Simple Toddler Games
For You To Do

The most valuable and fun toddler games and activities are those that involve your toddler and you.

Avoid games and activities that require your toddler to just sit back and watch, this is when your toddler will be come disruptive, as they have no understanding of time.

You need to be familiar with what your toddler can or can’t do, so that you choose an activity that is fun, challenging, but not frustrating for your child.

Ask yourself, what does my toddler enjoy doing? How can I make these ideas into toddler games?

By asking yourself some of these questions, and taking some ideas from the list of activities below you will start making-up your own todler games and activities, that your child will love to play.

The following toddler games ideas have been listed as easy to a little bit harder. But as each child develops at their own speed, I have not put an ‘age’ for each game.

Who’s Hiding There?

Before you play this game make sure that the area your in is safe for your child, so when you are hidden under the sheet, you have nothing to worry about.

This game is best played in a clear space where your toddler can concentrate on you.

Cover yourself up with a sheet. Say, "Where's Mummy gone?" and wait while your little one crawls or walks around you.

Encourage him by sliding a hand out from under the sheet and giving her a wave.

When he has found your head you can pop up: "Here I am!"

You can also swap roles: try covering him with a sheet then gently discover an arm or a leg before finally revealing his head.

Reading Together Toddler Games

Skills developed: talking, reading
What you'll need: a favourite book or two

To develop toddler games from books, start to make reading more interactive.

Ask your toddler to point to things he can see in the picture: "Where is the big dog?" or "Can you point to the yellow ball?”

Take your time and let your toddler turn the pages when he is ready.

Stacking Towers Toddler Games

Skills developed: motor control, sorting, cause and effect, language

What you’ll need: building blocks of any shape; design or colour

For stacking towers toddler games, start with the building blocks in a pile on the floor then start to build your toddler a tower. He may want to help or the chances are that he won’t be able to wait and will take great delight in knocking the whole thing down.

Talk to your toddler as you are building the tower either by counting the bricks as you build them up or naming their colours.

Tell him if you are going to build a big tower or a small tower.

Watching the tower you have just built come tumbling down will encourage his sense of cause and effect.

Mirror Me Toddler Games

Toddlers are great mimics, especially when it comes to pulling faces. And while you are having fun, she will be developing her co-ordination and dexterity.

Skills developed: imagination, motor skills, and social skills

Sit down facing your toddler. Start with simple actions like poking out your tongue, waving, reaching up high or covering your face.

Encourage your toddler to copy you. Then it's her turn. She will be fascinated to see you copy her every move.

Artists Toddler Games

Skills developed: fine motor control, early writing skills
What you'll need: paper; masking tape; crayons

Start off by taping some big sheets of thick paper onto a table (so you don't end up with crayon all over your table) and let your little one loose to doodle to his heart's content.

Start him off with just a few primary colours so as not to overwhelm him with choice.

Name each colour as he picks up the crayon. Its important to display his work when he has finished, you could also add a name tag on it, this will both show him that you value his efforts, and start him to recognise his own name.

Musical Junk Toddler Games

Skills developed: imagination, gross motor control
What you'll need: cardboard box, tubes from toilet paper or kitchen towels; saucepans and lids; wooden spoons

This could actually be two activities. Making the instruments and painting them, as well as playing your home made instruments.

Before painting make sure that the area that you are painting on is protected.

What you could do

You could do hand painting on the trumpet (cardboard tube).

Paint old wooden spoons or add some ribbon around them as drums sticks.

Stick colourful paper around a shoebox; add elastic bands around the shoebox to make your own guitar.

Get a plastic bottle that is empty, put a few dried peas in it to make a shaker; to make it a bit funkier stick ribbons on to the bottle top, so that when you screw the tom on the ribbons is inside the bottle.

Playing your instruments

Place all the instruments on the floor so that your toddler can have a good look at them.

Show your little one how to blow the trumpet (cardboard tube) and bang the drums (saucepans for drums and wooden spoons for the sticks).

And if your neighbours won't complain, try clashing together cymbals in the shape of pan lids.

It might not be music to your ears but your toddler will think it’s a lot of fun.

Head, Shoulders, Knees And Toes

Skills developed: learning body parts, singing
What you'll need: your singing voice

You can sing this song and do the actions either sitting down or standing up.

