Book Logo Physical icon.

Physical

Materials:

Purple flower

Toys, blanket or towel

Your Child Will Learn

How to use their body to find items like toys.

Here's What To Do

1

Hide toys in different locations. Give your child clues to find the toys. For example,

2

“The duck is near something yellow.”

3

Vary the challenges or clues. For example, a simple clue might be “The teddy bear is under the blanket.” A more challenging clue might be, “The teddy bear is behind something we sit on.”

4

You can also play this game while running errands. For example, ask your child to find a familiar item in a section you’re in at the supermarket.

Mother and child play together (animated).

Put PEER Into Action

P

Pause:

  • Walk around the area where you’ve hidden toys. Encourage your child to look around carefully first.
E

Engage:

  • “I hid some toys.”
  • “Listen carefully to my clues so you can go and find them!”
E

Encourage:

  • Give simple clues that direct your child to the location. “The ball is on the table.”
  • Or, point to the smaller area the item is in and encourage them to look there.
R

Reflect:

  • “Which toy was the hardest/easiest for you to find? Why?”

Not quite ready?

Your child can also help you to hide a few toys, then try to remember where they are as they look for them.

Ready for more?

Hide the toys in areas where your child will have to do more complicated movements to get them, e.g. crawl under a safe table.

Variable color muffin tins (animated)

As your child masters this skill...

They will track inanimate objects while playing.

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