Play activities with children 1 2. Summary of a comprehensive developmental lesson for children (1.5–2 years) with their mother. Construction "Lay out the house"

Early age This is one of the most interesting periods of child development. The baby babbles his first words, learns to move and shows insatiable curiosity about everything that happens. He needs to know everything - both what is happening at home and what is happening outside! The little man learns to explore the world and play. But he still cannot master everything around on his own, even despite his omnipresence; he is waiting for his parents to help him.

Many adults would like to engage in the development of their baby at home, but they are afraid that they do not have the necessary knowledge to properly organize play and cognitive activities. And indeed, in most cases this happens, since this, at first glance, simple process requires certain knowledge of the age characteristics and needs of the child, knowledge of the system of rules developed by specialists.

Most often, this problem is encountered when the baby does not attend kindergarten and parents turn to the services of a nanny. It should be noted that a nanny is not always a good way out of this situation. There are not many high-category professionals among them, and often, even if they have a nanny, parents have an acute problem of lack of knowledge on how to deal with their child properly. And if adults have the opportunity to be with the baby during this most important period of its development, then, having mastered the necessary knowledge, you can do without a nanny. The love and care of loved ones is required much more than staying with a stranger.

Even in cases where a child attends a nursery or spends time with a nanny, in order for the child to become a fully developed personality, parents should know the features of his tiny world.

At these earliest stages of development, there is still no significant difference between object-based and play activities. It is impossible not to mention that it is especially important for children at this time to get acquainted with objects. The child’s play and cognitive activity is fully formed only by the age of three. It follows that adults, using a variety of gaming techniques outlined in this chapter, can independently develop in a child the necessary skills and abilities that are appropriate for his age.

Role-playing activities

This type of activity helps an adult, while playing with a child, to consolidate the simplest life skills that he has already tried to learn on his own. For example, an adult shows a child how to feed a teddy bear and at the same time read a poem:

Eat your porridge, little bear,

You will grow big.

Eat, naughty girl,

My good bear.

You can also put your favorite elephant Vasya to sleep. It should be clarified that an adult needs to explain and show the child by example how to do this correctly. He can comment on his actions, for example, like this: “Vasya the elephant is tired and wants to sleep, we will now put him in his crib and sing a lullaby:

Bye-bye, bye-bye,

Elephant Vasya, go to sleep.

Our elephant is tired

Jumped and played.

After the above games have been shown to the child, it is recommended to offer to repeat all the actions without the help of an adult. It should be noted that difficulties may arise here and the baby will not be able to immediately perform the necessary actions, in this case it is better to offer to repeat the joint game, but for this you must come up with a reason, for example: “Olechka, our bear is not full, let’s feed him together again.” . After playing with an adult again, you can once again invite the baby to cope on his own.

The plots of such games should be as simple as possible. It is recommended to use no more than two objects or heroes and simple actions:

1) feed the baby elephant;

2) put the squirrel to sleep;

3) wash two plates;

4) bathe the duckling;

5) comb the lion cub's hair;

6) wash the parsley;

7) ask to dance the tumbler;

8) dress the doll.

You can choose the plots yourself or use poems and stories for children.

To organize an exciting game, you should select all its components in advance - toys or objects. Such games not only provide a variety of leisure time for the baby, but also have a positive effect on his mental and physical development.

Dramatic activities

To make the child’s activities more interesting and educational, you can use theatricalization of classes and use plots of children’s songs, jokes, fairy tales, and fables. During such a game, the baby himself can play the main role. The theatrical orientation of the classes is most accessible and close to the baby. With their help, an adult evokes positive emotions in a child and gives him new unforgettable impressions, and also reveals his creative potential.

The main task of such classes is to teach the baby to recognize and clearly reveal the characteristic features, actions and feelings of fairy-tale characters. We should not forget that all tasks should be simple and understandable to the child, and encourage him to be open in expressing emotions. For example, the child was asked to portray Kolobok. At the first stage, the child, with the help of an adult, must remember that this is a cheerful hero who was round in shape, left his grandparents and was rolling along the path. After this, the little girl is invited to introduce herself as Kolobok and show what he is like. When organizing this type of game, it is necessary to focus on the fact that if the hero is cheerful, then he should laugh or smile, if he is angry, he should frown. During this game, the baby actively develops creative thinking.

After completing the above steps, an adult can offer to remember the plot from the chosen fairy tale. For example, the place where Kolobok met the bear. The adult plays the role of the bear, and the child remains Kolobok, who safely leaves him: “I left my grandmother, I left my grandfather, and I’ll leave you, bear.” If the baby can’t cope, an adult can give him some advice without stopping the game.

The attributes and design of the game play an important role in organizing such activities. Adults can create a suitable atmosphere with the help of toy dishes, furniture and all kinds of objects that will create a feeling of a fairy tale and celebration.

Classes with educational toys

One of the most common types of object-based activities for children in this age group is activities with educational toys. They form the child’s knowledge and perception of the properties of objects: color, shape, size, weight.

The most important task that classes using didactic games solve is not only the formation of a perception of reality, but also the development of fine motor skills - the baby performs various manipulations with objects. Also, during classes, the child gradually masters the physical properties of objects and realizes the possibility of their varied spatial arrangement. The baby gradually learns to distinguish their number, shape and weight. Didactic toys develop the perception of the relationship between a part of an object and its integrity. The simplest example is the matryoshka doll, familiar to everyone from childhood, which can be easily disassembled and assembled. A large nesting doll, a smaller nesting doll, an even smaller one, and so on until the smallest one. The child perceives a constant decrease in one object from the largest to the smallest.

The same task applies to other educational toys in the form of various pyramids, rings, balls and cubes.

It should be borne in mind that all educational toys have their own specifics and are aimed at specific tasks. Some can be used to develop color differences in a baby, while others teach children to distinguish objects by shape or size.

Classes with didactic toys are a highly effective way to develop a child’s memory and cognitive activity. During the lesson, the child repeats and assimilates the actions that the adult showed. When a child learns the properties of objects, all particularly important processes of memory and mental activity develop:

■ find out;

■ repeat;

■ remember.

Classes with didactic toys help to consolidate the practical result of an action in a child, which directly affects the formation of the emotional-volitional sphere. Thus, the child’s ability to perform the necessary actions to solve specific problems is strengthened, an understanding of responsibility for what is happening develops, and actions become purposeful.

