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Toddlers: Special Event Means Special Playtime
by Sandy Mitchell
It might sound silly, but even National Pickle Day could involve a range of wacky activities. Embrace those national recognition days with gusto.
Every day is a special event when you're spending time with your grandchildren. Combine the joy of being together with a lesson or a fun special event for both you and the little ones. Teach them about the satisfaction of helping others with Make a Difference Day, encourage good hygiene by celebrating Dental Month, or create your own special event (remember Shirley Temple's September Saturdays? ). Make sure to hold these events regularly, even annually, and you'll be building a lasting legacy.
Make a Difference Day
This national day of helping others is celebrated on the fourth Saturday of October, but any day can be Make a Difference Day. Pick a project with your grandchildren and don't worry about how big or small the project is: Just make something that will show a positive change. Little ones can help clean up a local park (keep it age-appropriate by giving youngsters tasks such as sweeping or sponging off the benches), donate clothes to a homeless shelter, or use some of their piggy-bank savings to purchase a new toy for a needy child.
Dental Health Month
February is Dental Health Month. Mark the occasion with your grandchildren by putting an emphasis on clean teeth. Let your grandchild pick out a new toothbrush and even a new toothpaste as well. Find a book about teeth at the library and do a web search on pediatric dental hygiene. Teach him how to brush and floss correctly. Hold up a mirror and have your grandchild count his teeth. Cut out a toothbrush shape and have him decorate it. At the end the day, read a story about the tooth fairy.
National TV Turnoff Week
National TV Turnoff Week is held in April. In celebration of this event, how about letting your young grandchild create her very own TV show? Start by helping her brainstorm a topic and the show's name, and then she can be the star. After all, who needs to watch TV when you can be the creator, producer, and lead actor of your very own hit show? Keep it age-appropriate by letting the production be as simple as a dance performance or a song. Add to the fun by videotaping it and then having a special premiere.
Adapted from The Playskool Toddler's Busy Play Book by Robin McClure (© 2007 by Sourcebooks, Inc.).
PLAYSKOOL and BUSY are trademarks of Hasbro and are used with permission. © 2007 Hasbro. All rights reserved.
| Re the Dental Health Month section:
I'd love to have you pick my new tooth fairy book to read to your grandchildren. My book is about a non-traditional fairy: she uses spy gadgets to do the job. Oh, and she does have a bit of an attitude! ;-)
A fun activity to do with your grandchild is to sing the following song to the tune of Row, Row, Row Your Boat. It's especially fun if you add in silly body movements:
Brush, Brush, Brush Your Teeth
Brush Them Every Day
Up, Down, Front, Back
Now Our Teeth Say "YAY!!!!"
Sheri Bell-Rehwoldt
Author, You Think It's Easy Being the Tooth Fairy?
*12,000 copies sold since August 2007
www.Bell-Rehwoldt.com
www.4kids.Bell-Rehwoldt.com
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