45 Ideas for

STRESS FREE
TODDLER
ACTIVITIES
Spend less time prepping, and more

time playing, learning and connecting

Victoria Nolasco, MD
copyright
Copyright © 2020 by Dr. Victoria Nolasco. All rights reserved.

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the author.

Disclaimer: This guide is based on my professional experience as a developmental and

behavioral pediatrician, and as a mom. My professional training is in developmental and

behavioral pediatrics and in psychology. I am not a therapist, nor do I have a degree in

education. The activities here would be effective based on typical developmental

milestones. If your child has special needs, your child's therapist or special education

teacher may have a program specifically tailored to your child, and you should follow

that.

Limitation of liability/disclaimer of warranty: While the publisher and author have used

their best efforts in preparing this guide, they make no representations or warranties with

respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this document and

specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for particular

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The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You

should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author

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Quick Guide to Stress FREE

Toddler ACTivities

So You Can Connect More and Stress Less

Feel like you are running out of activities for your toddler?

Here are five tips to help when you feel stuck, or when you feel

pressured to "provide activities" to your child. If you haven't yet, read our blog

article on Five Tips for Stress Free Toddler Activities.

1. Simple is better.

2. Have a balance of activities from the five domains of development.

3. Include play and learn activities in your daily routine.

4. Focus on the connection, not the outcome.

5. You don't need to entertain your child all the time.

That's why we created this guide - to spark ideas on how to do these.

You can modify or mix and match these activities to

create many more.

Your child will probably do this on her own too if you give her the chance!

Most often, each activity actually helps boost skills in many areas. For

convenience though, we classified these ideas into the five core types of

activities, based on the domains of development. This also helps make sure we

don't only focus on one type of activity.

Gross motor: how the child moves

Fine motor: how the child uses hands and fingers

Language: how the child understands what you say, and what the child says

Personal or self-help: activities of daily living

Social and emotional: interacting with others, and managing behavior and

emotions

Effective Mommy | 3
Safety considerations

Contrary to what some may think, being conscious about safety will foster a

child's independence and help make play more fun. Take care of safety basics so

you can worry less and focus on the enjoyable part.

Childproof your home. There should be no hazards such as loose electrical

cords in areas where your child is walking or playing. Read these very

important articles from healthychildren.org on toddler safety and on

childproofing your home. (If you are unable to click on these links, search for

these topics in the healthychildren.org site.)

Whether indoors or outdoors, provide a safe space to play. You may use play

fences. Use gates on stairways. Don't leave chairs next to a table or window.

NEVER leave your child alone near water (even something like a pail of

water), not even for a moment.

Even during independent play, ALWAYS stay within sight and hearing

distance of your child.

Above all, use your instinct and common sense. When in doubt, discuss it with

your pediatrician.

Do NOT use toys that are unsafe or that are choking

hazards.
As a general rule, a toy is a choking hazard if it contains small parts, or if the toy

is small enough for the child to swallow. You can use the cardboard tube in the

middle of a toilet paper roll as a rough guide. If the toy or any of its parts will fit

in the tube, it is a potential choking hazard. These are some examples of choking

hazards. (This information is from this article in healthychildren.org.)

small balls and marbles

balloons

small hair bows, barrettes, or rubber bands

pen or marker caps

button type batteries

refrigerator magnets

Also, do NOT use unsafe items like walkers and trampolines. These have

resulted in many injuries and even deaths. Your kids will develop skills even better

without using these!

Effective Mommy | 4
Gross motor
Learning through movement and play

Wonder why toddlers spend so much time

running around? That's because

1 - Let your child walk while
movement is absolutely necessary in their
holding on to a sturdy piece
development!
of furniture.

2 - Play a game of “sit” and

The World Health Organization
“stand”. Say “sit” and help or
recommends that toddler should be
signal him into a sitting
physically active for at least 180
position, then say “stand”
minutes (3 hours) everyday. At least
and help or signal him to a
some of this time should be spent
standing position. Say the
outdoors. You can spread this time
words “sit” and “stand” in
throughout the day.
different funny voices.

3 - Stand a few meters away

You can do the activities on this page
from her while holding out
even if your toddler is still learning how
your arms and encourage
to walk. Once your toddler is walking,
him to walk towards you.
you can add the activities on the next

page.
4 - Let him sit on a laundry

basket and push him around

the room while saying,

“toot!” “toot!”.

