Play Activities for Children Birth to Nine Years -- Provides a list of several activities parents and caregivers can do with infants.

Children and Play -- Information about children and play from birth to age 6.

The Right Stuff for Children Birth to 8: Selecting Play Materials to Support Development -- Author Martha Bronson provides clear descriptions of play at each age. Gives you an understanding of cognitive, social, and emotional development as revealed in the everyday activities of children.

Helping Young Children Develop Through Play: A Practical Guide for Parents, Caregivers, and Teachers -- Contains detailed, practical suggestions on how adults can foster play with infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and school-agers. Chapters include: the importance of play; what adults can do to support play; helping babies, toddlers, preschoolers, and primary age children play; and making nonplay more playful.

Playing With Baby -- A publication that looks at the different ways babies play and learn about the world around them. Provides suggestions for playing with your baby in safe and stimulating ways. You can read or listen to this article.

Come Play With Me: Play Activities and Infant Stimulation -- Provides information, pictures, and activities to help parents learn about the importance of play, how and why babies play, how they can be involved in infants' play (suggested activities, toys, songs, etc.), safe and appropriate toys, and books.

Communicating With Your Infant Through Play: Toys and Activities for the First Two Years -- Publication provides information on practical toys and play activities parents can use to support their child's learning and exploring.

Keys to Great Parenting: Let Your Infant or Toddler Teach You About Play -- This publication is part of a series for parents with infants and toddlers. This article addresses the benefits of play for children and parents, appropriate ways adults can play with infants and toddlers, and types of play/activities/toys that infants and toddlers enjoy.

Keys to Great Parenting: Show Your Little Explorer the World -- This publication is part of a series for parents with infants and toddlers. This article looks at how infants and toddlers explore their world and learn using their senses. It suggests ways that parents can support their child's desire to explore and learn.

Activities for Infants -- Activity ideas that are tailored to infants' methods of learning.

The Magic of Everyday Moments --Booklets developed by ZERO TO THREE and the Johnson & Johnson Pediatric Institute to help parents and caregivers understand and gain ideas for how to use simple, everyday moments to promote a baby's social, emotional, and intellectual development from 0 to 15 months.

Helping Children Grow: Providing Early Stimulation -- This publication looks at ways adults can provide stimulating environments and activities to support their child's development and learning in the early years. Topics include the cradle of learning, you're never to young to learn, an everyday experience, and exploring the world day by day. Includes ages and stages information about toys and activities.

Helping Children Grow: Promoting Creativity -- This publication looks at creativity and how it is a part of every person. It defines creativity and looks at how babies and toddlers are creative. It addresses how adults can support rather than hinder creativity. Includes ages and stages information.

Helping Infants Learn -- Activities for infants that help them learn during their stages of development. Activities are provided for the birth to 6 month period and the 6 month to 12 month period of infant development.

Helping Curiosity Grow -- Information on how to make your baby's world an interesting, stimulating place that helps your baby learn more about his/her senses; encourages your baby's curiosity; and promotes your baby's future success in school.  

Young Children Learning With All Five Senses -- Publication suggests many things a parent or child care provider can do to create a multi-sensory environment for infants and toddlers. You can read or listen to this article.

Seeing Infants With New Eyes -- A video that illustrates how adult interactions with infants can make a difference.

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Great Beginnings - A series for parents of young children giving month by month quidelines for learning, growth, and development. Each publication suggests stimulating games/activities based on the child's age (newborn - 36 months).

Ages & Stages: 1 - 12 Months -- Provides information on activities and toys for the first year of life.

Games to Play With Your . . . -- Suggestions on how to play with your baby, including specific games.
Baby
Five-Month-Old
Seven-Month-Old
Eight-Month-Old

Communicating With Your Baby Through Play (series) -- Provides suggestions for playing with your baby and providing stimulating activities/materials from birth to 12 months.
Birth to 3 Months
3 to 6 Months
6 to 9 Months
9 to 12 Months

Learning Now! (series) -- Simple activities adults can do with infants at different ages to promote learning and brain development.
Birth - 3 Months
3 - 6 Months
6 - 12 Months

Zero to One: News About Infants During the First Year -- Provides information on "Games Babies Play" during each stage of development. Suggests various ways parents can be involved in infants' play.
Month 1
Month 2
Month 3
Month 4
Month 5
Month 6
Month 7
Month 8
Month 9
Month 10
Month 11
Month 12

Visits With You and Your Baby: 12 to 24 Months & Beyond – A booklet about the toddler years (12-15 months, 15-18 months, 18-21 months, and 21-24 months). Includes information on appropriate activities for each stage of development.

