Here is a simple activity using things that you have at home and something like we would set up in the classroom.
Materials
Little people figures and some blocks
Plan
- Choose 10 figures to represent all the classmates in the green room.
- Line them up with some blocks and start the play by suggesting that all the Green Room friends came to play and point toward the lined up people.
- Start by choosing a couple kids (figures) and saying “Here is _______ and ______”.
- Invite your toddler to tell you “who is this?” while pointing to the next in line. Say that you want to see if they remember all their friends names.
- Then just see where the play goes, lining them all up, knocking them over…even standing them on blocks.
We use big blocks in the red room and we walk on them so perhaps the “green room” kids (figures) can build with the blocks “in the red room”, we often line them up, and walk on them. All the while it is just the same figures from home and small blocks. You could even build on the idea of everyone’s birthdays and sing Happy Birthday to the tiny people, using the real toddlers names!
I purposefully kept this simple while incorporating all the names. They can work on pretending, speaking and recalling all the names, fine motor work of lining them up, and building. In my mind I picture the kids playing throughout the day and maybe singing Happy Birthday to their friends long after this specific idea plays through. Maybe they carry their little green room friends around in a basket or hide them on the couch behind pillows! They could play peekaboo with them!
Names & Symbols
(should you want to incorporate those too)
Abigail-bumble bee, Ada-tree, Ethan-moon, Dylan-fish, Gerti-heart, Hudson-star, Jose-boat, Leland-hat, Naomi-butterfly, Sophia-flower
😊 Liz