Engage your child in thinking in free time

Engage your child in thinking in free time

What does your child do when you are waiting at the clinic , billing counter, railway station???
Some children explore on their own; there are others who get bored and still others who just want to leave the place.

Can these waiting instances be utilised for bonding with the child by playing a game or two?


For the 3-5 year olds:At the clinic, you can play games like : How many "+" signs can you spot? How many alphabet "A" can you spot in the chart?, even a pretend game of a doctor and patient.
At the billing counter: Lets count how long it takes for our turn. Lets identify objects of similar shapes in our cart. weave a story...
At the railway station:. Count the compartments, observe and name the clothes worn by different people, how many different types of travel bags did you notice... Sky is the limit here :)
For older children, you can spark engaging conversations starting from what a stethoscope does to how heart works. The child can also choose to seek answers from the doctor. At the billing counter, the child can be asked to calculate the change that needs to be given back to you or what are the roles and responsibilities of a super market manager! You can even play Pictionary with older children; all you need is a rough sheet of paper and pencil.
Or , you may choose to just listen to whatever your child says... Listening too is a great bonding exercise.
We also share what one parent Sowmya posted on our page :Another game we used to play in traffic jams - pat/shout on seeing a vehicle with double numbers - eg: on seeing a vehicle with number KA 05 N 7741, pat saying seven seven aloud.Thanx Sowmya for sharing.
HAPPY "WAITING"!!