Holiday travel is quickly approaching, and the thought of taking your energy-filled toddler on a plane or road trip can be daunting. Even all of the festivities, restaurant dinners, and parties at different homes can be exhausting–don’t you love pulling up to a relative’s home with your walking toddler, and seeing all the breakable heirlooms scattered around the house within arm’s reach?!
While we would all admit that it’s better for toddlers to run and play as opposed to looking at a screen, there are still times where there’s no shame in handing them your phone for a little bit of downtime. Which leads us to the next problem–what “games” is a young toddler even able to enjoy and pay attention to??
The truth is, most Apple and Google apps and games are more enjoyable for preschoolers and older, but there are a few cute and toddler-friendly apps out there that may be enjoyable for your little one and grab you a few minutes of quiet brought to you by Self Storage Junction City Kansas.
1. Peekabo Barn
This game has been around for several years, and it’s adorable, easy for toddlers to use, and never seems to get old for them. Once you’re playing the game, it involves a simple barn, with doors closed, and certain farm animal noises sounding from inside the barn. All your toddler has to do is touch somewhere on the screen for the barn door to open and a cute toddler voice will announce the farm animal that was behind the door.
Once your toddler has opened the barn door on all the animals, the next closed barn will have a myriad of animal noises and open to reveal the whole barnyard and all their noises. I know…this sounds lame. But trust me, young toddlers love it!
2. Nighty-Night
This is a super clever game that offers a bit more a mental challenge than the first one, and combines two things that toddlers love–animals and light switches. The game starts with a scene of a house and yard, with several lights on in different parts of the house. Click on the room, and you’ll see the animal that inhabits it, a lamp or light that’s on, and a switch to turn the light off.
Each switch is different, and when turned off, the animals do some cute noises and antics before settling down and closing their eyes. The lights can be turned back on and off again as many times as your toddler’s heart desires.
Once all the lights are turned off, the soothing British narrator will end the story with a video of the last person–a kid–turning off their light and going to sleep. And then…they can play it all over again! I think this was and is one of my toddlers’ favorite games to play.
3. Zoola Animals
This game isn’t much to look at, but the creators were probably parents who understood the fascination that young kids have with animals. In this game, there are different pages of animal types–farm, woods, ocean, etc.–and when your little one clicks on the picture of a certain animal, they will be led to full-size pictures (eight in all!) of the animals with different noises that they make.
This game is pretty easy for kids to use, and there are lots of picture and noise options for each animal. There are even sections for different kinds of dogs and cats, if your kid is obsessed with those.
4. Pat the Bunny
This is another adorable game that will be especially loved if your baby is familiar with the classic book. In this game, you can either “read” the book, which allows you to hear the story and the accomplish little tasks that go along with the story (very easy things that involve tapping the screen and similar motions), or you can “play” with the bunny and do things like pop bubbles, water flowers to help them grow, or eat a snack. It’s got beautiful colors, a quiet narrator, and lots of interest for little minds!
5. Toddler’s Seek and Find by Wonderkind
This is one of our favorites, and is a little bit like a seek-and-find book in digital form. In these scenes, toddlers can simply tap on one of the interesting things going on on a large page of a town, zoo, or farm. Tapping different parts of the picture will result in cute little things happening–the goose honking at the farmer’s wife, a dog catching toast out of the toaster, or the bus picking up passengers.
If you’re reading this articles, the chances are that you’re a parent, an involved aunt or uncle, or a very techy grandparent who need some tricks up your phone’s sleeve for when dinner goes long or the flight gets delayed. Hopefully these will be some fun diversions for your little one at those moments when the phone or iPad seems like the best option!
At Self Assured Storage, we are here to support your family in many ways–including what’s on your phone. When it comes to your home, we are ready to show you one of our clean, secure storage units that can be used to house outgrown baby gear or clothes, that exercise equipment that’s becoming a safety hazard, or the furniture you no longer need so you can make space for your family. Give us a call today to see how we can assist in making sure your house is a home!
