For all those moms who tear their hair out trying to figure out what to do all day with their kids, here is a solution to your problem. Oh So Exciting has a plethora of not only ideas of what to do with your little one, but also a useful developmental checklist so that you can match up the areas where you know your child requires a few nudges in the right direction.
I had a look at some documents from them and checked out some of their offerings for the age group applicable for my three year old.
1. Developmental Checklist: (2-3 years)
You get a Developmental Checklist in the Activity Box so you can revert to it easily to check how your child is doing. The items are listed in Motor, Fine Motor, Sense/Language/Intellect and Social Development and under each category there is a list of items that your child should* be able to do.
I had a look at what Nicky should have achieved and can see he is doing well with regards to gross motor. The only thing is he can’t ride a tricycle. We do have one but he gets lazy and likes to ride around on the scooter. I haven’t tried hopping yet either. He can climb and do ball skills pretty well.
For fine motor he can do puzzles and thread but I’m not sure about cutting. I think this one comes a bit later.
For perceptual development he can name certain colours and shapes but he can’t count to five. He used to say “I, 2, 3 Go!” but now his new thing is “9, 10!” Referring to Ben Ten (Yoghurt and his Ben Ten pants)
We are a bit behind on the social development. But he does warm up and play with people after a while. I also don’t think that independent dressing happens yet, but he can pull off his clothes. Putting toys away is something we are working on and he can do it
2. Equipment List (3-4 years)
These were some great ideas, in line with Montessori principles as well. For instance the Practical Life activities would lend themselves to containers with lids (to open and shut – Nicky loves this. He likes if I get him the juice with the screw on lid so he can do this). I also liked items for smelling: that is a great exercise to distinguish the olfactory senses.
And of course how can you forget the trampoline. We spend most of our lives there these days.
There are lots of other ideas on this list.
3. Daily Programme
This is a great tool to have. It outlines a list of age appropriate activities for you to do with your child. It lists them step by step, ideal for new moms who aren’t really sure what to do. You can do one activity every day and they are nice resources for nannies to have as well.
4. Activity Cards:
You receive activity cards in your box of goodies which are so awesome when you are stuck as to what to do with your child. These cover the full spectrum of development and are all mixed up so that you will have a variety of things to do in a day by just grabbing one card. Again these are great to leave with the nanny, some of them are quick and easy while others do take a little more time.
5. Growing Child: this is a newsletter that will arrive in your inbox every month which will match your child’s developmental age with applicable information. I think I found their article “Social Skills at Three” very helpful.
“Pushing a child forward and insisting that she make a place for herself in a group of unfamiliar children who are already involved in play is not the answer.”
I really needed to hear that after dropping Nicky off at Sunday school late when the other kids where already busy. He had a meltdown and they had to call me from church. I guess I learnt that I should be on time and stick around a bit to make sure he was okay before I left.
6. Manual:
The manual sums up everything in the box and explains why the activities are important. It also has a list of resources with links in for moms as well as the list of equipment you may need.
Overall this is a really great resource for moms to have. All the information is simple, nicely laid out and easy to understand. The activities are not complicated and a lot of them incorporate daily tasks – like packing clothes away and naming each item. It is also a great tool for those moms who are worried about what their children are doing all day with the nanny. The daily activities are easy to incorporate into every day life.
For more information on the Oh So Exciting Box please visit their website or like their Facebook page.
*Please note that if your child is not reaching one or more of the milestones in the book, this does not mean that there is a problem with your child. If you are concerned about your child’s development please contact your paed or a qualified professional.
Both Heather and I reviewed this product – she was sent the online links for activities and milestones that were age appropriate to Nicky and I was sent the actual activity box that was age appropriate for Emma.
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