5 - Bring her to an outdoor

space and let her move

around however she wants,

whether it is by crawling or

by taking a few steps.

Outdoor time is a must for

good health.

Effective Mommy | 5
Gross motor
More activities for toddlers who are walking

You can do the activities on this page for

6 - Just let him walk! No
toddlers who are already walking. Once
need for complicated
your toddler learns to run, you can add
activities like drawing a line
the activities on the next page.
on the floor and having them

walk along the line. Many

kids won’t be able to do this

until they are around seven

years old.

7 - Allow her to climb sturdy

pieces of furniture, like a

couch. You should be

nearby, though!

8 - Let him push a child size

cart or pull a toy with a

string.

Effective Mommy | 6
Gross motor
More activities for toddlers who are running

Toddlers have lots of energy and run

9 - Give him a tennis size
around for a good reason. They need the
ball to kick and run after.
practice to develop their gross motor

skills, to build the necessary brain

pathways for movement, balance, and

10 - Play, “I will catch you!”

coordination.
Take turns running after her

and letting her run after you.

These are just some ideas. You don't

really need to plan or direct specific

11 - Do simple exercises activities. Your toddler, on her own, will

together. Simple exercises want to practice running and move

like stretching and squats around a lot. You just need to provide

can be enjoyable if made the opportunity. This sets the stage for

into a game. They won’t be good health. The benefits will continue

very coordinated yet, but the all the way until your child becomes an

important thing is to get adult.

moving!

Effective Mommy | 7
Fine motor
Low prep arts and crafts activities
You don't need complicated arts and

12 - Give her a box of crafts with lots of materials in order to

crayons and a blank piece of practice your child's fine motor skills. In

paper or a cardboard box. fact, simpler activities will do more to

Let her color away! Don’t enhance your child's creativity.

worry if all she does is make

random crayon marks on the The typical child learns to draw a circle

piece of paper. Kids aren’t at age three and a cross at age four.

expected to be able to draw This means you shouldn't expect a two or

during the toddler years. three year old to be writing or even

tracing the letters of the alphabet.

13 - You can do many

activities with paint and

Don't worry that your child is missing out
some paper. He can paint
if you don't let him fill out worksheets!
with his hands and feet, with
These activities are already great ways
a brush, with a sponge, or
to build pre-writing skills, without the
even fruits and vegetables.
pressure.
(Do not overthink this, and

don’t go overboard with

complicated materials here.)

TIP: Make sure it is a nontoxic

paint. To help with the clean up

afterwards, mix a little child-safe

dishwashing liquid with the paint.

But be careful - I am sure at least

some of it will get on the floor,

and it will make the floor slippery.

So don’t let your child run on the

wet floor until you clean it up. As

a bonus activity, let him help you

clean up afterwards.

Effective Mommy | 8
Fine motor
Fuss free sensory play
You don't need to buy special materials

14 - Your home will already just to let your child have sensory play.

have many items suitable for The idea behind sensory play is to

sensory play. The bigger receive stimulation for the different

pieces of fruit and vegetable senses: sight, hearing, touch, smell and

peels, and items that you taste. Your child will naturally gain these

would normally discard such experiences, as long as there is

as coconut husks or clam nothing blocking or hampering them.

shells are good for sensory

play. So are towels and For example, a child sitting and playing

sheets of different textures. with an electronic device for hours will

WARNING: Be careful of choking have less opportunity for sensory

hazards. Toddlers shouldn't play

experiences. Replace screen time with
with items that can fit in the
the activities in the guide instead.
cardboard tube of a toilet paper

roll. For example, your child

should NOT play with items like

marbles or dice.

15 - Bring your child outside.

Let her touch the leaves and

flowers, and the bark of

trees. Listen to the sounds of

the birds chirping or dogs

barking. Smell the flowers

too. Point out the sounds and

smells to your child too.

