How “STEAM” Activities Give A Head Start To Your Toddler

1. How “STEAM” Activities Give A Head Start To Your Toddler www.abrakadoodle.com.sg CONTACT3 Gateway Drive, Westgate,#04-39 Singapore 608532

2. STEAM activities for toddlers is an educational approach that focuses on introducing young children to the concepts and principles of science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics through age-appropriate, hands-on activities and experiences. The goal of STEAM activities for toddlers is to provide a foundation for children’s future learning and to help them develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills, creativity, and innovation at an early age. STEAM activities often involve activities that allow children to explore the world around them, experiment with materials and ideas, and make connections between different subjects. These activities may include playing with building blocks to create structures, painting to explore colour and texture, and singing rhymes to learn about rhythm and sound. STEAM activities for toddlers can be provided right at home. Helping future-proof toddlers’ skills, and make them confident life-long learners by giving them unlimited possibilities for hands-on, playful STEAM learning. www.abrakadoodle.com.sg

3. Advantages of STEAM activities Engaging toddlers in STEAM activities at home can be highly beneficial for their cognitive, social, and personal development. Here are some advantages of STEAM activities for young children. Promote creativity and problem-solving skills Cognitive learning activities encourage children to think outside the box and come up with creative solutions to problems. These activities also help children develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills that they can use in their daily lives. Enhances cognitive development STEAM activities require children to use their brains in new and different ways, which helps to stimulate brain development. These activities can also improve children’s memory, attention, and concentration. Build confidence and self-esteem When children are able to successfully complete a STEAM activity, it can give them a sense of accomplishment and boost their confidence and self-esteem. www.abrakadoodle.com.sg

4. Encourages teamwork and social skills Many STEAM activities involve working in small groups or teams, which helps children develop social skills such as communication, cooperation, and collaboration. Provides real-world connections STEAM activities often involve hands-on, experiential learning, which helps children make connections between what they are learning and the real world. This can make learning more meaningful and engaging for children. Motivates a love for learning STEAM activities can be fun and engaging, which can spark a love of learning in children. This love of learning can carry over into other areas of their lives and help them become lifelong learners. Promotes diversity & inclusivity STEAM activities often involve a diverse range of materials and approaches, which can help to promote inclusivity and diversity in relationships and in the classroom. Children of all abilities and backgrounds can participate and feel valued. www.abrakadoodle.com.sg

5. Combining Process Art with STEAM activities Process Art is a great way for young children to express themselves creatively and explore materials in an open-ended way. It allows toddlers to focus on the process of creating rather than the end product, this approach helps build confidence and develop problem-solving skills. Here are a few simple Process Art activities that you can challenge your toddler with: Painting with unconventional tools Instead of using brushes, try using sponges, cotton balls, or even vegetables to apply paint to paper. This allows children to experiment with different textures and see how the paint behaves when applied in different ways. Sculpting with playdough Playdough is a classic material for process art, as it can be moulded and shaped in endless ways. Encourage your child to use her imagination and create whatever she likes. Your child can use tools such as rolling pins, cookie cutters, and plastic knives to add texture and detail to her creations. www.abrakadoodle.com.sg

6. Collage with recycled materials Gather a collection of recycled materials such as cardboard, paper, and magazine clippings and let your child create a collage. She can glue, tape, or even staple the materials together to create a one-of-a-kind piece of art. Nature art Take a walk outside with your child and collect natural materials such as leaves, stem sticks, and rocks. Encourage your child to arrange these materials in a way that creates a picture or design. She can use glue or tape to hold the materials in place. Remember, the most important thing is to let your child lead the way and have fun. Process Art activities are meant to be open-ended and allow for exploration and creativity. www.abrakadoodle.com.sg

7. Making "STEAM" activities part of enrichment programs This approach focuses on integrating five subjects in a way that encourages toddlers to think critically, solve problems, and explore real-world issues from an early age. As part of enrichment programs, STEAM-based activities provide young children with valuable skills and experiences that will play a key role in preparing them to face and succeed in the rapidly changing world they will encounter. STEAM activities encourage interdisciplinary thinking by bringing together subjects that are often taught separately. This approach enables young children to see the connections between different fields and how they can be used to resolve real-life problems. For instance, a child fascinated by biology might begin to connect and start thinking about how engineering principles can be applied to the design of say, medical devices. Or another child with a keen interest in art might learn how math and science can be integrated to help create new concepts in digital graphics. The primary aim of STEAM activities is to foster creativity and encourage toddlers to think outside the box. This is particularly important in a world, where the ability to come up with new ideas and approaches is increasingly seen as an invaluable trait. www.abrakadoodle.com.sg

8. Exciting Art and Craft for toddlers Art and craft is a great way for toddlers to express themselves and have fun. It helps them develop not only fine motor skills and creativity but also improve their problem-solving capabilities. Here are some exciting learning activities for kids, that will make toddlers jump in wholeheartedly. Finger painting Finger painting is a classic art activity that toddlers love. All you need is some washable paint and paper. You can make the paint easily at home by using food colouring mixed with a little bit of water, simple and inexpensive. Encourage your toddler to make different marks and shapes with her fingers and to mix the colours by herself. This activity is not only fun, but it also helps toddlers develop their fine motor skills and creativity. Playdough Playdough is another classic art activity for toddlers. You can make your own playdough at home with flour, salt, water, and food colouring. Encourage your toddler to roll, squeeze, and shape the playdough into different objects. You can also provide her with small cookie cutters, rolling pins, and other tools to create her own creations. This activity will help your toddler build hand strength and improve fine motor skills. www.abrakadoodle.com.sg

9. Sticker art Toddlers go overboard when it comes to making those cute little stickers which they end up using in a variety of other art and craft activities. Provide your toddler with a large piece of paper and a variety of stickers, and let them create their own sticker art. Give her a choice of creating a scene, or a picture, or just getting on with sticking the stickers randomly on the paper. This activity is great for developing creativity and some original works.  Cardboard tube art Don’t discard those cardboard tubes and tissue roll tubes because these can be transformed into a variety of art and craft projects. You can provide your toddler with some cardboard tubes, paint, ribbons and streamers, and let her create her own masterpieces. Encourage her to paint the tubes, cut them into different shapes, or glue them onto a piece of paper to create a 3D effect. This activity is great for creativity and for fine motor skills. Collage making Collage is a fun art activity for a toddler. Provide your toddler with a variety of materials, such as magazines, newspapers, tissue paper, and glue, and let her create some unique collages of her own making. Encourage her to cut and paste the materials onto pieces of paper to create a pattern, a picture or a design. www.abrakadoodle.com.sg

10. Chalk art Chalk is a great art medium for toddlers because it is easy to use and easy to clean up. You can provide your toddler with some sidewalk chalk and let them create their own chalk art on the driveway or sidewalk. Encourage them to make different marks and shapes with the chalk and to mix the colours. This activity is great for creativity and fine motor skills. Salt art Salt art is a fun and easy art activity for toddlers. All you need is some watercolour paint, salt, and paper. First, have your toddler paint a picture with watercolour paint. Then, sprinkle salt over the wet paint and let it dry. The salt will absorb the paint and create a unique texture. This activity is great for creativity and helps toddlers learn about different Nature art Nature is a great source of inspiration for art projects. You can take your toddler on a nature walk and gather natural materials, such as leaves, sticks, and rocks. Then, provide them with a large piece of paper and some glue, and let them create their own nature art. This activity is great for creativity and helps toddlers learn about the world around them. www.abrakadoodle.com.sg

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