Author: becky liesman

305 N. Kickapoo
Lincoln, IL 62656
(217) 735-4192

Lincoln Parents’ Center

April 2018

Play
“Play is essential to the social, emotional, cognitive, & physical well-being of children beginning in early childhood. It is a natural tool for children to develop resiliency as they learn to cooperate, overcome challenges, and negotiate with others. Play also allows children to be creative. It provides time for parents to be fully engaged with their children, to bond with their children, and to see the world from the perspective of their child.”
(American Academy of Pediatrics published in the January issue of Pediatrics)
April Activities
Play & Learn
Location: LPC
Time: 9:30 -11:00 am
Dates: 4/4 & 4/20

April Play Time Theme: COLORS

Talk Together
For your baby: Notice the colors that fill your baby’s world. Point out his red hat, the green leaves, the orange tabby cat. Have a snack of yellow bananas, red strawberries and purple grapes. Look out into the black night and try to find yellow stars winking in the sky.
For your toddler: Once your child knows the names of colors, you can begin to use these words in context: “Can you get your red sneakers?” “Would you like a green apple or a yellow apple for snack?” You can also begin to expand your child’s understanding of color by pointing out the difference between grass green and lime green, lemon yellow and golden yellow. April is the time when color begins to bloom outside with flowers and trees. What colors can your child find in the world around him?
Read Together
Read some colorful books. For babies, try Spot Looks at Colors by Eric Hill, the Colors board book by DK Publishing, My Very First Book of Colors by Eric Carle, or Color Zoo by Lois Ehlert. For older toddlers, good choices include Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See by Bill Martin, Jr., Frederick by Leo Lionni, What Makes a Rainbow by Betty Ann Schwartz, Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert, and My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss.
Play Together
For your baby: Make color trays. Take a muffin tray and in each opening place an object that is red, for example. You could place a strawberry, a red teether, a piece of red watermelon, a red mitten or sock, and a red foam ball (make sure it is not a choking hazard). Let your baby touch and play with these objects, but supervise closely since babies this age are likely to “mouth” things they find interesting in order to learn more about them. As you baby plays, you can repeat the word “red”—a red ball, a red strawberry, a red sock. Try making trays of different colored objects.
For your toddler: Toddlers love to help out doing “real” jobs around the house. For colors, try a cooking project where make a rainbow snack together. Pick out a range of healthy foods of different colors—yellow bananas, red watermelon, green grapes, blueberries, etc. Let your child choose what to have as his snack and talk about all the different colors he can eat. What does he think is the best-tasting color? (Information gather from Zero to Three National Center for Infants, Toddlers, & Families)