What can you play with an 18 month old as alert as a stunned puppy?

Posted September 18, 2021

When you take care of a baby of about 18 months (a year and a half for those who are too lazy to count on their fingers), you immediately realize that the baby has a very short attention span: he likes to change activities frequently. And if he is, in general, quite capable of taking care of himself, deciding for example to completely empty your kitchen cabinets, it may be good to have two or three ideas for new activities to propose to him. .

If it is not your child, this will not only allow you to spend a much more enjoyable afternoon with said child, but you will also win the nanny or babysitter of the year medal.

So what can you play with an 18 month old baby, since you can’t pop Scrabble or play Mario Kart? Don’t move, we had some ideas – free or almost – that you can improvise with what you have at hand.

Baby activity n ° 1: the babygym of the living room

Does the child like to climb things, especially his parents and the adults around him? Maybe it’s time to put it in the babygym in the living room!

The principle is simple: create a small obstacle course for the child with what you have at hand. Slalom between the stools, jump from the sofa to land on the cushions, make a tunnel of chairs, crawl on a yoga mat …

Let your imagination run wild, then watch your child work out while drooling and don’t hesitate to congratulate him or her when sporting prowess deserves it. Remember, a few months ago this being couldn’t even walk. Worse, before Covid, he wasn’t even born …

Activity for child n ° 2: making modeling clay

La patouille, la patouille! Most kids like to explore new textures with their hands (and mouth), so starting to make homemade modeling clay (don’t panic, it’s super easy) is sure to make some people happy.

To make this homemade modeling dough recipe, you will need:

• 100 g of flour
• 50 g of salt
• 50 g of baking soda (or 1 sachet of baking powder)
• 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil
• 50 ml of hot water
• food coloring

Start by mixing the flour, salt and baking soda in a saucepan, then gradually add the oil and water while continuing to mix.

Heat the mixture over medium heat, stirring, until it thickens.

When the dough comes off the bottom of the pan, turn off the heat, let it cool a little and knead for a few minutes. Separate it into as many pieces as there are different food colors.

Add the dyes, knead again so that the dyes mix well, then let the dough cool in the refrigerator, until the baby wakes up from his nap. And hop, the plasticine workshop can begin. You’ll have almost as much fun as the little person you’re babysitting.

Activity for babies n ° 3: “Baby Kondo”, because emptying the boxes is his passion

One of the things that surprised me as a mother was my daughter’s passion for boxes and their contents. If I want to please her it is very simple, I just have to hide the unknown objects in a box that she has not yet had the opportunity to open.

He can then spend long minutes picking up each object, looking at it, drooling on it and then putting it in ANOTHER box. Incredible. Hey, but tell me, wouldn’t that be a great business idea ?! Yes, and it also has an official name among early childhood and Montessori pedagogy professionals: transfer games.

To practice the activity in a peaceful way, choose objects large enough not to be swallowed by the child (bottle caps, cards, stress balls, colored pencils, pairs of rolled up socks, large raw dough, pebbles, etc.).

Place them in a box, cardboard box, salad bowl (preferably non-fragile) or basin and provide a second container for the child to put them in if their heart tells them.

If it’s hot, you can simply replace the decant items with water, and let the child enjoy picking up floating objects, or pouring the water using a plastic cup. Be careful, though, to do this outside or in a tiled room, or you’ll be soaking your beautiful parquet floor.

Baby activity # 4: Operational hut!

Have you always dreamed of going to Koh-Lanta to build cabins? Well take advantage of having a baby on hand to make your alibi out of it. Obviously it is for this little person that you are moving all your furniture to build a comfortable hut based on sheets and pillows in the center of the living room.

And if you go under the hut too, it’s just to keep him company, eh. How beautiful you are anyway!

You should also know that children understand the concept of “hidden cube” very early and that they laugh when they see you disappear and reappear. With a small child, hiding behind his hands, then pushing him aside shouting HELLO, he may not be as successful again, on the other hand hiding in the cabin or pretending to look for the baby inside go straight home in the top 3 of animation for people under 80 cm.

Activity for child # 5: Go on with the music

Do you play an instrument or don’t have one? OK, look no further. Suggest that the child touch it and listen to its sound, or even play a small piece – guaranteed effect on any human being. And if the instrument is not too flimsy, you can also accompany it so that you handle it a little and release sounds from this strange object as well.

And if you’re one of those poor mortals like me who have as much musical talent as Darmanin has feminist beliefs (very few then), you can always put some music on the baby, alternating between music that makes you love him, and nursery rhymes.

And if you want to dance, don’t deprive yourself. There is a 50% chance that said baby will start mimicking you and moving his butt in an overly cute way to random music. Mine loves Shakira, and she wasn’t exactly the artist I would initially bet on …

Here, with all of that, you should have enough to keep up a good afternoon (including siesta and snack). If you still have time to kill in spite of everything or the baby is running like a caged lion in the apartment, get out there and get some fresh air! Even if it’s ugly, with a jacket and boots, a little trip to the park will always be appreciated.

Either way, you may have no choice: when my copy of the 18-month-old decided it was time for some fresh air, she grabbed her shoes, walked over to the stroller, sat inside and screamed. until we got through the door.

Photo credit: mali desha / Unsplash