Are you a mom of a toddler?  Or maybe a daycare provider?  If you want to give your little one an academic head start, but don’t know where to begin, this post is for you.  And the best part is that you don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars on a curriculum – tot school is easy to start with materials you already have at home!

How to Teach Your Toddler With Cheap Printables

Some Things to Know About Teaching a Toddler

I’m sure you’re well aware that it’s a battle to get a two year old to focus on anything for long.  That’s because their little brains are growing so fast and there’s just so much to discover!

So trying to force them to act like kindergarteners isn’t going to work.  You’ll all just end up frustrated.

Instead, offer opportunities to explore through play.

How to Teach With Play

Playful learning is something teachers are always talking about, but doesn’t always make sense to someone who doesn’t know our lingo.

Basically, your toddler (or preschooler for that matter) should literally be having fun all day.  THAT’s how a lesson will get through to them and stick.  Not worksheets and “come sit here and let’s talk about this for half an hour.”

Follow their interests, interject a learning opportunity when you can, and set up lots of educational toys, games, and puzzles to play with.

So to teach colors, for example, play games or puzzles about colors.  Also, use color names to describe things throughout the day.  For example, “Do you want the blue cup or the red cup?”

And read lots of books!  Books help kids learn vocabulary and develop early literacy skills.

Here’s A Few Printables That Will Guide Your Play

Body Parts Printables

Toddlers are still learning all about their bodies!  By the time they enter preschool, they should know their basic body parts already: eyes, ears, nose, mouth, feet, hands, hair, etc.

You can use this Body Parts Activities Pack to help teach body parts.

I like to keep a basket of books by my sofa or rocking chair so that I always have books within reach when someone climbs up for a cuddle.  The body parts poster from this pack is perfect for laminating and throwing in my book basket!

Then when the kids come for a snuggle, I can quickly grab that poster and we can look together and name the body parts.

Another trick I like to do is reviewing our new learning concepts during a diaper change!  The kids are squirmy, so talking to them helps them to focus on your words instead of kicking and squealing about having their diaper changed.  And since they’re changed so often, we get lots of reviews in throughout the day without even trying.

Farm Animals Printables

This Farm Animals Pack is pretty similar to the body parts pack.

I use the poster the same way – in my book basket for frequent practice.  We also like to make animal noises during transition times!  For example, I might ask what sound a cow makes while we’re helping friends get their boots and coats on.  This gives the kids something to focus on instead of running amuck.  And it’s great review!

Color Printables

Toddlers are definitely not too young to start learning colors!

Here’s a Colors Activities Pack that has lots of puzzles, posters, and coloring pages for your little one to explore!

And don’t forget to use color words naturally as often as you can.  For example, “Wow, I like your blue shirt!” and “Would you like the red cup or the yellow cup?”

Physical Activity Cards

You can also get those toddlers moving with some yoga and exercise cards!

They’ll definitely enjoy getting to be active and the pictures on the cards give them an idea of how to do each exercise.

Preschool Focus Wall

I’ve had surprising success with my Preschool Weekly Focus Wall!  You can read about it here.

Circle time isn’t necessary for toddlers, but a short, informal look at the bulletin board can be effective if your little one is ready for it.

You can read more about how I run my circle time in this post.

More Learning Printables

You can use almost anything to teach toddlers and preschoolers.  The key is making it enjoyable and giving them opportunities to explore the concept.

You can click the button below to browse all the products in my shop!  Most are geared towards preschool, but can be adapted for toddlers and the full pack used when they are developmentally ready.

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