Anyone who reads this blog regularly knows how much I love Montessori and early learning. Toddlers are so much more capable of learning than some people give them credit for. And, for toddlers, learning is still fun.
To keep learning exciting, I'm constantly looking for products that help Henry explore the world around him in fun ways. I was thrilled to find Free Spirit Kids, an Etsy Shop that combines Montessori activities and everyday objects into beautiful and fun learning opportunities.
Free Spirit Kids' Toddler Cards are perfect for little learners everywhere. They come beautifully packaged, are about the size of an index card, and are laminated. The rounded corners, big pictures, and simple font make these cards accessible to even the youngest toddlers. Free Spirit Kids offers these cards in a large variety of topics including farm animals, seasons, kitchen, and gardening.
I was lucky enough to try out the Fruit and Vegetable toddler cards with Henry, and they have been a HUGE hit. I've seen his interested in vegetables increase and his vocabulary expand. It's great hearing him shout names of fruits and vegetables in the grocery store.
So, how have we been using our cards? Here are two simple ideas:
Recipe Cards
I had Henry help me make chicken salad for dinner one night. As a way to help him, I had one Free Spirit Kids card out for the available ingredients. Henry was then able to match the card to the real life ingredient to help him know what to add.
Henry had a blast doing this, and {bonus!} actually ate some of his dinner!
Vegetable and Fruit Sorting and Marching
Here I gave Henry a pile of the cards and helped him separate them into fruits and vegetables. Then, he ran to find the matching play food for each card. It turned into a giggly, fun, gross motor game all while helping him put concrete names to his food.
The possibility for learning and play with these is really endless. Free Spirit Kids has been awesome enough to offer one lucky reader a free set of BOTH the Fruit Toddler Cards and the Vegetable Toddler Cards. Just follow the directions in the Rafflecopter for your chance to win!
As an added bonus Free Spirit Kids is also offering a 10 percent discount on all orders over $10.00 to Kavanaugh Report readers! Use discount code KREPORT from now until the end of September!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
*Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post. I did receive the cards to review, but all opinions are my own.
