will be favourites. For this one the children join hands in a circle and walk around singing the tune. Each time they repeat it, it gets faster.

Ring-a-ring-o-roses
A pocket full o' posies
Atishoo! Atishoo!
We all fall down!

The Farmer in the Dell
This is another fun toddler game which starts with a single child - the "farmer" - in the centre of a circle of children, all singing.
As a wife is chosen the farmer points to someone who then joins him in the center of the circle. The wife chooses a child and the games continues until there is only one child left.

The farmer in the dell
The farmer in the dell
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The farmer in the dell

The farmer takes a wife...and so on
The wife takes a child....
The child takes a nurse
The nurse takes a cow
The cow takes a dog
The dog takes a cat
The cat takes a rat
The rat takes the cheese
The cheese stands alone..

The child who is the cheese becomes the farmer for the next round.

Sit and Ride
A sit and ride toy will be the first experience your toddler has at moving around on a vehicle. Sit and rides have low centre of gravity and no pedals so the child propels himself along using his feet. Another option is a tricycle which probably suits a slighter older child who can manage the pedals.

Push Along
A noise making push along (also known as a clacker) will be loved by toddlers who are confidently walking. Push and pull along toys involve her learning how to manoevre a toy, free the toy if it gets stuck and further improve co-ordination and balance.
You can make a simple pull along snake toy at home using rope and empty cotton reels. Noise forms part of the attraction to these toys so you can add bells onto the end or something else to form the 'rattler' for a rattle snake.

Tunnelling
Children love confined spaces so will enjoy playing in tunnels and cubbies. You can make a cubby behind the couch, or in a bunk bed and will find this a great toddler game for a rainy day. There are tunnels which you can buy that can be stored flat, and if you can't find anywhere else you can throw blankets over a row of chairs. All of these activities help with spatial awareness and don't worry how tight a squeeze it is, that's half the fun!

**TIP- Children will fall quite a bit at this age but rarely hurt themselves seriously. They still have a low centre of gravity and soft bones. If you find yourself saying 'No' all the time, try to simplify what your child is doing, rather than preventing her from exploring. If you are having to constantly step in to help then she may not be learning what she needs to.