Activities for 3-4 year olds
Where to start - advice for 3-4 year olds
Tools for Talking 3-4 years: Talking about past and future
Help grow your child's language skills and understanding of the world by introducing them to talk about the past and future.
Not sure what activity to try?
Answer a few question and we'll pick out an idea to try with your little one.
How does talking about the past help children's language skills?
Dr Saloni Krishnan helps a parent explore the effect that talking about past events has on her child's language skills.
Practising talking in different tenses
Planning adventures with teddy
Use toys to help create a future adventure with your child.
Talking about the past
Encouraging your child to talk about past events will help them think beyond the present moment.
Play the tomorrow game
The Tomorrow Game is a simple way to encourage talking about the future.
Play memory games
Why memory games based on your everyday activities are a brilliant way to learn.
Fun activities to boost language development
Retelling stories together
Help your child practice the important skill of retelling stories with our easy and fun activity.
Building towers against the clock
Try this fun building game with your 3-year-old to test their patience and resilience but also have fun.
Playing Teddy says together
Teddy says is a fun game, which is great for developing listening, attention and memory skills.
Games with a ball
When toddlers play with balls, it can help them master individual gross-motor skills and social skills too.
Cooking together with your child
Cook with your child to develop coordination and counting skills, boost their confidence and encourage adventurous eating.
What's in the sensory bag?
This activity is a fun twist on 'what's in the bag' using different textured objects.
The iceberg game
This game combines pretend play and ball games to create a fun, learning experience for young children and pre-schoolers.
Games to help emotional development
Exploring feelings using dance and play
Find out how you can use dance to get children talking about their feelings
Talking about feelings with toys
In this game your child can get to know their teddy a bit more as your questions bring them to life.
Let's play make believe
Use pretend play to boost your child's imagination and their conversation.
Chatting at any time of day
What can we spot on the way?
Playing I Spy on walks is a great learning and talking experience for your child.
Take time to chat
Encourage your child to talk imaginatively about their day.
Sleepy time games
Playing sleepy time games can develop their attention and help them to wind down at the end of the day.
Dressing for the weather
Encourage your child to talk about the weather and choose what they will wear.
Colour theme your day
Plan a colour-themed day to help build your child's vocabulary.
Sorting clothes together
Sorting out clothes together encourages your child to talk about different textures, colours, and fabrics.
Getting ready for the day
Getting ready with your child is a great way to encourage them to form longer descriptive sentences.
Take a bus trip
Why a bus trip is full of exciting opportunities for your child to chat.
Playtime games
Can you remember?
Turn a selection of household items into a fun memory activity.
Matching halves
Matching halves is a fun way of learning about things that are the same or different.
Have a kids' dance party
Play music and limber up for dancing games like musical bumps and musical statues.
Have fun learning opposites
How chatting about the opposites of words or situations can help your child learn.
Cosy corner
Build a cosy corner for their imagination to run free.
Getting crafty
What can this box be?
How sorting recycling can be turned into a fun activity for your child.
Finger painting
Finger painting is great, messy fun and a chance to talk about the different colours and objects they're drawing.
Making shakers
Simple shakers help children learn about rhythm.
Drawing and creative play
Creative activities with your child build their language.
Building people from recycling
Have a go at building scrap people and explore your child's imagination together.
