Being a mommy to little boys...

[plain jane]

this isn't my strong suit. :o I love babies. I can do the baby thing and am quite happy about it but once they reach about 2 is when I start, well, not knowing exactly what to do.

 

So, I have a almost 3yo and almost 5yo who need some structured time during the day and I'm always out of ideas as to what to do with them. :confused: This shouldn't be that hard, should it?

 

They don't like playdough. Even if I can get them to play with it (which they will sometimes) they end up making a mess and mixing all the colors and then letting it all dry out and I'm left wondering why I wanted them to play with it in the first place. :001_huh:

 

Coloring? Nope. Not gonna happen. Finger paints- sometimes. Bubbles (as in a bowl of bubbles on the floor with spoons etc) is a popular activity but I don't do that often as the novelty will wear out.

 

Scissors? Well the 4yo can do this but not so much the 2yo.

 

I try to do bowling with them with plastic cups but things get crazy and out of control & I don't like crazy and out of control much. :tongue_smilie:

 

I've looked at others' tot-school blogs with tweezers and pom-poms and crafts and wonder how the heck they get their kids to sit and do those things? :lol: I gave the 2yo 6 different kinds of beans in a bowl once and told him to sort them out into different plates. There were a lot of beans. Well, he got done in less than 5 min. The stinker sorted out 5 of the different kinds of beans, left the 6th kind in and when those were all that were left, poured them onto the plate. Sigh. He's a thinker, that's for sure. Oh, and a doer. I crazy, rambunctious doer.

 

They both know colors and letters. Dislike painting, let alone mixing colors. I don't know what to do with them. :willy_nilly: They do dress up and play kitchen on their own. We cut plastic food but I dunno, something is missing. I can't consider day care or preschool at this point because, well it would be too stressful for me to be driving kids all over the place. We do lacing and beads and while they tolerate it, this only lasts for 5 minutes and usually takes me longer to set out/clean up.

 

Help. What do I do with these boys?

Edited March 29, 2011 by plain jane

[Jen500]

Here are some ideas from things my boys enjoyed -

 

Wooden trains and lots of track

marble run

Lego

lincoln logs

playmobil boats and pirates

boxes- lots of sizes

hide and seek

making forts with card tables/blankets/couch cushions :tongue_smilie:

[Sophie]

one word: LEGO!

[Julie Smith]

Mine are older, almost 5 and 6 1/2.

 

Outside time, and lots of under-supervised time. ;) as in I'm watching out, but not being the center of attention, or the leader/coordinator of the game.

 

In summer we would go to the park for hours and visit with the other adults while the kids ran about. Long walks exploring woods, creaks, ...

 

I would also make a new 'setup' for the boys for them to play with. Perhaps put some mattresses on the floor and a low dresser or something for them to jump off onto the mattresses.

 

Our old house had a nice wide open stair case, it was the same width of a twin mattress. So I would put the twin mattresses on the stairs. Throw down all the blankets and pillows to the bottom of the stairs - and ta-da a padded indoor slide. (For awhile we had a what was very close to a padded room for them to play in)

 

We use to have a small back yard. The boys got shovels and a area to muck around in. A private mud/sand/goo pile - followed by playing in the hose. (ie. Getting clean)

 

Neither of my boys would happily spend much time at all coloring, or doing crafts, or any of those sort of things.

 

Wrestling. I use to wrestle with my boys alot. Now my eldest is getting a bit to wild for that.

[linders]

I have 2 boys. The first was good with the playdough/coloring/puppets thing when he was your kids' ages. The second, not so much. He liked movement, action, mess (still does). He would do more sedate acvtivities only if he got enough exercise. You may need to get used to that.

 

What did he like to do (and big brother, also)?

 

1. Dig holes outside. Fill with water. Build canals, add junk, get muddy.

2. Run and climb. We spent a lot of time at the park, all kinds of weather.

3. Ride scooters, trikes, the faster the better.

4. Have very boisterous battles with stuffed animals and action figures.

 

They have years ahead to be quieter (my younger now loves to spend hours reading), but this is a time to release all that boy energy!

