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Learning Is Everywhere
Lots of fun ideas and activities for families!
Each month offers activities families can do together in a variety of settings.
The activities within the Learning is Everywhere Calendar and on the website are aligned with the Pennsylvania Early Learning Standards (ELS).
These guidelines can be used to determine what infants, toddlers, pre-kindergarten, and kindergarten children may know or be able to do within specific age ranges.
Please find the Pennsylvania Early Learning Standard referenced after each activity.
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In the Bathroom
(Make sure bathtime is a safe time with our Bathtime Safety flyer!)
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Activities for Infants:
Using a song, describe the different body parts as you wash your child. For example, sing to him that you are washing his ten toes, first his big toes, all the way to his little toes. The move onto his left foot, and his left leg, and so on. Or create a routine singing Head, shoulders, knees and toes or saying “this little piggy”. (Social & Emotional Development)
It only takes a little bit of water in the tub for lots of splashing fun! For younger babies—with one or two inches of water, use a bath sponge or towel for support, lay your baby on her back in the tub, and encourage her to kick her feet or wave her hands in the water. (Health, Wellness & Physical Development) Use facial expressions (smiles, etc.) and words to encourage her and describe what she is doing. “A big splash gets the baby wet, wet, wet!” (Social & Emotional Development) Keep your hands on baby at all times. A child who is great at sitting on the floor, might not be as steady in a slippery, wet tub.
Use two or three inches of water in the tub for older babies who can safely sit. Provide floating toys and encourage him to reach for them as they float in the water. Gently show him how to splash in the water with his hands and feet, and encourage him with words. “Splash, splash, splash in the water!” (Health, Wellness & Physical Development)
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Activities for Toddlers:
Using hand soap while washing her hands, have your child discover how many bubbles she can make. Are there a lot of bubbles, or a little bit of bubbles? Are they big bubbles or little bubbles? What happens if she rubs together her hands fast? What happens if she puts her hands under the water? Where do the bubbles go? (Scientific Thinking)
Use different sized cups or containers for your child to pour water from one to another during bath time. Cleaned yogurt containers, plastic measuring cups, even a plastic kitchen strainer make great toys when it comes to bath time water play! (Approaches to Learning through Play)
Play I Spy the Alphabet! Have your child select different items in the bathroom and you can provide the letter that the object begins with, and include the color or feel of the item. “Towel, towel starts with T- it is soft and red.” How many different objects can he choose? Can he find the ones you choose? (Language & Literacy)
Use a small bit of shaving cream to make shapes in the tub. How many different surfaces will the shaving cream stick to? What happens when it gets wet? What happens when she blows on it? (Scientific Thinking) (Make sure you rinse her well once she’s finished using the shaving cream!)
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Activities for Pre-Kindergarten:
Take advantage of a steamy mirror! Use your finger to write letters on the mirror and have your child tell you what letters you have written. Then, help him name something that begins with that letter. How many things can you each name? (Language & Literacy)
Help your child to find different shapes in the bathroom. Can he find something that is round, square or rectangle? What shape is the bar of soap, or the top of the shampoo bottle? (Mathematic Thinking & Expression)
Read a book on animals in the water (hippos, alligators, turtles, etc.), then during the next bath time, have your child pretend to be that animal. (This might be a rather wet activity!) (Approaches to Learning through Play) What did the animal in the book do or say? While in the tub, can she imitate the animal? (Creative Thinking & Expression)
Use the bathroom mirror to play Make My Face! Either you or your child can begin by making a face, and then the other imitates it. Help your child by providing a name for the face. “This is my happy face. This is my angry face. This is my surprised face.” Who can make the best face? Who can make the silliest face? (Social & Emotional Development)
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Activities for Kindergarten:
Take advantage of a steamy mirror! Use your finger to write short words (cat, dog, your child’s name) in the mirror and let him read them. Take turns making sentences using the words. (Language & Literacy)
Take inventory of bathroom items (shampoo, toothpaste, etc.) and help your child name the letter that begins each item. What else can he find in the bathroom that begins with the same letter? (Language & Literacy)
Use a large plastic container (one that can float) as a “boat” and have your child slowly add other items, like toy cars, Legos, or other water friendly toys, until the “boat” begins to sink. How many can he add until it begins to sink? What happens to the “boat” if he takes items out of it? (Scientific Thinking) Ask him to tell you a story about where the boat is going, or why the objects are on the boat. (Creative Thinking and Expression)
Use the bathroom mirror to play Guess My Face! Either you or your child can begin by making a face, while the other one guess the emotion of the face. If guessing the emotion is challenging for your child, give her hints. “I make this face when I get to ride my bike or eat ice-cream!” (Social & Emotional Development)
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Idea Spotlight
Many parents have said, “I hope he’ll be potty trained by the time he goes to college!” All kidding aside, potty training can be a stressful time for parents and children—even though it doesn’t have to be!
