Toddler Lesson Plan: October

Last month I decided I wanted to create more structure and intentional play for my toddler. This lead me to the idea of creating weekly themes that would allow for us to learn casual lessons through song and play with a focus in mind. Rather than posting about this weekly, I created a monthly “toddler lesson plan” series that goes live at the beginning of each month.

The next few months will be a lot of fun with all the holidays coming up! I highly suggest looking on Pinterest to find simple crafts that you can tie into these weekly themes. You can keep this as simple or involved as you want!

Life happens and some weeks are crazy. We even jump in and out of these lesson plans. What I love about planning ahead is that on a slower week I already have ideas ready to go therefore I don’t have to scramble in the moment. It takes so much pressure off of myself and keeps our play time that much more fun!

October Lesson Plan

WEEK 1

Numbers – One through Five

Focus on a new number each day
Song Example: Pinkfong Counting 1 to 5
Count everything all day long

WEEK 2

Opposites – Hot/Cold, On/Off, Big/Little, Fast/Slow, Up/Down

Focus on one opposite action per day
Find items around your house that you can demonstrate the action with

WEEK 3

Jungle Animals – Monkey, Snake, Tiger, Crocodile, Hippo

Focus on one animal per day
Learn the animal sounds
Go to a local zoo to see the real deal
Read animal related books

WEEK 4

Place setting – Cup, Plate, Fork, Spoon, Bowl

Focus on one item per day
Song Example: Mealtime Song For Kids
Set the table together for each meal

WEEK 5

Halloween – Costumes, Trick-or-Treat, Pumpkins, Ghosts, Spiders

Focus on one Halloween topic per day
Read books about Halloween
Song Examples: Halloween Costume Party
Point out all Halloween decor around your house or neighborhood
Go Trick-or-Treating or to a Halloween party/festival

NOTES

Sensory Bins

Grab a bin laying around your house and fill it with materials you will need for the week. It is exciting for the toddler to explore “new” toys daily or even just weekly!
You don’t have to buy new stuff… look around your house and search through your existing toys. Presenting old toys in a new manner will make them fun again, I promise.
If you want to spend a little money, the dollar store is fantastic for these activities!

Field Trips

Try to plan an activity that relates to your weekly theme. I’ve included some activities above, but if there is something available in your area that pertains to the weekly theme, go check it out!

Language

If your child is learning a secondary language or sign language, you can teach these words as well! Just say them frequently and interchangeably throughout the day. Don’t know what they are? Just google them!