[Dawn in OH]

Here are some ideas from things my boys enjoyed -

 

Wooden trains and lots of track

marble run

Lego

lincoln logs

playmobil boats and pirates

boxes- lots of sizes

hide and seek

making forts with card tables/blankets/couch cushions :tongue_smilie:

 

This. You could also buy or make some capes. All my boys like to be super heroes. They also like to be knights. Have you considered some sword and shield play sets? Stick horses?

 

I've also considered one of those mini indoor trampolines, a giant ball you sit on and bounce, and anything else physically active you can think of. They want to climb, jump and bounce. I should probably mention, that if they aren't doing it already, they will add their own soundtrack to any and all activities.

Edited March 29, 2011 by Dawn in OH
dumb typo

[Plucky]

Lots of outdoor stuff at this age, heck at all boy ages. Go to the park, ride bikes, walk, run, play tag, run jump, laugh, etc. I love, love, love boys, not as much at those ages, but you wait as they get older. They are so much fun!

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

My boys were exactly like that with the playdoh, scissors, etc. They didn't want to do anything remotely crafty or even color with crayons. Now that they are 6.5 and 8, they like to draw, make comic books, play with action figures, etc. I will play board games with them, help them ride their bikes, play catch, soccer, etc. When they are little like yours, I would just keep periodically introducing things to them, and let them find what they like. One thing both of them did like, was shaving cream on the table. I would take off their shirts, squirt some on the table, and let them have at it. It washed up quite nicely.

[Retired]

Here are some ideas from things my boys enjoyed -

 

Wooden trains and lots of track

marble run

Lego

lincoln logs

playmobil boats and pirates

boxes- lots of sizes

hide and seek

making forts with card tables/blankets/couch cushions :tongue_smilie:

 

Mine are older, almost 5 and 6 1/2.

 

Outside time, and lots of under-supervised time. ;) as in I'm watching out, but not being the center of attention, or the leader/coordinator of the game.

 

In summer we would go to the park for hours and visit with the other adults while the kids ran about. Long walks exploring woods, creaks, ...

 

I would also make a new 'setup' for the boys for them to play with. Perhaps put some mattresses on the floor and a low dresser or something for them to jump off onto the mattresses.

 

Our old house had a nice wide open stair case, it was the same width of a twin mattress. So I would put the twin mattresses on the stairs. Throw down all the blankets and pillows to the bottom of the stairs - and ta-da a padded indoor slide. (For awhile we had a what was very close to a padded room for them to play in)

 

We use to have a small back yard. The boys got shovels and a area to muck around in. A private mud/sand/goo pile - followed by playing in the hose. (ie. Getting clean)

 

Neither of my boys would happily spend much time at all coloring, or doing crafts, or any of those sort of things.

 

Wrestling. I use to wrestle with my boys alot. Now my eldest is getting a bit to wild for that.

 

I have 2 boys. The first was good with the playdough/coloring/puppets thing when he was your kids' ages. The second, not so much. He liked movement, action, mess (still does). He would do more sedate activities only if he got enough exercise. You may need to get used to that.

 

What did he like to do (and big brother, also)?

 

1. Dig holes outside. Fill with water. Build canals, add junk, get muddy.

2. Run and climb. We spent a lot of time at the park, all kinds of weather.

3. Ride scooters, trikes, the faster the better.

4. Have very boisterous battles with stuffed animals and action figures.

 

They have years ahead to be quieter (my younger now loves to spend hours reading), but this is a time to release all that boy energy!

 

My Boys are teens now and we did all of the above. I loved having boys and getting dirty with them. They still talk about me helping them make hot wheel car tracts in the dirt with them:D I use to make forts with blankets and couch cushions with them. Well just the other day they were talking about that and decide to recreate there childhood:tongue_smilie: They made a fort and they are 17 and 14.

