As we wait for the true onset of Spring weather, there are still ways to take advantage of the slightly warmer temps and April’s showers.
Five Language-based Ways to Puddle Jump:
- Sing a song:
- “It’s raining, it’s pouring”, “Rain, rain, go away”
- Stomping to nursery rhymes is a great way to tune a child’s ear to the rhythm of speech and rhyme
- Play “Simon Says”:
- Give directions on how and where to jump, “Simon says jump behind the puddle”, “Simon says jump slowly into the puddle”
- Targets following directions and understanding of spatial concepts (next to, behind, in front of, over, in) and adverbs (slowly, quickly, quietly, loudly)
- Experiment with chalk:
- Make predictions about what will happen to the colors in the puddle
- Label the colors
- Compare the colors of different puddles
- Don’t just use your boots:
- Take off your boots, stomp with your bare feet; splash with your hands
- Talk about how the water feels, if you prefer boots on or off, if you prefer to stomp or splash
- Toss in pebbles:
- … and sticks, and leaves, and acorns, whatever else you can find around!
- Try stacking the rocks, or sticks; make sculptures; stir the puddle with the sticks; make puddle soup!
- Describe/narrate what you see your child doing (“You are putting many tiny pebbles into that big puddle!”), compliment them (“I like that tall tower of sticks you made!”)
Follow it up with a book: Puddles by Jonathan London
