Add A Little – 2 Year Old Curriculum – Unit 4

What Colour?

Developmental Focus: Colour Recognition (Primary Colours)

Want to learn more? Check out the Add A Little 2Y Parent / Teacher Guide

Disclaimer: All activities require adult supervision and discretion. Read more…

Muscle Moving

4 Sides

Supplies:

  • Four sheets of paper, each a different colour (ideally focus on the primary colors this week, so red, yellow, and blue, plus one more)
  • Tape (or some other way to attach the to the wall)

Prep:

  • Clear an area for running
  • Tape one sheet of paper to each wall, ideally in the center of the wall.

Time to Play:

  • Explain to your child’s that you are going to play a game together. When you say a colour, you are going to run to the wall with that colour.
  • Call or a color, such as “Yellow!” Then run to the yellow wall inviting your child to run with you.
  • Call another colour and run to that wall together. Continue playing in this way.
  • Once your child understand the game well, consider making it come challenging by adding specific actions. For example: “Crawl to blue” and “stomp to red”.
    • Actions could include:
      • Run
      • Stomp
      • Crawl
      • Tiptoe
      • Take big steps
      • Take little steps
      • Fly
      • Run fast
      • Walk slow
      • Walk backwards (careful about this one in group settings)

Brain Boosting

Colour a Box

This activity is fantastic for your child’s fine motor muscle development (the muscles needed to write with a pencil). The benefit is increased of the crayons are short and/or broken.

Supplies:

  • One Large cardboard box or other 3d object your child can color on
  • Crayons (or washable markers, but crayons are better for development)

Time to Play:

  • Invite your child to colour on the box with the crayons. If it is a big box, they could sit inside the box while they colour.
  • Join in coloring with them.
  • Discuss which colours are being used as you colour.

Let’s Sing

I See Colors Everywhere

Let’s Read

Colors
Airlie Anderson

Let’s Sing

Christian Song

A Song About Joseph

Let’s Read

Bible Story

Joseph
Genesis 37,39-46

Beginner’s Bible Chapters:
Joseph’s Colorful Robe
Pharaoh’s Dreams
Joseph Saves His Family
Page 71

 

Add A Little – 2 Year Old Curriculum – Unit 3

Feel That?

Developmental Focus: Hard vs. Soft

Want to learn more? Check out the Add A Little 2Y Parent / Teacher Guide

Disclaimer: All activities require adult supervision and discretion. Read more…

Muscle Moving

Soft Challenges

Supplies:

  • At least one soft toy per participant, such as a stuffed animal or bean bag

Time to Play:

  • Invite your child to copy you in several simple but challenging actions. Potential actions include:
    • Balance toy on head
    • Walk with toy balanced on head
    • Jump with toy balanced on head
    • Turn around with toy balanced on head
    • Throw toy up and catch it
    • Pass toy to a friend
    • Toss toy into a box or basket
  • Keep the mood fun and encouraging as you play together.

Brain Boosting

Tell By Touch

Supplies:

  • One opaque bag (alternatively use a box or wrap all the items in a blanket)
  • Several small items that are hard
    • Example: car, block, spoon, large puzzle piece, rattle
  • Several small items that soft
    • Example: stuffed animal, facecloth, headband, shirt, large pompom

Prep:

  • Place all the items in the bag

Time to Play:

  • Show your child the bag with the items hidden inside. Invite them to reach their hand in to choose one item.
  • Ask them if the item they choose is hard or soft.
  • For more advanced children, ask them to identify if the item is hard or soft before they pull it out of the bag. This encourages the child to use their sense of touch rather than relying on sight.

Let’s Sing

Play It Right

Let’s Read

Good Night Farm
Author: Patricia Hegarty
Illustrator: Thomas Elliott

Let’s Sing

Christian Song

God Made Me

For lyrics and actions, visit: https://sjlittle.ca/preschool/7-simple-christian-songs-for-preschoolers/

 

Let’s Read

Bible Story

Let the Children Come
Luke 18:15-17

Beginner’s Bible Chapter:

Jesus and the Children
Page 409

 

Add A Little – 2 Year Old Curriculum – Unit 2

Let’s Wash

Developmental Focus: Social Skills / Basic Chores

Want to learn more? Check out the Add A Little 2Y Parent / Teacher Guide

Disclaimer: All activities require adult supervision and discretion. Read more…

Muscle Moving

Wall Wash

Large up and down arm motions strengthen core muscles that are a precursor to bring able to write well.

Supplies:

  • Clean sponges – one per child and one for you. Alternatively, use a baby wipe or clean cloth.
    (Do not give your child a Magic Eraser sponge as these contain many chemicals that should not be consumed.)