 

But it sound like you want more structured learning time. You need to be creative like letter learning my boys practice in the dirt. We did colors at the playground. We did read aloud out side on the carport while they road their tricycle in circles. I know I could never learn that way but my boys excelled with memorization and learning while moving:D

 

Be patient they will grow in to more structured learning. My oldest did attend a k-4 and well I still have the notes from the teacher about his misbehavior:D Boys want to touch, explore, and sometime destroy things while learning how something works.

[MamaT]

Here are some ideas from things my boys enjoyed -

 

Wooden trains and lots of track

marble run

Lego

lincoln logs

playmobil boats and pirates

boxes- lots of sizes

hide and seek

making forts with card tables/blankets/couch cushions :tongue_smilie:

 

This was our inside list when my boys were small. They also had a dress-up box and loved, loved capes.

 

Most of the time, we played outside. They had a fort/swingset with a sandbox underneath and they would play on that for a long time. I would also give them sand toys and a bucket with plastic bottles of different colored liquids (water and food color). They would make "potions" for hours.

 

I miss my boys being little. Thank goodness I will have my first grandson in August! Woo-hoo!!!

[coffeegal]

When I tried to introduce play dough to my oldest 2 it was a fiasco. They sat, watched me, and ate the play dough. :tongue_smilie: We had better luck with forts, duplos (little guys), legos, Thomas the Tank Engine, cars, blocks, big tractors & trucks with lots of dirt, and plenty of time at the park. :D

[Rivka]

Are they bored and getting in your hair, or do you just think they should be doing some kind of parent-directed activity?

 

My 2yo plays with toy cars and little animals, cuts paper into tiny bits, digs in the garden, pushes his toy shopping cart and stroller around, follows his sister around getting in her way, and looks through books or brings them to me to read. When given crayons he prefers to peel and break them, but he'll scribble a little with markers. He likes painting but rarely gets the chance - same with waterplay in the sink. (Maybe once the weather warms up.)

 

I hardly ever try to get him to do An Activity. The organized "tot school" things are so not my style. If I'm doing something one-on-one with him it's usually reading, singing, fingerplays, cuddling, or rough-housing.

[nono]

Trains.

 

Nerf guns.

 

Oh and nerf darts. Mechanical golf games.

 

Contests and races. (The odder the better! :) )

[NanceXToo]

Water play- bring a tote or something of water outside, give them various size containers and cups and funnels and just sit there with a book and let them do their thing, emptying things from one container to another and so on.

 

Chalk, outside on the sidewalk/patio, etc.

 

K'nex, Lincoln Logs, Legos, Pattern blocks, building blocks and so on.

 

Preschool/K/educational computer games. My son loves computer games.

 

Board games. Play board games with them. Some of the Dr. Seuss ones are fun. At 4 and 5 my son likes the Dr. Seuss games, Perfection, Connect 4, the card game "War," Hungry Hungry Hippos, Chutes and Ladders, Candyland, Hi-Ho Cherry-O and o on.

 

TV- hey, sometimes you just need to put on a video or show and catch a break lol.

 

Hole punching. My son doesn't necessarily want to cut with scissors but give him a pile of paper and a one hole punch and he's in heaven.

 

Go for nature walks and let them each collect things, then put them into some sort of tank or display table or whatever.

 

Put on some kid's music and do fingerplays, or make up dances, play dress up, etc.

 

Let them help around the house- folding dishtowels, baking something, etc.

 

Play conversational games with them- ones where they have to follow directions, or I spy, or ones where you talk about left and right, opposites, rhymes, etc.

 

These are the kinds of things my son's "preschool" year is consisting of (he's 5 and also not usually into arts and crafts type stuff or coloring or painting or any of that, and it's also iffy as to whether he'll let me read to him).

[musicianmom]

From following the OP's other posts, my guess is that she is looking for ideas for the boys to do while she is teaching older students.

