Resources ~ Activity Ideas ~ Bath Time Fun
Below is a list of fun ideas for bath time. Whether you’re looking to make bath
time fun for a child who does not necessarily appreciate the joys of ridding oneself
of dirt or just looking for a few new fun games in the tub, I think you will be
happy with the suggestions below.
Bath toys are the quintessential ingredient to a fun bath. We all have the classic
rubber ducky, but let’s see if we can spice up that bath toy bucket with the following
ideas:
The Kitchen
Have your toddler or child explore the kitchen with you to find new bath toys, or
better yet, for an older child, you can make a scavenger hunt ending at the tub.
At our house, we’ve always enjoyed the following kitchen toys;
Strainers - We’ve used strainers in a lot of different ways, we’ve gone fishing
for ducks with them and, it’s always fun to play in the rain so why not make it
rain in the tub? Don’t forget to sing those silly rain songs that we’ve all learned.
For older toddlers you can take this opportunity to teach them about the water cycle,
we’ve done this with our 2 and 1/2 year old and followed it up with a trip to the
computer to see how the water cycle works, there are so many youtube videos and
songs on the water cycle that you will be amazed. Our favorite is “Mr. Davies Water
Cycle Song”.
Also, all types of spoons, spatulas, and cups are fun too. Toddlers love pouring
water from one cup to another.
Ice - You can freeze a toy inside a foam cup of ice and peel off the foam exterior,
plop the ice age man or toy into the tub and your child will love to play with it
and watch it melt away.
Now, as long as you have all of you fun kitchen “toys” in the bath we might as well
get some of those toys from their kitchen and make some bath time soup.
Your Toddler’s Toy Box
We’ve gone through the kitchen and now headed straight for their toy box, and I’m
sure some of those toys could use a washing, and since you’re an over-worked parent,
why not let your curious toddler do it? We’ve always had fun with finding waterproof
toys or dolls and having our daughter Emily wash them as we wash her. Dolls or action
figures are especially fun to play with. This makes it easy to teach all of the
body parts, and toddlers love copying so this is sure to keep them entertained.
Another fun toy from the toy box is their tea set, after they’re done washing their
dishes they can enjoy a tea party.
Bubbles
It’s also fun to play with bubbles in the tub; after all they are made of soap,
so the tub is the prefect place for them. Don’t forget that you can use various
things to blow bubbles, like straws for little kids that have trouble blowing on
that wand. Also bracelets would work, and so would any other round toys you might
have.
Squirt Toys
I think every kid likes to squirt water across the tub, and sometimes at parents
as well. You can use cleaned out shampoo bottles, or local dollar stores sell little
squirt toys and water guns.
And you may ask “but how do we wash our toddler’s hair without them crying?”
I know my toddler hates shampoo, even if the bottle does proclaim “no tears”, we
are certain to shed tears unless we use; The best toy of all…our imagination.
My husband and I are big proponents of imaginative play. We use this at various
times, when Emmy gets hurt we use it to imagine that there are animals hanging from
the rooftops to distract her, we also use it when we are trying to keep her awake
in the car just until we get home for that long awaited nap, imagining that we are
driving by the jungle and monkeys are climbing on the car, in case you didn’t know
windshield wipers can get rid of any animal climbing on your car, so we’ve used
our imaginations all day long so we most definitely can think of scenarios for the
bath time to use. Emily hated getting her hair washed so we pretend there are planes
flying by and monkeys and elephants hanging from the ceiling, she tells us what
she sees on the ceiling and we talk about it, while she’s staring up, and before
she knows it, her head is washed and all of the water went straight back not going
into her eyes at all since her head is tilted all of the way back looking at all
of the things and animals climbing and flying by our bathroom ceiling. We’ve used
this technique to teach Emily a lot. She has learned what each animal eats and where
they live, since we’ve seen it all first hand and all without leaving PA.
Toys you can buy
If you’re looking to buy a few bath time toys other than rubber ducks, there are
so many options available. Here are a few that I found interesting;
- A toddler fishing set, most stores sell these for under $10, they are usually magnetic
or have a small hook that attaches to the fish.
- As usual, any boat or Noah’s ark type toy would be tons of fun.
- There are also basketball sets for the tub for the sporty kid.
- Ring toss in the tub is fun and reuses those baby toys we hardly got any use out
of.
- Bath paints and crayons designed for the tub are messy and fun as well, what better
place to get messy than in the tub.
- There are various bath foam and puzzles that stick to the wall in stores.
- And last but not least, Alex
Toys has a wide range of bath toys, my favorite we have yet to try are the musical
instruments for the tub.