Time to Play:

  • Model how to pretend to clean the walls or an empty bookshelf using the clean sponge.
  • Invite your child to join in. Be encouraging and thank your child for helping clean.
  • (If using damp baby wipes, your child can truly help clean, but be sure they don’t try to clean surfaces that are sensitive to moisture.)

Brain Boosting

Dish Wash

Supplies:

  • One tub such as a plastic 15L container. A large bowl could work, but might tip over.
  • Water
  • Several small containers (such as clean yogurt containers) or bath toys to wash
  • A cloth or sponge to wash with
  • A water friendly area (Consider using a bathtub or doing this activity outside. Alternatively, place a large towel beneath the tub of water to catch spills.)
  • Optional: dish soap or bubble bath

Prep:

  • Fill the tub with 3-5 inches (5-15 cm) of water.
  • Optional: Add a drop of dish soap or bubble bath for added bubbly fun
  • Place the cloth and containers in the tub
  • Place the tub in a water friendly area

Note: Adult Supervision Required – As with any activity involving water at this age, supervision is required due to risk of drowning.

Time to Play:

  • Invite your child to sit down and wash some dishes for you. If needed, join in the washing fun to set an example.
  • Expect your child and the surrounding area to get a bit wet. Don’t be anxious about this. It is part of the learning experience. If needed, help them change their clothes afterwards.
  • Thank your child for washing the dishes.

Let’s Sing

Top and Bottom

Let’s Read

Curious George: Wash Your Hands

Let’s Sing

Christian Song

Naaman Song

Let’s Read

Bible Story

Naaman
2 Kings 5:1-15

Beginner’s Bible Chapter:
Naaman Is Healed
Page 230

 

Add A Little – 2 Year Old Curriculum – Unit 1

Zoom!

Developmental Focus: Fast vs. Slow

Want to learn more? Check out the Add A Little 2Y Parent / Teacher Guide

Disclaimer: All activities require adult supervision and discretion. Read more…

Muscle Moving

Run, Run, Run

Prep:

  • Clear an area for running. Ideally find an area that allows for continuous running in a circle. Otherwise, a hallway or the length of a room will do.
    (The more children you have, the more valuable having a circle to run in can be. This helps decrease incidents of children running into each other.)

Time to Play:

  • Run with your child in the space you have cleared for at least a minute or two. Be encouraging as you run.
  • Encourage your child to continue running.
  • After giving your child some time to burn through some of their energy, join in again, but this time moving very slowly. Encourage your child to move slowly with you.
  • Continue moving, alternating between fast and slow.
  • For more advanced children, consider adding other movements such as hopping, taking big steps, taking little steps, and walking backwards.
  • (When teaching 2 year olds, I love to begin or end each gym time with having the whole class run in a circle. It amazes me how much their endurance increases after only a few days of running.)

Brain Boosting

Ramp

STEM – experimenting with friction and gravity

Supplies:

  • One large but relatively flat cardboard box, or one wide board
  • Something to prop the box on, ideally about the shoulder height of your child. This could be your couch, a chair, or a half-height bookshelf.
  • Toys that roll well – cars or balls
  • Toys that slide slowly rather than rolling – stuffed animals, bean bags

Prep:

  • Prop the box or board against the chair, or whatever you are using.
  • Experiment a few times to figure out what angle works well by rolling a ball or car down the ramp.

Time to Play:

  • Invite your child to join in the fun by rolling balls and cars down the ramp.
  • Talk about how the balls and cars go fast!
  • Encourage your child to try sliding other things down the ramp like a stuffed animal.
  • Talk about how the stuffed animal goes slow because it is rubbing on the ramp rather than rolling – that’s called friction.

Let’s Sing

Clap Fast and Slow

Let’s Read

Llama Llama Zippity-Zoom
Anna Dewdney

Let’s Sing

Christian Song

Peter and John Went to Pray (Silver and Gold)

Let’s Read

Bible Story

Peter and John Went to Pray
Acts 3:1-10

Beginner’s Bible Chapter:
The Lame Man
Page 484

 

Add A Little – 2 Year Old Curriculum – Intro

Parent / Teacher Guide

 

Intro

Why name a curriculum “Add A Little”? Because that’s exactly what this curriculum is designed to do – add a little enhancement to your child’s development by providing ideas and activities for you to do with them. This light curriculum was developed with the busy parent or caretaker in mind.

 

Activities For 2 Year Olds

2 year olds need free play. They can also be learning to follow simple instructions. You’ll find a bit of both in Add A Little (AAL). Most of the activities have been kept simple with little prep needed and using supplies you may already have on hand. With one unit each month, this curriculum is designed to add a developmental boost to your child(ren)’s life without overwhelming you.

Check out the Tips for Success below.

