Brain Development Activities and Games For Toddlers (1 To 2 Year Olds)

Just as the body needs exercise and activity to keep it healthy, agile, and active, so does the brain need activities that exercise, sharpen and increase its capability. Children's minds, being impressionable and still in the way of development, need this exercise even more than their adult counterparts.

Studies have shown that the minds of toddlers are very receptive to information and new concepts. A still-developing brain is looking for hands to shape them and activities that hone them.

Through simple, fun brain development activities for toddlers and brain games for toddlers, you can keep your child's mind stimulated and active.

Brain development activities for toddlers (1 to 2-year-olds)

According to research, 90% of brain development happens by age 5. Therefore, the first five years of your child's life are very important, and it is your responsibility to ensure their brain develops well.

But how can you help your child's brain develop? Although the answer may seem complex to you, it isn't so. There are several simple and fun brain development activities for 2-year-olds that you can do with your toddler. Here are a few of them:

Brain development activities for toddlers

Find the difference

A fun brain game for toddlers, this game is available in all shapes and sizes. You even have a column in the toon section of the daily newspaper. It is as simple as looking at two picture tiles that have the same picture with minor differences. The child is trained to observe the pictures carefully and pick out the differences between them. This is excellent for mental development since it forces the brain to focus on the tiny details and helps improve concentration.

Memory basket

This is a simple memory game for toddlers that you and your child can easily play anywhere. To play this game you need only a simple collection of small objects and a basket/box. Put a few objects like crayons, fridge magnets, and balls in the box. About 10 objects are good. Allow your child to have a good look at the contents of the basket. Then, take away the basket and ask your child to tell you what was in the box. Memory games are great to build short-term and long-term memory.

Scrambled sequences

If your child is old enough to read, write single words of a sentence on cards of paper and jumble them. Ask your child to reorder the words to make up a sentence that makes sense. This brain activity for toddlers is a great way to build language skills in children. It also helps hone vocabulary and fluency in the language. For younger children, even arranging letters of the alphabet or numbers in order will work.

Puzzle it out

Puzzles are a great brain game for toddlers. But why? Working on solving puzzles helps develop skills like logic, reasoning, problem-solving, and strategic thinking. Even though this might seem a lot for that simple cartoon picture puzzle you bought for your child, these are cognitive skills that are developed as a result of solving puzzles frequently.

Pretend play

You often see children play pretend games, play house with dolls, or play soldier combat games with G. I. Joe toys. These games are in fact very healthy for children's mental development. Playing make-up games involves employing a great deal of imagination which on the outside looks cute. But, what looks to you like childish fun and games is actually hundreds of neurons working together to manipulate images, memories, and alternative situations to create a world of make-believe. Even though the exact mechanism is not known, scientists believe that encouraging children's imagination is one of the best therapies for brain development.

Paper toss

Games and brain development activities for toddlers that work on hand-eye coordination are extremely beneficial to children in their early years. A simple game of paper toss, with scrunched-up paper (use old newspaper bits) and an empty bin is all you need. Keep the bin a reasonable distance away from your child and ask him to toss the paper balls into the bin. Watch how much they enjoy this zero-investment game as they develop better hand-eye coordination and better control. Games of this kind are also great for the visual-spatial skill of the brain as they help the child develop a better sense of their three-dimensional environment.

Matching card games for toddlers

Along with the above-mentioned games, there are quite a few matching card games also available for toddlers. Some of these include matching colors with their names, matching pictures with their names, and matching pictures with the same emotions/feelings. You can come up with your own matching card games for toddlers or purchase them from online stores.

So, get your toddler to have a whale of a time with these fun and engaging activities knowing that they will help sharpen the mental prowess of their little minds.