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Play with a Tray!

February 17, 2013 by Kate 19 Comments


This is a very basic idea that you can do with babies that is also educational.
It is simply a cupcake tray with a few small and interesting items. 


I have included items such as – 
* baby socks
* teething rings
* blocks

The good news is that babies are not very fussy when it come to things to play with. 
As long as they are safe and receiving constant supervision then not much can go wrong. 


Here is my little girl, Possum. 
When I gave her my tray of objects her face lit up like Christmas! 

Possum began removing all the objects from the tray and then replacing them again. 
I also watched her remove all the objects but start moving some of them from one cupcake ‘hole’ to another. She did this for several minutes. 


Possum also found the tray itself very interesting, especially when she was laying on her back. 
She loved poking each cupcake space and using her finger to circle each shape.


The tray upside-down created a different surface for her to place her objects. 


There is lots of learning that is taking place when I a child does this activity. 
To name just a few … 

Spatial recognition
Spatial recognition is a baby learning how they are positioned in space and this activity helps develop their understanding by teaching them about their limbs and how their actions can cause changes in their environment. 

Colour differentiation
This obviously depends on the objects you use, however, if you select a variety of objects of different colours they can begin to recognise this and work towards later categorising. 

Transferring of Objects
Perfect way to teach children about moving objects through space and what is also called object permanence, being that it will not move once it is no longer touched. 

Weight
By using a variety of objects children are learning about how some objects are heavier than others. 

_________________________

I hope your little one enjoys this activity.
Please feel free to comment below and follow me via another mode of social media. 
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Kate

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Comments

  1. Happy Whimsical Hearts says

    February 19, 2013 at 3:08 am

    Very cute pictures and a easy to do fun activity! It is great to see ideas for things we have around the house, and just using the differently 🙂

    Reply
    • Kate Lloyd says

      February 25, 2013 at 2:58 am

      So simple, fun and easy to do. That is me! hahaha

      Reply
  2. Rez P says

    February 19, 2013 at 3:14 am

    Trays are so fun to explore.
    I love that you added a sock to the mix 🙂
    shows that babies dont need all the fantastic plastic gizmo’s on the shelf these days.

    Reply
    • Kate Lloyd says

      February 25, 2013 at 2:58 am

      Exactly Rez!!! 🙂

      Reply
  3. Jana from HowToRunAHomeDaycare says

    February 21, 2013 at 2:25 am

    Great idea, I’ve never given a muffin tin to a baby but I will now! Thanks for the inspiration. I love your daughter’s eyes in the photo when she gets the tin!

    Reply
    • Kate Lloyd says

      February 25, 2013 at 3:00 am

      Possum has the most sensational eyes and never misses a trick. She loves playing with her play tray. Thanks for your comment.

      Reply
  4. Jackie(My Little Bookcase) says

    February 21, 2013 at 10:53 am

    Simple but lots of opportunity for learning.

    Reply
    • Kate Lloyd says

      February 25, 2013 at 3:00 am

      Exactly Jackie. Thanks for commenting.

      Reply
  5. Danya Banya says

    February 21, 2013 at 9:38 pm

    I’ve got a little one coming up to this stage, so will definitely try this out. The simple ideas are the best aren’t they 🙂

    Reply
    • Kate Lloyd says

      February 25, 2013 at 3:00 am

      I’m all for simple and so this is great!!!

      Reply
  6. Jodie Clarke says

    February 22, 2013 at 10:54 am

    I love your pics!! We use trays a lot here…i love the simplicity and fun opportunities for learning!!x

    Reply
    • Kate Lloyd says

      February 25, 2013 at 3:01 am

      That’s great Jodie. Trays are the best.

      Reply
  7. Caz says

    February 23, 2013 at 9:43 am

    Oh my, Possum is absolutely adorable! Loved your photos, what a great set up for play and investigation.

    Reply
    • Kate Lloyd says

      February 25, 2013 at 2:57 am

      Thank you so much Caz! My little Possum is adorable and I love her so much. She really loved playing with her tray and I like that I can change it daily! 🙂

      Reply
  8. Carly says

    September 24, 2013 at 2:13 am

    Great idea! Love the simplicity !
    Have a great week!
    xoxo Carly

    Reply
  9. nursery rhymes says

    October 31, 2017 at 5:45 pm

    Good blog. Lots of great information and inspiration, both of which we all need. Thanks.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Baby Play Ideas | Octavia and Vicky says:
    February 3, 2014 at 5:46 pm

    […] Play with a Tray […]

    Reply
  2. 13 Best Baby Sensory Activities | My Moms Geeky says:
    January 11, 2015 at 8:41 am

    […] Play With A Tray […]

    Reply
  3. Sensory baby play activity using a muffin tin - Laughing Kids Learn says:
    July 13, 2015 at 10:14 am

    […] hope you’re enjoying them as much as I am sharing them with you. Of course you might remember me doing this activity with Possum (now 3.5 years) when she was a similar age. It’s such a great way to engage your baby in play […]

    Reply

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Welcome
Hello and welcome!
My name is Kate and I am a mum to two little girls, Possum and Boo. We have lots of fun together learning with play at home and are pleased to share some of what we do with you.
Read my about page to find out more.

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