Play School with Jack~ Letter Dd

Play School for 1-Year-Old (12M) Jack

Week Four

Letter Dd

Letter-of-the-week box~ Letter Dd

This week's letter box was filled with dominoes, dinosaurs, a dolphin, an orange die, a duck, a picture of a dragonfly, cards (duck, doll, the letter D, the word "dog," donkey), and foam letter Ds.

Jack wasn't very interested in his Dd box this week with the exception of the dinosaurs. He loved playing with the little toy dinos!

He explored it on the first day, and maybe once during the week, but nothing except the dinosaurs grabbed his attention.

D is for dump your toys!

Music~

This week, we listened to Disneyland music. I searched YouTube for baby-friendly Disneyland music and found several playlists of Disney songs on piano (with usually a single image) and Disneyland music loops (again with a single image until the "land" or mood changed).

 

 Here are two, but there are many more available on YouTube. My goal was to immerse ourselves in Disneyland music (mostly instrumental) without  all the flashing images. While the music played, Jack typically played with his toys, crawled around, and practiced walking.

Other language activities~
 Throughout the week:

• I sang songs to Jack
• I talked with him during nursing sessions
• I talked with him during diaper changes and other caregiving activities
• I sang the alphabet song
• I counted stairs we descended or fruit pieces I served
• I used "math" language when serving halves and fourths of fruit pieces
• Jack said, "I done!" after eating breakfast one morning
• Jack practiced his babbling and baby talk
• We started a sign language "program" (very loosely), focusing on signs for "more," "banana," "grapes," and "milk." I practice them with him every day during meal time, only concerned with exposure, but he has signed back "more" a couple times!
We have been using Sign With Your Baby: How to Communicate With Infants Before They Can Speak .

Physical and sensory activities~

 Jack was fascinated with taking his foam letters out of this tub and putting them back.

 Watching rain fall outside.

 Playing with crayons.

  He loves grabbing Adyn's light-saber and standing with it. He walks well if he's holding one.

Jack enjoys climbing onto his little red rocking chair. Although I never help him up into it, he crawls onto it, stands, and sometimes rocks himself on it.

Take-Aways:
We had a very simple week. Jack is right at the precipice of being a full-fledged walking child, so it's been fun just watching him work his leg muscles and test his balance. I still do not assist him with walking or coax him into doing it. I trust that he will walk as he wishes on his own timetable.

We decided not to go on any field trips this week because we are saving for two very important D activities: Disneyland in December! 
Despite the more chill environment, I've enjoyed simply observing his independent play.