Plastic eggs are a spring-time favorite! There are so many fun ways to play with plastic eggs, below are a few of my favorite activities with speech and language targets!
- Practice target words or labelling common objects: hide small pictures, stickers or objects within the eggs and have fun finding each egg and practicing the target word before racing to the next egg! Target words of “open,” “shut/closed,” “stuck,” or phrases of “Egg, where are you?” or “I found it!” are great to practice! Eggs come in all kinds of sizes, talk about fun shapes, big/small, colors or how many eggs you found!
- Practice early location concepts: early location concepts include “in, on, under.” Hide one egg and tell your toddler where it is using simple location concepts (“Look IN your shoe!”). You can work on following directions by telling your child where to hide the egg (“Put it ON the chair”) and have another person (sibling, friend, family member) find the egg.
- Practice simple questions: “Where is the egg?” “What did you find?” “Is it a cat?” If answering questions is still tricky for your child, model the question and the appropriate response, such as “Is this a cat?” “NO! It’s a dog!”
- Following directions: provide directions on what objects to place in the egg or where your toddler should hide it. For example, “Put the flower (sticker) in the egg!”
- Asking for help: plastic eggs can be difficult for tiny hands to open or close, take advantage of this moment to practice requesting “help!” “Open” or “Shut/closed.”
There are so many ways to play with plastic eggs, get creative! Please remember to monitor children with small plastic eggs and toys, as these can become a choking hazard.
Jessie Delos Reyes, MA, CCC-SLP