Start slowly, then as your toddler gets the hang of it, you can begin to speed up, until you can’t say the words quick enough, this will have your toddler laughing so much, well it does with the children in our nursery.

Remember to put both hands on the part of your body you are singing about.

Here are the words for this toddler games:

Toddler’s Prints

As well as being fun these pictures make great mementos and can be made into homemade cards for grandparents.

Skills developed: motor control, sensory skills
What you'll need: kids' paint, a plate or paint tray and paper

Lay down some newspaper to protect your table and the floor.

Fill a paint tray (or any flat shallow tray) with bright coloured poster paint, and help your little one put the palm of his hand in the tray then gently press it onto the paper.

You can also try it with his feet but have some water ready in a basin or the bath to wash the paint off as soon as you've finished. You don't want him to wander off around the house leaving a trail of footprints for you to follow.

Dance The Afternoon Away

Help him to his feet and hold his hands while he busts some moves on the dance floor.

Skills developed: walking, coordination and a love for different music. What you'll need: music

Your little dancer will probably need some help on his feet so take his hands or he may find it easier to hold onto a sofa for stability.

Try different styles of music and see which he likes best.

When he gets tired you can sweep him off his feet and whoosh him around the room ballroom-style.

Mummy’s (or Daddy’s) Helper

Skills developed: imagination, a sense of his place in the world
What you'll need: duster, small or lightweight broom

Find your toddler a safe area to "dust". An empty coffee table is ideal; the shelf containing your most precious ornaments is not.

Give him a duster and show him how to wipe the table clean. (Don't use any spray or polish which could contain irritants and other harmful chemicals.)

Once the table is clean he could dust something else – a chair, a door or maybe some of his toys. Once he has had enough of that he can move onto some sweeping.

He will probably be very happy pottering about sweeping the kitchen floor leaving you free to get on with something else.

Hungry Teddy Toddler Games

Skills developed: motor skills, imagination, and independence

What you'll need: bowl; spoon; a teddy or other favourite soft toy or doll

Sit Teddy down in a chair, buggy or high chair - anywhere it's easy for your toddler to reach from a seated position. Give him a bowl and spoon that he really uses at mealtimes and tell him that Teddy is hungry, and needs his tea.

Pretend there's something soft and easily spilt - like yoghurt or soup - in the bowl.

Encourage him to talk to Teddy while he's using the spoon, and if you need to, make comments like "Whoops, mind you don't give Teddy too much at once", or "I can see Teddy's enjoying this!" Make sure Teddy finishes the whole bowl.

Model Citizen

Skills developed: motor control, imagination
What you need: play dough (either shop bought or make your own) rolling pin and plastic cookie cutters

Let your toddler explore his senses by squishing the dough to his heart's content.

Help your toddler to roll out the dough and cut shapes in it using the cookie cutters.

Colour Day

Make one day of the week a colour day. It will help your toddler with colour recognition and sorting, and it's great fun.

Skills developed: colour recognition, sorting
What you will need: everything in your chosen colour

The idea of this game is to choose a colour, then base your day around it. For example, if you decide to have a red day you could wear red clothes, have strawberry jam on your toast, do a red painting, pick some red flowers, spot red cars, eat pizza for dinner. If your toddler enjoys it, why not try it with other colours, such as yellow or green.

Ball Toddler Games

It is really hard for toddlers to learn to share. Throwing and catching a ball will not only develop your toddler’s hand eye co-ordination but it will lay down the groundwork for sharing.

Skills developed: throwing and catching, sharing
What you will need: a lightweight ball

Playing a simple game of catch between two or three people will show your child that sometimes you have to give to receive.

Start very close together as you gently throw the ball for your toddler to catch. (Get ready to leap into action as he flings it back). As he gets better at catching you could try throwing from further away.

If he is struggling to catch the ball, try playing this game with a balloon - it will move much slower! Remember to shower him with praise whether he catches the ball or not.

I hope these toddler games, have given you some ideas of things to do, and also shows that any day to day activity can be changed into, great fun toddler games.

For some more great ideas visit the Infant And Toddlers Games Page for ideas for children just 'toddling' or go to the Older Toddlers Educational Games Page.

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