Children's stores offer a varied selection of all kinds of educational toys. In order to make the right choice, you should carefully read the instructions for the toy, which should contain detailed information about what tasks and

what age group is it intended for? It is also useful to see if there is a GOST sign on it. If the above parameters are absent, then such a toy should not be purchased, since, most likely, it was made by an unscrupulous manufacturer and may be harmful to the child’s health.

Let us focus specifically on the properties of educational toys recommended for children aged one to three years:

■ stringing toys (hemispheres, rings);

■ geometric, volumetric figures (balls, cubes and other objects designed to be placed in holes and rolled);

■ didactic toys for assembly (construction sets, nesting dolls);

■ toys with a plot character (leaves, trees, flowers, animals, fairy-tale characters);

■ toys for selecting objects by color, size, shape.

Classes with didactic material

The main task of all types of activities with the baby is to develop his harmonious perception of himself in the world around him. The most important thing in this process is the child’s sensory experience. Classes with didactic material help the child master a wide range of tasks necessary for full development.

According to researchers, the cognitive activity of children in this group is formed due to the sensory experience that they receive as a result of activities, which, in turn, contributes to the perception of the surrounding reality according to their age.

Sensory perception develops the child's orientation in color differences, the difference between objects in shape, size and weight.

First of all, young children need to be introduced to the following colors:

■ red;

■ black;

■ green;

■ yellow.

The child must also recognize five types of object forms:

■ square,

■ round;

■ triangular;

■ rectangular;

■ oval.

It is recommended to begin classes aimed at distinguishing the color, shape and size of objects with the help of a comparative analysis of their properties and qualities in accordance with the samples shown. It should be noted that at the first stage of classes the child cannot name objects, so attention should be focused on ensuring that he only finds the differences between them.

To avoid unwanted difficulties, you do not need to ask your child to distinguish many objects at once. Otherwise, difficulties may arise due to the fact that the baby may become confused or confused. However, in most cases children learn the differences between large and small objects quickly. You need to remember this when making didactic material yourself or selecting it in a store. Many children remember the verbal designations of objects better, so it is advisable to introduce new objects by comparison with those already studied. For example, a square is compared with a cube, a circle with a ball, an oval with a melon, etc.

It is much more difficult for a child to perceive color names, since in young children the connection between the word and the perception of colors has not yet been formed. At first, the child will name the color exclusively in a well-mastered game. Adults are advised not to forget about this feature and not to focus on ensuring that the child must name all the colors. In this situation, it is most effective to use the method of comparing an object with a color. For example, green is leaves, red is cherry, yellow is chicken, etc.

At the same time, an adult, in a conversation with a child, should try to name the color and shape of objects more often, without requiring repetition of names.

Let us recall that object-based activity is fundamental for a young child. We should not forget that the games offered to the baby should include the shape, size and color of objects. For example, if you divide objects into two groups, taking into account similarities in color, shape or weight, this will be most accessible to the baby. Materials for such an activity can be bought at a children's store, but it is better to do it yourself. The main goal of the game is to concentrate the child’s attention on the characterizing properties of objects. It develops attention, observation and the ability for comparative analysis. However, adults are advised to take into account that during the lesson it is necessary to say characterizing words as often as possible: “big”, “small”, “different”, “same”.

When the child remembers the main concepts, it is recommended to gradually complicate the tasks. There are many insert games - attachments of different sizes, shapes and colors that need to be inserted into the corresponding slots on the board or in a special folder. The purpose of such classes is to develop the child’s ability to distinguish objects.

Didactic classes should be conducted several times a day, tasks should become more complicated or simplified depending on the identified effectiveness.

In order for the classes to have more effect and not get bored of the baby, you need to regularly keep him involved in the game with the help of new and varied objects.

Let us turn to a more detailed methodology for conducting didactic classes. In the first stages, with babies aged one year, three months and older, it is better to suggest arranging homogeneous objects into two groups, taking into account solely their size. The color and shape of the objects must match, and the size must vary from one to three centimeters, while the smallest object should not be less than five centimeters.

It should be recalled that the most important task of this lesson is to develop the child’s ability to distinguish objects and find their similarities. The child must gradually remember such concepts as “big” and “small”.

In the first stages of the lesson, it is best to use round and square objects made of thick cardboard of different sizes. The diameter of the smallest circle should be five centimeters, and the largest - seven. It is better to make the side of the smaller square five and a half, and the larger one seven and a half centimeters.

The adult shows the child five small and five large randomly mixed circles. Then he begins to alternately show large and small circles, naming which one is big and which one is small, synchronously the large circles are placed on the right side, and the small ones on the left. In this case, the adult should ask the baby in which direction the small or large object should be placed (without focusing on “right” - “left”), and does this independently. For example, an adult shows the child a large circle, asking: “Where should I put the big circle?” Having waited for the correct answer, he puts the large circle to another, corresponding in size, and explains that this circle is the same. The same is done with small figures. The first stage of the lesson lasts until the figures are grouped into two piles. Then the adult moves on to the second stage of the lesson. Large and small figures are mixed, and the child is asked to complete an independent grouping, while the adult indicates where the large circle is and where the small one is.

With squares, the lesson is carried out in a similar way.

The lesson should not be delayed; its time should not exceed ten minutes. The greatest effect can be achieved by working with your child daily. After finishing the lesson, you can ask your child to put the material in a container or box specially designed for it.

Even if an adult decides to diversify the didactic material during classes by introducing new subjects, the focus of the classes must be maintained. It is advisable to offer children all varieties of large and small geometric shapes: squares, rectangles, circles, triangles, ovals, rhombuses; without changing the principle of the lesson. The adult sorts the first pairs of figures himself and only after that offers the child to do the grouping. Changing the figures and complicating the task occurs when the child independently groups the didactic material.

When the child has finally established the conditions of the lesson, they can be complicated by asking him to distinguish the size of different figures by mixing large and small circles, ovals, and rhombuses. Thus, he will learn to sort figures of different shapes, adhering to the same principle (large objects with large ones, and small objects with small ones). If a child finds it difficult to complete a complicated task, it is better to return to an earlier stage of the lesson and consolidate the material covered. You can also invite your child to place objects of different sizes, but identical in shape, on top of one another so that he can see how they differ, while explaining - this is a small object, and this is a large one.

If the didactic material was made independently, it is best to place it on thick white fabric to avoid the figures slipping.

When the child learns to group didactic material, you can safely move on to the third stage and offer three types of objects for selection.