AGES & STAGES -- Publications in a series that provide information on how one-year-olds play and activities they enjoy and that help them learn.
12-18 Months
Toddlers & Two-Year-Olds

AGES & STAGES -- These fact sheets describe the typical development of young children 12 to 18 and 18 to 24 months. Includes information on developmental milestones, activity ideas, and recommended books and toys for children.
12-18 Months
18-24 Months

1-2-3 GROW! -- A series of newsletters for parents discussing parenting issues and child development from 12-24 months. Includes information on toys and activities for each stage of development.
12-15 Months   16-18 Months   19-21 Months   22-24 Months   25-27 Months   28-30 Months   31-33 Months   34-36 Months

THE GROWING YEARS -- A series of publications that address children's development and parenting issues at each age/stage of development. Each publication includes a list of activities a child would enjoy at that stage of development.
Months 12 & 13    Months 13 & 14    Months 15 & 16    Months 17 & 18    Months 19 & 20
Months 21 & 22    Months 23 & 24   Months 25 and 26   Months 27 and 28   Months 29 and 30   Months 31 and 32   Months 33 and 34

Early Childhood: The Two-Year-Old - Play -- This publication provides information on the following: toys and play (for active play & physical development, imaginative play, and creative & constructive play), what to say, and getting along with other children.

Preschooler Development -- This article provides information on the following topics:  what to expect from preschoolers; preschoolers physical, social, emotional, and intellectual development; and activities to try with preschoolers.

Ages & Stages: 3-Year-Olds -- This fact sheet describes typical development for three-year-old children. Developmental milestones are listed for physical development, mental and language development, and social and emotional development.  Information on appropriate toys, books for children and parents, and ideas for parents are included.

Ages & Stages: 3-Year-Olds -- This ACES publication addresses the following topics: What's It Like To Be 3 Years Old?; What Your 3-Year-Old Wants You To Know; How Do 3-Year-Olds . . . Think and Learn, Grow Socially and Emotionally?; and Play Encourages Learning.

1-2-3 Grow! -- A series of newsletters for parents discussing parenting issues and child development for three-year-olds.  Topics include the following:  How Does Your Preschooler Grow?, The Importance of Play, Activities/Games/Toys, Choosing a Preschool, Food for Little Folks, Safety, Help Your Child Cope With Stress, Keeping Fit-Family Style, and Making Memories.    3 Years    3 Years 4 Months-3 Years 6 Months    3 1/2 Years-3 Years 9 Months    3 Years 9 Months-4 Years

Ages & Stages: 4-Year-Olds -- This fact sheet describes typical development for four-year-old children.  Developmental milestones are listed for physical development, mental development, and social and emotional development.  Information on appropriate toys, books for children and parents, and ideas for parents are included.

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Toys and Equipment -- Suggestions for choosing toys for infants through school-age children.

Tips on Toys -- Provides information about safe and developmentally appropriate toys from birth through 12 years.

Understanding Children: Toys -- Information on appropriate toys for children from infancy to age 12. Includes a list of recommended toys and toys to avoid for one-year-olds. Also addresses toy safety.

Toys -- Information on inexpensive and safe toys for babies.

Toys: Tools for Learning -- Information on how toys teach, tips on choosing toys, getting involved in your child's play, and what makes a good toy.

Household Items Make Great Toys -- Common household items that can be used as safe and stimulating toys.

Block Play: Building a Child's Mind -- This publication looks at the benefits of play with unit blocks. They are ideal for learning because they involve the child as a whole -- the way she moves her muscles, the way she discovers how different objects feel in her hands, the way she thinks about spaces and shapes, and the way she develops thoughts and interests of her own. Topics include toys that grow with your child, blocks help children learn, and blocks in the classroom.

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The Infant/Toddler Book Corner -- It's never too early to read to a child. This resource provides a list of books for infants and toddlers.

Start Early With Books -- Information on selecting books, the value of reading, and storytime from birth through school-age.

You Make the Difference: Ways to Get Your Child Ready for Reading -- Ways parents and caregivers can use the time between birth and 5 years of age to prepare a child for reading.

Helping Your Child Become a Reader - With Activities For Children From Infancy Through Age 6 -- This booklet offers pointers on how to build the language skills of young children, and includes a list of typical language accomplishments for different age groups, suggestions for books, and resources for children with reading problems or learning disabilities.  U.S. Department of Education.

Raise a Reader: Suggestions for Developing Reading Skills -- This publication provides suggestions on how parents can help their children become better readers at different stages of development (from birth to age 5+).

Help Your Children to Love Reading -- Some ways to interest children in books.

Tips for Parents: Creating Reading Readiness -- Looks at what you can do to get your child ready to read. Includes ages & stages information for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers.

Team Up With a Child–Read Aloud -- Provides information on the following: the benefits of reading aloud to children, how it affects the language skills of 2- and 3-year-olds, and how to make reading time more successful.

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Keys to Great Parenting: My Child is an Artist! The Stages of Artistic Development -- This article addresses artistic development in young children. It offers suggestions for parents on how to support this development through various activities and appropriate responses.

Keys to Great Parenting: Recipes for Artistic and Sensory Fun for 2- and 3-Year-Olds -- A list of recipes for playdoughs and fingerpaint.

Favorite Recipes for Art Materials -- A list of recipes for playdough, paints, paste, and bubbles.

