Community News
THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 2016
A PUBLICATION OF THE BRANDON SUN
Fun, stimulating games to help pass the time
Shawna Munro
PARENTING
POINTS
Shawna Munro works at the Elspeth
Reid Family Resource Centre, a facility of Child and Family Services of
Western Manitoba that offers parenting information and support.
» 255 Ninth St., Brandon
» 204-726-6280
There are many simple games that
you can play with your preschooler to
pass the time as you ride in the car,
stand in line at the store, sit in a waiting
room or relax before bed.
Games are fun to play, but they are
also great opportunities for learning as
children build vocabulary and memory
skills, ask and answer questions and
follow directions.
Here are a few games that can be
played almost anywhere.
I’M THINKING OF
Choose a familiar item and give a
clue to help your child guess what it
is. If you chose a carrot, your first clue
could be, “I’m thinking of something
orange.” Let your child have one or two
guesses, and if she is not correct give
another hint: “I’m thinking of
something that is orange and grows in
our garden.” Older children can take a
turn coming up with their own object
for you to guess.
or look for everything in a particular colour.
Older children can look for a specific
number or letter. Choose a small detail
of the picture and see if your child can
find it.
WHAT’S MISSING
Say several numbers in, and have your
child repeat them back, in the same
order. Start small—”4,9,2”—and add
more numbers one at a time.
Take several small objects from the
room or, if you are away from home,
your purse or pocket. Let your child see
them, then have him turn around. Take
one object away and see if he can guess
what is missing. Let him have a turn
removing an object while you guess.
PICTURE SEARCH
Find a busy page in a picture book or
a magazine. Try to find all the circles
NUMBER MEMORY
DOESN’T BELONG
List four items for your child, three
of which belong in the same category
and one that is different. Ask your child
which word doesn’t belong. If you said
“cat, mouse, pumpkin, giraffe,” your
child would tell you that pumpkin does
not belong because it is not an animal.
BACK WRITING
Trace your finger lightly on your
child’s back and have her guess what
you have ‘written.’ Depending on your
child’s age and ability, you might draw
shapes, or a simple picture like a sun or
house. Older children can decipher
letters or numbers, then eventually
words and phrases.
To remain interesting, games should
provide a challenge to your child, but
should not be so difficult that he
becomes frustrated. Keep a few simple
games in mind for an easy way to pass
the time, to help your child learn, and
most importantly, to have fun together.