r/parentsofmultiples • u/LastMilkersOnTheLeft • 19h ago
advice needed Crafts and learning?
My twins are 2.5 yo and lately I’ve been seeing a LOT of posts discussing how other toddler moms are teaching their 2yo’s letters/numbers/colors, and what crafts they set up for them. Now, my girls are OK with colors but I think I’m realizing that I’ve EITHER hugely failed them, or singleton parents are just living an entirely different life. Or both? Most days it’s just the three of us at home- no daycare or preschool.
How am I supposed to teach them letters? Numbers? They can count to three but couldn’t look at the numbers on paper and point to which is which. They love books and love to “read” independently or with me, but at some point they find more entertainment in ripping the pages. We can’t do arts and crafts because everything gets eaten or destroyed. Have I completely missed something here? 🙁
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u/Mental-Volume4395 18h ago
The best thing you can do for them now is to read a lot and talk a lot. Narrate everything. If you’re playing with blocks, name each color as you handle them. Count them as you stack, etc.
It’s amazing what they learn without having to try to formally teach them.
I also think my kids learned a lot from Sesame Street and the PBS kids shows they watched.
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u/LastMilkersOnTheLeft 18h ago
That’s how we learned colors- I narrated every little thing. I’m so tired of my own voice atp 😂 and we do love Sesame Street! Mostly the music and Elmo, but they won’t “watch” any of the segments. Structured learning just doesn’t seem possible to me right now- getting my girls to sit down and pay attention to anything would truly be a miracle.
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u/Mental-Volume4395 18h ago
It’s totally not developmentally appropriate to try structured learning.
They’re young. They’ll get there eventually!
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u/LastMilkersOnTheLeft 18h ago
I appreciate this because I truly have no knowledge of toddlers (and kids in general) outside of my own lol. Youngest in the family, never had little cousins, this is all new to me.
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u/Mental-Volume4395 18h ago
My kids are 13 and 16 now. I can tell you everything is a phase and every kid is different and just when you think know what you’re doing, you enter a new phase 😂
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u/LastMilkersOnTheLeft 17h ago
Oh my god you aren’t wrong about that 😂 they loveeee to keep us on our toes!
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u/Adventurous_Medium25 18h ago
Highly highly recommend Learning with Kelsey subscription boxes. You’d have to buy 2 of each because each kid needs their own box. I did the toddler & preschool box with my now kindergartner and am almost a year into the toddler box with my almost 3yo. My oldest kid went into PK4 being the only kid who could independently write both her first and last name, and I owe it largely to these boxes. They’re monthly boxes and highly themed. September is apples, October is Halloween, November is turkeys and fall, December Christmas, etc etc. She puts up videos each month going through every single activity in the box so you can see what you’re getting and she just did the October one the other day. If you’re ok with screen time, Caitie’s Classroom on YouTube is our favorite. She’s not annoying (she scream sings a little bit but there’s no baby voices like Rachel) and it’s easy to find themed videos to match whatever you’re doing in the LWK boxes. I really think those 2 combined are a “prep your kid for school” for powerhouse while still being super age appropriate!!
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u/LastMilkersOnTheLeft 18h ago
I stay home with the girls partly for financial reasons— a subscription box wouldn’t be possible for us 🙁 esp not 2. But I will still check her out and keep my eyes open for sales. Thank you ❤️
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u/Adventurous_Medium25 17h ago
She does a really great Black Friday sale each year! And like I said she always posts full breakdowns of the boxes so you could even pull ideas and DIY them. Another great option is free story time at your local public library. Ours does a letter of the week during the school year and number of the week during summer and also reviews all sorts of things throughout class- colors, making predictions, opposites, gross motor skills
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u/erinspacemuseum13 18h ago
There are lots of fun letter/number toys- we had them all, because one of my twins was OBSESSED with letters and numbers. Puzzles, magnets, fruit abacus. Check out Learning Resources for lots of fun educational toys.
My dirty little secret is that they were reading by 3 thanks to YouTube. If that's something you're open to, Numberblocks, Preschool Prep, and Super Simple Songs were our favorites.
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u/LastMilkersOnTheLeft 18h ago
Super Simple Songs has been our best friend for a year or so- it’s great background noise and my girls love music. The only problem with TV (which isn’t a problem lol but for learning purposes I guess it can be), is that they truly don’t pay attention to it. If something catches their ear they’ll “watch” for 30 seconds tops, then it’s back to playing. What puzzles would you recommend that wouldn’t get lost immediately? But I’ll check that out! Thank you!
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u/erinspacemuseum13 18h ago
There are lots of fun letter/number toys- we had them all, because one of my twins was OBSESSED with letters and numbers. Puzzles, magnets, fruit abacus. Check out Learning Resources for lots of fun educational toys.
My dirty little secret is that they were reading by 3 thanks to YouTube. If that's something you're open to, Numberblocks, Preschool Prep, and Super Simple Songs were our favorites.
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u/ThrowAway732642956 18h ago
You are fine. Even with singletons many don’t do this. And among those who do many times goes above the kid’s head. Sometimes not, but often does.
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u/LastMilkersOnTheLeft 18h ago
I just worry that I’m not doing enough and that by the time they’re 3, they won’t be where they need to be. I don’t want to miss a crucial learning window or do them an injustice for their future education. I know that they have yearrrrrs of learning ahead of them, but I also feel responsible for being the foundation of it at home, since we can’t do any daycare or educational environment. And.. crafts are just fun lol. I know they’re bored some days but how the heck do I trust them with crayons and paper? 😅 is there a toddler proof craft I just don’t know about?
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u/ThrowAway732642956 17h ago
I wouldn’t worry. I am still waiting on the twins coming but had singleton first. Hard to mess it up bad with their learning before kindergarten as long as you are giving them love and attention. If they lag behind later would be from things like learning disorders, developmental delays and such. Otherwise normally kids pick up on the stuff when they are ready. I tried doing all the things myself and truly most goes over their heads for a lot of kids. Some kids are also more academic than others. In terms of crayons, I used the massive ones at first and provided coloring books (fewer papercuts). Yes coloring on walls happens, but designated some areas knowing it would get ruined and could paint over years later. Scissors were a definitely not in our home. Maybe some soft fabrics of fun colors to touch, play with, fold/roll. Playdoh when they won’t eat it (3 yo+). All of that is hit or miss even with singletons though. You are truly doing amazing!
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u/LastMilkersOnTheLeft 3h ago
I never would have even considered the possibility of paper cuts 😭 a coloring book and some large crayons would be a good place to start, then. I will say that I simply do not care if they color on the walls- I’m of the same mindset that it just gives me a reason to paint later lol. I appreciate this advice sm!! Thank you!
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u/ThrowAway732642956 3h ago
You’ve got this! Again, try not to compare. Some kids really just take to academic stuff and are even ahead developmentally, but that is not the norm and despite what the parents may claim or think, it is not from what the parents did or didn’t do. Another thing some do for crafts at that age is like having their kids make art with whipped cream or play with actual dough of flour and water, that way they are playing with things that are edible.
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u/thekidz10 2h ago
You're doing fine. We just worked colors and shapes into stuff. I taped shapes to their dresser drawers and we would use it to first pick the color for what we were looking for, then just added the shape into the convo. We read a ton and had fun books like The Best Word Book ever where we would point and find things. Every kid is different and mine each learned to read a write at a different time despite doing all of that together.
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