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Toddler Activities for Bath Time

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Have you tried these fun toddler activities for bath time? Bath time is a great learning and play opportunity and it can be a nice way to destress (both you and your toddler) after a long day. I've put together some fun (and easy) ways to make your toddler's bath time fun. 

Bath time activities for toddlers - easy activities to make bath time fun! 

My toddlers LOVE the bath. They love it so much that they can't wait to finish so that they can get in the bath and would stay in there all night if they could. They probably spend a minimum of 30 minutes each night in there, maybe even more. Lately, I have started adding some educational activities to our bath time routine, and the girls are loving it.

Here are a few simple ways you can turn bath time in a learning opportunity (without them even knowing it!).

1. Add foam letters and numbers to the bath.

foam letters for bath time for toddlers If you don't have foam letters and numbers already, you really should get some. They are a great way to introduce letter and number recognition, and if you put them in the bath you can do a few activities with them. We like to 'fish' for letters (find me the letter S) or numbers, we spell out names on the side of the bath (they stick well to a wet bath) and we even sort them into colors. These foam letters and numbers are also great for literacy and numeracy activities. 

2. Explore floating and sinking

bath squirty toys

Bath time is the perfect opportunity to explore the concept of floating and sinking. We add some extra toys to the bath (most traditional bath toys float (you can find the set in the image above HERE) so you do need to raid the toy box for a few heavier ones) and see if they sink or float. You can extend this activity by guessing what will happen, and discussing why they sink or float.

3. Plastic Stacking Cups
plastic stacking cups for toddler bath time

I'm sure I've seen some variation of these cups in every household with a child. They are so versatile, and make such a great bath toy. You can use stacking cups (I really love this set) for so many things including:

  • discussing full and empty
  • discussing which one holds more, which one holds less, which ones hold the same amount
  • counting how many smaller cups it takes to fill the large cup
  • sorting the cups from smallest to largest and largest to smallest
  • choosing cups based on color or size 

4. Sing!

5 little ducks bath toys for toddlers

The bath is the perfect time for a sing-a-long, and I've yet to meet a toddler that doesn't love to sing. Our bath time favorites are "If you're Happy and You Know It" (splash your hands, kick your legs) and 5 little ducks (use rubber ducks and take one away each time - singing and math!). If you need some song ideas check out our favorite action nursery rhymes - these can easily be sung in the bath too! 

 5. Washcloth puppets

washcloth puppets for toddler bath time

Kids love puppets and if you buy the wash cloth variety you can use them in the bath too. Trust me, this one will be extremely popular! For the younger toddlers, they will enjoy watching and listening to you use the puppets, and as they get older they will begin engaging in pretend play with the puppets and make up stories of their own. Another fun activity that is excellent for language development.

If you love the puppets you might also like bath finger puppets - I've just discovered these cute Paw Patrol ones which are a hit in our house! You can find them HERE on Amazon. 

paw patrol bath finger puppets

6. Bath Crayons

crayola bath crayons and bath drops

Bath crayons are amazing! So much fun and they wipe off easily (they really do!). The learning opportunities are endless with these. Fine motor practice, drawing, writing etc. These are pretty cheap and definitively worth the investment. You can even extend on this by making the water colored (to be fair, this is probably a bit more for a fun bath than a 'getting clean' bath! You can get the set pictured above HERE.

7. Read in the bath! 

I believe that any opportunity that you can give a child to read is important. Bath time is no exception. They make great waterproof bath books, and kids love flipping through them. Some of them even come with toys to go along with them like the penguin book above (available HERE from Amazon). We also sometimes put on an audio book during bath time.

8. Puzzles

sohie the giraffe bath puzzle

Did you know that you can buy bath puzzles? I didn't until we were given one for my daughters birthday. What a hit! We have the Sophie the Giraffe one pictured above (available HERE) and it's great. The animals also squirt water so it's like two toys in one.

I've since discovered that there are different kinds of bath puzzles, including wall puzzles like the one featured below (available HERE). Puzzles are a great learning tool, and if you can do them in the bath  - why not!

bath puzzles

9. Talk!

I love to use bath time as a chance to talk about what happened during the day. When I have worked in early years classes at school, a lot of children seem to have trouble retelling a simple event. By asking your toddler what they did today (use words like first, then, after, finally)  you are informally teaching them this skill. If your toddler is older, ask them further questions including, 'What was your favorite part of today?' 'Who did you play with? and similar follow up questions. Even if you are doing most of the talking (and answering for them if they are too young to talk), you are still teaching your child valuable vocabulary skills.

Do you have any educational activities or games that you play in the bath? Share them with us in our Facebook Group or over on Instagram. 

If you're looking for some more great toddler bath toys you can find my favorites HERE. 

Easy Activities for Toddlers

easy toddler activity ideas that parents can do at home - great activities for toddlers

Sensory Bins for Toddlers 

sensory bins for 1 2 and 3 year olds toddlers preschoolers

Water Play Ideas for Toddlers 

Water play ideas for babies and toddlers

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toddler bath time activities educational and fun

 

200+ Toddler Activities - My Bored Toddler

Saturday 2nd of July 2016

[…] Bath Activities for Toddlers  […]

Best Toddler Toys to Encourage Creativity - My Bored Toddler

Saturday 25th of April 2015

[…] Puppets are fantastic for encouraging pretend play, as well as increasing language skills. Start by being the puppet master, and watch as your toddler will gradually take over and start creating their own stories. You can use these with a puppet theater if you like (or make your own with a few cardboard boxes). We have the zoo animals pictured above, but there are so many different ones available. I love puppets so much that we use them as part of our bath time activities too! […]

Leandra

Sunday 22nd of March 2015

Swimming goggles are a firm favourite of T's at the moment! We also love using cheap shaving foam.

I really need to get some foam letters and numbers, thanks for the reminder ;)

Thanks so much for linking up #toddlerapprovedtuesday xxx

Carolin

Sunday 22nd of March 2015

Lovely ideas, Amy also loved a product called Crazy Foam, I believe. It came in a spray bottle and you could form shapes with it and bounce it. We loved having a pretend snowball fight with it!

Thanks for linking up with our Parenting Pin It Party x

Carol

Sunday 22nd of March 2015

I haven't heard of crazy foam before - I'll have to investigate as it sounds like a lot of fun!

Clare's Little Tots

Wednesday 18th of March 2015

My little one stays in the bath until it's cold and doesn't seem to mind. Been debating bath crayons for ages so think i might go and get some :-) #ToddlerApprovedTuesday

Carol

Wednesday 18th of March 2015

The crayons are worth it! We're onto our 3rd or 4th set now.