The Perfect Toy

Every parent has days when they’ve tried everything but the kitchen sink to entertain a toddler. Hold on--did somebody say "kitchen sink"?

Water has all the characteristics parents look for in a toy, and this issue of BABYBUG is full of watery fun. Water can be played with in many different ways and by many different ages; it promotes eye-hand coordination; it’s soothing, relaxing, and encourages a child’s imagination; it can be played with alone or with friends; it allows children to explore some basic concepts about measurement and even some of the fundamental laws of physics. It’s also clean, inexpensive, readily available, and recyclable. And what better way to cool off during hot, sticky summer days?

As with any new play activity, it’s best to start out simply and offer new materials and ideas gradually. For indoor water play, spread towels and throw rugs under and around a dishpan of water. Indoors or out, expect plenty of “splishing and splashing and sploshing,” just like the characters in this issue's “Which Water?”

Water Play Ideas

• Have your child scrub potatoes or carrots while you’re preparing a meal.
• A set of measuring cups, a small plastic funnel, and a tub of water make for a valuable hands-on math experience.
• Like Kim’s mommy, try blowing bubbles with your child. Babies like tracking them with their eyes and toddlers love to chase them. The DuPage Children’s Museum in Illinois has good results with the following recipe for homemade bubbles: Mix 1 gallon of warm water, 1 1/4 cups of Dawn dishwashing liquid, and 2 tablespoons of glycerin. (Most pharmacies carry glycerin.) The Museum staff recommends letting the solution stand overnight for best results.
• Save your empty yogurt cups. Poke a hole in the bottom of the first tub, two holes in the next, then three and so on. Your child can have races to discover which cup of water drains the most quickly.
• Add a few drops of food coloring to the water in your child’s wading pool or bath.

• Put two dishpans of water side by side. Add red food coloring to one and yellow to the other. Give your child plastic containers to play with in the water, and let him discover what happens when the colors are mixed.
• If your child likes to gather pebbles and stones when you go for walks, give her a paintbrush and a cup of water. Painting your personal rock collection can be very satisfying! Children are often interested in the color changes that occur as stones change from dry to wet—and back again.
• Your child can bathe a washable doll with a sponge and a plastic bottle filled with baby shampoo diluted with water. 
• Washing some doll clothes or a few little socks and hanging them out in the sun to dry can be quite a revelation. Show your child that you can dry clothes without even turning on the dryer!
• Let your child wash safe, unbreakable kitchen utensils and dishes while you're cleaning up after a meal. From a toddler’s point of view, washing your coffee ground basket is an extremely grown-up activity.
• After your child draws on the sidewalk with chalk, give him a spray bottle of water to squirt over the chalk pictures. 
• With a can of water and a paint brush, your toddler can paint everything from the side of the house to the sidewalk to her toys.
• Create a tricycle and toy car wash with a bucket of water, sponges, and old rags.
• Whether at the beach or in the back yard, sand is more fun to play with if a little water is sprinkled on it. 
• Watch for rainbows in the spray of your garden hose and show them to your child.
• Fill a balloon or plastic glove with water and food coloring. Freeze until solid. On a hot summer day, add one of these giant ice sculptures to your backyard wading pool.
• Be sure to try the action rhyme “Here’s a Little Goldfish” found in this month’s issue. It’s perfect in the pool, bathtub, or lake—or even on dry land.