To do this, you can use three circles cut out of thick cardboard. The first circle is the largest - with a diameter of nine centimeters, the second - seven, the third - five. The adult shows the child a large circle with the explanation “big”, then a smaller one - “less”, then the smallest one - “small”. After which the child is asked to name the size of the circles independently.

When the child successfully completes the task, the conditions of the lesson gradually become more difficult. The child is offered different geometric shapes, and he must compare them by shape, size or color. Such playing conditions can be given to children aged two years and older.

Let's consider the conditions of the lesson in more detail. An adult prepares in advance four large circles with a diameter of six centimeters and four small circles with a diameter of four centimeters, four squares with a side of six centimeters and five small ones with a side of four centimeters.

Also, two boards or folders are made with cut-out windows - large and small, the size of which corresponds to the size of the geometric shapes. It is explained to the child that windows can be large and small; like the figures, he needs to close the windows: large - large, small - small. If the child completes the task incorrectly, it is explained to him that a small circle cannot be used to close a large window, and a small one cannot be closed with a large one.

At the first stage, an adult shows the placement of figures on the boards, making explanations: “Big - big, small - small.” After which the child is asked to close the windows on his own.

In the following stages, other geometric shapes are used, and the blanks are made in a similar way. These classes are aimed at developing the child’s skills in grouping shapes by shape and comparing them.

Let's turn to another type of activity. To organize it you will need five round and square inserts of the same size and a folder with ten pockets. Each pocket has a square or circle drawn on it. The condition is to place the piece in the appropriate pocket. At the first stage, the adult himself groups the figures, explaining: “There is a circle drawn on this pocket, which means we will insert a circle into it, and on this pocket there is a square, which means we will insert a square here.” Then the baby is asked to independently group the figures.

Particular attention should be paid to activities aimed at color differences. As already mentioned, this is more difficult for kids in this age group than the difference between shape, weight and size, since color cannot be touched, it can only be seen and remembered. And children have a more developed kinesthetic perception of reality according to the principle: “I touch it, I remember it, I see it, but it’s difficult to remember.”

It is best to start grouping shapes by color with two groups. To organize the lesson you will need different geometric shapes cut out of colored cardboard in two colors, for example red and blue. The adult shows the figure and explains: “This is a blue circle, let’s put it here. And this is a red square - go here. This is a blue triangle, let’s put it next to the blue circle, and this is a red oval, let’s put it next to the red one.” Then the child is asked to perform the grouping independently.

You can also use colored pencils for such activities.

It should be recalled that the child must remember the following colors:

■ red;

■ yellow;

■ black;

■ green;

For classes it is better to use combinations:

■ black - white;

■ blue - red;

■ red - black;

■ yellow - green.

To organize a lesson you need five pencils of one color and five pencils of another. The adult invites the child to group the pencils by color into two groups. First, he shows the child the principle of grouping, while asking where this or that pencil should be put.

If the baby answered correctly, the adult explains: “That’s right, good job, because they are the same color.” The child is asked to do the sorting on their own.

At the second stage, the child sorts pencils of other colors. If the child does a good job, you can complicate the task and sort three colors of pencils, then four, etc.

The maximum duration of the lesson is ten minutes, otherwise the baby will get tired and the knowledge will not be absorbed.

It should be noted that classes with color should take place in good lighting, and didactic material should be placed on white thick material or cardboard. There is no need to sharpen pencils.

Classes aimed at broadening your horizons

How active and inquisitive a baby is at an early age! He also has his own, amazing perception of everything around him. Everything needs to be touched, studied, and sometimes tasted! It is at this time that it is necessary to form a love for nature in the baby and introduce it to its phenomena. To arouse a child’s sincere interest in the world around him, classes are best conducted in the form of an exciting game. This allows not only to develop the baby’s intellectual abilities, but also to develop his sensitivity to beauty.

Such games are played outdoors, and their content depends on the time of year.

Winter

Inanimate nature. What is the most important natural phenomenon in winter? Both adults and older children will immediately answer the question: “Of course, snow!”, but the baby does not know this yet. In winter, his acquaintance with inanimate nature begins with snow. The adult explains and shows the child how to make snowballs out of snow and play with them. You can roll them and make them big, you can sculpt a snow woman with the help of an adult, and you can also throw snowballs!

You can’t help but draw your child’s attention to snowflakes; you can simply look at them, explaining: “These are snowflakes, look how they fly, white fluffy ones, and if a snowflake falls on your hand, it will immediately melt.”

And what a fun game of hide and seek can be! The child hides behind the snowdrifts, and the adult looks for him, but does not find him right away, he runs around, pretending that he does not know where to look, explaining: “What big snowdrifts! How can I find you? And suddenly he finds it, the baby is happy, and most importantly, he remembers that snowdrifts can be big.

What other interesting things can you see while walking through a winter park? Of course, trees fancifully dressed in snow coats.

The child needs to be explained that the trees have shed their leaves and are covered in snow.

Live nature. But the world of winter wonders does not end yet! There are so many exciting things to see on the street! For example, birds that stayed for the winter. You should tell your child that not all the birds remained; most of them flew to warmer climes in the fall. Only the bravest ones remain, those who are not afraid of the winter cold: sparrows, pigeons, crows. It’s better to show them and tell how they differ from each other (size, color). It is impossible not to mention that it is difficult for birds in winter, cold and hungry; we need to help them, feed them and make feeders. You can feed the birds together with your child. Many children quickly learn to distinguish birds, and sometimes they depict them in a very interesting way.

Before going for a walk, when dressing your child, you should tell him about winter outerwear, and after two years, teach him to name things.

Spring

Inanimate nature. On spring walks with a child, adults should draw his attention to the numerous streams and puddles formed from melting snow, explaining that they are all different - large and small. And if you and your child make paper boats and send them sailing, this will give an unforgettable experience to both the child and the adult!

You can also tell your child what happens to the plant world during this period. Buds swell on the branches of the trees, and the first grass appears, caressed by the good rays of the sun. Then the buds turn into leaves, flowers bloom: dandelions, snowdrops, lilies of the valley.

An adult should focus the child’s attention on the varieties of plants and their names, while immediately noting that the plant world is very fragile and delicate and must be treated with special care.

