Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Age or Ability Specific Forums Pre-school Stimulating Activities for PreK Age

I apologize, I know we've discussed this before, but I couldn't find it with the search function.

I'm looking for more ideas for at-home/solo activities for pre-writing and pre-reading children.

What did your kids like to do when they were younger?

Portia has offered some wonderful ideas in this post of mine.

http://giftedissues.davidsongifted....Re_Ways_to_challenge_DD3.html#Post241758

This may be useful for you.

Thank you! <3

I struggle with not being able to predict his interests from day to day. One day he focuses on dying easter eggs, and the next he won't have anything to do with it.

Sometimes he gives me a clue. Tonight he was asking to paint. Maybe tomorrow he will still want to paint. Maybe not. It's hard for me to work from a list of activities when I never know what he is willing to do.

I am looking forward to warmer weather. He is never bored when he's playing outside. But he doesn't like snow and we have 6" on the ground now. Just another month or so of feeling cooped up...

Maybe some energy burning activities? I used to drag the inner-spring mattress off DD's bed into the lounge room so she could bounce on it all day. There was no way I could get her interested in doing anything crafty, buildy, booky, etc., unless she bounced for 10-20 min every hour!

@Lazymum, that's brilliant and fun idea! Thank you! I hadn't considered his need for movement much. I'm aware of his need for novelty, but didn't think of other ways to stimulate/entertain him.

No probs. Hope it helps!

Our daughter is about 22 months. We have a newsprint end roll (the unused bit from newspaper printing--available from local newspaper for $4-6 each). She unrolls it whenever she wants and draws. She also enjoys telling her parents what to draw and where. One roll lasts several months. This also taught her how to occupy herself at restaurants (they all have crayons).

We get a lot of use out of Duplo as well. She will tell us she is going to 'play legos' and sit on her floor assembling them. The little people and animals make it a lot more engaging.