Spring: when nature awakens, so do children’s senses!
What activities can you enjoy with your baby or toddler? How can you encourage your child’s sensory development during this season of discovery?
The days are getting longer, the trees are blooming, the birds are singing again, the temperatures are milder… Spring brings nature back to life. It’s a time of renewal, symbolically associated with youth. For many, it’s synonymous with cheerfulness (the effect of light on morale is well proven!), joy and gladness. What happiness! Not to mention school vacations, public holidays and even bridges to make the most of the season.
What are the advantages of the season for young children? In this article, we give you some piece of advice.
Don’t hesitate: get out and enjoy the fresh air and light!
Ideal weather for walks
The fine weather is back, even if it’s still often rainy and windy. This milder but still temperate and varied weather is the ideal time to turn off the screens and enjoy the rebirth of nature. And we can’t stress this enough: children need to get out every day to exercise, develop their motor skills, discover new horizons and grow up well. Relax and enjoy together!
Rediscover gardens, public parks and forests through your different senses:
Sight. First of all, help your child to observe nature: the first flowers of the year (daffodils, primroses, snowdrops), the buds in full bloom, the grass so green, the shadows that appear thanks to the sun, the butterflies flying, the birds back in the sky or on the branches of the trees….
Hearing. Draw your child’s attention to sounds, especially the different bird songs.
Smell. Invite them to smell the odors of the season: humidity, the scent of flowers…
Taste. Weather permitting, organize an outdoor picnic using seasonal produce (see below).
Touch. Especially if the weather is fine, let your child touch different natural materials with his hands and feet: grass and leaves, water, stones and pebbles, sand… You can even create a sensory trail by placing these elements one after the other on the ground. Name the different sensations: what’s soft, what’s scratchy, what’s wet…
For older children, it’s treasure-hunting season with the Easter egg hunt! Hide small objects, games and treats adapted to your child’s age. It’s a great way to enjoy the great outdoors, develop curiosity and observation skills and have fun at the same time.
And don’t hesitate to visit an educational farm. There’s nothing like spending time with animals and discovering new sensations, sounds and smells!
What about gardening with your child?
A vegetable garden is a wonderful discovery tool for children. Gardening with your child is an opportunity to learn through a wide range of activities: touching the soil (and perhaps seeing an earthworm or other small animal!), planting, watering, picking, cutting, cleaning, caring… and, above all, observing so as to become aware of the time it takes for a plant to grow and produce what we eat.
Rest assured, you don’t need a large plot of land for this: a pot or window box is all you need to plant cherry tomatoes or aromatic herbs on your balcony or terrace.
Of course, if you have more space, you can sow seeds for a flowerbed, or plant larger plants… or even a shrub!
Books with pretty stories are a welcome accompaniment to learning about the growth of plants, flowers, fruit and vegetables.
Time for spring cleaning!
Why not get your child involved? Once again, don’t forget that it’s all about having fun. So make cleaning and tidying up a family moment of fun.
Accompany your child in learning simple gestures: putting clothes in the right place and in the laundry basket when they’re dirty, putting away shoes, putting food in the fridge, setting and clearing the table, tidying up the play corner…
It’s time to eat! Feeding your child in spring
A new season means new flavors. And when spring arrives, our taste buds are in for a treat!
New fruits make their appearance: apples, oranges, lemons, mandarins, bananas and winter kiwis are gradually joined by strawberries, raspberries, cherries, apricots, nectarines… From tangy bursts to sweet treats, your child will assert his or her taste from discovery to discovery.
Vegetables are not to be outdone, and this is the time for your child to learn to appreciate them, or at least to taste them, especially as they are the key to a balanced diet: carrots, leeks, peas, cucumbers… For the more daring, dare to experiment with more assertive flavors: asparagus, beet, spinach…
And don’t forget to garnish your dishes with aromatic herbs such as mint, parsley, chives or thyme. You can also invite your children to cook with you.
What can I do with my children if the weather isn’t fine?
It’s not summer yet, so the weather can be fickle.
But don’t worry, you can still have fun with your family!
“The fête de la musique” closes the season, but don’t wait until June 21 to listen to a variety of melodies to develop your child’s musical ear, sing nursery rhymes to enrich their vocabulary, and have your child play with small instruments to develop their fine motor skills….
Read pretty stories, look at beautiful drawings and photos together.
A large sheet of white paper and colored markers will help your child learn to draw and hold a pen.
For older children, this is also the time to bring out the first board games, so that your child can gradually learn the essential rules while having fun: taking turns, being patient, learning to win and lose…
You can also take the opportunity to introduce your child to museums or heritage sites (castles, places of worship, etc.). A remarkable building, a sculpture, a painting: a short visit will gently introduce them to beauty, art and culture, but also to history, and open them up even more to the riches of the world.
And so we conclude our journey through the 4 seasons!
Here you’ll find our tips for the other seasons: summer, autumn, winter