Live nature. You also need to tell your child about animals and their babies. For example, a dog and puppies, a cat and kittens, a cow and calves, a goat and kids, a horse and foals, a duck and ducklings, a hen and chickens. In this case, it is necessary to clarify that the adult (large) animal is the mother, and the small ones are the children. If possible, you can show your child animals and draw his attention to their habits and care for their offspring, explaining that representatives of the animal world are defenseless and need to be protected and loved.

Before going for a walk, when dressing your child, you should tell him about demi-season clothing, and after two years, teach him to name things.

Summer

Inanimate nature. Summer, its diversity and versatility cannot but arouse great curiosity in the child. After all, now he can get acquainted with warm water in reservoirs, sand, pebbles and shells, forest trees... The child needs to be explained that this is the most colorful and vibrant time of the year, which is called summer. Now the sun has begun to shine brighter; with its warm rays it warms the earth and revitalizes nature.

If it’s raining outside the window, then you need to explain that its droplets have become warm, it gently waters the plants and refreshes the air, and after the rain there is a multi-colored rainbow.

If the weather is warm, it is recommended to start introducing your baby to the properties of water. The adult reminds the child that water can turn into snow or ice, be cold and warm, can flow, overflow from one container to another.

You can collect pebbles and shells on the river, play in the water with an inflatable ball, splash around, teach rubber toys to swim.

On the beach or in the sandbox, you can play with sand, you can bury toys in it, build castles, use molds to make all kinds of figures, scoop it into a bucket, and dig holes.

In the summer, you should continue to get acquainted with the plant world, memorize the name of this or that plant, examine the leaves and find differences in shape, and collect plants for herbariums.

Live nature. We must not forget about our little brothers! It is recommended to continue acquainting the baby with the animal world and consolidate knowledge about the characteristics of animals, habits, color, size.

Summer is rich in all kinds of insects. It is useful to introduce your baby to butterflies, grasshoppers, ladybugs, bugs, and ants. He shouldn't be afraid of them. The child needs to be told about their benefits and defenselessness.

Before going for a walk, when dressing your child, you should talk to him about summer clothes, and after two years, teach him to name things.

Autumn

Inanimate nature. Autumn is golden... A time of gifts of nature and transformation. First of all, you need to explain to the baby that summer is over and autumn has come.

The leaves of the trees turned different colors - yellow, green, crimson. When they begin to fall, it can be explained that the trees have become tired over the summer and are preparing to sleep; for this they shed their foliage-clothes.

It is useful to walk with your child in the autumn park, listen to the rustling of leaves underfoot and collect a beautiful autumn bouquet, collect acorns and cones, assessing their surface, explain that the acorn is smooth and the cone is rough.

Live nature. We should continue to introduce the baby to our smaller brothers and strengthen the child’s knowledge about their characteristics, habits, color, and size.

For example, an adult picks up a cat and invites the child to pet it. In this case, it is necessary to explain to the baby that this is a cat, it has fluffy fur, small ears, a pink nose, etc. The same actions can be performed with a puppy; it is good to pour milk for the animal together with the child and watch how the animal drinks.

If possible, visit the private sector, you can show your child poultry, paying attention to how they scream, and invite the child to pretend to be a chicken, duck, or goose.

Outdoor games

A preschool child cannot yet independently invent and organize an outdoor game.

Outdoor games not only help diversify a child’s leisure time, but also contribute to his harmonious physical and intellectual development. It is recommended to pay increased attention to this area of activity.

To organize a variety of outdoor games, adults should prepare in advance and purchase toys that will make them more colorful and interesting - large and small balls, skittles, rocking chairs, hoops. In addition to all of the above benefits from outdoor activities, an adult, playing with a child, develops in him all the skills of playing together, which will be so useful to him in children's groups. For example, in a game with a ball, an adult shows the child a ball and uses his own example to suggest how it can be rolled, tossed, or thrown to each other.

You can also offer games without additional preparation, which are also imitative in nature, for example, one of the most common and accessible games for a child is “The Hen and the Chicken.” First, the adult introduces the child to the rules of the game. The child is invited to turn into a little chicken, and the adult becomes a hen. The chicken rejoices in the sun, frolics and runs, but when the hen shouts to him: “Where, where, where!”, he must run to the hen and hide under her hand (“wing”).

In ancient times, children grew up without toys, educational books, cartoons and activities. The way of life of ancient man was such that absolutely everything was done by hand, and the child was included in the daily affairs of the tribe from birth. Modern life is structured differently: there is no need to hunt mammoths, weave baskets, make tools, or sew clothes. The washing machine is done, dinner is cooked in a slow cooker, we buy clothes and food in the store. That is why modern parents cannot avoid coming up with activities and games for their little ones. In some activities, the presence of an adult is required, and some are needed just so that the adult can find time for his own affairs.

How to entertain a baby

While the baby is small, games and activities with them are very simple. A baby up to a year old can be easily captivated by a bright rattle. This age is most associated with the development of various sensations. The baby is interested in everything: touching, hearing, seeing, licking. It is best to direct your efforts towards getting to know different sensations.

Together with your baby, you can sort through rags of different textures, press the buttons of a musical toy, and look at large pictures in books. Sometimes the mother may leave the child, leaving him with a spinning mat or in a developmental mat, where he can touch and look at a lot of things. However, by the end of the first year of life, the child masters moving in space: either he confidently and very quickly crawls and stands on support, or tries to take his first steps. From this moment on, his interest is increasingly directed towards studying the world around him, and the mother needs to be puzzled by new ideas for activities for the baby.

Spending time with a baby aged 1-2 years

At the age of 1-2 years, the best play partner is the mother. Of course, a child will also be interested in the company of peers, but children develop precisely in the process of joint activities with an adult. What can you do with your child?

Blowing soap bubbles. Usually all kids love to watch multi-colored soap bubbles fly and watch the “magic” of water turning into multi-colored iridescent bubbles. They will be interested in where so many bursting balloons come from, and the child will definitely want to try to blow a soap bubble himself. This activity can drag on until the solution in the bottle runs out.

Artistic creativity. A one-year-old baby will be happy to paint with finger paints; at 2 years old, a child can already cope with liquid gouache, watercolors, pencils and felt-tip pens. It makes no sense for mom to actively participate in the drawing process: let the child study the properties of paints himself, mix colors and make his own discoveries. In this process, an adult is only required to correctly organize the artist’s “workplace” and slightly direct his actions.

