J loves lights. Probably because there is this nifty little switch that you can pull to turn them on, off, on, off, on, off, on, off, on, off...well, you catch my drift.
But if I am going to be honest, holding the little sack of potatoes while he gleefully flicks the light on and off has gotten a little old, not to mention tiring. So I bought a little click light for him. I applied a piece of tape over the battery cover as it was flimsy and seemed like it might pop open.
This little light is a great tactile learning tool for cause and effect and opposites (off, on).
Since it was the middle of the day, I brought it into one of our windowless bathrooms:
J is learning how to talk. He can say Mama, Dada, baba, hi, bye, thank you (ake ooh), along with a few baby signs. But his favorite word is BOOM! Grandma taught him that word, and their favorite game is to throw things down and say BOOM! Too cute.
I noticed he particularly likes for things to go BOOM! in the water, I assume because of the satisfying splash that it makes. So I set up some containers with both natural materials and recyclables on a little table next to a tub of water for this gravity/cause & effect experiment.
Now keep in mind that if you make a lesson plan for a toddler, it won't go exactly as you planned, if it even goes at all. Please don't get stressed out over it or force your baby to participate in something they don't want to. Learning should be fun for both of you and should have an organic feel.
For example, I didn't anticipate that he would get in the water (he hadn't expressed interest in it all week). He also puts the whole container of items in the water.
A brief video clip of our BOOM! activity in action:
I think for our next activity we will BOOM! from different heights and on different surfaces.