[BarbecueMom]

We have a 33-month-old and an 18-month old. Legos, Lincoln Logs, Play Doh, and marbles are out, due to the choking hazard (both kids have oral fixations and everything goes in their mouths, even cat food!). The weather sucks too much for outdoor play (seriously, we went from flying kites, to 4 inches of snow, to 81 degrees, back to six inches of snow in ten days!). Toys seem to be turned into projectiles lately. Forts don't seem to work either... they pull the blanket down every. single. time. The older boy likes to play in the sink, but the younger one has yet to stand on a chair more than 5 seconds without testing gravity.

 

That being said, some of the things that do entertain them (safely):

 

Running around the house naked

Sitting in an empty shower/tub with the detachable shower head and cups

Tickle fests/roughhousing

"Folding" laundry (especially diapers and dish towels/socks)

Wiping stuff on the wall (whipped cream, sour cream... whatever, if it wipes off!)

Ripping up junk mail

Emptying the bookcase and sitting in the pile of books "reading"

Building big Mega Blocks towers and throwing them over the gate, down the stairs

Nerf guns and stomp rockets

Covering the floor in newspaper and giving them wet paint or pastry brushes to "paint" with (it ends up on the walls, tables, etc.. but it's just water)

Bowling with round fruit (usually oranges) and plastic cups

 

Rather than creating damage-free activities, I just try to minimize the amount (and severity) of damage. It takes me at least 30 minutes to clean up at nap time and about 15 minutes in the evening. I try very hard to overlook the mess beyond those clean-up times.

 

Two is a rough age. I'm sure by the time mine are out of toddlerhood, I'll have forgotten how hard it was to come up with things they could do without hurting themselves or creating permanent damage. :001_smile:

[mooooom]

and keep in mind this was in the winter up North

 

I would use masking tape to mark up the floor for hopscotch, 4 square and other games that you can play in the driveway w/ chalk in the summer. If you remove the tape before a week, it comes right up, but leave it on much longer and it doesn't.

[EmmaNZ]

Have you thought about letting them play with 'real' things? My almost 3 year old boy will play for hours (literally) in the kitchen 'cooking'. He uses all my real utensils, and even puts them on the hob or in the oven (switched off of course). Ditto the hoover, cleaning stuff (with a spray bottle filled with water) etc.

 

I also second the outdoor stuff - digging holes, mudpies, scooters, skateboards, park.

[Snickerdoodle]

Action and mess..

 

outdoor stuff - digging holes, mudpies, scooters, skateboards, park.

 

I couldn't agree more.

[Blossom'sGirl]

My boys all like to play with makeshift ball rollers. We would find pipes, old gutters, blocks, whatever and they could spend hours making different set-ups. We also own marble runs, but I have always liked our made up ones better. In fact, for Christmas this year we went to Home Depot and got our youngest a whole bunch of 3/4" PVC pipe and cut it into about 2' sections. We added a bunch of connections, some velcro zip ties, duct tape and put it all in a flat tote labeled as his invention box. We did this out of necessity because with 3 older brothers, we own tons of legos, match box cars, wooden trains, and so forth.

[Rosie_0801]

They don't like playdough. Even if I can get them to play with it (which they will sometimes) they end up making a mess and mixing all the colors and then letting it all dry out and I'm left wondering why I wanted them to play with it in the first place. :001_huh:

 

My kids (girl and boy) don't do that, but that's because they only get one colour, and that's peanut butter colour. I don't know if it dries out because they eat it: equal portions of smooth peanut butter and milk powder or cornstarch.

 

As to the rest, aren't you doing enough if you let them sit in the middle of dirt or grass in the back yard?

 

:001_huh:

Rosie

[Nestof3]

I have all boys. I didn't think I would know what to do with boys. The play kitchen, food and dishes were faves. It's funny because I actually got rid of the kitchen as they got older (along with the stuff), but I ended up buying the dishes again with some play food because they STILL play with it.

 

Other favorites:

 

Magnadoodle -- big hit

 

audio books (books with tapes or CDs). Nathan spent HOURS listening to books while reading along.

 

Farm with plastic animals and fences (fences are a must) -- oh, and trees

 

Duplo

 

Thomas trains

 

blocks

 

wooden puzzles and floor puzzles (alphabet, geography, planets, animals, etc.)