Creative activities for children from 1 year old - finger painting

Modeling. Offer your baby play dough or regular soft plasticine. You can show your baby how to roll a ball, a sausage, or how to make a flat cake. You should not demand specific results or teach your child to sculpt specific shapes: children are always interested in studying the properties of the material themselves. The advantage of this activity is the development of motor skills.

Making from play dough

Reading books. Children 1-2 years old are not yet able to perceive long prose and grasp the plot thread. No matter how much we love fairy tales, 1-2 years is the age of poems and rhymes. Short poems on topics that are clear and familiar to the child will be just right. In this case, parents do not have to “reinvent the wheel” and give preference to the classics of children's literature. Also, children really love special musical children's books.

Role-playing games. At about 1.5 years old, children develop an interest in role-playing games. In such a game, the child imitates an adult, performing the actions that he himself observes every day. The most popular stories for kids are feeding a doll, swaddling it, rolling it in a stroller, putting it to bed. True, many manipulations are still inaccessible to the baby, so it cannot be done without the help of the mother. The older the child, the more “advanced” the plots of his games become.

Active games. Not a single day with your child should go without them. Why don’t you sit at the table all the time with brushes, plasticine and books?! You definitely need to run and jump and warm up. For example, you can entertain your child by playing catch. If a child does not yet know how not only to run, but also to walk confidently, you can roll a ball on the floor or jump on a fitball.

We play with toys. It is not enough to fill the entire nursery with different toys. A child can only master them with an adult, so moms and dads definitely need to get involved in such games. For children 1-2 years old, cubes, pyramids, musical instruments, frames with inserts, and construction sets with large parts are ideal.

Toys for a child 1-2 years old

Air balloons. Children love to play with balloons. You can draw on the balloon, you can inflate it and let it go without tying it - it will whistle very cheerfully and quickly as it deflates. The child will be surprised and interested in how such a small piece of rubber can be used to make a light and large ball. (From personal experience: a small inflated ball was stuffed under a boy’s T-shirt (like a big tummy). His joyful surprise knew no bounds. For about 10 minutes he ran around with the happy face of the owner of a miracle under his T-shirt! http://club-mam.com/parenting/chem -zanyat-rebyenka-v-1-2-goda.html)

What to do with a child

“Distractive” activities for a baby (1-2 years)

Sometimes a mother needs to keep her baby busy to do planned household chores or just take a little break. It is not safe to leave a child idle and unattended, so it is better to offer him some interesting activity.

Paper expanse. Both at 1 and 2 years old, babies show great interest in rustling, tearing or crumpling paper. The safest option is to give your toddler a roll of toilet paper. Perforated paper comes off interestingly, sheet by sheet, and what a pleasure it is to unwind the roll and see what’s in the middle. Newspapers and magazines rustle great, but it is not advisable to give them to your baby: newspapers get very dirty with paint, and sheets of glossy magazines have sharp edges that can easily hurt you.

A bag of surprises. We put various items in a textile bag or gift bag and give it to the baby. Children are interested in taking out objects one by one, examining them, and putting them back. By the way, many kids love to rustle with supermarket bags. This is not the best activity for a child: the baby can put the bag on his head, bite off and inhale a piece of cellophane. Such games are possible only under the strict supervision of an adult.
Kitchenware. If mom needs to cook dinner, you can take the baby with you to the kitchen. All children like plastic containers, silicone spatulas, pots, spoons and ladles.

Pour, pour. A meditative activity such as pouring water from container to container or pouring cereal can captivate a child for a long time. To play, you need a large basin, which we fill with either water or something loose (large pasta, beans) and various jars, boxes, bottles. If a child plays with pasta or cereals, choose an option so that the particles are large.

Games with GREATS for the little ones

We include it in household chores. In some situations, you can not try to occupy the child for a while, but do household chores together. For example, give him a damp cloth and show him how to wipe off the dust. At 2 years old, the baby will be able to use a baby floor brush and even wash the dishes. You can put the toddler on a stable stand near the sink, open the water tap, soap the sponge and let him wash the plastic dishes.

Interactive toys and cartoons. Of course, it’s even better for a child to watch cartoons with adults, but sometimes a mother needs to concentrate well and not be distracted by the child at all for 15-20 minutes. You should not abuse this method and “turn off” the baby from the daily life of the family, because observing the actions of adults gives much more for development than the most “developmental” cartoon.

It is better to alternate joint and separate activities, but you must give the child the opportunity to get bored, be idle and come up with a game for himself. Constantly introducing ready-made games and activities inhibits the child’s creative development and dulls his cognitive activity.

Let's summarize.

Entertainment with an adult:
- Bubble;
- Air balloons;
- Drawing with paints (finger, watercolor, gouache);
- Modeling with dough or soft plasticine;
- Books (can be music);
- Role-playing and active games;
- Games with toys;
Child's independent time:
- Toilet paper/newspapers/magazines;
- Rustling packages;
- Pouring water;
- Sprinkling of cereals;
- Doom help: washing dishes/cleaning;
- Cartoons.

We also read: >>>

5 ways to keep your child busy without toys (part 1)

6 ways to keep your child busy without toys (part 2)

The teacher meets mothers and children on the carpet. Everyone stands in a circle.

Greetings.

This song is sung for every child who comes. You can recite the words like a poem.

We walk merrily along the path together, we walk in a circle holding hands

And with Artem Let's sing a song together:

Come on, clap-clap-clap together, clap

Come on, together, top, top, top, stomp

And then jump-jump, jump-jump, let's jump

Smile, my friend!

Today we will talk to you about home. Here's the house ( I point to the toy house). Who lives there? Let's find out. But first we’ll show you how to build a house.

Finger gymnastics “Building a house”

Knock, knock with a hammer,

We will build a new house (fist on fist)

Ry, ry, ry, ry

There's work for the saw (hands forward - back)

Ry, ry, ry, ry

Axes clattered (Waving hands)

Sha, sha, sha, sha

The roof is very good ( hands "house"

Knock, knock with a hammer

It turned out to be a new home!

Let's find out who lives in this house. Sit down on the chairs.

Mothers and children sit on chairs on the carpet. In front of them is an easel with the illustration “Family”.

Looking at the illustration

Look, a family is drawn here: this is a mother, this is a father, this is a grandmother, this is a grandfather, this is a daughter, this is a son. Mom, dad, grandmother, grandfather, daughter, son - all this is a family. In the family, everyone takes care of each other and loves each other.

Finger gymnastics “My Family”

And now our fingers will play family. Look at your fingers. They are all together, as if they were one family. Let's talk about the family.

