2 to 320 minutes
1. Dinosaur Dig
Mix eight cups of plain flour with one cup of vegetable oil to make a soft, mouldable “sand”, or use damp play sand instead. Bury a handful of dinosaurs bigger than your toddler’s fist while they watch, then hand them a spoon to dig each one out and brush clean. Use flour-and-oil sand or damp play sand rather than dry rice, which is a choking and inhalation hazard, and check every buried figure is too big to fit inside a toilet roll tube.
You’ll need: dinosaur figures bigger than a fist, flour and vegetable oil (or damp play sand), a tub, a digging spoon
Say this: “Dig dig dig!” · “Found one!” · “How many left?”
1 to 220 minutes
2. Ocean Scoop and Pour
Fill a bin with about 5cm of water and float a handful of small toys on top: this is the simplest bin of all, and one of the most repeatable. Your toddler scoops, pours and splashes, aiming a cup with real concentration even when most of it misses. Keep a towel underneath, supervise constantly, and empty it the moment you’re finished.
You’ll need: a bin, 5cm of water, cups, spoons, small floating toys
Say this: “Pour it in!” · “Splash!”
1 to 220 minutes
3. Beach and Digger Sand Bin
Fill a shallow bin or sandbox with clean sand, avoiding beach sand which can contain shells and other debris, and offer a few cups and scoops of different sizes. Model a slow scoop and pour first, then let your toddler take over with no set task at all. Supervise closely, and keep sand well away from eyes.
You’ll need: clean sand, cups, spoons, scoops in various sizes
Say this: “Scoop the sand!” · “Watch it pour!”
2 to 3No fixed time
4. Cloud Dough Goo Bin
Mix two parts cornflour to one part water in a bin until it turns thick and strange: hard when you punch it, liquid when you let it ooze. Your toddler squeezes, pokes and watches it behave like nothing else in the toy box. Supervise with anything sharp or small nearby, and wash hands in the sink afterwards, since the starch rinses away easily.
You’ll need: cornflour, water, a large bin or tray, food colouring (optional)
Say this: “It’s solid! No wait, it’s liquid!” · “Again?”
6 to 12 months10 minutes
5. Slippery Lid Rummage
Wash six large lids from yogurt pots, margarine tubs or ice cream tubs and pile them into a shallow bowl. Sit your baby beside the bowl and let them reach in, pull a lid out and drop it, over and over. It’s a genuinely tricky fine motor challenge disguised as a simple bin. Every lid must be at least 3 inches across, with no cracked or chewed edges, and stay seated beside them since lids get mouthed constantly.
You’ll need: six large plastic tub lids, a shallow bowl
Say this: “All yours.” · “There it goes!”
2 to 310 minutes
6. Listening Sound Bin
Gather three or four very different sound-makers and hide one behind your back at a time, making its sound and asking “What made that?” Let your toddler search for the matching object among a small tray of options, then swap roles so they get to hide one for you. Use a large handbell rather than small jingle bells, and make sure any tub of beans is taped shut and checked before it goes near little hands.
You’ll need: a large handbell, two metal spoons, a plastic beaker, a taped tub of beans
Say this: “What made that sound?” · “Yes, that’s the bell!”
2 to 310 minutes
7. Construction Site Sort Bin
Turn genuine household recycling into a sorting bin: a plastic bottle goes in one box, a tin can in the other, side by side with you doing your own sorting. It’s a real task rather than a pretend one, and toddlers at this age take a surprising amount of pride in getting it right.
You’ll need: clean recyclable items, two labelled bins or boxes, paper
How to play
- Invite them in with “Can you help me sort these?”
- Show one example: bottle in the paper box, can in the metal box.
- Hand items over one at a time and let them choose.
- Narrate what you notice: “You’re carrying that so carefully.”
1 to 210 minutes
8. Endless Pull Surprise Bin
Tuck five dish towels into an empty wipes tub, each corner knotted or tucked into the next, so pulling one out brings the next one along behind it. Hand the tub over and let your toddler empty it again and again, restuffing it together each time. Use an empty wipes tub with a smooth opening, never a can with a cut lid, and use only full-size dry towels, nothing long or thin that could wrap around a neck.
You’ll need: an empty wipes tub, five dish towels
Say this: “Look, another one!” · “The tub is empty!”