 

oh -- those kits with pattern blocks and little laminated sheets that show you where to put shapes to make things. Ben LOVED that.

 

counting bears (we've used them for everything but counting)

 

puppet show (I bought a hanging one on Ebay that hangs on a tension rod. I set it up in a doorway.)

 

Crayola Model Magic is a nice alternative to Play-doh. I buy it when it's half price at A C Moore or Michaels.

 

FWIW, I didn't think of schooling at this age. I just read to them and surrounded them with learning tools.

 

Oh, and my boys have always liked toys that were more typically female -- like kitchen and cash registers. I didn't assign gender to toys. I will admit that they were always great about entertaining themselves.

[annlaura]

For me, if the boys want to mix the playdough colors or otherwise ruin them, I let them. Making more is easy enough, and it's pretty cheap to buy. The latest playdough play here involves dry spaghetti noodles. Tons of fun, but any playdough used has to get thrown out. But hey, it buys me time. After I sent my mom a picture of the head to toe sticker scene which greeted me after my attempt at a quick shower today, she suggested I play cowboy with them and lasso them for next time. ;)

[Old Dominion Heather]

Some ideas:

 

Capes. nuf' said.

Matchbox cars and a car ramp made out of whatever you have.

Dirt, shovels, big dump trucks.

boats and lots of towels to clean up the mess.

blocks. (my guys used to make tracks for their matchbox cars.)

legos, real ones, not duplo as soon as the little guy won't put them in his mouth.

light sabers and costumes

lightweight blanket to make a tent.

Those little Matchbox (or Hot Wheels) Monster Trucks, the more the better. They can make obstacle courses out of the blocks.

trains of chairs (lay the chairs down end to end and make a train) place stuffed animals (or trucks) on train

wooden train set and lots of engines. Don't bother much about the train cars.

balloons to bat around

bean bags with a game

pull out the sofa and let them hide back there.

let them play spies and see if they can sneak around without being seen

hide and seek

 

 

Boys are SO much fun. Just don't try to make them be still and quiet.

[Jilly]

Wrestling. I use to wrestle with my boys alot. Now my eldest is getting a bit to wild for that.

 

:iagree:Wrestling, or rough housing, is a favorite at our house. When they were younger I would wrestle with them (and I was quite good, thanks to growing up with four brothers) until they were completely out of energy. Now that they are older, they rough house on their own. I keep wondering if they will ever tire of it.

[coffeegal]

counting bears (we've used them for everything but counting)

 

 

:lol: I forgot! My 8 yo still lines up the teddy bears almost everyday to play with them, along with the linking cubes. I'm going to have to rebuy these for my little ones because so many have been lost in the house. A learning store near the house has dinosaur counters as well.

[Lucy the Valiant]

I have a 5yo boy (3rd child) who LOVES to do "chores."

 

Our town has mandatory recycling; he sorts our recycling (and totes it all WAYYYY down to the bin in an intentinally-far location). :) He loves knowing that he is responsible to help our family this way, and - it is his chore.

 

He also LOVES to fetch the mail for me - we're rural, and it's a bit of a hike to the road where the box is.

 

Daddy helps by giving him lists of "cool man things" to do (you know, the lists I write out at night after said 5yo is in bed, LOL). :D

[jenniferlee]

I haven't read the replies, so maybe this has been gone over, but my two little boys have played with playmobil for hours EVERY DAY for the past 2 years. Since they were 3 and 4 and are now almost 5 and 6. Yes, there have been fights and drama over lost pieces, but I just cannot believe how much it has occupied them.

Especially living in oregon where it is so stinking rainy most of the year.

And it's great because it's not a messy artsy activity that has to be overseen by me.

Anyway, YMMV, but I wish I had know about them when my older kids were little.

 

jen

[LibraryLover]

Yes! Yes! Yes! What else do little boys need? lol

 

And playdough mud be danged! Don't play with them, let them go and be.

 

But I am lazy that way. :D

 

They need less of us, imo.