With each line, the child bends one finger, starting with the thumb. Moms help.

This finger is grandpa.

This finger is grandma.

This finger is daddy.

This finger is mommy.

Well, this finger is me.

This is my family

Finger gymnastics is repeated twice.

Game exercise “Say your name”

Guys, everyone in the family loves each other and calls each other affectionately. What does your mother affectionately call you? Let's name the child affectionately together.

The child’s name is pronounced twice: first, he tries to name it himself; if he cannot, his mother helps; all the children and mothers say it together for the second time

Game "Daughters, Sons"

Guys, our girls are daughters in the family. And our boys are sons in the family. Who are our girls in the family? (Daughters.) Who are our boys in the family? (Sons.)

Now be careful. When I tell my daughters, only the girls will clap their hands. And when I say sons, only the boys will clap their hands. Where, where are our daughters? Here they are, here they are.

Girls clapping their hands

Where, where are our sons? Here they are, here they are.

The boys clap their hands.

Who do we have in our family? Guess the riddle.

Who loves you children more?

Who loves you so tenderly

And takes care of you

Without closing your eyes at night?

Mom dear.

Guys, let's show how mom hugs us tightly. (Children hug themselves by the shoulders.) How does she caress you? (Children pat themselves on the head.) What do we affectionately call our mother? (Mommy.)

This is what our mother is like: kind, good, beautiful, attentive. And my mother is a hard worker. Mom loves us very much and takes care of you. She washes, cooks, plays with us, mom gets very tired. She will be very happy if we help her.

Look how many dirty handkerchiefs have accumulated. We need to wash them.

Game “Help Mom”

The teacher speaks and shows game actions. The children repeat after him. Moms help

Let's take a chair and bring it to the carpet.

Let's put the basin on the chair.

Let's take a glass. It’s like we have “water” there, let’s put the glass next to the basin.

Let's take a dirty handkerchief and hang it on the back of the chair.

Let's start washing.

We pour out the water, pour it out, pour it out.

We pour the powder, pour it, pour it.

We lower the handkerchiefs into the basin, lower them, lower them.

We caress the handkerchiefs in the basin, caress, caress.

Now let’s wash them, wash them, wash them.

And again we rinse, rinse, rinse.

And now we squeeze them out, squeeze them out, squeeze them out.

Does everyone have clean tissues? Let's check. Let's take it by the ends and shake it. Let's look at the scarves from all sides. All we have to do is dry them

Exercise “Hang handkerchiefs on a rope”

moms help hold clothespins

Let's show how you help mom hang out the laundry.

The teacher invites the children to take one handkerchief and hang it on a rope, securing them with clothespins.

Let's play hide and seek with mom - musical game

(I’m walking next to my mother, holding my mother’s hand.)

Has everyone found their mothers? But some kids can't. Let's help them.

Find mothers for all babies

Children are given sheets of paper with animals and their babies drawn on them. The task is to connect the lines of mothers and babies. Children do the work with simple pencils

Oh, what happened? Where is all this noise coming from? Oh, this is dad renovating the house. Let's help him, go out on the carpet.

Finger gymnastics “Let’s help dad”

Knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock

A loud knock is heard.

We're knocking with a hammer

We are renovating our house.

We're running out of tires

At our car.

Sh-sh-sh, sh-sh-sh.

Let's go to the store with dad

And we'll bring food.

Like this, like this

And we'll bring food.

While walking from the store, all the products in the bag were mixed up. Let's put the pasta and beans on separate plates.

Game “Lay out the pasta and beans”

And my grandmother lives in our house. She loves to tell stories. I will be like a grandmother, I will wear a scarf. Come on, guys, I’ll tell you a story.

The teacher sits on a chair in front of the children and places a basket next to them with the attributes of the fairy tale “Ryaba Hen”: a cap or hat for grandfather, a scarf for grandmother, ear-rim for a mouse, a frill for a chicken. There are eggs in the basket - colored and white, two spoons.

Can you help me tell a fairy tale? Who wants to be a grandfather (put a hat on the child) etc.

We put a small table in front of the children, and seat grandfather and baku at it. When telling a fairy tale, invite children to perform simple movements and onomatopoeia.

Fairy tale-game “Chicken Ryaba”

And so that grandfather and grandmother always have a lot of eggs, the chicken must be fed well.

Drawing “Grains for Ryaba Chicken”

Let's feed the chicken Ryaba - draw grains on a plate. Take your brushes, dip the bristles of the brush into the paint and apply to the plate.

What a great job you guys are today: you helped mom by washing handkerchiefs, you helped dad by sorting out the groceries, telling a fairy tale with your grandparents and feeding Ryaba the Chicken.

Let's say "Thank you" to each other and clap our hands.

So we blew out the first candle with the baby on his birthday. Personality is being formed. The second year of life is a serious stage. Already from this age it is necessary to pay due attention to development. The child no longer only eats and sleeps, he actively learns about the world around him. How to develop a 1-year-old child in such a way that he is interested, listens to you with pleasure, and repeats play actions? What will a child really embrace with enthusiasm at this age? Let's take a closer look.

Features of child development from 1 year

During the first year of his life, the baby has already mastered many lessons, but he still has much more to learn. There are a lot of discoveries, emotions, and skills ahead. Parents should be the first helpers on this path. At this age, on the way to everything unknown and new, a child may have certain fears and doubts. The question of how to develop a child at 1 year old faces many mothers, fathers, and grandmothers.

In fact, there is nothing complicated about this. Always be there, help the baby, spend more time on educational games and activities. Children at this age have natural wisdom; they have an insatiable thirst for knowledge. In many ways, they simply begin to imitate adults, so set examples that will encourage the child to learn something new.

Many children already begin to walk by the age of one year, and after two months they can move quite quickly and even run. The growth of the body during this period slows down slightly, all resources are wasted on the development of all systems. During this period, it is necessary to focus on sports development activities for children 1-2 years old to develop dexterity and proper coordination of movements. Exercises on the wall bars, ball games, simple gymnastics, exercises, swimming in the pool or bath are suitable. Do not limit physical activity at this age. The baby should run around to his heart's content, be eager to explore, get acquainted with the world around him, and communicate with people.

