I’m Megan Manzi, here to share tips on engaging your kiddos at home using everyday, household items with a bit of imagination! You know all those plastic animal figures you keep stepping on? Time to put them to work in this week’s activity… Welcome to “The Zany Animal Zoo!”

First have your toddler sort the animals. This is a great time to work on reinforcing colors and size. I love to sort the animals into two groups, big versus small, and then encourage my toddler friends to place them in size order from biggest to smallest. For an added challenge, separate the animals in different corners depending on where they live — sky, sea, or land.

Next, color the animals’ feet with washable paint or stamp pads. Have them hop, race, and gallop across a piece of paper. Look at how each animal’s tracks look different! For more messy fun, paint the entire animal figure a wild color. A bright purple duck is even more fun than a yellow one.

Finally, it’s time to give our zany zoo animals a bath! A sponge, water, and some soap will keep toddlers happy for quite a while. Take this time to review body parts. Guide your toddler to sponge off the plastic horses’ back, maybe even his hooves, etc. Best part is, our toddler has had a fun filled, educating activity and done most of the clean up themselves!