Do you wish the ABC song was on a continuous loop all-day every day?
Do you eat alphabet soup straight from the can, by choice?
Do you know eleminopee is actually five individual letters?!
Then this activity is definitely NOT for you!
But hey, this activity isn’t meant for you. It’s meant for someone who would probably appreciate at least 2 of those things above.
So let’s get to entertaining this toddler of yours!
Learning Letters
I love combining any kind of learning with physical activity. Two birds. One stone. So we’re going to learn some letters while burning off some of that infinite energy (I mean seriously, if we could harness the energy of just 2 toddlers…).
So because 1) letters are boring and 2) races are fun, I decided to put them together and see what would happen!
RELATED: How to Play Alphabet Hopscotch Indoors
Looking for an organized guide of fun, easy activities to do with your toddler that also encourages their growth and development?
I’ve created a 3-month activity planner just for busy parents like you! The plan includes 65 detailed, simple, and stress-free activities including: arts and crafts, sensory play, motor skills, and STEM–all using easy-to-find supplies.
Let me help make planning activities for your toddler easy, so you can skip the stress and get straight to the fun!
How We Did It: Alphabet Game
With just half an hour until naptime, I grabbed some blue Post-its and a red marker.
I decided we’d work on the letters A and E.
I wrote them on the Post-its and stuck them on a wall. Ella watched and named the letters as I wrote.
“That’s a A. That’s a E.”
I thought about correcting her improper use of an article before a noun beginning with a vowel sound, but simply said, “That’s right.”
The Race
I had Ella stand with her back against the wall on the opposite side of the room from where the letters were stuck and had her place her hands on the wall.
Then I gave her clear instructions.
“I’m going to count to three and then I want you to grab the letter A and stick it on this wall. Ready? One, two, threeee!”
Ella raced over to the other wall, took the letter A, scurried back to me, and stuck the Post-it on the wall.
We kept going with the next letter and over and over until all the Post-its were on the other wall.
4 A’s and 4 E’s.
Of course she wanted to repeat the activity, so we did! I lost count of how many times we went back and forth, but by the time she had finished, she was definitely ready for her nap.
Realization
So, I know I said this activity wasn’t for me, but I had a lot of fun, too. I feel so fulfilled watching my little girl succeed in these little activities while laughing and squealing.
I’m still a relatively new mom of two, with my oldest being just over 2 and my second just 3 months old. But this is what it’s all about. This is why I want to share these activities with you, so you can have easy ways to “find” these moments with your little one.
Your Turn!
So set down your coffee mug (temporarily) and grab these things:
Supplies
Post-its (or any off-brand sticky note you prefer)
Pen (or pencil, marker, crayon… hey, even lipstick would work)
Instructions
1. Write a single letter on a Post-it note.
2. Stick it to the wall.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 several times (try 3-4 of each letter).
4. Start with just 2 letters, and increase as your child’s comfort with more letters increases.
5. Call out a letter and have your toddler race to the wall, grab the letter and stick it on another wall.
6. Repeat step 5 until all the letters are on the opposite wall.
Adaptations
- If your toddler doesn’t know any letters yet, you could do the activity with two different colored Post-its and call out colors instead of letters. Or you could use shapes!
- Include capital and lowercase letters
- Mix-up letters and numbers
- Use only the letters in your child’s name and then show him how to spell his name. See if he can spell his own name, too!
- Or, if you’ve got a new walker, just stick a bunch of Post-its on him and call it a day
Special Moments
I want you to have these special moments with your toddler even if you feel like you don’t have the creativity or the energy to make it happen.
Or maybe you feel like you could be creative if you only had the time. Either way, if you want more of these kinds of activities keep looking around the site. I’m sure you’ll find more to love.
Try out this Post-it race. Pin it for later if you can’t do it now, but I challenge you to get it done TODAY.
Looking for an organized guide of fun, easy activities to do with your toddler that also encourages their growth and development?
I’ve created a 3-month activity planner just for busy parents like you! The plan includes 65 detailed, simple, and stress-free activities including: arts and crafts, sensory play, motor skills, and STEM–all using easy-to-find supplies.
Let me help make planning activities for your toddler easy, so you can skip the stress and get straight to the fun!