One of the biggest tasks for us mommies is to keep our infant busy with some learning activities. But for many new mothers, it is a hectic chore to keep their 18 month old baby.
So, what is the solution? Most importantly, what are our options? Well, if you are looking for the best daily activities for your 18 month old, you are at the right place.
This article will guide you about the best learning, sensory, and indoor printable activities that you can try without any fuss. We also got you covered with the rainy day and fun outdoor activities too.
The bonus point is, if you’re planning to travel in the near future, we also got some pretty hacks to keep your baby busy in the airplane during the whole flight. So, worry not, and keep on reading!
18 month old milestones
Well, now your toddler is 1.5 years old. This is the time when they are full of hyper energy and love to explore everything. Keep in mind that it is normal for an 18 month old baby to show some tantrums.
In case you’re looking for what is the normal behavior for kids at this age, then here’s the information we don’t want you to miss:
- They can understand and repeat the commonly used items like cups, glass, and spoons.
- They know how to hold the cup and can sense the difference between hot and cold.
- An eighteen month old toddler can walk and sit freely without any assistance.
- At this age, it is normal for toddlers to show some regression and disturbed sleep patterns.
Children of this age can intake solid food items for breakfast and lunch. Also, this is the perfect time for weaning off breastfeeding schedule.
30 Daily Activities For Your 18 Month Old Baby
Toddler gets excited very easily. Well, that is the curse of blessing because as soon as you try that activity with them, there is no charm in it for them. But we have a perfect solution for this problem of yours.
Our editors have collaborated with experienced mothers and gathered some of the perfect extravagant activities to try every day. So that sums up to a new activity for each day.
Learning Activities For 18 Month Old
Learning is very important for toddlers. With this young and active mind, they can adapt to new things very quickly. So, here are the best learning activities that will surely get their interest.
1. Match The Socks
I used to play this game a lot with my little baby. It is a fun way of teaching your kid about patterns and colors.
To ensure that they remember the color names, speak the shade color and ask them to match it with its pair.
2. Walk On Bubble Wrap
Let me assure you that this is going to be so much fun. All you need to do is place a bubble wrap mat on the floor and encourage your kid to walk over it.
The kid will feel a change in the texture of the surface. It is a fun way to teach your child about shapes and objects.
3. Can You Draw The Same?
For this activity, you will need paper and some crayons. Then draw some shapes on the paper and challenge your kid to whether they can make it or not.
Let me assure you that toddlers of this age love to accept challenges, and they will try their best to prove you wrong.
4. Match The Animals With Toys
This is a fun way of teaching your toddler the animals’ names. To execute this activity, you will need a Playbook and a matching set of toys.
Take out all the twice and ask your kid to match the toys with the pictures in the Playbook. This is the best and most effective way (we tested it).
5. Balance The Ball On The Roll
We all have tissue paper rolls stored in our pantry. Well, this is a time when we need to use them.
Place the tissue paper rolls in a row and give your toddler some colorful balls. Then ask them to balance the balls over the rolls.
Sensory Activities For 18 Month Old
Sensory activities are great and essential for a kid’s mental development. It encourages them to think and plan effectively.
That’s why child psychologists always recommend including some sensory activities in the daily routine of toddlers.
1. Try The Sensory Walk
This is the perfect activity that you can do in your living room. Arrange some small rectangular wooden boards and ask your kid to walk between them.
You can also do this with pots or old books. At the end of the walk, give your child some sweets to celebrate their first milestone!
2. Play With Dough
Children love to play with the dough. Well, you can add a little twist to this play. Give your child dough or slime. And ask them to make their favorite animal shape.
Keep in mind that this is going to be a messy play, but worry not; we also got you covered on how to remove slime from children’s clothes.
3. Kitchen Band Play
This activity will surely make your toddler giggle. Place Steel pots in front of your kid and start taping over them. Well, you can wake up your inner singer and sing some rhymes along with it.
Let me assure you that after some time, your kid will also start singing. This is the perfect activity to boost their confidence.
4. Build A Block House
Usually, an 18 month old Kid has a lot of block sets. And they love to play with them. So why not give them the challenge to build a home by their block set?
By doing so, they can picture their imagination. This activity is great for promoting Motor skills in your toddler.
5. The Water Play
Water-based activities are perfect for teaching your child about balance. You can fill a bucket full of water and ask your kid to transfer half the water to the other bucket.
For more fun, you can add a colored ice cube to the water and challenge them to transfer all water before it changes color.
Rainy Day Activities For 18 Month Old
Keeping your kid inside a home on a rainy day is probably the most hectic task for parents. For toddlers, rain is amazing, and they love to play in rainwater which may result in seasonal flu.
So how to keep your toddler engaged in fun activities during rainy days? Well, worry not, here are some of our test hacks that work every time!
1. Read A Nursery Book Together
Reading is a perfect way to keep your child easy on a rainy day without giving them a phone.
You can read their favorite storybook, or you could also write a fairy tale with them. To build their interest in reading, give them a little treat after this task.
2. Watching A Movie Together
This activity may seem a little off to you, but it is essential to watch television with your toddlers. This will strengthen your bond with them.
In the meantime, you can also practice positive parenting. We strongly suggest you watch a toy movie rather than a soap opera.
3. Let’s Bake A Cake
If you want to protect your child from rain, then you must have an equally interesting task. Well, toddlers love cake and chocolate treats. So why not bake a cake together?
This will keep them inside war and busy with productive activity, and after that, you can enjoy a pure delicacy.
4. Shake A Leg Together
Be assured that your toddler is going to love this activity. As they say, when it rains, do dance. So be ready to shake your leg.
Play the favorite song of your kid and start dancing like no one is watching you. At the start, your child will giggle, but after a few moments, they will join you.
