Tips to engage toddlers when working from home

 According to me, each mother is a working mother. 

Irrespective of whether you are a 'homemaker-mother' or 'freelance-working mother' or ' WFH- entrepreneur mother' or 'WFH- corporate mother', sharing a space with toddler means, in simple words, the space is all theirs. From your laps to laptops, they are everywhere 😀.

They are unfolding the folded clothes, messing up the almirahs, exploring the kitchens, making pillow mountains, and washing the hands, sometimes without even being asked for. 😄

But still, even after the mess they create, they are ours only. After all, these little toddlers, or rather, disguised monsters, are brought into this world by us only, our genes 😃. So, we owe them something 😊. If we want our work to be done, we must put them in something good and constructive. This article would explore few such ideas which they can enjoy alone, while you work. 

Beware!!!

** There is no activity for toddlers in this world which will leave the space clean, when they are done. So, if you want to keep them busy in something, be prepared to clean their playful mess afterwards, or keep a help for the same.

** Do not make your kids sensitive ones. Let them get dirty. Let them get messy. Let them fall and get up on their own. Let them have occasional coughs, colds and fevers, for it means, they are developing their own fighter immune systems.

Let's find few ideas below-

1. Bath time: (Time spent: 15-45 minutes)

Do not rush for an early bath every day. Make it interesting. If its summer season or you live in a warm place, where there is no risk of catching a cold after water-play, do try this. This may be done twice a day too.

a) Buy some water-toys like floating water toys, light-up bath toys, moving and swimming water toys. They make for a fun bath-time. 

Bath Toys

b) Find some containers of various shapes and sizes from your kitchen or their little kitchen-sets. They really love filling and pouring water from one container to another. 

* To save water and for their safety, just leave them with half-filled bucket or tub. Keep your ears and eyes open. (Otherwise- each mom's sense organs are superfast!!!)

2.  A4 sheets + Colours: (Time spent: 15-30 minutes)

A plain white canvas or a paper along with different colours (sketch pens/ crayons) fascinates the children and adults both. Give your toddlers both and see their excitement. Let them colour it the way they want it or make different shapes/ objects which interests them and let them colour. Give them one sheet at a time. You may give them 1-2 more sheets, if you feel they really are enjoying it. Why not a notebook or an art file? Hahaha...Give them and your whole notebook or file is coloured with, at once.

*As paper is precious, so is their creativity. Buy a folder to store their work. Keep untidy ones with old newspapers for recycling.

3. Grains play: (Time spent: 15-30 minutes)

No matter how expensive toys you buy your children, their favourite is your kitchen😀. Hope all mommies would agree. So, let us surprise them with our kitchen toys😀. Give them a box / bowl full of grains (the bigger ones: kidney beans or rajma / white or kabuli chana / macaroni or pasta) and see the shine in their eyes. Along with, give them spoons, spatulas and bowls of varying sizes and colours. They love to play, cook, and serve you that.

4. Soil/Sand Play: (Time spent: 15-45 minutes)

Soil or sand play enhances the tactile (or touch) response of the kids as they hold, crush, and play with it. It improves their hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills (involving small muscles of hands and wrists). The mommies who love plants, this activity is best to transfer your interest to your child. Get a pot with dry to a little moist soil. Check once for any small insect. Buy a 'garden play-set' or 'beach sand toys' to play with. If you don't have them, you may give them 2-3 types of spatulas and sieves from your kitchen. It's often said, "Mitti mein bahut takat hoti hai and the ones who play in soil develop greater immunities." So, let them build their immunities and do not bother about hygiene always.

5. Erasable Doodle Drawing Books: (Time Spent: 15-25 Minutes)

These books are available these days, almost everywhere. The black erasable sheets and fluorescent colours inside them, really fascinate the toddlers, the tweens, and adults too. 

6. Baby TV: (Time spent: 30-45 minutes twice a day)

And yes, TV time. Do not behave like today's over-caring moms. We all have grown up watching TVs and not all of us are wearing spectacles. We all are normal too😄.  So, in limit, everything is fine. This one channel is presenting some really good shows. Go spend a day and find out the best ones for your child. Your child would certainly learn oral alphabets, numbers, phonics, rhymes, and shapes from them.

7. Books: (Time Spent: 10-20 minutes)

Books are the kids best friends too. But, obviously, book-reading needs assistance. But, you may buy few books which you read them regularly and then after few readings, they tend to read them alone too. 

Board books, Touch and feel books, Lift-a-Flap books and Big colouring books can keep them engaged for some time. For what books to buy for toddlers, you can visit our article- Books for toddlers

8. Blocks and Puzzles: (Time spent: 15- 30 minutes)

Blocks and age-appropriate puzzles are examples of classic and evergreen toys. Only thing which needs to be considered is- buy blocks of different shapes and sizes. Buy big blocks, small blocks, round blocks, train blocks etc. Check online for the variations and give different shaped blocks every alternate week and your child will never be bored of blocks.

Large blocks

Round blocks

Small Lego/ Lego-type blocks

9. Pretend Play Toys along with a Soft toy/ Doll-

Pretend play toys like doctor set, beauty set, kitchen set, construction set often need assistance or a partner to play. This could be achieved by dolls or soft toy pets- teddy/ dog/giraffe/elephant etc. But this idea is not very successful because, unfortunately, the soft toys do not respond. But it may be tried. Do pretend and play with your toddlers these pretend-play toys after the work😊.

10. Have a sibling for them:

Now, this one is a personal choice, but there is no better partner than a sibling. I once read at a paediatrician's clinic- "10 reasons why should you have a second child." The reasons were true and valid. Having a sibling, with whatever age-gap, grooms a child better. A child is more playful, more secure, more helpful and more happy (or happier!!!). Choice is individual. No suggestions, no judgements.

Above are enlisted few ideas which can very well be customized according to your schedules and child's interests. They can just be taken as reference to deduce your own play-time activities. The sole purpose is to keep the child engaged and happy when you are working. You may devise a rough time-table with all the activities with approximate timings. Nap-time is not included because I know each mommy must already have a set nap-time routine because toddler's nap time is desperately needed- to work, to relax and sometimes, to nap too😃.