Kids learn fast and according to experts, even faster than adults. Childhood is the halcyon time where we see everything around us imaginatively rather than fixed. This is, in part, due to how the prefrontal cortex (that part of our brain where working memory is stored) is wired. Adults tend to be fixed in what they see while children are wired to be more creative because kids are designed to learn while adults are designed to perform. Thus, if you have board games of adult teams versus kids’ teams there may be a chance the kids will outperform the adults. Given this, childhood is the best time to give your kid all the mental and motor activities that can help boost learning further. Playing different kind of games can expand your child skills and help the develop lost of necessaryChildren have super agile brains and they can certainly keep up with all the information. Playing all kinds of games and activities will be the best time for you to bond with your children and they will love you for it.
Sing Songs
Music is a powerful tool in cognitive development and it is especially important to get them started as early as infancy. Singing songs helps children develop their motor skills, listening skills, and language comprehension at a fast rate. Lyrics in rhymes teach kids patterns and stories while lullabies deepen the bond between caregiver and infant.
Visit Interesting Places
Toys are great but traveling with your kids is even better. Visiting interesting places with your kids help them have unique sensory experiences as they discover new sites and sceneries. Even short trips do the trick. Traveling helps you build memories with your kids through fun and shared joyful moments and they will remember these wonderful experiences even as they grow to adulthood.
Offer a Variety of Games
Now is the time to go to Amazon to check out all the riddles and board games you can find for hours of fun and mental activity. Board games can be simple as snakes and ladders or complex building and construction game kits. Games like these help children develop logical and spatial reasoning as well as critical thinking.
Take them to outside activities such as the following:
Painting
When you make a piece of artwork you have to plan out how the colors and shapes will be arranged for the best effect. Painting is a very important activity for children’s cognitive development because it helps them practice their decision-making skills. Art is also fulfilling because it helps children express their emotions without having to verbally do so. Hand and eye coordination are also developed in art activities because children are taught to maneuver the materials skillfully to make beautiful creations.
Singing
Singing with your children is more beneficial than you think. As mentioned earlier, singing develops children’s language comprehension. Older children who can already join in singing can exercise their lip and tongue movement, enhancing their ability to communicate. However, the main benefit of singing is that it hones the “memory muscle”. Singing embeds information more rapidly in a child’s mind and that is precisely why alphabet songs were created. Many people and children do not see singing as work, and singing can be a good stress reliever to express emotions and have fun and enjoyment.
Play a Musical Instrument
If your child begs for a guitar or any musical instrument for his or her birthday you may just have to give in. The benefits of musical instruments on cognitive development are phenomenal. Playing a musical instrument physically changes the shape of the brain, specifically those areas of the brain involved with motor skills, hearing, and memory. Of course, the benefit of a muscled-up brain can trickle over to other learnings since it also makes people more adept at learning foreign languages. Aside from what’s been mentioned, learning to play a musical instrument may just boost IQ by seven points. How’s that, mommy?
Football
Football is played the world over and not only builds up your body but also builds up your mind. Comparing sedentary children with children who attended a Football Exercise program in a study shows remarkable results. Children who played football had improved running, coordination as well as better visual discrimination. Cognitive development is related not just with general physical activity but to specific abilities related to playing ball.
Baseball
Baseball may prove to be a nerve-wracking game because it not only tests a kid’s physical and cognitive performance but it is also a test of confidence. In children’s development according to Erikson, adolescent egocentrism is a stage where your child thinks everybody is looking at me. In the middle of a baseball game, the theory translates to your child having stage fright. Coaches can encourage children to focus not on the crowd but on the game. Baseball can teach kids a lot about focusing and getting into the “zone” which is a sports psychology term for a level of optimum performance which helps people achieve results.
Group Games
Group games and group activities help children communicate and coordinate their goals with other peers which can prove to be crucial skills in the adult world. Plan activities with your children’s friends such as art activities, physical games or building games to enhance communication and empathy.
As you can see there are lots of ways to develop your child’s skills from early age, but for some cases you should not only put you time, energy, knowledge, but also you need some financial investments for these all. Like if you are sending your child from some 3 different activities you may need money and can consider personal loans online as alternative financing option, or maybe some other ways.
Children need activities to be stimulated and to enhance their learning. Activities that may seem like play have direct beneficial consequences on your child’s cognitive development. Give your kids an advantage by getting them into these fun activities as early as possible.
