December 2022
Play ActivitiesPlaying
December 28, 2022 by Admin 0 Comments

2022’s Top Sparkler Play Activities

What have Sparkler families been playing in 2022? 

We looked at all the plays of the year to find the most popular learning activities families have done over the last 12 months using Sparkler. 

Roll, Toss, Bounce — a Sparkler activity that invites parents and children (babies through age 5) to pass a ball back and forth to grow focus and muscles — came in at #1. How is this building focus? Encouraging children to take turns and continue the game of back and forth helps to learn focus!

The following post lists the top baby activities and the top activities for toddlers and littles (through age 5). 

How many of these top activities has YOUR family tried in 2022? 

Top Baby Activities
  1. Fall Songs
  2. Fall Walk
  3. Sensory Pumpkin
  4. The Wheels on the Bus
  5. Tummy Time
  6. Face Time
  7. Stop, Drop, and Roll
  8. Kiss, Kiss
  9. Spa Day
  10. Lullaby
Top Toddler & Little Activities
  1. Roll, Toss, Bounce
  2. Throw and Catch
  3. Playground Fun
  4. Read Together
  5. Paint Your Pumpkin
  6. Dance it Out
  7. Pumpkin Spice Dough
  8. Heart Yoga
  9. Ball Drop
  10. Smell Detective

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Play Activities
December 13, 2022 by Admin 0 Comments

Featured Holiday Play

There is so much to celebrate this month! Here are a few Sparkler activities to help children explore, celebrate, and learn this holiday season:

Night Walkers

This activity is great for all ages.

  • Let’s have an adventure and take a walk after the sun has set! What will we see?
  • Let’s look for the moon and stars, or other lights as we walk. Let’s use a flashlight to light our way. 
  • How does our neighborhood look and sound after dark? Is it the same as or different from the way it looks in the daytime?
Wrapping Paper Collage

Best for: Toddlers and Littles, but babies can explore paper, too, with help from their grown-ups.

  • Let’s make art with newspaper or with leftover wrapping paper from a holiday gift!
  • Let’s tear or use scissors to cut shapes out of the wrapping paper. 
  • Let’s glue the wrapping paper shapes onto the paper, cardboard, or an empty box to create a beautiful collage!
Snowflakes
  • Let’s make shaving cream snowflakes! 
  • On a cutting board or other surface that is OK to get messy, let’s spread out a layer of shaving cream. 
  • Now, with your finger, draw lines, dots, and other shapes to create a snowflake in the shaving cream. Erase it and try again!

You can share these activities with families via the Sparkler dashboard, or families can discover them within the mobile app. 

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ParentingPlay Activities
December 13, 2022 by Admin 0 Comments

The Gift of YOU!

‘Tis the season for giving gifts. As children grow into toddlers and preschoolers living in our highly commercialized world, their natural curiosity and drive to play may lead them to want more and more and MORE. 

Children’s drive to connect with their primary caregivers is stronger than the need for any toy on the shelf. Sparkler’s new parent tip — The Gift of YOU — highlights several low- and no-cost gift ideas for young children. These include: 

  • Homemade coupons for their favorite activities. Children can redeem their coupons for special playtime with their grown-up.
  • Make something special like a car or play fort out of a large cardboard box (check appliance stores for free large appliance boxes!)
  • Create a scavenger hunt through your home or neighborhood and look for items together.
  • Create a dress-up box with your old hats, scarves, purses, ties, and other accessories.

You can share these tips with families through Sparkler from the Library tab of your dashboard. You’ll find more tips and tricks for a free, fun holiday season — full of love and play in the app. 

 

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