Start activities with your baby as early as possible

How early should you start developing a child’s comprehensive knowledge? Discussions on this issue continue endlessly. Someone argues that the baby must gradually learn everything on his own, all the necessary knowledge will come to him gradually. Opponents of this point of view object that development should begin from the first year of life, as soon as the baby develops an interest in the world around him. Supporting this theory, teachers create books, manuals, educational pictures for children from 1 year old.

The only clear opinion is that children under five years of age are like a blank sheet of paper. Their active brain is ready to remember huge amounts of information. Well, why not take advantage of this fact? In addition to self-care skills, help your child better master the world around him, teach him to distinguish colors, shapes, and plants. Feed his brain with useful information.

Developmental centers for children from 1 year old

Many parents who are interested in early education are familiar with the Montessori system. She reveals secrets to parents on how to develop a child at 1 year old. This system was created at the beginning of the twentieth century by the Italian teacher Maria Montessori. Its supporters appeared in many other countries.

What is this system? At the beginning, Maria Montessori paid more attention to those children who were behind in development, but over time, her methods began to be used in raising completely healthy children. Psychologists and teachers using this method teach the child to make independent decisions, to be independent in actions and judgments, but at the same time observe generally accepted norms and rules.

It is worth noting that in such groups children do not have ordinary toys (dolls, cars, guns). But you can see educational toys for children from 1 year old - these are puzzles, cubes, sorters, musical instruments. The Montessori system makes it possible to develop self-care skills in a child; he learns to eat, drink, play, and dress.

At home, parents must adhere to these principles, and then there is a guarantee that the baby will become a self-sufficient person. Already from childhood, he will be instilled with the skills of proper communication in society. Such a child will be able to easily cope with any situations and come out of them with dignity.

In Moscow there are developmental centers for children from 1 year old that work according to this method, these are “Montessori Garden”, “Steps”, “Early Development Club” and some others.

Games for 1 year old children

It is in the second year of life that the baby begins to settle into social society. Learns to play with mom, sister or brother. Growing up, he finds friends on the playground, and his social circle expands. He enjoys looking at new people, listening to them, watching others play, and trying to participate.

Games for 1-year-old children should be quite varied. Develop motor skills. Under adult supervision, assign several tasks: sorting something small, you can take large beads, nuts, chestnuts, pom-poms. Items can be of different colors and textures. Let the child arrange them in the correct cells or trays.

Oversleeping and transfusion develops spatial thinking in the baby. In the bathroom, give your child the opportunity to play, let him pour water from one container to another. You can also play with kinetic sand or any cereals. This will allow you to develop perseverance and concentration. Everyone remembers the “quiet kid” who got to the sack of flour.

Buy educational pictures for children aged 1 year and older. They will allow you to learn to recognize various objects. Draw with your child more often, give him the opportunity to create on his own. He may not create a masterpiece, but the process itself will give him great pleasure. Let him draw with anything - pencils, paints, chalk. Don’t forget about outdoor games, do physical exercises, show them how to walk in place, squat, and throw balls.

What to play with?

Often, parents cannot understand what toys to buy for their baby at this age, and offer him everything. You don't have to do that. At this age, the child is not able to make an independent choice and does not pay long attention to one thing. It is best to purchase educational toys for children from 1 year of age that will help the baby not just play, but at the same time think, think, and make decisions.

These can be cubes, various pyramids, large puzzles, construction sets, sorters with animals, vegetables, fruits, large magnetic, plastic or wooden mosaics. For general development, various baby dolls, dolls, and cars are suitable. Sometimes an educational cartoon for children over 1 year old can give you an idea for a new toy. Kids love to play with the characters from their favorite stories. At the same time, they develop their imagination and come up with game plots themselves.

Get creative

As soon as the baby learned to sit and assumed a vertical position, he realized that there was a huge, interesting world in front of him. It became even more interesting for him when he took his first steps. A mother must constantly look for sources of knowledge for her child. Creativity can be a great help.

From an early age you can do more than just draw with children. Take up modeling, make appliqués, assemble construction sets, learn together to create images from mosaics, allow him to participate in the process, encourage his impulses of creativity.

Similar classes are practiced in Moscow by educational clubs for children from 1 year old. “Mosaic”, “Rainbow”, “Anthill” are very popular among mothers. A lot of safe materials have been created for foolish children, and this allows them to develop their creative abilities: kinetic sand, finger paints, safe plasticine. Many people practice modeling from dough, which is colored with food coloring.

Developing fine motor skills

The nerve endings that control finger coordination are located in the brain, in close proximity to the center responsible for speech. Therefore, any finger games will help the baby start talking faster.

How to develop motor skills of a 1 year old child? Give your baby a light massage of his palms and fingers, while mixing up the mechanical stroking with various nursery rhymes and songs. See how he likes it.

You can give tasks. Play with beads. Try to teach your child to throw them into the neck of a plastic bottle and then take them out. Never leave him alone with small objects, as he may accidentally swallow them.

Make the tasks more difficult gradually. A fun activity for children would be to push pasta and other thin objects into the holes of the colander.

Buy an educational table for children from 1 year old, it provides games for fine motor skills.

At this age, children love to play with dough. Allow your baby to “help” you in the kitchen. Let him play with the dough and make anything out of it, imitating you, rolling balls and pancakes. All these entertainments are not just interesting, but also very useful.

Choosing a development table

A developmental table for children from 1 year of age is usually equipped with a set that will allow the baby to fully develop. The kit includes the following items:

levers and multi-colored buttons, when pressed, music sounds;
details that reproduce the voices of animals, the sounds of musical instruments;
lighting elements;
moving figures.

All this diversity allows the child to develop hearing, taste buds, and touch (listening, biting, touching beautiful buttons). At first glance, it may seem that the baby does not understand anything. However, at this age the “cumulative effect” works great; soon the child will repeat without mistakes all the actions that his elders showed him.

Since it is easier to develop a 1-year-old child with available tools, we advise parents to buy such a table. It will allow you to develop fine and gross motor skills, master the sizes of different objects, distinguish between animal voices, develop speech and hearing, and at the same time have fun and play.

Cartoons. Communication with peers

In the second year of life, the child is just beginning his acquaintance with the outside world, so watching TV should not take him much time. At this age, you can only watch cartoons for a very short time, and, of course, the plots should be appropriate. Limit your screen time and don't let watching become your only pleasure and entertainment. Choose educational cartoons for children aged 1 year and older wisely and with the right approach. Modern rental stores offer a huge number of children's cartoons, both Russian and foreign. Give preference to our “cartoons”; their kind and educational stories will interest your child. The generation of “Pokemon” and “monsters” has already led our society to the point that children simply moved to live in gaming networks. It's time to stop this. From an early age, start limiting what your baby watches and strictly control his tastes in the future. For children 1 year old, such educational cartoons as “Lev the Truck,” “Tini Love,” “Turtle Aha-Aha,” and “Auntie Owl” are perfect. Shows that will help you remember colors, numbers, letters, names of objects and animals are also useful at this age.