Effective Mommy | 9
Fine motor
Other toys and games
Let your child be creative with these

16 - Give your child a set of items. If he doesn't seem interested at

wooden blocks to stack. You first, that's OK. You can show him, for

can demonstrate stacking example, how to stack the blocks or the

them. Say, “Look at this nice rings. Later on, you may be surprised that

building I’m making!” he is combining the toys in ways that you

didn't expect.
17 - Connecting blocks such

as Lego or Megabloks are

That said, you should tell your doctor if
also a good way of
you notice that your child:
practicing fine motor skills.
insists on playing with the parts of
But make sure that you also
toys instead of the whole (ex.
let your child practice with
constantly spinning wheels of a car
regular wooden blocks too.
instead of playing with the whole
18 - Handling clay or play
car)
doh also practices fine
does not look at you or share
motor skills. They can
enjoyment with you during play and
combine these with other
everyday activities
toys for more creative play.

19 - Let her peel stickers and

stick them on a blank

notebook or on sticker books.

20 - Other toys that help

with fine motor skills include

shape sorters and stacking

rings.

TIP: Show different creative ways

of playing with these. For

example, you can hold two of the

rings around your eyes, pretend

they are glasses, and peer

Effective Mommy | 10
through them.
Language
High yield, no prep activities

21 - Your child will naturally These activities may seem very simple,

point to many things around but they offer so many learning benefits.

that interest him. When he The best activities often don't need any

does, look at the thing, then preparation at all. Why use your precious

look at him. Comment on it. time researching activities and setting

For example, if he points to a up, when you can go straight to the good

dog, you can say, “Yes, that’s and fun part? Make the time to do these

a big brown dog! Our instead.

neighbor is walking the dog.”

22 - Read a picture book

with your child. You can do

reading time in many ways.

Read the story while pointing

out pictures. Tell the story in

your own words from the

pictures. Ask her to point to

or to name things in the

pictures.

23 - Look through family

photos. Ask your child to

point to or to name the

people in the photos.

Describe what is happening

in the photos. ("That's you

playing with your cousin

Jan!") Allow your child to

respond, even if you can’t

understand everything.

Effective Mommy | 11
Language
Fun and games for language and social skills

24 - Recite nursery rhymes. One of the questions parents often ask is

For the more familiar nursery what they should be teaching their child

rhymes, you can ask your during the toddler years to prepare them

child to complete some of for school. At this age, teaching and

the lines. (ex. “Humpty learning are best done through play.

Dumpty sat on the…?” and These games are fun, and they boost

give her time to add, “Wall!” both language skills and social

If she doesn’t, go ahead and interaction.

say it.)

As always, focus on creating a

25 - Sing action songs like:
connection with your child and with
The Wheels on the Bus
enjoying the experience. The learning will
Open Shut Them
happen.
Head Shoulders Knees

and Toes

The Ants Go Marching

This Little Piggy

Each action song is already

an activity in itself!

26 - Toddlers love to play

"bring me"! Start with

common objects and toys

such as: ball, spoon, car,

doll, or book. Later on, your

child will bring things to you

on his own. When he does,

name them (or he may also

name them too on his own)!

Effective Mommy | 12
Language
Part of your daily routine

27 - Talk with your child We often think that learning happens

about what is happening. only when we set aside a specific time

You can do this with any for activities. But that's not the case.

activity or with any part of Most learning actually happens in our

our routine. For example, daily routine. You don't need to stress

during bath time, name the over taking time out for "activities". You

body parts. (“Now it's time to can include them in the things that you

put soap on your tummy!”) normally do everyday.

28 - Kids learn a lot from

back and forth

conversations. At the end of

the day, ask your child, “What

did we do today?” Let her

respond. Whether or not her

answer was clear, comment

on what she says.

Tip: At this age, your child may

talk about things that didn’t really

happen that day, or things that

you did the day before. That’s OK!

You can respond by saying

something like, “Oh yes, we went

to the park yesterday.”

Effective Mommy | 13
PERSONAL
Part of your daily routine

29 - After waking up, let him Have a visual schedule so your child can

help you make the bed. see what comes next. This will help in

setting a routine. It will also help kids

who may have difficulty in transitioning

30 - During meal times, both
from one activity to another.
of you can participate in the

feeding. Let her hold a

For ideas on how to do this, download
spoon and feed herself too.
our free visual schedule from the Dev
She can also peel an egg,
Peds Village resource library.
slice bread with a blunt
Https://devpedsvillage.com/resource-
knife, or butter a piece of
library/
toast.
Password: happyhomeresources
31 - Give him choices during

everyday activities. For

example, when getting

dressed, give him two shirts

that he can choose from.

Make sure both choices are

acceptable to you, and that

you will follow what he

chooses (even if you actually

prefer one of them :) ).