- What age to begin? There really is not a magical age when potty training can begin. A child who is “ready” to begin potty training depends on a variety of factors, least of which is age. Less than 25% of children are potty trained by 2 ½ years old, while more than 75% are potty trained by age 3 ½ years old. More important than age are developmental milestones, so look for the signs your child is ready.
- Look for the signs. Signs for readiness include staying dry for at least two hours, recognizing that he is urinating or having a bowel movement, has developed the physical skills needed (like being able to pull up/down his pants), or has the ability with adaptations, if you child has a developmental delay, and can follow simple instructions. Most importantly, make sure he has an interest in and wants to use the potty.
- Develop a language. What names will you use for going potty, urinating and bowel movements? If your child is in child care, are these the same names used by the provider? Keep the names for these simple, and make sure your child is able to communicate to you that he is ready. For children with developmental delays communication can occur in ways other than verbally, such as sign language, using picture cards, a communication device, etc. Visit your library to explore books for your child about potty training.
- Getting Ready. Go to the store with your child to purchase a potty or a potty seat and pick a place in the bathroom to put the potty. Let your child sit on the potty or put their favorite baby or stuffed toy on the potty. Gather a few favorite books that you can read together while your child sits on the potty.
- Be consistent and be patient. Learning a new skill takes time and accidents will happen along the way. Provide consistent times when he has an opportunity to use the potty. When he accomplishes something new, or even when he tries, let him know he’s doing a good job and you’re proud of him. When accidents happen, don’t get mad or angry—instead clean up and encourage him to use the potty next time.
- Dress for success. Make sure your child is dressed for easy (and quick!) access to the potty. Lightweight pants with an elastic waist, and underwear or pull-ups that can easily be pulled down or up can make all the difference to success. Avoid dresses for girls that might get dipped into a dirty potty or caught in hands when wiping, or tights (for girls) and denim jeans with a zippers for both boys and girls, as they can be difficult for a child to quickly do or undo.
- Speaking of cleaning up… Make sure each potty session ends with a hand washing session! Use plenty of soap, work into a lather, and rinse well. When washing, make sure all the parts of the hands are washed--backs of hands, wrists, between fingers, and under fingernails.
Need help communicating with your child around bathroom issues? Try these helpful tips!
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Idea Spotlight
Start a smile early! It’s never too early to be thinking of your child’s smile—even if teeth have not yet appeared. Taking care of your child’s smile begins at birth.
- Start early to prevent decay. To avoid “Baby Bottle Tooth Decay”, the American Dental Association (ADA) recommends not putting your baby to bed with a bottle containing milk, juice or formula, as this may cause tooth decay.
- Begin with basics. For the youngest children, who may have one tooth, or none at all, use a moistened, soft washcloth wrapped around your finger to gently massage and clean your child’s gums. No need to worry about toothpaste at this point—just get your baby used to having his gums cleaned. Plus, for those incoming teeth, the massaging motion may feel soothing.
- When teeth appear. Once a few teeth begin to appear, you can introduce a small toothbrush made especially for smaller mouths, but using toothpaste is not recommended until at least 2 years of age. Once your child begins to use toothpaste, only a small pea-sized amount is needed, and you should encourage your child to spit, not swallow, while brushing.
- Provide help. Children will most likely need a parent or guardian to brush their teeth twice a day until they are older than two years old. After that age, they may be able to do it, but still should be supervised, and may still need an adult to brush their teeth to make sure it’s a thorough job.
- Make it fun. Make brushing fun by singing while brushing. While brushing, sing, "This is the way be brush our teeth, brush our teeth, brush our teeth so early in the evening." Switch the words to brush the top, brush the back, etc.
- Visit a dentist. The ADA recommends that a child visit the dentist as soon as the first tooth appears, but no later than their first birthday. Your child’s dentist can address concerns related to pacifier use, switching from bottle to cup, thumb sucking, how to choose the best toothbrush or toothpaste for your child, when to start flossing your child’s teeth, and other dental related concerns. To find a pediatric dentist, check with your pediatrician or get referrals from your child care provider, friends or relatives.
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Check out November's:
Books, Songs and Nursery Rhymes to compliment this month's activities!
What's YOUR Story?
You know you have a story to tell about what quality education has done for your child, your family or your community--We want to hear it!
Tell about your child's favorite PA Pre-K Counts, Head Start or Keystone STAR teacher, administrator, or classroom. Share all the great things your child has learned by participating in a quality early learning classroom. Let everyone know how important it is for your family to have access to quality early learning!
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