Here is a video of my kids at home. My husband, who has apparently become inadvertently affected by my profession as a pediatric OT, made up a great game with the kids and I caught it on camera so that I could share it with all of you. He used some SquashBlox construction cushions, inflatable dinosaurs from my son's birthday party, and a musical card to create a fun activity for our kids.
They did this over and over and over again! It was hilarious! What my husband didn't realize was how many developmental skills this game actually worked on:
* Color recognition
* Listening skills (auditory processing)
* Coordination
* Balance
* It provided movement and proprioception/heavy work pattern (important sensory components)
* Social skills/cooperation/following instructions (my daughter had been instructed to help her brother who is still learning his colors and to make sure they both went in the same direction)
My kids also recently assisted in starting a garden in our back yard. Being 3 1/2 and 24 months, there wasn't a whole lot they could do, but we all found lots of ways for them to be involved. They helped to carry items to and from our barn. They got to go for rides in the wheelbarrow. My son climbed the bags of compost. My daughter used a small shovel to carry top soil to the wheelbarrow. They both dug with trowels in the dirt and pulled up weeds. My daughter helped to pull the hose all the way to the back yard and they both took turns holding and figuring out how to work the soaker wand to water our plants.
* Strength
* Endurance
* Gross motor skills
* Coordination
* Exploration
* Social skills: cooperation and turn taking
* Sequencing
* New vocabulary and nature concepts
* Confidence in accomplishing new tasks
An ingenious friend of mine recently posted a picture on facebook of her son playing hopscotch in the family room using painters tape to mark out the hopscotch path. That's a great way to use random things at home to have fun and work on developmental skills through creative play.
To come up with exciting new creative play at home, look at things around the house and think about how to turn them into fun games or activities for your kids. Try to incorporate any of the following:
* Gross motor skills: running, jumping, skipping, twirling, climbing, somersaults......
* Fine motor skills: grasp, writing/coloring, using scissors, using tongs/chopsticks, play dough.....
* Coordination and motor planning: dancing, cartwheels, jumping rope, ball play, sports.......
* Strength and endurance: wheelbarrow walking, running, climbing, pushing/carrying weighted objects.......
* Cognitive skills: educational concepts, problem solving, new vocabulary, imagination/creativity........
* Sensory components: movement, proprioception (heavy work patterns/jumping), listening skills, visual skills, exploring textures
Unplug the TV, turn the video games off, get creative and have fun! Share your inventive home activities in the comments! We can all learn new ideas from each other!