Tip: For younger toddlers, limit to

two, or at most three, choices to

avoid overwhelming him. For

older toddlers, you can put a

small selection of clothes in a

cabinet or drawer that he can

reach, so he can choose among

them.

Effective Mommy | 14
Personal
Mommy's little helper

32 - Let her help you toss You may be thinking, “Wait, these aren’t

laundry into a basket, or activities! These are chores that we really

trash into a bin. These have to do!” We’re here to tell you that

activities also practice gross yes, these are activities! For younger kids,

motor skills. play IS their work - so it wouldn’t be

surprising that the things we consider

33 - Give him a spray bottle
work are also play for them.
or small watering can and let

him help you water the

plants.

34 - Ask for his help with

little tasks. For example, he

can hand you something you

need that is within his reach.

When he does this, say thank

you. Later on, let him hear

you tell others about how he

helped you. This will do

wonders for his self-esteem,

and build social and

emotional skills too!

Effective Mommy | 15
Personal
Budding independence

35 - Put a small pitcher of Toddlers love being independent and

water and a glass where feeling useful. If you slowly allow

your child can reach it. She independence in age-appropriate ways,

can use it to pour herself a it will help improve their behavior too.

drink when she needs it. This You'll be able to prevent at least a few

helps fine motor skills too, tantrums this way.

and as a bonus, she’ll

develop the healthy habit of

drinking enough water.

36 - After playing, ask her to

pack away her toys. You can

do this together too. Make it

a game.

Effective Mommy | 16
Social/emotional
Fun ways to build lifelong skills

37 - Play peek-a-boo (for Don't take these simple activities for

younger toddlers) or hide granted. Your child isn't "just playing". He

and seek (for older toddlers). is learning important skills! The first three

A variation of this is to cover years of life are the critical period for

your eyes and say, “Where’s building the brain connections for

(child’s name)?” Then make a emotional regulation and social

big show of uncovering your interaction. These are important for

eyes and saying, “Oh there!” success later in life.

38 - Build a fort using pillows

and use it as a “hiding

place”.

39 - Teach sharing and

taking turns. You can do this

with many of the activities in

this guide. For example, if

you are packing away toys

together, you and your

toddler can take turns

putting away the next item.

Effective Mommy | 17
Social/emotional
Pretend play

40 - You may provide child- Pretend play is an important

size versions of everyday developmental milestone. This will start

items. Your child may use, for during the toddler years and be fully

example, a toy cup to developed by the preschool years. Your

pretend to give a drink to a child will probably do this on her own.

stuffed animal. When she does, don't put it down by

saying something like, "that's not really

41 - Your child may pretend an airplane, that's a block".

that a wooden block is

anything from a phone to an

Don't be surprised too if he starts

airplane, or that a stick is a

imitating and pretending to be you -

guitar or a microphone. Let

including copying mannerisms that you

her have fun doing this!

didn't even know you had. It's all part of

normal development.

Effective Mommy | 18
Social/emotional
Love, affection, and self-care

42 - Give him a hug and a Yes, these are learning activities too! The

kiss. Yes, this counts as an first three years of life are when the

activity! Do this several times foundations for brain connections are

a day. As a twist, you can formed - including the connections for

blow a raspberry while giving social skills and emotional regulation.

a kiss. This is sure to get a Young kids learn emotional regulation

good laugh, and your child and resilience through a consistent loving

might keep asking you to relationship with a parent or caregiver.

repeat doing this. :)

43 - Say “I love you!” while

at the same time lifting her

in the air and giving a

whoop.

44 - Go on a video call with

a loved one. Yes, this is one

acceptable use of screen

time.

45 - Pray with your child.

Effective Mommy | 19
Thank you!
Let me know if you enjoyed this book! Email me at victoria@effectivemommy.com.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Victoria Nolasco, MD is a developmental

and behavioral pediatrician and the mom

of a very active and lovable toddler. She

also has a degree in psychology, and is a

certified positive discipline parent coach.

When she became a mom, she realized

that moms face so much unnecessary

pressure from the internet and social

media. She started her blog,

effectivemommy.com, out of a passion to

help moms be happy and confident

parents through the toddler years. She is

also part of the team at

devpedsvillage.com, a site that helps

parents create happy homes through an

understanding of child development.