5. Flip Through Old Photos
Every family has tons of photos. We, parents, love to click and save photos of our children. A rainy day is a perfect time to go through all the old memories.
Show your child the funny photos and tell them how they used to act silly yet adorable.
Montessori Activities For 18 Month Old
Montessori activities promote self-learning and encourage kids to explore more. That’s why they are preferred by parents planning to leave their children in daycare. These activities also help them to learn and play effortlessly.
1. Practice Reading Aloud
The first thing that daycare teachers teach your children is reading. So why not be a step ahead? You can read a rhyme book aloud with your toddler.
By doing so, you are killing two birds with one stone as your kid will practice speaking and unconsciously remember some nursery rhymes.
2. Cut The Bread Slice
For this activity, you have to be near your toddler all the time. Place a piece of bread on a plate and give your child a plastic knife. After that, tell them to cut the slice into square and rectangular shapes.
You can also give them a bottle cap with a circle shape. While practicing it, always be around to prevent any mishaps.
3. Practice Finger Painting
This DIY Montessori activity is essential for self-awareness. You can get edible paint and ask your kid to dip their fingers into it. You can also make some paintings with it.
We strongly suggest you get edible paint rather than the normal dye. As your kid may eat it during this activity.
4. Prepare Your Own Lunch
In Montessori or daycare centers, you are supposed to give your child a lunch box. So why not start their training a little early?
You can give them lunch essentials and ask them to make their own lunch box. Be available to help them but first, let the kid showcase their imagination.
5. Pretend Cleaning Task
Cleaning is one of the practical Montessori activities. You can ask your child to clean the living room.
For an authentic touch, you could place some books or throw some wrappers, ask your child to pick them up, and throw them in the dustbin. If they do it without even asking, trade them with chocolate candy.
Printable Activities For 18 Months Old
18 months is a suitable age to introduce some printable activities. These activities will teach your child how to make shapes and how to fill the colors in them. These easy, fantastic tasks will keep your baby busy for prolonged hours.
1. Replicate A Painting
Print a famous painting and place carbon paper underneath it. Then ask your toddler to draw it.
Due to the carbon paper, you will get the impression of the painting. Then fill it with colors. For more fun, limit your toddler to primary colors only.
2. Print A 3D Ball
This idea is only suitable for you if you have a 3D printer at home. You can print a ball or any shape and give it to your kid.
For a comparison, give a normal ball and ask your toddler whether they can feel the change in texture or not.
3. Circle The Dot
This easy yet interesting activity is great for kids up to 2 years of age. You can print a piece of paper full of dots and ask your toddler to make circles by joining the dots.
It may take them a while to understand the task completely, but you can also help them by showing an example.
4. Go With Some Number Art
If you are teaching your alphabet or numbers, then you are going to love this idea. Print number art or alphabets and encroach your toddler to read them allowed.
You can also laminate the paper and make a bet with your kids that they cannot fill color to the numbers.
5. Try Some Paper Art
Pleasing children with paper art is getting more popular day by day. It may be a hectic little task for parents, but for the happiness of our child, we can do this.
Watch a YouTube tutorial and make DIY paper art. For more fun, you can also teach it to your children.
Indoor Activities For 18 Month Old
Want to keep your kid busy indoors? But the problem is many parents give their young children cell phones or turn on the televisions just to keep them happy and engaged. That is not so great for the kid’s health and schedule.
Instead of more screen time, Try our below-listed activities that you can execute effortlessly.
1. Make Flower Ice Cubes
This is a great way by which you can keep your kid busy and productive simultaneously. Give them an ice tray. Pour some food colors into it and fill it up with water.
After that, place it in your freezer and show your children how water will become denser and change its color.
2. Toddler Unusual Photoshoot
This indoor activity is mainly for parents rather than toddlers. You need to dress them in fancy clothes and do a photoshoot.
Encourage your toddler to strike some poses. If you want to make things extravagant, you can do a cartoon character photoshoot.
3. Teach Them Emotions
Emotions drive our behavior, but our little ones don’t know how to tackle anger and fear. Well, with this activity, you can teach them a valuable lesson about expressing and controlling their emotions.
You can ask them to draw shapes representing the smile, cry, and confused look.
4. Sponge Water Play
Kids love to make mess with a sponge, and eventually, it is a great way to keep them busy playing happily. Well, I used to give water and a sponge to my daughter and ask her to clean the tiles.
By doing so, I was killing two birds with one stone. You can try this too at home.
5. Put On Fake Makeup!
If your little one is more into arts and crafts, then this is the perfect idea for you to try. You can act as a client and let your little one be the beautician.
Ask them to give you a nice makeover without using any real product. Let me assure you that kids just love this, and they can spend hours doing it.
Airplane Activities For 18 Month Old
Nothing is more irritating than being on a flight with a crying child. To be honest, it can be difficult to deal with kids while on airplanes.
So that is why it is essential to tackle them and keep them busy during the flight. Here are some of the interesting ideas that might come in handy during such situations.
- Keep them busy in sticker books.
- Put on their favorite movie and let them watch it.
- Take their favorite toy on a flight.
- Take some candies and snacks Along with you to give them during the flight.
- You can also put a color book in your hand carry and let your child do some art and craft.
Be very gentle with your kid on the flight. Keep in mind that it is normal for little ones to cry. Never raise your voice, and try your best to deal nicely in any situation.
Wrapping It Up!
18 months old is a very special age as, at this age, toddlers love to explore and do things according to their imaginations. It is best to keep them busy with some learning and fun activities.
It is normal for toddlers to show interest in one activity one day and find no charm in it the next day. That’s why parents need to adapt to new, fun, and unique activities every week.
We hope that this article helps you to create a great parenting Bond with your toddler. Well, in the meantime, be happy and keep on loving your children!