 

My kids (girl and boy) don't do that, but that's because they only get one colour, and that's peanut butter colour. I don't know if it dries out because they eat it: equal portions of smooth peanut butter and milk powder or cornstarch.

 

As to the rest, aren't you doing enough if you let them sit in the middle of dirt or grass in the back yard?

 

:001_huh:

Rosie

[Nestof3]

I agree that Playmobil is fantastic!

 

I haven't read the replies, so maybe this has been gone over, but my two little boys have played with playmobil for hours EVERY DAY for the past 2 years. Since they were 3 and 4 and are now almost 5 and 6. Yes, there have been fights and drama over lost pieces, but I just cannot believe how much it has occupied them.

Especially living in oregon where it is so stinking rainy most of the year.

And it's great because it's not a messy artsy activity that has to be overseen by me.

Anyway, YMMV, but I wish I had know about them when my older kids were little.

 

jen

[JudoMom]

The things that have been consistently played here with are:

 

Imaginext

Lego/Duplo

Plastic Army Guys

Train tracks (GeoTrax & the wooden type)

Trio

Star Wars Galatic Heroes

 

Not official toys, but my boys have all also really liked pattern blocks, teddy bear counters, and the balance.

 

They also love to play outside.

 

I don't play with my boys or try to direct their activities (other than getting them to be quiet), until they are 5 when I start requiring a bit of school work nearly every day. They rarely sit still during playtime to play something "civilized" ;)--it always involves action of some sort.

Edited March 30, 2011 by JudoMom

[stripe]

I've looked at others' tot-school blogs with tweezers and pom-poms and crafts and wonder how the heck they get their kids to sit and do those things? :lol: I gave the 2yo 6 different kinds of beans in a bowl once and told him to sort them out into different plates. There were a lot of beans. Well, he got done in less than 5 min. The stinker sorted out 5 of the different kinds of beans, left the 6th kind in and when those were all that were left, poured them onto the plate. Sigh. He's a thinker, that's for sure. Oh, and a doer. I crazy, rambunctious doer.

My boy refused to do this when asked. He didn't see the point. And you know what, he's right. Who cares? It's boring. He would hate Montessori type stuff.

 

I mostly have my kids play with regular dough (flour + water). I've also made my own play dough once or twice with kool aid for color, but usually not. I don't care if they leave it out.

 

I think you need activities with a purpose and more rambunctious / active type of play, not sitting still and sorting things. Sorting beans is NOT the same as building a castle for obvious reasons, also because one is you telling him what to do, the other is his creation. Think open ended! Think - he's in charge, not you. Anything where an adult needs to be consulted for approval is not a fun game.

 

My boy also likes playing cards. He has learned a few games and is always inventing new ones (most of which only he can win). If you want him to sort stuff, get a pack of cards and have him sort by suit or something by playing solitaire. Board games are mildly popular. Stuff where he creates some alternate universe or runs around with a stick and some mud are always popular. Also a spray bottle (or container of water and a stick, leaf, sponge or anything else to draw or stamp with) + chalk + sidewalk = fun. Origami and paper plane making is also a hit. I found a book at a library book sale and my son made almost every model from reading the diagrams after I taught him the basic steps. As opposed to coloring, which he says is the worst activity in the world. Ed Emberley's drawing books are mildly popular.

 

But I look forward to ideas from this thread myself.

Edited March 30, 2011 by stripe
adding ideas

[ondreeuh]

I'm about ready to go to IKEA and get one of those swings that screws into the ceiling joist. Aw man, it looks like they discontinued the one I was thinking of, but they do have this.

 

My boys love/d Legos & Duplos, Kid K'nex, and action figures. I could probably get rid of everything else at 3 years old and they would still be fine. My 3 y/o is currently obsessed with his big brother's old Star Wars action figures.

[Homemama2]

Agreeing w/ all the ideas mentioned.

 

If you're wanting more 'school' type things, science experiments! (especially if things blow up like volcanoes or make a big mess)

 

I've had to come to accept that boys like messes...the bigger the better. And lots of movement. Mine hated coloring at that age too.