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Working With Wood: Kids Can Do It -- This video addresses the following topics: How to get started, Wood activities for toddlers and up, and How to keep working with wood safe. Part of the Better Kid Care Series.

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Cooking With Children: Kids in the Kitchen -- This newsletter article provides ideas for age-appropriate activities using food. It includes a list of activities two-year-olds will enjoy. It also gives safety tips when doing cooking and food activities. A few recipes are included.

Tips for Parents:  Children in the Kitchen -- This publication provides tips for parents when they are working with kids in the kitchen.  Activity suggestions are provided for preschool, primary school-age, and middle school-age children.

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Music Appreciation: A Universal Language for All Ages -- This publication addresses the importance of exposure to music during the early years and how caregivers can play an important role in incorporating music and movement into a child’s life. Topics include music for infants and toddlers, music and movement, and making music.

Follow Me Too: A Handbook of Movement Activities for Three- to Five-Year-Olds -- Active movement games encourage cooperative learning, and teamwork. The book includes the research and theory behind using movement games in early childhood programs, 49 field-tested games, adaptations for responding to individual abilities and needs, a chart of perpetual-motor skills involved in each game, suggestions for parent involvement, and directions for making inexpensive equipment.

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FAMILY TIME SERIES -- A series of publications on activities parents can do with their two- and three-year-old and four- to six-year-old children during different seasons. Includes information on child development during this stage and different ways to spend time together as a family. Provides activities that explore the family, community, foods, plants and animals, crafts, and other fun things.

2- and 3-Year-Olds

Fall
Winter
Spring
Summer

4- to 6-Year-Olds

Fall
Winter
Spring
Summer

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Getting Along: Taming the TV -- This fact sheet discusses the effects of television viewing on young children. The author gives parents suggestions for using TV wisely with young children.  Topics include TV Facts, TV Violence, Parents Can Limit the Negative Effects of TV Violence, Take Control of the Remote, Who is Watching?, TV Should be a Choice, Not a Habit, Put TV in its Place, Talk Back to the TV, What About Music Videos and Talk Shows, Teach Children to Be TV Critics, and Speak Out.

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Educating and Caring for Very Young Children: The Infant/Toddler Curriculum -- Based on up-to-date research, this book is an essential tool for early childhood educators, administrators, parents, and all involved in the care and development of young children.

Toddler Curriculum: Making Connections -- This video examines how toddlers (12 to 36 months of age) develop and learn.  It depicts developmentally appropriate curriculum in the toddler classroom.

Better Kid Care Program: Tips and Ideas for Taking Care of Kids -- 101 ways to keep kids busy, activity ideas, snack ideas, etc. You can search for activities by age/stage of development, season, materials, and keyword.

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GOOD TIMES WITH CHILD CARE SERIES -- A guide to use when working with young children from infancy through school-age. The materials help child care providers learn how to care for children and give them suggestions that can help them grow and develop in the best way possible.

Good Times With Infants -- Play activities for infants.

Good Times With Toddlers -- This article addresses the following: What is Important to Learn About Toddlers?, Who are Toddlers?, Ages & Stages of Growth, and Learn By Doing (includes a list of recommended play ideas/activities for toddlers).

Good Times at Play -- This article looks at why play is important, kinds of play, how play helps children grow, ages and stages of play (infants through school-age), how adults can help children play, a list of suggested activities to help you learn more about children and play, and a chart of age-appropriate toys and activities.

Good Times With Toys -- This article addresses the following: What are Toys?, Why are Toys Important?, TV as a Toy for Children, Ages and Stages (infants through school-age)--including a list of appropriate toddler toys, and Learn By Doing (ways to help you learn more about selecting/making toys/play activities for children).

Good Times With Music and Rhythm -- This article looks at the role music plays throughout our lives. It addresses the benefits of music and why music and rhythm are important. It defines music and rhythm and looks at how adults can create musical fun for children from infancy through school-age. It also provides a list of ways adults can help children enjoy music and rhyme.

Good Times Being Creative -- This article gives caregivers information about the importance of creative experiences in young children's development. It includes ages and stages information about creativity in children at different ages, from birth through age 9. Suggestions are given for activities that will enhance children's creativity through art, music, and pretending, including recipes for finger paints and play doughs.

Good Times With Stories and Poems -- This article looks at why stories and poems are important, what constitutes stories and poems, choosing books for children, reading to children, and ages and stages (infants through school-age) -- includes information on age-appropriate books, recommended books (titles and authors), and tips for parents and caregivers.

Good Times at Parties -- This article provides information on planning age-appropriate parties for children (birth through school-age). Looks at the different needs/interests of each age group and how to plan a successful party.

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Birthday Parties for Children -- Information on how to plan birthday parties and activities that are fun and age-appropriate (birth to age 6).

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Ideas for Shopping with Your Baby -- Information on how babies react differently in grocery stores; how the grocery store can be a fun place to learn new things; how to keep your child occupied and happy; and how to keep your child safe in the grocery cart.  

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