Number Hop

I made numbers using painter's tape on the tile floor. Then I would call out a number and my little one hopped from one to the next. Great way to release energy and practice number recognition. Next time we may even try to do some adding or putting down some letters for letter and sound recognition. Great activity for a chilly inside day!

Beginning Sounds Balloon Game

You will need: two ballons, a sharpie, minimal artistic skills

Blow up two balloons. One one write letters, and on the other draw pictures of things that start with that letter sound. 

To play throw the balloon with the letters up in the air and have your little one catch it. Have him choose a letter he is touching when he catches it and tell you what sound the letter makes. Then throw the second balloon with the drawings and have him find the object that begins with that letter sound. We began with letter A-I and then gradually added more letters and drawings. 

This was a great activity for my active boy. He wanted to keep playing and playing!

Music and Movement Ribbons

Materials: shower curtain ring, ribbon and/or string. 

Tie the ribbons and string to your shower curtain and enjoy dancing to the rhythm. 

I saw something like this on Pinterest. I don't even know the website because I didn't even pin it, but there are many other people that have done something similar. Just so you know it wasn't my original idea:) We sure did have fun with it however!

Just Three Balloons

I blew up three balloons, and who would've thought that this would entertain a boy for hours! We played a few games. First, we tried to keep them in the air as long as possible. Then we played where I would throw them and my son would try to catch them before they fell to the ground. It was a hit!

Nutrition Relay

So I've had these big cards from my teaching days with me and I though I could have a little nutrition lesson with my son. We talked about the names of the foods and how food gives us energy. (It was short! He's three and he has a very short attention span) Anyway, to help him practice the names of the food, and get him moving, I put the cards against the wall in another room. I had about 15 or so. I would tell him what food I wanted and he'd run and get it. He thought this was really fun. I thought you could do something like this with any topic really, like shapes, letters, colors, etc. It's a great way to get him moving (and tired) and learning something new.

Animal Obstacle Course

For this activity I printed off four or five pictures of animals and set up an obstacle course around the house. When my son reached each animal he would run, gallop, crawl, or flap his wings like that animal. He had fun pretending with this game. It's a great game to release some wiggles, especially if you're having an inside day.