Do not forget that the harmonious development of a child can only occur in communication with peers. Do not lock your baby in the apartment, do not limit his communication with mom, dad, grandparents. The child must become accustomed to society; the process of learning about the world around him is much faster this way. By playing with peers, the baby learns something useful and new. Visit playgrounds, development centers, and playrooms with him.

Books

When conducting educational activities for children 1-2 years old, without a doubt you need to read books to them and show them pictures. At this age, children absorb all the information provided like a sponge. Even though their speech is not yet developed, everything new is accumulated in the brain. Soon the knowledge gained will spill out. You need to tell the children, show them, explain absolutely everything. It is very interesting for kids to look at in books what they have already encountered in their lives. Therefore, they begin to love them at an early age.

Basically, books for one-year-old children are somewhat similar. They are not replete with text, the main thing in them is colorful, beautiful pictures. There is an acquaintance with the outside world: family, toys, animals, seasons, colors, plants. How to choose a specific book? Listen to your own opinion. In terms of content, based on your artistic taste, you can choose anything. As for technical points:

Illustrations must be of high quality. As little text as possible.
Preference for short poems and fairy tales. The child will not be able to listen for a long time if the text is very large, he will quickly lose interest.
The book must be completely safe. Do not buy dubious publications that have a strong smell or washable colors. This can harm the baby's health.

It is difficult to single out the “best” educational books for a 1-year-old child. The modern market is overfilled with these products. You can give preference to our old, well-proven fairy tales, which were favorites in every family. But it’s not a fact that your baby should like the same thing. Modern children differ in many ways from older generations in their development, so watch your child and note for yourself what he prefers.

Many parents make one big mistake. They buy it for the child and leave him to figure it out on his own. It is important, however, not just to keep the child occupied, but to spend full time with him playing or doing children’s developmental activities. For children 1-2 years old, it is especially important to feel the presence of mom or dad nearby. Believe me, this makes a significant contribution to it.

Classes for children 1-2 years old to develop cognitive activity and thinking

Collecting a pyramid

Exercises with a regular colored pyramid will help teach your child to distinguish colors, shapes, sizes and weights of objects. Show your child how to remove the rings from the rod and put them on. Comment on every movement - talk about the color of each ring, its shape and size. Teach how to put large rings on the rod first, then small ones.
If the child can easily cope with the task, at the next stage you can complicate it. For this mix the rings. Let the baby decide for himself in what order to put them on the rod. Let him name the color of each ring and determine which is larger and which is smaller.

Upon completion, be sure to examine the result. Is the pyramid smooth or does something need to be corrected? Praise your child for a good job.

After several such developmental activities for children 1-2 years old, they should learn to distinguish the following colors: black, white, green, red, blue, yellow, as well as round shapes.

Building a house from cubes

Ask your child to build a house for a doll or teddy bear. Help him in this matter. During the exercise, you can read the corresponding poems. They will amuse the baby and awaken his interest in everything that happens.

As a result of the lesson, the baby should learn the shapes of the cubes. It is clear that the figures are three-dimensional and the square is more like a cube in this case. But it’s too early to explain this to the baby. It is enough if he learns what a square, triangle, rectangle looks like. During the game, compare objects with each other, telling your child about them. Show how to stack the cubes on top of each other so that the house does not fall apart.

Developmental activities for children 1-2 years old on fine motor skills

Modeling from plasticine

Draw a tree on a piece of paper. Show your child how to use plasticine and pinch off small pieces. If your baby has already learned to distinguish colors, ask what color the apples are. Let the baby choose the desired color and stick small apples to the branches of the tree you drew. If he still doesn’t distinguish colors, help him choose.
And here is the second version of a developmental activity for children 1-2 years old. Together with your child, roll out plasticine sausages and make a multi-colored rainbow on cardboard. Rejoice at the result - “Look what a beautiful rainbow we got.”

Search for surprises

An excellent children's developmental activity for fine motor skills is searching for surprises. Pour any cereal into a deep small bowl. Millet, rice or buckwheat are suitable. Hide small toys (soldiers, small dolls, puzzle pieces, Lego pieces) or objects such as beads, buttons in the cereal. Tell your child a story about how someone hid a treasure and now needs to be found. Retrieving the “treasure” will give your child real pleasure.

At the end of the article, we have prepared for you a checklist “Verbal games for speech development for children from 2 years old.” Download a selection of the most interesting games that will develop speech and enrich your child’s vocabulary.

Surprises can also be wrapped in foil. The main thing is that it is soft and does not hurt the baby. The task of a 1-2 year old child in this developmental activity is to unwrap the wrapper and examine the object - name its shape, color, size, softness, etc.

Drawing

Draw a car. Give your child a pencil and ask him to draw a path along which this car will go. Let the baby draw little scribbles. Here the task is to teach him to hold a pencil, feel the boundaries of the sheet, and control the movement of his hand.

For girls, you can draw a doll that needs a path for a walk. There are a lot of options for activities, it all depends on your imagination.

You can draw not only with a pencil, but also use watercolors or finger paints. For such creative activities, provide your baby with special clothes, because at first he will get very dirty.

Physical development

In addition to the usual games of catch or hide and seek, you can use additional equipment. For example, take a large ball - a fitball, and press it against the wall. Take the baby and place him on the ball, hold the baby. Let him jump on it to a funny rhyme or song, stomp his feet, pat his hands.

Development of motor coordination

Play a classic ball game. Sit opposite each other and roll a ball across the floor to each other. The baby must have time to catch it and roll it back to his mother.

In fact, there are a lot of educational activities for children 1-2 years old. If you show your imagination, you can come up with your own exercises for the development of the baby. The main thing is to take personal part in this matter. Then the child’s success will quickly make itself felt.

In our previous article we talk about the best.

Download the checklist "Word games for speech development for children from 2 years old"

Download a selection of the most interesting games that will develop speech and enrich your child’s vocabulary. You can play them anywhere: in transport, in line to see the doctor, on the way to kindergarten or a store.