Executive function
Toddlers observe a simple memory game.
[Invite several toddlers to join you on the floor to play a game. Show toddlers the toy frog and three baskets.]
Our little frog likes to hop, hop, hop and then hide! Let’s play a game of watching the frog hop and remembering where the frog hides.
Our frog likes to hide under baskets. Watch with your eyes to see where the frog goes.
[Turn the three baskets upside down and place them in a row so the toddlers can see each basket.
Hop the frog around on the floor, always in front of the toddlers, and on top of the baskets for a few seconds. While toddlers are watching, place the frog under the middle basket.]
The frog hopped under a basket. The frog is hiding!
I wonder where the frog is hiding! Did you watch where he went?
I am going to try to remember which basket the frog is hiding under.
[Have fun pretending you did not pay attention to where the frog hopped. Look under the right, then under the left basket. Show excitement when you find the frog under the middle basket!]
The frog is going to hop, hop, hop and then hide again! This time I am going to watch closely and try to remember where he goes.
[Hop the frog on the floor and on top of the baskets, always in full view of toddlers. Hide the frog in the left or right basket.]
The frog hopped under a basket. He is hiding from us again! Did you watch him? I watched where he went. I am going to try hard to remember which basket he is hiding under.
[Point to the correct basket. Ask toddlers: Is this the basket I should look under first? Pause for and acknowledge their responses.
Look under the correct basket. Show excitement when you find the frog!]
I watched where the frog hopped and I thought hard to remember where he was hiding. I found the frog hiding under the basket!
Should the frog hop, hop, hop and hide again?
[Repeat once again if toddlers show interest.]
We played a game of watching and finding our toy frog. We used our eyes to watch the frog hop and then hide. We could not see the frog after it went under a basket. I watched the frog and remembered where he went. I found the frog under the basket!
Executive function
A toddler participates in a simple memory game.
Invite one toddler to play a memory game on the floor with you. Introduce the frog and three baskets. Explain that the frog likes to hop, hop, hop and then hide. Introduce the memory game of finding the hidden frog. Example: “We are going to play a game of finding where the frog is hiding! We are going to watch where the frog goes, and then remember where the frog hides.”
Place the three baskets upside down in a row in front of the toddler. Remind the toddler to uses his/her eyes to watch where the frog hops. Hop the frog around the floor and, while the toddler is watching, place the frog under the middle basket. Invite the toddler to remember where the frog is hiding. Example: “Our frog hopped around and now he is hiding from us! Do you remember which basket the frog is hiding under? Which basket should we look under?”
Describe the toddler’s actions. Example: “You are looking under the basket that is closest to you. There is no frog.” Provide hints for a toddler who is unsure about which basket to look under. Example: “You looked under this basket and the frog was not there. We need to try a different basket. Maybe the frog is hiding under this one. Let’s look and see!”
Provide positive verbal support for the toddler’s efforts. Examples: “You watched the frog hop around and then hide from us.” You remembered where the frog was hiding!” or “You looked under some baskets but we did not see the frog!”
Play the game again if the toddler shows interest. End the activity by emphasizing that we watched and remembered. Example: “Hailey, you watched where the frog went, and you tried to remember which basket he was hiding under. We found him together!”
Executive function
Toddlers participate together in a simple memory game.
Invite two toddlers to join you on the floor to play a memory game. Introduce the frog and explain that the frog likes to hop around and then hide under a basket. Explain that the two toddlers will take turns. One toddler will hop the frog around the area and hide it under a basket while the other toddler watches and tries hard to remember which basket the frog is hiding under. Then the toddlers will reverse roles.
Your role is to facilitate the two toddlers’ play, making sure turns are taken and that each toddler understands what he/she is to do. Use prompts suggested in Options 1 and 2 to help toddlers focus on the frog’s location.
Play the game for two rounds (each child does the hopping or the finding twice). Offer a third round if both children seem interested. Close the session by reminding toddlers that we worked hard to watch and remember where the frog went.
By design, the three options provide different levels of challenge in watching and remembering. Options 1 and 2 differ in level of involvement (watching, acting). Option 3 is appropriately suited for two toddlers who have demonstrated skill in watching and remembering. In Option 3, provide as much appropriate support to the toddler who does the frog “hopping” as to the toddler who does the frog “finding.” The process of moving and hiding the frog is as beneficial as trying to watch and remember. If the toddlers in Option 3 find the activity to be too challenging, tactfully switch the game into you moving and hiding the frog and the two children taking turns turning over a basket(s).
Some toddlers will observe and remember quickly. Other toddlers will need additional support and hints to remain focused and remember where the frog is hidden. Toddlers who are at a beginning level of learning to focus and remember may benefit from repeated participation in the game. (See Extra Support tip below.)
Try to avoid having this activity turn into a guessing game. Guessing does not promote short-term memory skills, and works against the development of an understanding of watching and remembering. One of your important roles is to encourage a toddler to observe the frog closely as you (or another toddler) place it under the basket. If the toddler does not select the middle basket in the early rounds of Options 1 or 2, do not prolong the search by suggesting the toddler “make another guess.” Instead, lift the middle basket to reveal the toy frog and try another round.
Some toddlers may enjoy hiding the frog from you. Reversing the roles in this game can be beneficial for the toddler. (See Enrichment tip below.)
Extra support
Enrichment
Materials Needed: water table; toy pond animals, such as frogs, fish, and ducks; artificial plants for the animals to “hide” behind; In the Small, Small Pond by Denise Fleming
Help toddlers prepare for the activity by reading and describing the pictures in the book suggested above. Place toy frogs, fish, and ducks in the sensory table with warm water. Add artificial plants for toddlers to use to “hide” the water animals. Talk with toddlers about their ideas and actions as they play with the pond animals.
Materials Needed: water table; toy pond animals, such as frogs, fish, and ducks; artificial plants for the animals to “hide” behind; In the Small, Small Pond by Denise Fleming
Read the book and talk with children in your care about how the pond animals in the book are hiding. Invite small groups of children to play at the water table and encourage them to “hide” the animals in the plants like the pond animals hide in the book. Young toddlers may enjoy playing with chunky pond animals in a basin filled with a small amount of water. Talk with children about their ideas and actions as they play.
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