 

Table of Contents

Each Unit Includes:

  • Fun Theme
  • Developmental Focus
  • Muscle Moving
  • Brain Boosting
  • Let’s Sing
  • Let’s Read
  • Let’s Sing A Christian Song
  • Let’s Read A Bible Story

Supplies Needed

Tips For Success When Using Add A Little Curriculum

Disclaimer

Units

Helpful Links

Each Unit Includes:

Fun Theme

Every unit has an engaging theme selected specifically with a 2 year old’s development in mind.

 

Developmental Focus

Each unit targets an area of learning and growth.

 

Muscle Moving

Being up and active is incredibly valuable for 2 year olds. Not only will they strengthen their muscles, but studies have shown that movement is important for overall brain development as well.

 

Brain Boosting

Under this heading you will find activities engaging various areas of the brain, whether that be hand-eye coordination, using the 5 senses, or more academic and STEM related activities.

 

Let’s Sing

Singing and music are highly beneficial for overall child development. That’s why every unit includes a simple fun song for you to sing with your child(ren).

Want more songs or don’t like a suggested song? Check out this list of Simple Preschool Songs: https://sjlittle.ca/preschool/big-list-of-simple-preschool-songs/

 

Let’s Read

Taking time to sit down and read with your child(ren) offers countless developmental benefits, sets them up with a lifelong love of reading, and is fun. Each unit includes a book suggestion that (mostly) lines up with the theme.

Also, check out my board, “Books for Toddlers and Preschoolers”: https://www.pinterest.ca/sjlittleauthor/books-for-preschoolers-and-toddlers/

 

Let’s Sing a Christian Song

The Christian elements of each unit are optional. They have been included since many of our subscribers appreciate them. However, you are free to skip them.

Want more Christian songs? Visit: https://sjlittle.ca/preschool/7-simple-christian-songs-for-preschoolers/

 

Let’s Read a Bible Story

Developing a love for God through reading the Bible is invaluable to the Christian life. To help you begin instilling truths about who God is in your child’s heart, every month will have a suggested Bible story. More specifically, every month will include a recommended chapter from the Beginner’s Bible. The Beginner’s Bible is widely available for purchase. If you already have a different Children’s Bible, you are welcome to use it to follow along instead.

For more information visit: https://www.thebeginnersbible.com/products/

 

  

Supplies Needed

AAL curriculum strives to be low hastle. Part of this is accomplished by using supplies you likely already have on hand. That said, for the 2 Year Old Add A Little Curriculum, among other things, you will need:

  • Paper (coloured and white)
  • Washable children’s paint
  • Unused sponges
  • Masking tape or other tape that can cleanly peel off walls and floors
  • Crayons
  • Recyclables such as cardboard boxes and various sizes of washed plastic yogurt or margarine containers, etc.

 

Tips For Success When Using Add A Little Curriculum

How do I get my child to participate in the activities?

  • Engage

    • Two year olds love to play with you. If your child doesn’t immediately engage in an activity, sit down and do it yourself for a few minutes. Encourage your child to participate with you. Cheer them on when they do join in.
    • If they still don’t want to join in, don’t sweat it. Put the activity aside and assess what their reason for not engaging might be (tired, hungry, feeling too wiggly, etc.). Try the activity again in a few days.
  • Adapt

    • Every child is different. You know your circumstance and your child’s abilities and interests. Take a moment to consider the suggested activity, then adapt it to your own situation.
  • Repeat

    • 2 year olds enjoy repeating activities until they have mastered them. While the Add A Little curriculum only provides two activities in each unit, these activities can be repeated several times throughout the month, and during the following months as well.
  • Less Is More

    • Did you know that young children play better with less toys at a time? Try putting away most of their toys before attempting to engage them in a new activity. Putting most of their toys away also allows you to do toy rotation. If you haven’t tried toy rotation, read this article https://sjlittle.ca/preschool/toy-rotation/ . You’ll be amazed at the difference it makes to your child’s play.

Disclaimer

All activities require adult supervision and discretion.

Every aspect of the Add A Little Curriculum is suggested with the expectation that it will be done under adult supervision. Some activities include potential hazards. You and your child(ren) participate at your own discretion.

Every child, family, setting, and circumstance is different. Recommended tips and/or activities in this curriculum may work well for some children but not for others. Adult discretion is required. In some cases, you will need to adapt the curriculum to fit you and your child(ren)’s specific needs.

Units 

Every month, one new unit is released. Here is a list of units that have already been released:

Unit 1 – Zoom!

Unit 2 – Let’s Wash

Want More?

Do you want to receive notification of each new unit of the Add A Little 2 Year Old Curriculum when it is released? Join S. J. Little’s preschool email list today.